Mayor4Unley

There is always chatter about NAPLAN and its validity in measuring the skills of children. Angst by kids sitting the test, angst by parents re the results and concern about some schools coaching kids in preparation for the test. I understand that concern. Statistically there is real concern about the validity of mixing results from 2 sources viz. written vs. online. Ask any statistician. At the 12th hour, the NAPLAN  national assessment authority, ACARA , is wondering just what to do. What should have been done is that ACARA should have validated the methodology and gained support from schools before embarking on inclusion of online tests and merging results. There should have been consultation and consensus before embarking on this experiment. An expert statistical assessment would have probably raised concern about the validity. It's all very sad. Now (as reported in the media) there is the likelihood of reputational damage to NAPLAN. A High School Principal ...

I was delighted to learn of the Repair Cafe being established at Clarence Park Community Centre @ Black Forest in #Unley. Just love the concept ❤️ It’s a growing trend across the globe. Volunteers will assist people to repair home appliances. These people may over time (with increased confidence) offer to volunteer their services at the Repair Cafe and assist others in the community. I would like to see more Repair Cafes across Unley. Read more about the Repair Cafe concept

We all do it. It's mandatory; an absolute obligation. When you're down at the beach on a non swimming visit, be it at Glenelg or Semaphore or Beachport or wherever, and you're done the shops, had a bite to eat, whatever, you simply must walk the jetty. Right to the end, then loiter a while and then head back. We observe each other, we look in the buckets and engage in idle conversation about the luck of the fishers who are mostly male. But put yourself in the the place of a fisherman and the continual stream of people who enquire about 'how are they biting?' and 'what have you caught?'. Actually there is strict etiquette about a walk along a jetty. And so many people break the rules. Here's a list of etiquette guidelines to help you on your next stroll along the jetty. Jetty etiquette

The number of people who drown each year is totally unacceptable; especially very young kids in home pools. Years ago, kids were taught how to swim at school. It was part of our culture; learning to swim. That culture needs to be restored. So, get your kids booked in a learn to swim program this summer. In Adelaide, the SA Water VACSWIM PROGRAM runs from December 2016 to January 2017. Kids will learn water awareness, safety, confidence and skills. For more information and bookings visit vacswimsa.com.au It's a must for every kid.

Koalas are cute and cuddly love a cuddle. Actually, they will tolerate a cuddle, but they do dislike people. However, in times of stress like fire, floods and heatwave they tolerate being helped; especially getting a drink from bowl or a water bottle; they will sit next to you, clasp the bottle and take a drink. They are one of the few Australian native animals that can't be domesticated. After being rescued and cared for, even for months, when released back into the bush they take off up a tree and don't look back. During tough times, we need to rescue them and look after them until it is time to release them. It's important to know just what to do. An organisation called Fauna Rescue Team (telephone 08-72260017) has released a document on what to do; and what not to do. The document is called Koala Important Summer Survival (KISS). There are several important KISS tips: Water. Definitely Yes, they do need a drink; preferably from a shallow tray. Swimming Pools. ...

Recently I attended the launch of the Spirit of Anzac Centenary Experience at the Showground in Adelaide. A wonderful exhibit and experience. I carried an iPod-like device and tagged exhibits that I found interesting and wanted a link for future reference. Excellent use of technology. My tagged exhibits can be viewed by this link Click here

Smart sounds An article in today's Advertiser lists 15 words suggested by experts that we should drop from our vocabulary and then supposedly sound smarter. The words are: That Went Honestly Really Very Amazing Absolutely Always Never Literally Just Maybe Stuff Things Irregardless I could easily drop half of these words; but I do like the words Stuff , Things , Maybe and Absolutely . Maybe people would sound a bit smarter, not by dropping some words, but by learning to string words together a bit better. Stuff would sound a lot better; absolutely. Here's a link to the article

On Tuesday this week a team of Concordia College students came to Forestville Reserve to remove all the graffiti the tags from the tram overpass wall. It was an absolute mess. This activity was a part of the students' community service; a part of their course work. It was good to see them at work. Look at the photos to see the before, during and after status.

FYI a friend sent me an article on the pervasiveness of acronyms today; the push for more and more acronyms is probably driven by the desire to fit more words into a 140 characters text message. BTW I am simply reprinting what was sent to me; without my usual edit of spelling and grammar. This article is from the August 15 issue of The Australian Digital Edition.   The acronyms are coming. Marching across the language in their thousands, blunt, unlovely, artificial abbreviations, easy to coin and virtually ineradicable, forcing out perfectly good words and replacing them with ugly initials. Acronyms are the grey squirrels of language. Two acronymic films will be competing at the box office: The Man from U.N.C.L.E., which stands for United Network Command for Law and Enforcement, and the Bond movie, Spectre (Special Executive for Counterintelligence , Terrorism, Revenge and Extortion). The men from U.N.C.L.E. fight an evil organisation called Thrush (Technologic...

I'm not that old, but I remember the outdoor dunny; a cold sprint down to the backyard dunny; usually a wooden building with a galvo iron roof. Make as much noise as you like and no-one would hear you, except for someone passing in the laneway; a lane that was built to service the adjoining houses. Water, power and later sewerage pipes ran down these service lanes. There were long drops and later water flushing was added as modern amenities became available. Back in those days, before we had pine plantations to make gloriously soft toilet tissue, we had to make do with left over paper - usually newspaper that was cut into squares and placed on a spike fixed to the toilet wall. It was an art form, whilst sitting on the wooden seat, to gently massage the paper and make it soft for wiping the bottom. The trouble with newspaper is that it left an ink print greyness on the bottom. Sometimes, it was absolute joy when there was some soft brown paper or fine tissue paper like that whic...

When Federal Education Minister Christopher Pyne announced plans for future teachers to be better educated he was confronted by protestors and the incident turned a bit nasty with Police using pepper spray. There were howls of protest - who wouldn't when sprayed with liquid chilli. I believe there is merit in ensuring that our future teachers are better educated and have the skills to nurture the development of our future kids. I do wonder how many of the protestors were actually future teachers. I suspect that they were university students who protest anything and everything. My kids have mostly had good teachers, but there were a few duds along the way. What's wrong with improving the quality of our future teachers?

People can be harsh judges when it comes to noticing spelling errors. I am. However, the judging is harsher when a word is incorrectly used. It makes you look rather foolish. Here’s a link to an article titled 40 Incorrectly Used Words That Can Make You Look Dumb Take the time to learn the correct use of the words. Don’t worry, many people have a problem with some. Link to incorrectly used words

This October will mark the centenary of ANZAC. It was in October 1914 that the first convoy of Australian troops left Western Australia by ship to fight the war to end all wars. To this day, the ANZAC spirit lives on and remains relevant to our ever changing society (and its make-up). This year's Annual Hawke Lecture is titled Commemorating the ANZAC Centenary: Why is it Important for all Australians? It will be delivered by Air Chief Marshal Angus Houston ACAFC (Ret’d). He will reflect on the centenary of ANZAC and explain why it is so important to observe this time in history and just why does the ANZAC story and the values remain so central to what it means to be an Australian today and in the future? The centenary not only provides us with the opportunity to remember the service and sacrifice of our past and current servicemen and women, but it helps to unify our ever-changing nation. I hope that recognition of the centenary helps to inject the ANZAC spirit into all s...

Something that annoys me ... Have you noticed that many people now start a sentence, usually in response to a question with the word so , followed by a pause. An example: Q. What do you think of this or that? A. So (pause) I feel that etc. Typically it is the older well educated 'youth' eg. 25-35 who start a sentence with so . I frequently hear it during TV interviews. It is so bad. But, who am I to complain? I remember when growing up, sentences were commonly ended with but . Or if you came from Queensland, you ended a sentence with hey (pronounced hay). I still drop one now and then.

Plastic waste is part of our society. There is a needless amount (especially from households) still going to landfill and not being recycled. Education programs (especially with our kids at school) are slowly working. But, there will always be plastic waste. We just need to maximise the diversion of that waste to recycling. REPLAS is an Australian firm that has excelled in converting plastic waste to plastic products that are innovative and durable, often used in marine environments. REPLAS has partnered with companies like Coles and Dulux to manage (ie. re-use) their plastic waste. Also, Coles has drop off bins outside their stores where shoppers can deposit plastic bags from home. I will be challenging Council to embrace plastic products instead of steel, wood and concrete eg. bollards, walkways, benches, posts, garden furniture, ... the list is extensive. Check out the REPLAS website  here and don't forget to drop off plastic bags at Coles weekly. I...

The International Day for Biological Diversity is to be celebrated on Thursday 22 May, 2014 @ Forestville Reserve. International Day for Biological Diversity Community Event Date: Thursday, 22 May 2014 Venue: Forestville Reserve Time: 10am – 2pm Activities on the day include nest box building, planting native plants and biodiversity talks. Register your interest in participating in the event by contacting Scott Douglas on 8372 5118 or sdouglas@unley.sa.gov.au

I have just had a briefing with Unley Council about an initiative to increase our rate of recycling via our rubbish bins ie. to get more residents to do the right thing. Here is more information ... In accordance with our Waste Management Strategy (2013-2017) and Council overall objective to reduce the amount of waste going to landfill,  we are undertaking a ‘Recycle Right’ bin tagging campaign which lets residents know if they are recycling correctly or if they need further understanding of what can and cannot be recycled.  There are many benefits associated with recycling right.  ·        Diverting materials away from landfill ·        Saving water and energy ·        Helping conserve non-renewable resources ·        Saving on the cost of materials unnecessarily going to landfill ·        Reduci...

I got sent an online survey about the services and activities of the Dog and Cat Management Board. I confessed to having a broad knowledge about the Board, but lacked finer details about the research and activities. I have since reviewed the Board's website and find that it has a lot of interesting and relevant information. So, if you have a cat or dog problem or just want to know more, then visit the website. Here's a link to the Dog & Cat Management Board website and here's an extract from that website on cats ... There are currently around half a million unowned cats in South Australia. Each year approximately 15,000 cats are  surrendere to South Australian shelters and of these cats, at least 70% are euthanased. They may arrive at Shelters as strays, ferals or owned cats, but thousands of healthy, sociable cats are destroyed because there are not enough good homes for them. Ninety per cent of cats presented to shelters are unwanted kittens. Most kittens b...

Have you ever considered hosting an international student in your home?  Give it some thought. I have heard of many positive experiences. If you're lamenting an empty nest then think about it.  Here is more information from the SA Government Education Department ... Host an international student We are looking for willing families to host international high school students commencing their studies in a South Australian government school in Term 3, 2014. You can choose to host a student for a period of time that best suits your family: ·          Study Tour student for 2-5 weeks ·          Study Abroad student for 1 – 4 terms ·          Graduate student for 1 – 5 years We are always looking for families in the zoned areas of the following schools, however, if you live outside of these zones, please still contact us. Adelaide Hig...

At the Unley Council meeting held (last night) on 11 March 2014, a key outcome was adoption of a policy governing mandatory inspections of new swimming pools and spas. I gave this matter my full support. We should do everything we can to reduce the unacceptably high number of deaths of toddlers by drowning in backyard pools. All new pools and spas will need to be fenced and have safety signs displayed. It is mandatory for residents and builders to notify Council when a pool or spa has been built or installed. This is a follow-on from the State Government revising the Development Regulations. A statutory fee of $170 will be charged for an inspection. This is set by the State Government and can’t be changed by Council. The reality is that it will probably cost the Council more than the $170. The bottom line is that it’s a good outcome and hopefully will reduce the number of drownings. For more information, here are some links … Unley Council agenda for me...