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Autism Education Strategy Launch
Chris Varney
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Chris Varney, Founder and Chief Enabling Officer – I CAN Network
[Chris speaks to camera with I CAN Network banner in the background]
The theme for 2020’s International Day for People with Disability, Building Back Better, means that we’re empowering autistic young people to use their different intuition and their creative problem-solving to create solutions to the problems in front of them, but also develop self-efficacy and support their fellow autistic peers and other students.
Katie Koullas
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Katie Koullas, Founder and CEO – Yellow Ladybugs
[Katie speaks to camera. She is outdoors with trees and greenery in the background]
This year’s theme means a world where our autistic girls can celebrate their identity, where their experiences are validated, and where their support needs are met at school and beyond.
Fiona Sharkie
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Fiona Sharkie, CEO - Amaze
[Fiona speaks to camera. She sits in what appears to be an office with a bookshelf in the background]
There’s no doubt that COVID-19 had a massive impact on students and families, particularly in the learning from home initiative, so there’s no better time to be launching the Autism Education Strategy which promises autistic students long-awaited support for them to truly participate and achieve at school.
Katie Koullas
Disability inclusivity means celebrating the full diversity of autistic experiences, including autistic girls, women, and gender diverse individuals, and that’s what we do at Yellow Ladybugs, and it’s our mission to create a sense of belonging.
Chris Varney
We need the different processing style that autistic students have, we need that in every classroom, every workplace to help us with innovation.
Fiona Sharkie
There are many great parts of this Strategy. And most importantly, it seems there is something for every autistic student - those who will receive individual funding, and those who don’t - who will benefit from new funding and resources to ensure adjustments and supports are made for every autistic student.
Chris Varney
What I’m most excited about, is that we are signalling to students and families and schools that we accept students with disability for who they are.
Fiona Sharkie
This reform truly embraces the social model of disability where the emphasis is on the school system and the community to adapt to allow the autistic student to thrive.
Katie Koullas
As a neurodivergent-led organisation, we look forward to partnering with the Department to develop these resources based on our shared experience and our lived experience.
Fiona Sharkie
The Autism Education Strategy is an Australian first and all eyes will be on Victoria and we need to be ambitious. Amaze’s hope is that the proposed transformation of this system brings transformational results.
Chris Varney
It is so important that a school leadership team feels well-supported, that they feel nourished by the education system and they have somewhere to go to unpack their goals and to look at the capability of their school staff team and make a plan for how they’re going to grow the best school they can for their local families.
Katie Koullas
We would encourage anyone involved in supporting autistic girls and gender diverse individuals at school look beneath the mask at the invisible needs, and this is where we hope this reform will shine a light to encourage meaningful supports. Not masking goals, but something that helps all of our community be their authentic true self and have pride in their autistic identity.
Fiona Sharkie
We’re now all on this first step of this important journey to achieve the long-awaited aspiration of true inclusion for autistic students at school.
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