World Teachers’ Day
Wednesday 29 October 2025
S.E. ANDREWS (Gibson) (11:45): I rise to speak in support of this motion and thank my good friend the member for Davenport for bringing it to this house and giving all of us an opportunity to acknowledge the incredible work teachers do in our community. As the member for Black said, they really are the foundation of our community.
I acknowledge that we are all in the middle of graduation season at the moment, and what I have found over the years is it actually gives a really good insight into how the schools are run and the feeling in the community at each of the schools. What I have witnessed over and over again is the incredible relationships teachers have built with their students over a long period of time and the absolute pride they see in them on graduation night, when they send them on their way after spending so many years supporting them and educating them.
I would like to acknowledge all of the teachers in the electorate of Gibson, in 11 schools as we are counting today, and thank them so much. I thank the teachers in Gibson for their commitment, for the many, many hours they bring to delivering world-class education to our young people and also the real passion that they show in their relationships with children. We know that if we want young people to succeed, it really is the relationship that matters, and I thank them for giving it their all in developing those relationships.
As I stand here recognising World Teachers' Day, I must acknowledge the teachers in my family. My grandpa Frank Andrews was a teacher at Gulnare; in fact, he taught all of the classes at Gulnare Primary School before moving to the city and teaching at Sturt Street Primary School. After finishing university, my dad, Tony Andrews' first job was teaching at Sacred Heart College, which is in my electorate. That meant that he got to live for a year with my mum in the small cottage on the corner of Brighton Road and Walkers Road in Somerton Park, which is still there today, and they even got married in the chapel at Sacred Heart College.
My dad, after a year at Sacred Heart, ended up at Sturt Teachers College and he spent many years there teaching young people how to become maths teachers, a really crucial role that my dad played that I am super proud of. I will also acknowledge his role at Sturt college as a union delegate and making sure that all of the professionals at Sturt Teachers College were able to fight for and improve their wages and conditions. So it is a real honour for me to stand here and acknowledge not only all of the teachers in our community but particularly my dad and my grandpa.
