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Saint Ignatius College Geelong
Saint Ignatius College Geelong
Saint Ignatius College Geelong
Article by Curtis McCoughtry | Academic Captain
National Schools Constitutional Convention 2023
This year, I was fortunate to be selected to attend the National Schools Constitutional Convention in Canberra from March 21–23. The topic of this convention was “constitutional reform," particularly studying and reviewing Section 128 of the Constitution (the means by which we change the constitution). There were a total of 120 students from across Australia, and the convention was conducted in the Museum of Australian Democracy in the old Parliament House. This was an amazing experience to learn more about our constitutional and political systems and be involved in political debate. The opportunity to meet many other students from all around Australia, with various backgrounds and political views, who share an interest in being involved and contributing to our future, is something I will always remember.
On the first day when we arrived in Canberra, we took a bus to Parliament House, where we attended question time, giving us insight into some of the political processes and some of the key issues being addressed in Parliament at the moment. After sitting in on question time, we moved to a lecture theatre, where we were welcomed to the convention by the honorary Patrick Gorman, assistant to the Prime Minister. We then had the opportunity to meet our MPs. This was a great start to the convention, and I was grateful to discuss the upcoming Indigenous Voice referendum with Libby Coker, our local member for Corangamite.
The next morning, we arrived at Old Parliament House for the official opening of the convention and an introduction to the topics we would be discussing. The first presentation I attended was a keynote called “Australia’s Constitutional Referendum Law and the History of Australia’s Referenda,” presented by Kim Rubenstein from the University of Canberra. This was a useful resource and gave us a good insight into the history of the Constitution to provide context. Then we collaborated and had discussions in our working groups (a selected group of students from different states) to come up with a census of what we believed about the previous presentation. An elected person from each group presented the outcome of discussions to the convention.
After lunch, we had two more keynote speakers. The first was Father Frank Brennan, who discussed the topic “Section 128 in Practise: Is it Still Fair for All?” and brought to light many issues, such as the fact that the Australian Territories, ACT, and NT do not have as extensive representation in referendums as other States. We then listened to a presentation from Professor Peter Anderson, a First Nations Man, who spoke about the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives on Section 128 of the Constitution and referendums generally, especially the upcoming Indigenous Voice referendum. After these two thought-provoking presentations, we again discussed in our working groups what we had learned and presented our thoughts to everyone. This part of the agenda wound up with a "soapbox" session where individuals could present their personal thoughts on the issues being presented.
After a day of keynotes and controversial topics, we toured the government house. The Governor General welcomed us to his home, made a speech, and invited us to enjoy some refreshments and explore the bottom floor of the house. We examined antiques, decorations, and works of art. It was amazing to chat with the governor general, David Hurley, and his wife, Linda Hurley.
After Government House, we headed straight to the High Court of Australia. We were given a tour of the court and one of the courtrooms, and then we had dinner at the High Court while listening to a guest speaker, Mr. Sean Dondas. Sean was the young Australian of the year for 2022. He shared his experience of personal loss due to cancer in his family and how it inspired him to make a difference for young people in his community by supporting those that are also experiencing similar trauma.
On the third and final day of the presentation, we headed back to Old Parliament House. We were given a brief recap before launching into another keynote presentation from Dr. Andrew Banfield, discussing the use of referendums in other countries and providing examples from Canada and New Zealand. After another valuable working group session and morning tea, we listened to a presentation by the deputy president of the senate, Senator Andrew McLachlan, and we were able to draw on his knowledge of parliament, referendums, and some of the current issues being discussed in Parliament.
After these presentations, there was another "soapbox" session in which some passionate speakers shared their thoughts on what we had discussed at the convention, including their views on the aboriginal voice in parliament, the means by which we change the constitution, and the history of the constitution in Australia.
Finally, a mock referendum was conducted at the convention, giving us the opportunity to vote on one of the topics we had been discussing. This was an amazing opportunity to view the referendum process, made even more authentic by the fact that it was conducted by the Australian Electoral Commision.
To conclude the convention, a communiqué was finalised, which recorded our thoughts and views on the issues and would then be passed to the president of the Senate to represent the thoughts of young people on the constitutional issues and processes. Finally, we were given a full tour of the Old Parliament House, which was awesome to be able to walk around and see the rest of the building, including a model of the Old Parliament House and the old Prime Minister's office.
I am so grateful that I was given this opportunity to engage more with some of the political matters happening in Australia and have a partial voice in terms of the political issues happening in parliament and Australia in our modern society. I learned so much from this experience and was able to connect with, interact with, discuss with, and debate with many other like-minded young people from all across Australia.
Curtis McCoughtry | Academic Captain 2023
Feature
Events
Our News // 28 April 2023
Article by Curtis McCoughtry | Academic Captain
National Schools Constitutional Convention 2023
This year, I was fortunate to be selected to attend the National Schools Constitutional Convention in Canberra from March 21–23. The topic of this convention was “constitutional reform," particularly studying and reviewing Section 128 of the Constitution (the means by which we change the constitution). There were a total of 120 students from across Australia, and the convention was conducted in the Museum of Australian Democracy in the old Parliament House. This was an amazing experience to learn more about our constitutional and political systems and be involved in political debate. The opportunity to meet many other students from all around Australia, with various backgrounds and political views, who share an interest in being involved and contributing to our future, is something I will always remember.
On the first day when we arrived in Canberra, we took a bus to Parliament House, where we attended question time, giving us insight into some of the political processes and some of the key issues being addressed in Parliament at the moment. After sitting in on question time, we moved to a lecture theatre, where we were welcomed to the convention by the honorary Patrick Gorman, assistant to the Prime Minister. We then had the opportunity to meet our MPs. This was a great start to the convention, and I was grateful to discuss the upcoming Indigenous Voice referendum with Libby Coker, our local member for Corangamite.
The next morning, we arrived at Old Parliament House for the official opening of the convention and an introduction to the topics we would be discussing. The first presentation I attended was a keynote called “Australia’s Constitutional Referendum Law and the History of Australia’s Referenda,” presented by Kim Rubenstein from the University of Canberra. This was a useful resource and gave us a good insight into the history of the Constitution to provide context. Then we collaborated and had discussions in our working groups (a selected group of students from different states) to come up with a census of what we believed about the previous presentation. An elected person from each group presented the outcome of discussions to the convention.
After lunch, we had two more keynote speakers. The first was Father Frank Brennan, who discussed the topic “Section 128 in Practise: Is it Still Fair for All?” and brought to light many issues, such as the fact that the Australian Territories, ACT, and NT do not have as extensive representation in referendums as other States. We then listened to a presentation from Professor Peter Anderson, a First Nations Man, who spoke about the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives on Section 128 of the Constitution and referendums generally, especially the upcoming Indigenous Voice referendum. After these two thought-provoking presentations, we again discussed in our working groups what we had learned and presented our thoughts to everyone. This part of the agenda wound up with a "soapbox" session where individuals could present their personal thoughts on the issues being presented.
After a day of keynotes and controversial topics, we toured the government house. The Governor General welcomed us to his home, made a speech, and invited us to enjoy some refreshments and explore the bottom floor of the house. We examined antiques, decorations, and works of art. It was amazing to chat with the governor general, David Hurley, and his wife, Linda Hurley.
After Government House, we headed straight to the High Court of Australia. We were given a tour of the court and one of the courtrooms, and then we had dinner at the High Court while listening to a guest speaker, Mr. Sean Dondas. Sean was the young Australian of the year for 2022. He shared his experience of personal loss due to cancer in his family and how it inspired him to make a difference for young people in his community by supporting those that are also experiencing similar trauma.
On the third and final day of the presentation, we headed back to Old Parliament House. We were given a brief recap before launching into another keynote presentation from Dr. Andrew Banfield, discussing the use of referendums in other countries and providing examples from Canada and New Zealand. After another valuable working group session and morning tea, we listened to a presentation by the deputy president of the senate, Senator Andrew McLachlan, and we were able to draw on his knowledge of parliament, referendums, and some of the current issues being discussed in Parliament.
After these presentations, there was another "soapbox" session in which some passionate speakers shared their thoughts on what we had discussed at the convention, including their views on the aboriginal voice in parliament, the means by which we change the constitution, and the history of the constitution in Australia.
Finally, a mock referendum was conducted at the convention, giving us the opportunity to vote on one of the topics we had been discussing. This was an amazing opportunity to view the referendum process, made even more authentic by the fact that it was conducted by the Australian Electoral Commision.
To conclude the convention, a communiqué was finalised, which recorded our thoughts and views on the issues and would then be passed to the president of the Senate to represent the thoughts of young people on the constitutional issues and processes. Finally, we were given a full tour of the Old Parliament House, which was awesome to be able to walk around and see the rest of the building, including a model of the Old Parliament House and the old Prime Minister's office.
I am so grateful that I was given this opportunity to engage more with some of the political matters happening in Australia and have a partial voice in terms of the political issues happening in parliament and Australia in our modern society. I learned so much from this experience and was able to connect with, interact with, discuss with, and debate with many other like-minded young people from all across Australia.
Curtis McCoughtry | Academic Captain 2023
