What Australia SHOULD offer

Earlier this year, as an English task, we were asked to make a persuasive speech on a topic given to us. As usual, the topics were all along the lines of Video Games being illegal, should the Elderly be allowed to drive and whether or not nuclear power should be brought into Australia. Looking at the list, I realised that there was no way that I could make a speech on one of these things and possibly hope to persuade people on it. Sure, I might be able to use some big fancy words to make myself sound smart, but that’s not what I would want at all. I wanted my speech to be empowering and actually instigate some action. I knew that I couldn’t achieve that unless I too was passionate about what I was speaking on.
I managed to get on the good side of my English teacher and she allowed me to pick my own topic.

“Australia should educate high school students on the skills they need to change the future of poverty”

There. Now I finally had something that not only I was passionate about, but I knew would pull the heartstrings of my fellow classmates.

To cut a long story short, my speech went particularly well, and I knew that I gave an engaging and thought provoking speech…but did anything come from it? I’m not sure that it did.

However that just made me even more passionate about refining my idea and exploring ways of making it become a reality.

How Can the world change, if the people of the world aren’t equipped to change it?

My entire speech was based around the fact that not enough of this generation know the SKILLS to change the future. Sure, we’ve come a long way and we get the general understanding of it all, however it’s become more like a routine than a passion.

Schools are beginning to understand that some kind of publicity needs to go into promoting humanitarian movements, and so school students are now subject to wave after wave of emotional, “motivational” speakers. They begin to all blur into one big mush by the end of your schooling though, with maybe one or two people giving a little thought to it. But where is the skill going to come from?!

This is my proposal:

• Get the Australian Government on board so that there are opportunities for schools to teach important skills to their students
• Give schools more opportunities to work within the community and even on the global spectrum. There must be some way that fundraising can go towards helpful organisation
• Offer an elective subject through schools that focuses on teaching students how to properly publicise ideas, work in difficult areas of the world, working with Government correspondence, learning about already thriving organisations and proper communication skills.

I know that it’s a difficult thing to put into the world, seeing as we’re steadily becoming more and more self-focused, but I believe that it is entirely possible and completely worthwhile.

Hopefully this message reaches the world, and people can begin to at least CONSIDER the hope that this would bring, and if it does, comments, suggestions and feedback would be incredibly appreciated.

All that being said, I cannot stress enough that in order for you to not only enjoy life, but excel in life, you must must MUST find something you are truly passionate about, and your dreams will surely fall into their perfect place.