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Boomer sleeps in the crook of Callum Milkinsâ neck while he plays video games, and snuggles up to his chin in bed. Parrots make affectionate pets, so Callumâs mother Melinda bought one three years ago to ease her sonâs loneliness. Boomer has been a loyal friend, and his companionship is even more valuable now that Callum has quit school and spends most of his time at home.
Callum plans to look for a job but work can be hard to find in Lance Creek, a small town outside Wonthaggi on Victoriaâs Bass Coast, and the 17-year-old has an extra hurdle: he struggles to read. Thatâs why he refused to return when classrooms reopened last year after the first COVID-19 shutdown. Callum, a stocky young man with brown curls and clear blue eyes, is softly spoken and looks at his hands when he speaks. Heâs fascinated by astronomy and adores his pets: along with Boomer, thereâs a lizard, dog and chooks. But thereâs no mist
Reading wars in Australian schools: students caught in the crossfire brisbanetimes.com.au - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from brisbanetimes.com.au Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
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A new analysis of education debates on both social media and in traditional media outlets suggests that the education sector is being increasingly influenced by populism and the wider social media culture wars .
The study also suggests that the type of populism in question is not quite the same as that used to explain large-scale political events, such as the UK s Brexit from the European Union, or Donald Trump s recent presidency in the United States.
Instead, the researchers - from the University of Cambridge, UK, and Queensland University of Technology, Australia - identify a phenomenon called micropopulism : a localised populism which spotlights an aspect of public services, such as the education sector. Micropopulism is populist, they argue, in the sense that it expresses a fervent division between a disregarded people and an unjust elite.