In this episode
Dr Antoinette Morris is the coordinator of the Fremantle Fast Track program.
Winning the 2024 Director General’s Women of Achievement Award shone a light on Dr Antoinette Morris and Fremantle Fast Track. Dr Morris, a coordinator of the program, discusses the importance of having alternative education options. She describes how the Fast Track program focusses on creating safe spaces for students to support their academic, emotional and social needs. Their goal is to empower students to succeed by facilitating personalised pathway to future education.
About Dr Antoinette Morris
Dr Antoinette Morris is coordinator of Fremantle Fast Track at North Lake Senior Campus and has worked with the program for more than 26 years. After working at Canning College, in the Department’s Participation directorate, and completing her PhD, Dr Morris found her passion to support students and encourage self-confidence in their skills, abilities and future. In 2024, she won the Director General’s Women of Achievement Award for her dedication to empowering disengaged students and helping them achieve success.
Transcript
MAK
A warm welcome to Ed Talks WA. I'm Marie-Anne Keefe, but please call me MAK.
All students learn differently, and while many can achieve success through mainstream schooling, for some, it doesn't quite work.
Fremantle Fast Track has been running for more than 30 years, building lifelong resilient learners who approach the future with confidence and a sense of purpose. It offers an alternative to students who struggle in the mainstream space.
Dr Antoinette Morris is coordinator of the Northlake Senior Campus's Fremantle Fast Track program and has been part of it for more than 26 years.
She and the staff at Fast Track have been supporting students' learning and emotional and social needs, as well as empowering them to feel confident in themselves and in their future.
Last year, Antoinette won the Director General's Women of Achievement Award, recognition for all the work she's done at Fremantle Fast Track.
This year's Women of Achievement Award winner will be announced on the 6th of March at the Department's International Women's Day event, where Turia Pitt will be the keynote speaker.
Fiona Bartholomeus from our Communications Directorate spoke to Antoinette about the program.
Fiona Bartholomaeus
So you have been working in the education sector for many years. Can you tell us a bit about your journey as an educator?
Dr Antoinette Morris
Well, I started my teaching career with the West Australian Department of Education in 1979.
That's a long time ago.
For the first 10 years, I taught science, bio and human bio in mainstream high schools. And whilst I absolutely love teaching, and the sciences in particular, I found that as a teacher I needed more. And there were young people that I couldn't reach and I needed to do something different.
Curriculum first versus student first was my dilemma and I wanted to spend more time with students and I needed to understand their story. Why weren't they engaging? What was it that I can do?
This set me off in pursuit of what would make me a better teacher and what would help me reach an individual student. This led to further study, lots of it, and also seeking placement in teaching environments where I thought I best fitted.
That's how in the late 1980s and into the 90s I found myself lecturing at Canning College at a time when they were wanting to establish an adult re-entry program.
I became the founding coordinator for the Flying Start program, a program for adults who had dropped out of school and who now wanted to resume their education. It was establishing and working within this program that was pivotal to me dedicating 30 years of my life trying to understand what constitutes best practice in alternative education settings. It was also through this experience that my PhD was born. And with it too, was the urgency to find a spot within the system where I too could work differently.
In 1999, I was appointed program coordinator for Fremantle Fast Track and have been attached to this program for all of this time, with the exception of 5 years, where I was seconded to the participation directorate to lead the programs team as part of the Raise School Leaving Age Initiative.
Fiona Bartholomaeus
It feels like you've almost been everywhere or have had a bit of a touch in all different kinds of avenues of education?
Dr Antoinette Morris
Definitely. I guess I've been around for a long time so that gives you an opportunity to actually observe and get involved in a lot.
Fiona Bartholomaeus
So tell us about the Fremantle Fast Track program. How did you first get involved with that program and the team?
Dr Antoinette Morris
Well, I consider that accepting that position with North Lake Senior Campus's off-site program was the most significant decision of my career. I don't think I realised it at the time, but I do now.
I'd come from a successful stint at Canning College and my PhD was in a similar area, and I wanted to find a setting where I could work with youth in the hope that we could intervene in the manner that the research suggested before issues became chronic and more complex.
So my desire back then was to break the cycle of academic disadvantage. It was all about equity and social justice. Little did I know that it would lead me to 26 years of involvement with the program.
I've learnt just so much from students that have come through the program and I owe them a tonne of gratitude because without them allowing me, myself and staff to get alongside them, to truly understand and learn from them, we would not be here today. We would not have the exemplary program that we have at the moment. And I also feel so privileged to have worked with and to be able to continue to work with high calibre and extremely dedicated staff. And together, we've been able to sustain continued improvement in the program.
I now have the evidence and I have decades of experience to inform how best to respond and to accommodate young people for whom mainstream schooling is not a good fit.
So a bit about Fast Track. Do you want to hear about that?
Fiona Bartholomaeus
Yeah, absolutely.
Dr Antoinette Morris
We are in the non-school setting, the Fremantle CBD, and we do education a little bit differently to your typical high school. We can be described as an alternative flexible learning program. And we've also been referred to as an engagement program. At any one time, there may be between 60 to 70 young people enrolled in our program, not all there on the same day.
The young people in our program are predominantly aged between 16 to 18 years of age and typically they have had extremely poor experiences and a significant history of disengagement and they've found mainstream school system not a good fit for them. So that's why they seek us out.
Fiona Bartholomaeus
So tell us, what does a typical day look like at the Fremantle Fast Track program, if there even is a typical day?
Dr Antoinette Morris
Right.
Let's first talk about context, I think.
Fiona Bartholomaeus
Absolutely.
Dr Antoinette Morris
The complexity of young people's lives and the challenges they face and in particular, the need to make their education relevant and accessible requires an approach that can successfully interweave relevant education, training and employment options with an educational environment that is supportive, inclusive, and that focuses on one student at a time.
We have a specific approach that includes making the student the priority, not the curriculum, the focus being on the individual, it's a personalised approach, starting with where the student is at.
We focus on understanding each student's strengths and challenges and adjusting the learning environment and content accordingly. Students are assigned to one classroom and one teacher for the entire day, minimising movement and giving students large chunks of time with the one adult.
Students also have some choice over what they do, when they do it and for how long. There is a holistic case management approach for each young person.
So what does learning and teaching look like in the classroom? Well, each student works from a personalised plan called an individual pathway plan. Their interests, needs and strengths are taken into consideration and this is a working document, meaning that not only is each student's pathway within our program different, but the document itself can change as a student develops.
There is a core curriculum and all students have included in their plan, but even within these areas there is a variation based on individual profiles.
So students are taught at the point of need, meaning that seldom will you find a teacher in front of a whole group of students directing the learning. Individual students ask for help and are taught according to what they need when their need arises.
Fiona Bartholomaeus
So the idea that kids may need to learn in an environment other than the traditional classroom is only really starting to be understood and accepted. Because of this, it makes me think, did the Fremantle Fast Track program have a bit of a bumpy ride to begin with?
Dr Antoinette Morris
Yes, I think that this was definitely true for fast track and I think as it is perhaps for all alternative education programs and in fact maybe for anything that's a bit different. Often it's misunderstood and a lot of work needs to go into justifying, explaining and providing the evidence.
Over the years visitors to our program seem to be surprised by the calm and orderly environment. There is often a misconception that if something is different, especially an alternative education program, that it somehow is second rate and that because we're not governed by bells and students not wearing uniforms and we go by first names, that student choice is paramount, that perhaps it's not real education and that standards in all aspects must be low.
When you combine the word flexible and then you add alternative, some assume a chaotic environment but in fact, the opposite has to be true in these programs and for them to function effectively and for students to remain engaged, safe and happy, the bar must be set really high in all aspects of the program. So expectations, culture, curriculum, behaviour. So you create a learning environment where young people feel safe and where they can take risks with their learning, where they can pursue learning that is meaningful and challenging for them and where they can thrive.
So our program has a very consistent and predictable and supporting environment. So there are no surprises for young people.
Fiona Bartholomaeus
And I was going to say, clearly that is the case because like we said at the very beginning, Fremantle Fast Track has been running for more than 30 years. So it's incredible to see it grow and students benefit from such an important program.
Dr Antoinette Morris
Yes. I think the trick or the thing that makes it work is how you go about setting that bar really high.
So it's about the student's choice and student voice in the whole process and it's about the rigour and the challenges. So it's about working with young people's strengths and I think that that's where we've arrived at the heart of what's made the difference and what's made the difference is it's about what we believe about young people and learning and we believe that every young person has something valuable to offer. We just have to find a way to ensure that they actually come to believe in themselves as well.
Fiona Bartholomaeus
And speaking about student voice, the staff at Fast Track have a mindset of ‘how can we help you, the student, achieve’ and ‘what do you need from me to succeed’? It's not so much telling students what they need to do to succeed. Students must be, I guess, a little bit cautious hearing those words for the first time. How can I help you? What do you need from me?
Dr Antoinette Morris
Absolutely.
I think stunned into silence best describes the initial response when I've asked a young person, ‘what can we do to make things different or easier for you? What would help you be and do the best you can? And what can we change?’
Sometimes it takes a while for students to believe that you really mean it. So often they are hesitant, I think they are so used to being told what they have to change about themselves that I suspect at times they believe they've misheard.
So unpacking this approach with them is really interesting work. Very often they think they don't know what would be helpful, so we need to present options and choices and give examples.
One of the things that we really strive for is to assist every young person to understand and accept who they are as individuals and how they learn best and for them to manage themselves and their learning and we try at the same time to demystify what it takes to be successful and what success actually means and looks like.
Everyone's pathway is different and everyone's outcome is different. Obviously, to be able to do this in a genuine and authentic manner, you need to have a program culture where the focus is on the importance of quality relationships and honest and respectful communication and dialogue. And this type of relationship between an adult and a young person is critical for engagement to occur.
Fiona Bartholomaeus
So you've said that you have a number of students currently at Fremantle Fast Track program. How do students get into this program?
Dr Antoinette Morris
Students typically come to us by word of mouth or referrals from someone in their life who understands their history and their struggles with being in a mainstream school setting and who obviously also understand how our program operates.
Fiona Bartholomaeus
So is part of the success of the program that students want to be part of it? It's not something they have to do?
Dr Antoinette Morris
Definitely, yes, the student wanting to be part of the program is critical, but even when students are referred to our program because it's their last choice, bearing in mind that all our students are of compulsory school age, so they need to be in school in a viable option of some sort.
Even when students are referred to us and it's their last choice and they're a bit hesitant, it's really up to us to find that little part of them that just might want to be there and use that as a hook. It's rare also, but it does happen that students have no desire to be in the program when they appear or they simply can't cope with the change because it's not the right time. And if that's the case, they usually opt out, but not everything's been in vain because at least they know a little bit about the program.
However, even for those young people who initially appear to want to join the program, just how on board they actually are at the very beginning is also questionable. I mean, just imagine if you'd been out of school for years and you had poor experience of schooling, wouldn't you be highly sceptical that you wouldn't be entering into more of the same?
So sometimes a student is visibly excited about the chance to come to Fast Track, other times you can sense the uncertainty, the anxiety and the fear of starting somewhere new and therefore sometimes they start off with a notion that we are just a slightly better option than their mainstream school. But in their minds, we're still a school and we're still teachers until, of course, they experience the difference.
Fiona Bartholomaeus
Is the transition into the program smooth or does it take a while for students to trust what is being sold is the truth?
Dr Antoinette Morris
I think that if you ask the students and even the parents, they would say that it was smoother than what they first expected.
The main obstacle is a student's own self-talk and often the parents' concerns that this will be just another place to fail in all aspects of the word. So it becomes our job to ensure that their experiences are positive.
What I say to young people and to parents when I first meet them at the first interview is that when they walk through the reception doors to our program every day, what I want is for this to be their sanctuary, their safe place physically and emotionally and a place where they can be themselves, be happy. At the end of the day know that they have done the best that they can and they walk away having achieved something.
However, for some it's very difficult. Their experiences and circumstances have been such that they find themselves not having a sense of future and in particular sense of belonging and connectedness and they are almost adrift, never having experience of nurturing and supportive educational environment and they need to learn to trust themselves and staff.
Fiona Bartholomaeus
The core of the program seems to be very much about showing young people that everyone has a right to having a place to belong and encouraging that self-learning and self-confidence. How important is that in an education setting?
Dr Antoinette Morris
For our young people it's hugely important.
Very often their experiences of schooling have not been positive, consequently they arrive knowing more about what they can't do than what they can.
If they've been out of school for some time or had disrupted or interrupted schooling, their experiences have predominantly been about always being left behind, always struggling to keep up with the teacher and their peers, about trying to make sense of what the teacher is explaining because they've missed chunks of their learning.
If they are also then dealing with anxiety or other health and well-being issues, that adds another layer of complexity and challenges. Hence, our focus is on a holistic approach, one that acknowledges the emotional, social, as well as the academic needs of our young people.
Fiona Bartholomaeus
And you mentioned a little bit earlier about success and the students who attend Fremantle Fast Track program and how success can actually look quite different depending on who walks through the door. Can you give us some examples of students who have had success from this program?
Dr Antoinette Morris
Okay, but I'm going to define success first.
Fiona Bartholomaeus
Please do.
Dr Antoinette Morris
I believe that every young person in our program is a success story. They've taken a big step to resume their schooling and to navigate those challenges that once hindered them from being and doing the best they can.
So simply being at Fast Track is a huge achievement and a success in itself. However, how you measure success depends very much on what you believe the purpose of education to be.
We believe that every young person deserves a right to be in a learning environment where they are safe emotionally, socially, as well as physically, and one where they are cared for and consequently where they have the opportunity to develop those attributes and skills that will build resilient, happy and healthy adults.
We believe that every young person has something of value to offer.
Young people come to us with different educational and life experiences and at various stages of their own self-development and always with our own personal challenges. This, coupled with great variations in their academic abilities, means that not only is every student's story unique and different, but that the focus for each young person will be different and consequently the measure of success also differs.
But if you ask our parents, the parents of the young people, what success looks like for their child, you'll hear some of the following. They'll say that their child is now okay with going to school, that there's been a decrease in anxiety, or it might be that the young person no longer isolates themselves in their room or has picked up a part-time job, or that they talk about school as a safe and happy place. For others, there is excitement at finally finding their child is performing at their best educationally, that they have gained entry into a TAFE course. Or it could simply be that the young person now has a sense of future and is happily exploring pathways.
However, the exciting part is that not only do our young people find themselves and their place in the world and walk taller and more confidently towards their future, but they actually leave our program and make significant life transitions.
As a team last week, we sat down and reminisced about some of our older ex-students and what they had achieved, and this is some of what we came up with.
So we have a criminal lawyer, an Olympian, nurses, Navy seamen, community workers, a tour boat operator, education assistant, university students, ex-students in the Defence Forces, a young man working with remote drones in schools, young people who have joined the family business, ex-students in the trades and many in employment.
So I guess that's success in the traditional sense.
Fiona Bartholomaeus
It's amazing to hear about all the different kinds of success, whether that just be even attending the program or being able to attend mainstream school afterwards, and I think that's such an important value and I guess understanding for young people to know that success can just be walking through the door every single day.
Dr Antoinette Morris
Yeah absolutely, and I think demystifying, I spoke earlier about demystifying success and also, I think when young people have been disengaged from school for such a long time and have not actually had any positive feedback, they sometimes don't know their own strengths or what they're capable of and so they dare not dream about what is possible. And learning about themselves is hugely significant.
Fiona Bartholomaeus
As we've both mentioned, the program is based in Fremantle and it's very much part of the community, allowing students to take part in TAFE courses, community events, and even an artist in resident program. How important is the community factor for the program?
Dr Antoinette Morris
Well, we know that 2 of the most important protective factors for young people are having a sense of belonging or a place to belong and being connected to the broader community.
Any opportunity that we can offer our young people to be visible in their community, to contribute to community and to work significantly with other adults in an authentic and meaningful way has a huge impact on their emotional and social development.
So we're extremely fortunate to have built solid relationships with key stakeholders and partners just within walking distance of our program. There are a range of youth and health services and agencies that our students can and do access. and I like to think of them as providing a supportive buffer around our program. I always know that we have someone else that we can involve that can provide targeted assistance or opportunities for our young people if and when we need them, almost like our own little village really.
An example of such a partnership is the City of Fremantle’s community development youth team and their colleagues in other sections of the city who have been outstanding, absolutely outstanding in their support of our program and our students. And over the almost 30 years that the program has been in Fremantle, we've been involved in numerous community projects, either run by or supported by the city. So not only do students have the opportunities to learn new skills and be involved in community projects, but most importantly, they work with and interact with significant other adults.
This year alone, we look forward to our students benefiting from an artist-in-residence program, barista courses, home maintenance courses.
Fiona Bartholomaeus
Amazing.
Dr Antoinette Morris
Yeah, youth branding workshops. And that's just one partnership.
Another past example, which I just absolutely still love reflecting on, was a production of a short film about Fremantle Fast Track, aptly called ‘A Place to Belong’ and this was made possible by our support from Palmerston.
Fiona Bartholomaeus
That's absolutely amazing. It's always exciting to hear when students get to be in the community and getting to connect to the community and it's nice that there's such a support from local organisations to what you and the other staff are doing.
Dr Antoinette Morris
It is and the pride in the young people when they get to work with like real people and real businesses and real projects is amazing.
Fiona Bartholomaeus
Now, as mentioned at the beginning, you were awarded the Director-General's Women of Achievement Award in 2024. Was there a sense of validation for all the work you've been doing in this space?
Dr Antoinette Morris
That wasn't my initial reaction. I'm still truly humbled by the award. There are so many dedicated, driven and wonderful educators out there who are equally deserving.
I have just been beavering away, loving what I do and doing the best that I can for the young people that I'm here to serve and wherever I can, I try to spread the word that we do know, in fact, what makes a difference to engaging the most vulnerable young people.
However, the award did force me to hit pause for a moment and to reflect and the journey hasn't been smooth and I have no doubt that it'll continue to throw challenges my way. My validation comes every day when I interact with students, parents and staff and when I witness firsthand the impact our program has on a young person when I work with parents and staff to make a difference in a young person's life. That's what fuels me to keep going.
I wasn't seeking, nor did I think I needed any other form of validation.
However, I must say that yes, I now do feel a real sense, deep sense of validation. Over the decades that I led the program and developed the program, I had to create my own roadmap, combining what I knew from experience and practice and incorporating evidence-based research to ensure that best approach. And I had the assistance of quality committed staff who worked with me providing valuable input and who helped refine many of our practices.
It definitely wasn't easy and at times I felt very much alone and a lone voice in this space. However, in recent years, a number of key reports and research papers have validated what I've been saying and doing for a very, very long time. So yes, I feel validated.
Sorry, that was a long way to get to the point.
Fiona Bartholomaeus
That's all right.
Fiona Bartholomaeus
How has that award provided a spotlight or opportunity for the program? There was certainly some media attention after the announcement.
Dr Antoinette Morris
The award definitely generated additional interest in and about the program, but in particular about the approach used. In the first few months following the award, I found myself inundated really with requests for support information and that continued throughout 2024, and it's already started again for this year. And we also hosted a steady number of school groups to our program.
The message I give is that we can't simply pick up the Fast Track model, replicate it in a different context and expect to have success. However, the model we have is informed by best practice and its guidelines that sit within this framework of best practice that can be used to guide, inform and build or tailor a program for a specific context or cohort.
I feel that there's definitely a renewed interest in how these programs might look like in schools and there are definitely schools and individual educators forming networks and communication channels to share ideas and practices in this field.
Fiona Bartholomaeus
So how important is it to have these awards to shine a light on all the work educators are doing and often quietly doing?
Dr Antoinette Morris
I'm not sure why prior to being nominated I never thought about the role of awards and about recognition for just doing your job, especially a job that you love.
However, I now believe that it's extremely important that we share stories about the work we do, that we engage in dialogue about our core business, much of which happens within the walls of the classroom and away from both the public eye and often from the broader educational community.
We need to make visible and provide insight into the very many positive aspects of our profession. If awards point us towards educators and their work and encourages sharing of their stories, their practices, then please let's start having the conversations and let's create the narrative. Let's stand tall and proudly promote the wonderful work done every day by our colleagues.
The impact that teachers have on the lives of young people is significant and cannot be summed up solely by statistic referencing academic success.
Fiona Bartholomaeus
Now, on a personal note, I hear that you've got a sign sitting on your desk and have had a sign sitting on your desk for a number of years that says, ‘here's to the kids who are different’. Why does that resonate so strongly with you and the work that you're doing?
Dr Antoinette Morris
Yes, I do. It's a poem titled, ‘Here’s to the Kids Who Are Different’ and I've only recently learned that it was authored by Digby Wolfe.
It's my daily mantra and having it sit there on my desk gives me great strength, the resolve to continue to fight and advocate on behalf of our students. It reminds me daily of why I do what I do and of the importance of having a place where these young people can be seen, heard and truly belong.
There are a few lines that I always focus on, especially during those days or times when the going is tough, when the world around me is trying to restrict, constrict and force me into a one size fits all approach and to providing more of the same.
Would you like to hear some of those lines.
Fiona Bartholomaeus
Absolutely.
Dr Antoinette Morris
I was debating whether to read it all, but I've just got some lines. So those lines include, ‘here's to the kids who are different, the kids who don't always get A's. Here's to the kids who are different, kids who bloom later than some, kids who don't fit. Here's to the kids who are different, the kids who are just out of step. Here's to the kids who are different, kids with that mischievous streak. For when they have grown, as history has shown, it's their differences that make them unique’.
Fiona Bartholomaeus
And after hearing all the things you've just told us about the Fremantle Fast Track program. I can absolutely understand why that's your mantra for the beginning of every single day.
Dr Antoinette Morris
Thank you. Oh, I refer to it sometimes multiple times in a day.
Fiona Bartholomaeus
Now, it is only just the beginning of the year and you're already doing such an amazing job in the education space. But can you give us any idea of what you've got planned for the future of the program?
Dr Antoinette Morris
Well, each year brings new students, new ventures, new challenges and new reasons to celebrate.
So I'm absolutely looking forward to watching our class of 2025 grow and achieve amazing outcomes.
Fremantle Fast Track into the future will continue to provide an alternative to mainstream schooling.
My hope is, and what I will be fighting for, will be that we can do so with the acknowledgement and support required to maintain this exemplary practice, especially since we work with such vulnerable young people.
Fiona Bartholomaeus
Antoinette, thank you so much for joining us on Ed Talks and having a chat about the amazing work the Fremantle Fast Track program and yourself for doing.
Dr Antoinette Morris
Thank you so much.
MAK
You've been listening to Ed Talks WA.
This podcast has been recorded on Whadjuk Noongar land. We pay respect to the traditional owners and to their elders, past, present and future.
Notes
Learn more about Dr Antoinette Morris's 2024 Women of Achievement Award here2.
Rad more about the Fast Track program on their website3.