The federal government is ramping up efforts to combat radicalisation in Australian schools by rolling out more support for at-risk young people.
Education Minister Simon Birmingham said 3 new support measures would be deployed in classrooms, comprising more awareness training for school staff on radicalisation, extra classroom resources to build students’ resilience to extremism, and mechanisms for school communities to receive and share information on the issue.
Birminghman said on Saturday local community youth forums would also be held in 2016 to explore what he described as a "complex issue".
The new measures follow the government's Review of Initiatives Supporting Youth at Risk of Radicalisation, which was commissioned in May last year.
The official review followed incidents like the killing of New South Wales police accountant Curtis Cheng outside the Parramatta police station. Cheng was shot dead by 15-year-old Farhad Jabar.
Birmingham said the government's review highlighted the importance of ensuring initiatives were tailored to individual school communities.
"That is why we are closely working with states and territories, with schools and in partnership with families and local authorities to help reduce marginalisation and build students’ resilience to radicalisation and violent," he said.
The new federal initiatives come after the NSW Government announced a similar push into schools late last year.
The Baird Government revealed in November that high-profile sports stars like NRL and AFL players could be recruited as part of a $47 million effort fight violent extremism in the state's public schools.
The multi-million dollar state package includes $6.2 million worth of extra training and support for a bigger school counsellor workforce, $15 million for five 'Specialist School Support Teams' that can respond to crises, and a 24/7 hotline to report school concerns.