Stephanie Ryan wants kids to put down the tablet and pick up a racquet, or a football, or even a pair of dance shoes.
The Parafield Gardens Primary School Health and PE teacher is passionate about getting her students moving. So much so that for the past seven years she’s coordinated an after-school sports program called Unplug & Play.
The initiative has seen her nominated in the 2025 Public Education Awards (external site) in the Excellence in Collaborative Partnership category, but for Mrs Ryan the real reward is watching her young charges learn a new skill.
"We offer a number of different sports – roughly four throughout the year – for students to sign up to," she said.
"We’ve run soccer, gymnastics, dance, taekwondo, netball and we did Auskick and Superkick (AFL) for the first time this year.
"Each sport runs for about eight weeks, and parents can use their Sports Vouchers to cover the costs (external site)."
Mrs Ryan said that the Australian tradition of after school and weekend sport was under increasing pressure, with changing working hours making volunteering more difficult for parents and caregivers.
"I think times have changed quite a bit," she said.
"I think it's a bit harder for parents, and also teachers, to take on those volunteer roles in addition to ev
erything else they've got going on."
Mrs Ryan said this, and a huge increase over recent years in the use of phones and tablets during free time, has led to a loss in basic athletic skills in many children.
"I think that's a huge thing," she said.
"These fundamental movement skills are not where they used to be – the amount of kids that cannot dribble a ball is quite astounding.
"I think that’s partly from kids being on screens from really young ages, partly from not having as many opportunities to participate and perhaps not getting the encouragement they need from home. This program addresses all of those needs."
Mrs Ryan said the ultimate aim was to give her students a taste for a sport that would eventually morph into a passion.
"It’s a bit of a taste test, if you like," she said.
"If they like it then they can go on to then sign up.
"We’ve had quite a few kids that have gone on to join local clubs, particularly soccer – they’ve really found a love for it and decided that they wanted to continue, which is great.
"But we’ve also had a lot of kids who have had a massive confidence boost.
"They’ll say things like, 'I didn't know how to dribble a soccer ball and now I can', or 'I didn’t know how to kick the football properly, but now I can'. That's been really, really nice to hear."
To learn more about the finalists in the Public Education Awards, the winners of which will be announced on 7 November, visit the website (external site).
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