Talkback Classroom

Talkback Classroom is best known as a forum for young people to interview politicians and other leading decision makers in forums recorded for broadcast and is also known as a Voice for the Voteless on the basis of its mission to provide an opportunity for young people to take part in civic dialogue. The started as a classroom based project instigated by Alexandra Secondary School teacher Stephen Cutting in 1995 and provided an opportunity for secondary school students to conduct interviews (initially by telephone) with people in the news. The activity proved very popular with students and in 1996 was first heard as a segment on ABC Regional Radio Albury Wodonga via a three way 'hook up' between students in the classroom, the segment guest or interviewee and the radio program host. In 1997 the project became a national forum a monthly for senior secondary school students broadcast on ABCyouth network Triple J produced by Stephen Cutting who had taken up a secondment to ABC Radio. Talkback Classroom ran as a regular segment featuring interviews recorded by student interviewers with leading political figures in Australian politics and other decision makers until 2001 when the segment became a live forum based at the National Museum of Australia and shifted to Radio National as part of the Life Matters program and ABC's digital network Fly TV. From 2001 to 2008 the forum was held at the National Museum of Australia, and involved secondary school students from around Australia interviewing various prominent politicians, business and community leaders on current affairs issues. Guests included two heads of government: John Howard (Australia) and Helen Clark (New Zealand), ministers and shadow ministers and many other decision makers and opinion shapers

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