TeachLaw is a national, online platform to assist teachers in educating children and young people about the law. Our hope is that young people throughout Australia will be empowered by access to high quality, accurate legal information.
Through learning and knowledge, they will participate in an informed way, and reduce risk-taking behaviour that may cause harm to themselves both now or in the future. We hope that disadvantaged students in particular are able to develop legal literacy and understand their legal rights and responsibilities. Our motto is learn, know, act.
The TeachLaw program is run by Youth Law Australia and began development in 2017. You can read more about Youth Law Australia here.
YLA would like to thank the following partners/supporters for their generous support in helping to reach more young Australians through TeachLaw.
In 2017, TeachLaw received a one year funding grant from the NSW Attorney-General’s Department to develop criminal law resources for NSW in 2018-19. You can read more about the grant here.
DLA Piper’s pro bono practice has a strategic focus on protecting and promoting the rights of children and young people. DLA Piper has contributed to TeachLaw in preparing the TeachLaw materials as well as through research and consultation in the early stages of developing the TeachLaw program.
TeachLaw’s aim is to equip teachers to educate their students in order to empower young people. Typically TeachLaw does not send its staff out to schools to deliver programs except upon request (you can contact us here if you would like us to send someone out to deliver a Teachlaw module). However if you would like to arrange a lawyer or law student to visit your school and deliver a legal education seminar, you can contact one of these organisations for help.
RREAL runs workshops in cyber, employment, traffic and licensing, tenancy, police powers to encourage young people to discuss their experiences with the law and equip young people with the knowledge to identify when they have a legal problem and where they can go for help. You can contact the team via e-mail at [email protected] for more information.
Australia’s Magna Carta Institute, and the Rule of Law Institute promote fundamental rule of law principles to Australian teachers and students. They produce non-partisan education resources and programs that are nationally recognised for their syllabus relevance, contemporary focus and plain english design.. Resources are suitable for use by teachers, senior high school students and university law students. You can check them out online here.
SLEG is a student run group by UNSW law students. They run modules in consumer law, employment law, police powers and criminal law and civics and constitutional law. You can contact the team via e-mail at [email protected] for more information.
TalkLaw is an initiative run by King&Wood Mallesons (KWM) that seeks to improve the legal literacy skills of Year 9 students through a number of educational modules run by KWM lawyers. TalkLaw currently delivers modules in 5 areas – consumer law, intellectual property law, social media, employment law and talking to the police. You can contact Megan Barnett-Smith, Pro Bono & Community Impact Manager via e-mail at [email protected] for more information.
TeachLaw resources will help you to teach your students legal literacy and their legal rights and responsibilities.
Check out our resources