tag:theconversation.com,2011:/fr/topics/australian-education-15426/articlesAustralian education – The Conversation2022-08-04T02:12:38Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1874242022-08-04T02:12:38Z2022-08-04T02:12:38Z‘I am Country, and Country is me!’ Indigenous ways of teaching could be beneficial for all children<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/475766/original/file-20220725-30560-66foe7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=6%2C49%2C2038%2C1410&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com.au/detail/photo/five-school-friends-sitting-on-brick-wall-pulling-royalty-free-image/904531686?adppopup=true">GettyImages</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>The authors are cultural men who have undertaken learning on and through Country with Elders in NSW, Queensland, and the Northern Territory. This piece is the product of their own experience and understanding and is not intended to represent the views of all Indigenous people.</em></p>
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<p>As we acknowledge National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children’s Day, it’s important to recognise Indigenous Knowledge as vital to all children’s education.</p>
<p>When old Aboriginal people, like Kakadu Man Bill Neidjie and our cultural grandfather Damu Paul Gordon, say “I am Country, Country is me”, they are not speaking metaphorically. Our people have known for tens of thousands of years we come from the land, with our bodies composed of earth and water. The land is our big mother or Gunni Thakun, “Mother Earth” in the Ngemba language spoken by Damu Paul. If we damage her, we damage ourselves.</p>
<p>Environmentalist and academic David Suzuki reminds us modern science has also held evidence to support this narrative for more than 100 years. In <a href="http://dni.dali.dartmouth.edu/t31io9awf7bn/13-amara-padberg/read-1550549634-the-sacred-balance-rediscovering-our-place-in-na.pdf">The Sacred Balance: Rediscovering our Place in Nature</a>, he points out 60-70% of our body weight is made up by water. Furthermore, every four to six weeks every one of these trillions of water molecules is <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3351614/">replaced</a> The remainder of our physical being is composed of molecules that come from the earth, through the food we consume. Essentially, we are all Country with a little stream running through us.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/invisible-language-learners-what-educators-need-to-know-about-many-first-nations-children-175917">Invisible language learners: what educators need to know about many First Nations children</a>
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<h2>‘Country as teacher’</h2>
<p>For three years, we have been working through the Centre for Sustainable Communities (University of Canberra), to reinvigorate this Country-centric approach to education within ACT schools. Through the Affiliated Schools <a href="https://www.canberra.edu.au/about-uc/faculties/education/affiliated-schools">program</a>, a partnership between the ACT Education Directorate and the Faculty of Education at the University of Canberra, we have been privileged to work with 24 teachers from four schools to pilot and explore this “Country as teacher” approach in their classes. </p>
<p>This approach involved the students spending time on Country and focusing on sensory experiences. Preliminary findings (due to be published in late 2022) indicate early childhood and primary teachers find young children are taking to a Country-centric education quickly. They are able to sit, look and listen for long periods of time, and talk meaningfully with each other and their teachers about their experiences. Focusing on sensory experiences invariably led to curiosity about insects, birds, trees, weather, and seasons. This also strengthened their connection to each other and culminated in further inquiry-based learning in the classroom.</p>
<p>Teachers report the children are highly motivated to get back outside each day to continue their in-Country practice. Largely, it is the students who lead this aspect of their learning, with teachers operating as facilitators or guides. First Nations people reminded us for generations that <a href="https://www.amazon.com.au/Dreaming-Path-Indigenous-Thinking-Change/dp/0648748952/ref=sr_1_1?adgrpid=97287209690&gclid=Cj0KCQjw54iXBhCXARIsADWpsG972rTQfiLyVNQLpQvhvXedFae9YKlpS9R4049wnjcUjCyRUHJZy1kaAipFEALw_wcB&hvadid=518058673399&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=9071954&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=15985081655161568105&hvtargid=kwd-1631443838838&hydadcr=1950_218906&keywords=the+dreaming+path&qid=1659074028&sr=8-1">children are born into their bodies deeply connected and curious</a>, hungering to develop a relationship with Country. The project concludes in December 2022, but there are plans to grow the research through more ACT schools with a broader and deeper Country as Teacher research project through 2023 and beyond.</p>
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<img alt="A small child feeds a kangaroo lying on the ground." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/476803/original/file-20220801-28187-fa26c7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/476803/original/file-20220801-28187-fa26c7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476803/original/file-20220801-28187-fa26c7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476803/original/file-20220801-28187-fa26c7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476803/original/file-20220801-28187-fa26c7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476803/original/file-20220801-28187-fa26c7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476803/original/file-20220801-28187-fa26c7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">First Nations ways of caring for Country and animals have the potential to influence all children to love and look after the planet.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/cute-young-girl-kangaroo-zoo-170370611">shutterstock</a></span>
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<h2>First Nations ways of learning for our young ones</h2>
<p>For tens of thousands of years, Aboriginal children were born into knowledge systems based on Country - a <a href="https://search.informit.org/doi/pdf/10.3316/informit.700674269819805?casa_token=E7SBFSvU1RkAAAAA%3AkUFe_GCTtea52i72BdheJZV6kenSvhoDDHmggxW-ZRp8yWliFL-ffJ6Y7QkDUsjgNUeHTCYVUoButw">Country-centric knowledge system</a>. This involved learning about their connections to their respective Countries and Earth-kin (animals, plants, and geographical features that shared their place) in processes facilitated by their old people. These educational processes focused on cultural practices of looking and listening to Country to come to know, understand, and care for the places they inhabited.</p>
<p>Palyku academic Jill Milroy and her mother, Palyku Elder Gladys Milroy <a href="https://api.research-repository.uwa.edu.au/ws/portalfiles/portal/1538164/5366_PID5366.pdf">refer</a> to this knowledge system as the “right story” and believe it to be the birthright of all Aboriginal children. They propose this story must become the birthright of all children born in Australia, as these connections to Country lie within us all. This is not to say all children are immediately welcome to sacred Indigenous knowledge, but First Nations peoples’ ethic of caring for Country is one all children, indeed, all people, must adopt if we are to meet the looming and omnipresent ecological, social and environmental challenges of our future.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.amazon.com.au/Dreaming-Path-Indigenous-Thinking-Change/dp/0648748952/ref=sr_1_1?adgrpid=97287209690&gclid=Cj0KCQjw54iXBhCXARIsADWpsG972rTQfiLyVNQLpQvhvXedFae9YKlpS9R4049wnjcUjCyRUHJZy1kaAipFEALw_wcB&hvadid=518058673399&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=9071954&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=15985081655161568105&hvtargid=kwd-1631443838838&hydadcr=1950_218906&keywords=the+dreaming+path&qid=1659074028&sr=8-1">The Dreaming Path</a> by Damu Paul Gordon and Uncle Paul Callaghan argues the more children come to know about the places they inhabit, the more they will come to love Gunni Thakun and want to care for her. As their knowledge of connections with their Earth-kin expands and deepens, these connections become obligations.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/raising-the-age-of-criminal-responsibility-is-only-a-first-step-first-nations-kids-need-cultural-solutions-186201">Raising the age of criminal responsibility is only a first step. First Nations kids need cultural solutions</a>
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<h2>An Ongoing Learning Journey</h2>
<p>Most teachers in the Country as Teacher project with upper primary, secondary and college classes have reported greater difficulty in incorporating “relating with Country” practices in an already “overcrowded” curriculum. Despite this, they have nevertheless reported significant shifts in students’ mood and engagement, especially with previously disengaged students. </p>
<p>There is still significant work to be undertaken to truly “Indigenise” school curricula. However this will require the full engagement of an entire school. The project shows what is possible when teachers question mainstream methods and understand the value of First Nations knowledges to help improve students’ lives. </p>
<p>We are beginning to see what happens when people take the lessons of Bill Neidjie and our old people to heart. What happens when we accept ourselves as Country – with a little stream running through us?</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/187424/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Benjamin Wilson receives funding from The ACT Affiliated Schools Network </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>David Spillman does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>First Nations peoples have known for a long time they come from the land. There is potential for others to learn and appreciate their connection to Country as a way to better care for our planet.Benjamin Wilson, Associate Professor, University of CanberraDavid Spillman, Assistant Professor - Teacher Education, University of CanberraLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1283012019-12-05T18:33:38Z2019-12-05T18:33:38ZVital Signs: Australia’s slipping student scores will lead to greater income inequality<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/305291/original/file-20191205-70174-1kjpymn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">While no test is perfect but the Programme for International Student Assessment rankings are pretty useful for understanding the skills young people are being equipped with.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">www.shutterstock.com</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The latest Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) <a href="https://www.oecd.org/pisa/publications/PISA2018_CN_AUS.pdf">results</a> are bad news for Australian students, parents, employers and policymakers. Pretty much everyone.</p>
<p>Australian 15-year-olds are now below the OECD average in mathematics, and our results in reading and science have fallen badly.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/305284/original/file-20191204-70101-ocuq0h.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/305284/original/file-20191204-70101-ocuq0h.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/305284/original/file-20191204-70101-ocuq0h.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=266&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/305284/original/file-20191204-70101-ocuq0h.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=266&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/305284/original/file-20191204-70101-ocuq0h.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=266&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/305284/original/file-20191204-70101-ocuq0h.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=334&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/305284/original/file-20191204-70101-ocuq0h.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=334&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/305284/original/file-20191204-70101-ocuq0h.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=334&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Trends in performance in reading, mathematics and science: The blue line indicates the average mean performance across OECD countries with valid data in all PISA assessments. The red dotted line indicates mean performance in Australia. The black line represents a trend line for Australia. * indicates mean-performance estimates that are statistically significantly above or below PISA 2018 estimates for Australia.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.oecd.org/pisa/publications/PISA2018_CN_AUS.pdf">OECD, PISA 2018 Database</a></span>
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<p>Reading has gone backwards by three-quarters of a school year since 2000, mathematics by more than one school year since 2003, and science by a school year since 2006.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/aussie-students-are-a-year-behind-students-10-years-ago-in-science-maths-and-reading-127013">Aussie students are a year behind students 10 years ago in science, maths and reading</a>
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<p>The results have generated a firestorm of press coverage, and it’s true they are certainly alarming. </p>
<p>They underscore the need for a serious discussion about education reform in this country.</p>
<p>They also help explain our poor productivity growth in recent years, and are full of gloomy news for future employment prospects and income inequality.</p>
<h2>Skills and productivity</h2>
<p>While no test is perfect, PISA is pretty useful for understanding the skills young people are equipped with as they enter the workforce or embark on post-secondary education.</p>
<p>This is because, as <a href="https://www.acer.org/au/">Australian Council for Educational Research</a> chief Geoff Masters <a href="https://www.theage.com.au/education/focus-on-basics-leaves-schoolkids-short-in-essential-deep-thinking-20191203-p53gd6.html">has pointed out</a>:</p>
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<p>Unlike many tests and examinations, PISA does not assess students’ abilities to recall facts or basic literacy and numeracy skills. Instead, it assesses the ability to transfer and apply learning to new situations and unseen problems. This requires an understanding of fundamental concepts and principles, as well as the ability to think.</p>
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<p>This week the Australian Bureau of Statistics <a href="https://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/Lookup/5260.0.55.002Main+Features12018-19?OpenDocument">published figures</a> revealing a 0.2% fall in labour productivity for 2019, with a shocking 0.8% fall adjusting for the quality of work performed.</p>
<p>Many factors contribute to labour productivity, but what economist call “human capital” (essentially “skills”) are a key part. With the skills of Australia’s workforce and future workforce falling, is it any wonder that productivity is lagging?</p>
<p>That’s a big problem for wages growth. In the long run, one basically expects real living standards for workers to track productivity. There can be deviations for certain time periods, but as Nobel laureaute Paul Krugman <a href="https://mitpress.mit.edu/books/age-diminished-expectations-third-edition">famously put it in 1990</a>:</p>
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<p>Productivity isn’t everything, but in the long run it is almost everything. A country’s ability to improve its standard of living over time depends almost entirely on its ability to raise its output per worker.</p>
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<h2>Widening the gap</h2>
<p>The PISA results also tell us we have also dropped relative to other countries. In a world where routine tasks are increasingly being automated and there is fairly strong international mobility of labour, that’s doubly concerning. </p>
<p>Our ability to compete in a globalised world of competitive international trade depends not only only our absolute level of skills but our relative level of skills. </p>
<p>Take mathematics. Our PISA scores are now comparable to those of Portugal, and behind Latvia and the Czech Republic. Estonia – with a <a href="https://tradingeconomics.com/estonia/gdp-per-capita">GDP per capita that’s half ours</a> – is miles ahead of us. We’re even getting beaten by New Zealand.</p>
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<p>A final piece of depressing news is that we have fewer top performers and many more poor performers. In NSW, for instance, our number of poor performers has doubled since 2003 <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/education/pisa-tests-put-fewer-nsw-students-among-the-world-s-brightest-20191204-p53gxa.html">(from 10% to 20%)</a>. Our number of top performers has roughly halved over the same period.</p>
<p>As University of Chicago economics professor <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2019/02/green-new-deal-economic-principles/582943/">Michael Greenstone has emphasised</a>, the fundamental fact of labour economics is that people get paid for their skills.</p>
<p>If the spread of skills between the best and worst students in Australia is getting wider, then we should expect income inequality to worsen. The tax and transfer system in Australia does a lot to mitigate that inequality, but there are limits.</p>
<h2>What to do?</h2>
<p>So how to improve Australia’s education system?</p>
<p>As <a href="http://research.economics.unsw.edu.au/richardholden/assets/the-australian%2c-friday%2c-june-17%2c-2016%2c-pages-from-12-to-12.pdf">I have pointed out previously</a>, the international evidence on “what works” in education involves some things that cost real money and others that are basically free.</p>
<p><a href="https://pubs.aeaweb.org/doi/pdfplus/10.1257/app.5.4.28">An excellent 2013 paper</a> by economists Will Dobbie and Roland Fryer used data from New York City charter schools to calculate that five policies explained about 45% of the variation in school effectiveness. Those policies were:</p>
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<p>frequent teacher feedback, the use of data to guide instruction, high-dosage tutoring, increased instructional time and high expectations.</p>
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<p>Of course, people can argue about the “external validity” of causal effects in specific geographies or educational contexts. That’s why we need good evidence from randomised controlled trials in education in Australia.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-top-ranking-education-systems-in-the-world-arent-there-by-accident-heres-how-australia-can-climb-up-128225">The top ranking education systems in the world aren't there by accident. Here's how Australia can climb up</a>
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<p>But make no mistake: the cost of failing to improve the skills of our children and future workforce is huge.</p>
<p>It has dramatic implications for productivity, living standards and income inequality.</p>
<p>And it’s too important for ideological commitments on the left or the right to prevent real reform. The only thing that matters is “what works”.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/128301/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Richard Holden does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The skills children learn at school have dramatic implications for their own future and the nation’s productivity, living standards and income inequality.Richard Holden, Professor of Economics, UNSW SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1064332018-11-14T23:50:38Z2018-11-14T23:50:38ZFor the sake of kids, embrace math<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/244827/original/file-20181109-36763-19zhz42.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=64%2C64%2C5277%2C3224&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Parents have a responsibility for their children’s math development too. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock </span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Mathematics is causing headaches in schools across Canada, Australia and many other parts of the world. Teachers in both Canada and Australia feel neither competent nor confident in math and, frankly, they are the first to admit it. </p>
<p>As researchers, educators and authors who have advised globally about best practices for improving learning and achievement, we have had opportunities to notice common trends and <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2018/jan/07/pasi-sahlberg-finland-teach-australian-schools-education">obstacles</a>, and notable gains, in math education. </p>
<p>Up close, we’ve heard from teachers in <a href="https://news.ontario.ca/edu/en/2017/08/ontario-appoints-new-advisors-to-guide-transformation-in-education-system.html">Ontario</a>, Canada, and in <a href="https://pasisahlberg.com/news/gonski-2-0-a-conversation-with-pasi-sahlberg-and-adrian-piccoli/">Australia</a> and we’ve considered how people can best <a href="http://www.clri.com.au/article/collaborative-professionalism/research">collaborate</a> to protect and grow students’ love of learning. </p>
<p>We’ve seen that some math improvement efforts get bogged down by fears of the unknown. Others get an initial spark but soon lose energy.</p>
<p>Let’s start with the bad news. </p>
<h2>‘Way more effective?’</h2>
<p>In response to a year-on-year decline in math scores, Ontario, for example, has started to give math achievement high priority. An underlying principle of the Ontario mathematics curriculum is to “<a href="http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/curriculum/elementary/math18curr.pdf">investigate ideas and concepts through problem solving</a>.” A September report from Canadian think tank The Institute for Competitiveness and Prosperity pointed out that inquiry-based approaches to mathematics <a href="https://www.competeprosper.ca/uploads/2018_WP33_Teaching_for_tomorrow.pdf">actually get better results than more “basic” alternatives</a>. </p>
<p>But many parents and some educators remain skeptical, if not downright hostile, towards <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-new-math-how-to-support-your-child-in-elementary-school-87479">unfamiliar math strategies</a>. </p>
<p>In Australia, critics of inquiry-based mathematics curricula have suggested a change of course. In a recent story in the <em>Sydney Morning Herald</em>, with the headline “There is a better way of teaching bored Australian students,” a research fellow at Australian think tank the Centre for Independent Studies lamented that “explicit, direct instruction across the board is <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/national/there-is-a-better-way-of-teaching-bored-australian-students-20181030-p50csj.html">way more effective</a> in achieving higher student outcomes.” One could not help but wonder how many parents might have been nodding their heads over their coffee. </p>
<p>But while we can’t resolve the math problem simply by getting “back to basics,” we can revive good ideas about math education. </p>
<h2>More oxygen please</h2>
<p>From the early 2000s, Ontario’s government pledged to improve achievement in literacy and math (or numeracy, as it was then called). The government invested significant resources and established a Literacy and Numeracy Secretariat to spearhead the effort. </p>
<p>Principals made literacy their top priority. Expert coaches worked alongside classroom teachers, demonstrating effective strategies and giving teachers feedback on how to use them with students. </p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/245588/original/file-20181114-172710-10g65c6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/245588/original/file-20181114-172710-10g65c6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/245588/original/file-20181114-172710-10g65c6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/245588/original/file-20181114-172710-10g65c6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/245588/original/file-20181114-172710-10g65c6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/245588/original/file-20181114-172710-10g65c6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/245588/original/file-20181114-172710-10g65c6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">We can revive good ideas about math education such as addressing how comfortable and competent elementary teachers feel about math.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/teacher-helping-pupils-studying-desks-classroom-139406252">www.shutterstock.com</a></span>
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<p>The gains in literacy were impressive and are now <a href="https://www.wiley.com/en-ca/Empowered+Educators+in+Canada%3A+How+High+Performing+Systems+Shape+Teaching+Quality-p-9781119369622">the envy of the world</a>.</p>
<p>But, like in a number of other countries, the literacy strategy consumed all the attention and left math with too little oxygen. It’s almost impossible to reform literacy and math all at once — the scope is too great, so the effort either <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2014/09/26/why-we-cant-reform-literacy-and-math-all-at-once/">leaves one of them to fall by the wayside by default</a> or just burns teachers out. </p>
<p>It’s time to give math reform the same treatment as literacy. But math reform has to confront an obstacle that literacy reform didn’t: Almost every primary and elementary teacher in many countries, including Canada and Australia, loves reading, writing and books, as do many of the kids. </p>
<p>Literacy reform had a lot to build on. This is not the case with math. </p>
<p>In interviews one of us conducted last year with more than 200 Ontario educators, teachers would say things like:</p>
<blockquote>
<p><a href="http://ccsli.ca/downloads/2018-Leading_From_the_Middle_Final-EN.pdf">“I’m not a math person.”</a> </p>
</blockquote>
<p>One principal reflected how they had all been “amazing readers and writers.” But she also wondered:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>“Did we share that similar passion and appetite for numeracy?” </p>
</blockquote>
<h2>Fear of math vs. higher salary</h2>
<p>Compared to literacy, there is a shortage of teachers who feel competent in math and confident enough to teach students what mathematics is and what mathematicians do. Many schools also have shortages of colleagues with the expertise to help them. </p>
<p>Some of the current answers to this problem — such as more hours allocated to how to teach math during elementary teacher training, or assigning professional development days to improving math teaching — won’t do any harm. But we must also address how confident and comfortable, and not just minimally competent, elementary teachers need to feel about math. </p>
<p>In Ontario, for example, <a href="https://www.competeprosper.ca/blog/why-are-elementary-school-math-scores-declining-in-ontario">80 per cent of elementary teachers have no university qualification in math</a>. However, in Finland, one of the world’s leading performers in mathematics, around half of elementary teachers <a href="http://www.finland.org/Public/default.aspx?contentid=238689&nodeid=35833&contentlan=2">have studied math or science and how to teach them effectively during their university degrees</a>. </p>
<p>Second, in Singapore, the world’s No. 1 performer in math, elementary teachers are paid as much as engineers when they start teaching. This means students who are good at math choose teaching based on their mission and purpose in life, <a href="https://www.nie.edu.sg/news-detail/learning-from-singapore-the-power-of-paradoxes-by-ng-pak-tee">not on salary differentials</a>. Perhaps Canada and Australia need to think harder about how to attract more people with math and science backgrounds into elementary teaching. </p>
<h2>Teacher and parent aid</h2>
<p>Third, improving teaching mathematics should be built on collaboration between experienced teachers and those with less confidence in schools. This coaching should focus not just on how to teach math but also on teachers’ relationship to math generally. </p>
<p>Intensive coaching was a big factor in raising literacy achievement. Because math expertise is now thinner, teachers need more resources and resourcefulness in classrooms. </p>
<p>Last, parents have a responsibility for their children’s math development too. But two-thirds of surveyed Ontario parents <a href="https://www.competeprosper.ca/uploads/2018_WP33_Teaching_for_tomorrow.pdf">don’t know how to help their elementary-aged children with mathematics</a>. </p>
<p>Supporting school interventions known as family math that help parents <a href="https://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/literacynumeracy/parentGuideNumEn.pdf">converse about numbers and shapes with their children as easily as they might about words could do a lot to rectify this</a>.</p>
<p>We need to make math as much a priority now as literacy has been. We need to get teachers in primary or elementary schools just as comfortable as well as competent with math and how to teach it successfully to all children as they are with reading in their lives as well as in their classes. </p>
<p>If we avoid falling for simplistic solutions, then eventually, the words “I am not a math person” may become a thing of the past.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/106433/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Andy Hargreaves has received funding from the Council of Directors of Education for Ontario (CODE) - the report of this research is cited in this article. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Pasi Sahlberg does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Instead of getting “back to basics” to improve math skills, we should make math literacy a priority by developing, attracting and supporting skilled teachers, and improving math literacy at home.Andy Hargreaves, Research Professor in Education, Boston CollegePasi Sahlberg, Professor of Education Policy, UNSW SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/834642017-09-17T19:42:08Z2017-09-17T19:42:08ZMale teachers are an endangered species in Australia: new research<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/185018/original/file-20170907-8380-1a21kn0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=1%2C0%2C998%2C667&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Both men and women are capable of being excellent teachers, and we want both in our schools.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock/Tyler Olson</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Male teachers may face extinction in Australian primary schools by the year 2067 unless urgent policy action is taken. In government schools, the year is 2054. </p>
<p>This finding comes from <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0272775717303278">our analysis</a> of more than 50 years of national annual workplace data – the first of its kind in any country.</p>
<p>We found a sharp decrease in the percentage of male teachers since records of teacher gender began in 1965. This includes classroom teachers, head teachers, and principals.</p>
<p>This rapid decline of men is not limited to primary schools. From 1977, when numbers of primary and secondary teachers were first recorded separately, we find an equally rapid decline of male representation in Australia’s secondary schools. In primary schools, there has been a steady decline from 28.5% to 18.3%; in secondary schools, it has dropped from 53.9% to 40%. </p>
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<p>Looking at the data by state and school sector, the lowest representation of men in primary schools is just 12.2% in Northern Territory Independent schools and 36.4% in Queensland government secondary schools.</p>
<h2>Causes of the decline</h2>
<p>Factors that deter men from teaching have been discussed in both the media and <a href="https://theconversation.com/primary-schools-are-losing-more-and-more-male-teachers-so-how-can-we-retain-them-82017">research literature</a>. While some men (and women) may be deterred from teaching because it is perceived to have low <a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/13598660500286176">salary and status</a>, men also face social pressures to conform to particular masculine ideals. And teaching is often seen as “women’s work”. It is unclear if these pressures have intensified over the last 50 years. </p>
<p>There may also be a social stigma in advocating for more male teachers when women still face adversity in many other fields. In this way, policymakers may assume that declining male representation in schools is not a problem, or of less importance compared to other professions.</p>
<p>Alternatively, hiring policies may play a role. </p>
<p>We have little data on the hiring policies of different teacher employers around Australia. When looking at the percentage of male teachers in government, Independent, and Catholic sectors separately, we see that government schools show the sharpest drop over time. Independent primary and secondary schools and Catholic secondary schools also show a drop in male teachers, yet at a less rapid rate.</p>
<h2>The impact on students</h2>
<p>While teacher gender has little effect on <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0272775712000209?via%3Dihub">student achievement</a>, and students’ role models are often their <a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/1468181032000119131">peers</a>, there are important social and psychological reasons for Australian schools to include more male teachers. </p>
<p><a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/09540253.2013.796342?journalCode=cgee20">Students themselves</a> tell us that they want to be taught by both women and men. Just as some boys and girls find it easier to relate to female teachers, others find it easier to relate to male teachers. A teaching workforce that is diverse – in gender, ethnicity, religion, and sexual orientation – is most likely to appeal to diverse groups of students.</p>
<p>The decline in male representation in schools also limits opportunities for students to observe men outside their families who are caring, nurturing, and concerned about education. This may lead students to assume that only women are suited for such work, or that such traits are atypical in men.</p>
<p>Finally, for students with risky home lives, male representation may be particularly important. The presence of male and female teachers within the school environment allows students to see men and women interacting in positive, equal, and <a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00131911.2016.1223607">non-violent ways</a>, and to observe men working with female leaders. In this way, male representation in schools may help to challenge misconceptions of what men can and cannot do.</p>
<h2>The impact on schools</h2>
<p>There are also important workplace reasons for Australian schools to include more male teachers.</p>
<p>Across professions, <a href="http://www.emeraldinsight.com/doi/abs/10.1108/EDI-03-2015-0020?af=R&">workforce diversity</a> is pursued because it creates an inclusive environment, facilitates multiple perspectives, and ensures that various groups are included in decision-making processes. Importantly, links have also been found to <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1540-6210.2008.01977.x/abstract;jsessionid=980D497CED4B455C1E319073254A1DBB.f04t03">job satisfaction and performance</a>.</p>
<p>Extending these findings to Australian schools, we suggest benefits for the school community when men and women are more equally represented.</p>
<p>Given the importance of diversity, the <a href="https://docs.education.gov.au/system/files/doc/other/education_and_training_diversity_strategy_20150209.pdf">Australian government</a> has committed to ensuring that the teaching workforce broadly reflects both the student population and Australian community. There are <a href="https://education.nsw.gov.au/policy-library/associated-documents/wdplan2012-17.pdf">policies</a> that aim to increase the representation of Aboriginal people, racial and religious minority groups, people under the age of 25, people with a disability, and women in leadership positions.</p>
<p>But there are no current workforce diversity policies to redress the sharp decline in male teachers.</p>
<h2>What can be done</h2>
<p>We now know where the male teacher population is headed. It is becoming increasingly unlikely that Australian schools will genuinely reflect the student population or broader community. A review of Australian workforce diversity policies is urgently needed.</p>
<p>Fortunately, much can be learned about increasing male representation in schools by looking to professions where the representation of women has been increased. These include STEM and business. As we suggest elsewhere, <a href="https://theconversation.com/we-need-to-rethink-recruitment-for-men-in-primary-schools-66670">targeted scholarships</a> could be used to increase the number of men studying education.</p>
<p>Additionally, increasing teachers’ salaries and permanent teaching positions may benefit the profession more broadly, while also providing incentives for men (and women) who consider a career in teaching later in life. Challenging negative perceptions is also important, and may require large-scale campaigns.</p>
<p>Both men and women are capable of being excellent teachers, and we want both in our schools. A more diverse teaching workforce benefits everyone – students, parents, and teachers alike.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/83464/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Penny Van Bergen has previously received funding from The Australian Research Council. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kevin F. McGrath does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Despite the need for both male and female teachers, male primary school teachers could be extinct by 2067.Kevin F. McGrath, Casual Academic, Department of Educational Studies, Macquarie UniversityPenny Van Bergen, Senior Lecturer in Educational Psychology, Macquarie UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/649552016-09-07T02:32:20Z2016-09-07T02:32:20ZFactCheck: has education spending gone up while student achievement has stalled or declined?<blockquote>
<p>Notwithstanding substantial increases in expenditure on education over the past decade, national and international assessments of student achievement in Australia show little improvement and in some areas standards of achievement have dropped. <strong>– The Productivity Commission <a href="http://www.pc.gov.au/inquiries/current/education-evidence/draft/education-evidence-draft.pdf">draft report</a> on the National Education Evidence Base, September 6, 2016.</strong></p>
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<p>In a <a href="http://www.pc.gov.au/inquiries/current/education-evidence/draft/education-evidence-draft.pdf">draft report</a>, the Productivity Commission says that education spending has substantially increased over the past decade but student achievement has shown little improvement, and in some areas has declined. </p>
<p>Is that true?</p>
<h2>Checking the source</h2>
<p>When asked for sources to support the statement, a spokesperson for the Productivity Commission told The Conversation that real government spending on education had <a href="http://www.pc.gov.au/research/ongoing/report-on-government-services/2016/childcare-education-and-training/school-education">increased</a> from $40.7 billion in 2004-05 to $50.4 billion in 2013-14.</p>
<p>Real government spending per student increased from $12,148 in 2004-05 to $13,783 in 2013-14.</p>
<p>Those figures combine federal and state government spending across government and non-government schools.</p>
<p>When asked for sources to support the assertion that national and international assessments of student achievement in Australia show little or no improvement, the spokesperson referred The Conversation to a 2015 <a href="http://www.nap.edu.au/verve/_resources/2015_NAPLAN_national_report.pdf">report</a> on the National Assessment Program — Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN), and 2012 data produced by the OECD’s <a href="http://www.oecd.org/pisa/keyfindings/pisa-2012-results-volume-IV.pdf">Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA)</a>.</p>
<p>You can read the Productivity Commission’s full response <a href="http://theconversation.com/full-response-from-the-productivity-commission-64970">here</a>. </p>
<h2>Has school funding substantially increased over the last decade?</h2>
<p>It has definitely increased – but whether or not the increase is “substantial” is in the eye of the beholder. The Productivity Commission’s report says that:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>There has been a 24% real increase in overall government recurrent expenditure on schools between 2004-05 and 2013-14.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>That sounds substantial at first. However, it is worth noting that student numbers grew by 9% over the same time period, from 3.35 million in 2004-05 to 3.66 million in 2013-14 (as outlined in Table 4A.6 in the <a href="http://www.pc.gov.au/research/ongoing/report-on-government-services/2016/childcare-education-and-training/school-education/rogs-2016-volumeb-chapter4-attachment.xlsx">2016 Report on Government Services</a>).</p>
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<p>The Productivity Commission acknowledges the impact of increasing student numbers when it says that real funding has grown:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>almost 14% per student across government and non-government schools.</p>
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<p>However, teachers’ wages have also grown each year about 1% above inflation. This is very much in line with typical wage growth. <a href="http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/meisubs.NSF/log?openagent&634509a.xls&6345.0&Time%20Series%20Spreadsheet&916AD267EB94F37ACA2580110015751D&0&Jun%202016&17.08.2016&Latest">Australian Bureau of Statistics Wage Price Index data</a> shows that wages in the education and training sector increased (in nominal terms) by 40.3% from June 2005 to June 2014, effectively the same as the 40.0% increase across all industries. </p>
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<p>Overall, it is true that education spending has increased over the last decade in real terms. However, that is unsurprising given that there are now more students than in the past, and wages typically grow faster than inflation. </p>
<p>After accounting for the increase in student numbers and teacher wages, the effective increase is closer to half the Productivity Commission’s figure of 14% per student across government and non-government schools. Readers can judge for themselves whether this is a “substantial increase”. </p>
<p>The bigger question is whether we have got increased productivity (or better student outcomes) from the increase in wages, as we would expect in other parts of the economy.</p>
<p><strong>– Peter Goss</strong></p>
<h2>Has there been little improvement in student achievement?</h2>
<p>Yes, that’s true. Most recent data from NAPLAN shows that nationally there has been little change in student achievement over the period 2008 – 2016. The only significant increase in scores since the introduction of NAPLAN testing in 2008 has been in Year 3, for both literacy and numeracy, and in numeracy at Year 5.</p>
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<p>Internationally, the <a href="https://www.acer.edu.au/timss">Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study</a> shows that achievement in both mathematics and science at Year 4 and Year 8 has been stable over the past 16 years, with the only significant improvement being in Year 4 maths between 1995 and 2011.</p>
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<p><strong>– Sue Thomson</strong></p>
<h2>Has Australia gone backwards in some areas?</h2>
<p>Yes. Data from the Programme for International Student Assessment shows a gradual decline in the ability of Australian students to apply what they learn in school to real world situations and problems.</p>
<p>In mathematical literacy and reading literacy, the average scores of Australian students in 2012 was significantly lower than in the past. In scientific literacy there has been a small decline in scores.</p>
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<p><strong>– Sue Thomson</strong></p>
<h2>Verdict</h2>
<p>It is true that national and international assessments of student achievement in Australia show little improvement. It’s true that in some areas, standards of achievement have dropped. <strong>– Sue Thomson.</strong></p>
<p>It is true that education spending has increased over the last decade in real terms. The Productivity Commission is correct that dollars spent per student increased by 14% in real terms over the last decade. However, up to half of this increase is due to teacher wage rises (which rose in line with general wages), so the effective new investment per student is much less. <strong>– Peter Goss.</strong></p>
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<h2>Review</h2>
<p>This analysis is correct. Educational spending has increased and there has been little overall national improvement in achievement. Relatively static national achievement levels, however, mask trends of <a href="http://www.nap.edu.au/_resources/2015_NAPLAN_national_report.pdf">improvement in some states</a> (Western Australia and Queenland) and significant changes in individual schools. <strong>– Bill Louden.</strong></p>
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<p><div class="callout"> Have you ever seen a “fact” worth checking? The Conversation’s FactCheck asks academic experts to test claims and see how true they are. We then ask a second academic to review an anonymous copy of the article. You can request a check at checkit@theconversation.edu.au. Please include the statement you would like us to check, the date it was made, and a link if possible.</div></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/64955/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Peter Goss is affiliated with the Grattan Institute. Grattan Institute began with contributions to its endowment of $15 million from each of the Federal and Victorian Governments, $4 million from BHP Billiton, and $1 million from NAB. In order to safeguard its independence, Grattan Institute’s board controls this endowment. The funds are invested and Grattan uses the income to pursue its activities.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Bill Louden has received funding in the past from state and federal governments. He was previously on the board of the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA).</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sue Thomson does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The Productivity Commission has said that education spending has substantially increased over the last decade but student achievement has shown little or no improvement. Is that true?Sue Thomson, Director, Educational Monitoring and Research Division; Research Director, Australian Surveys Research Program, Australian Council for Educational ResearchPeter Goss, School Education Program Director, Grattan InstituteLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/532962016-01-21T19:18:36Z2016-01-21T19:18:36ZShould you worry about a schools shortage? It really depends on where you live<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/108823/original/image-20160121-9766-cjptwe.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Most of the new schools needed will be primary schools. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">from www.shutterstock.com</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Australia’s population is booming. With it will come more school students – an estimated 650,000 more by 2026, an increase of 17% from today. Many new schools will be needed. Planning new schools is a long-term game: a child born today will start school in 2021 and complete year 12 in 2033.</p>
<p>How well are our planners doing? Will there be a shortage of school places? As a parent or a prospective parent, should you worry? The answer depends very much on where you live.</p>
<p>High-level demographic analysis can help us see the big trends. However, the issues can be very local, including how full your local schools are now, and school zoning regulations.</p>
<h2>How many new schools, and how much will they cost?</h2>
<p>To accommodate these extra 650,000 students, some 400 to 750 new schools will be needed. (Currently, there are about 9,400 schools in Australia.) Most will be primary schools – about 250 to 500. </p>
<p>Between two-thirds and three-quarters are likely to be government schools, with the remainder being either Catholic or Independent. </p>
<p>It costs about A$15 million to build a relatively standard primary school and more than twice as much for a secondary school. State governments will therefore need to find about A$6-11 billion to build government schools, close to a billion dollars every year on average. This is on top of the costs of maintaining existing schools. </p>
<p>At least in New South Wales this will mean a big uplift in investment. It has been <a>reported</a> that the NSW public school system is facing a A$7 billion shortfall in infrastructure spending over the next two decades. </p>
<p>By way of context, governments spent about<a href="http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/mf/5518.0.55.001"> A$41 billion</a> in 2013-14 on running schools.</p>
<h2>Where will the new schools be needed?</h2>
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<p>Over 90% of Australia’s extra students will live in our four large states. </p>
<p>Queensland has the fastest growth rate, followed closely by Victoria. Victoria, NSW and Queensland will all have about 170,000-180,000 new students. Western Australia will have about 60,000 new students. (As an indication of how population estimates can change, the forecast growth rate in Western Australia dropped from 32% in a 2013 ABS projection to 17% in WA’s own projections in 2015.) </p>
<p>Of the smaller jurisdictions, Australian Capital Territory is growing most rapidly. The Northern Territory is next, but the remoteness of many students complicates planning. South Australia is growing more slowly but will still add 30,000 students, while Tasmanian growth is virtually flat.</p>
<p>Longer-term trends also matter, because they affect the mindset of planners. Queensland and Western Australia have had growing populations for decades. By contrast, NSW and Victoria had 20 years of low or no growth in student numbers during the 1990s and 2000s. Many schools were closed and the land was sold off. But student numbers are now set to grow for the foreseeable future. Permanent solutions are needed, not just fleets of portable classrooms.</p>
<h2>How do the issues differ in different locations?</h2>
<p>Growth rates are highly localised, reflecting the development of new suburbs, and evolving patterns of where Australian families live. Using local government area data, I analysed where student population growth will be highest over the coming decade. Different states show very different patterns. </p>
<p>Most of the new schools will be needed in the outer-growth corridors of Sydney, Melbourne and Perth; the big Queensland cities outside Brisbane; and the resurgent inner city of Melbourne and to a lesser extent Sydney. </p>
<p>Each location has different planning issues.</p>
<p>In the outer growth corridors of big cities, communities are being formed from scratch. They are often full of young families, attracted by cheaper housing. But jobs can be scarce and commutes long. Unless good social networks develop, dreams of a better life can turn sour.</p>
<p>Schools play a central role in building community fabric: good schools help new suburbs grow into strong communities. The good news is that governments are very aware of this. Innovative models of primary school are being trialled, including integrated childcare and health facilities.</p>
<p>It helps that buying land for schools in such areas is cheap. However, just keeping up with the growth can be tough. In Wyndham, south-east of Melbourne, 100 new classrooms will be needed every year for the next decade. </p>
<p>Each big Queensland city has different planning issues. Ispwich, west of Brisbane, will have more new students than any other local government area in Australia. While the city itself is long-established, new housing developments are driving massive growth. </p>
<p>The Gold and Sunshine Coasts, have been growing for decades; planners have no excuse if new schools are not factored in. Meanwhile, Queensland’s regional cities are subject much more to local economic cycles, including tourism, construction and mining. This is hard to plan for.</p>
<p>Forecasts of student numbers are most unpredictable in mining boom towns. Unpalatable as it may sound to some, maybe this is the one situation where portable classrooms are the best solution. When the population moves, the classroom can move too. In the best cases, mining companies provide substantial support for community infrastructure.</p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/108819/original/image-20160121-9769-10ixnn1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/108819/original/image-20160121-9769-10ixnn1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/108819/original/image-20160121-9769-10ixnn1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/108819/original/image-20160121-9769-10ixnn1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/108819/original/image-20160121-9769-10ixnn1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/108819/original/image-20160121-9769-10ixnn1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/108819/original/image-20160121-9769-10ixnn1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">For some areas, forecasts of student numbers are highly unpredictable. Portable classrooms may then be the best solution.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">from www.shutterstock.com</span></span>
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<p>In the inner city, the big issue is the cost and scarcity of land.</p>
<p>Australians are choosing to <a href="http://grattan.edu.au/report/city-limits-why-australias-cities-are-broken-and-how-we-can-fix-them/">live closer to the city</a>, lured by shorter commutes and access to more jobs. Many stay when they have children, especially in Melbourne and Sydney, rather than moving out to the suburbs. (The number of students in inner Brisbane and inner Perth is growing much more slowly.)</p>
<p>Governments have been much worse at planning for the booming number of inner-city children. For example, Melbourne’s Docklands still has<a href="http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/wait-goes-on-for-docklands-school-as-government-begins-another-study-20150624-ghws7m.html"> no school</a>. </p>
<p>School spots are also <a href="https://www.themonthly.com.au/issue/2015/february/1422709200/ceridwen-dovey/schoolyard-crush">scarce</a> in the lower north shore of Sydney. One of the hotspots is the North Ryde Station Urban Activation Precinct, where no new school was planned despite an expected 24,000 new residents moving into the area. At least in that case a previously closed school site is available. </p>
<p>Worse is to come, especially in Melbourne. Melbourne’s five most central local government areas will each see a 30% to 60% increase in student numbers over the next decade. </p>
<p>The mini-baby boom that started in about 2006 will hit secondary schools in 2017 or 2018. Many schools are already overcrowded. Too few new schools are planned, although more are <a href="http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/schools-shortage-crisis-hits-victoria-20160113-gm4wzq">reportedly in the pipeline</a>.</p>
<h2>Why does poor planning matter?</h2>
<p>Poor planning is clearly a big issue for parents who struggle to find a local government school for their children. Many feel forced to pay non-government school fees, or travel a long way to access a school.</p>
<p>There is also some evidence that overcrowded schools have a significantly <a href="http://www2.ed.gov/offices/OESE/archives/inits/construction/impact2.html">negative impact</a> on student learning.</p>
<p>But it is not just those directly affected who should care. Poor school planning costs taxpayers big bucks, especially in urban redevelopment projects.</p>
<p>A stark example of this is Fisherman’s Bend, Victoria’s largest urban redevelopment. More than twice the size of Docklands, it will eventually require about six to ten government schools. Yet when it was rezoned overnight in 2012, no land was set aside for schools. The price of land has risen fourfold since rezoning.</p>
<p>The Victorian government will have to spend hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars to acquire the land for schools. Better planning could have paid for dozens of schools in outer suburbs where land is cheap. This is waste on a massive scale.</p>
<p>Our current decision-making processes are not set up well. Long-term planning plus varied growth rates lead to political issues.</p>
<p>Local politicians in high-growth areas like to announce new schools and cut ribbons – as do education ministers and premiers. </p>
<p>Treasurers who face budget pressures may argue strongly to limit investment. Politicians in slow-growth electorates may be reluctant to see infrastructure money go elsewhere. Short political cycles mean that a minister who decides not to build a school may be long gone by the time it becomes critical.</p>
<p>Local groups have been vocal about the need for new schools in their areas. Increasingly, groups like <a href="http://www.ourchildrenourschools.com.au/">Our Children Our Schools</a> are banding together. Community campaigns are even more effective when backed by hard facts about the number of pre-schoolers or primary students already in the system.</p>
<h2>Should you worry?</h2>
<p>As a current or prospective parent, whether you should worry about school shortages depends entirely on where you live. </p>
<p>Inner-city parents in urban redevelopment zones are the most likely to have problems getting their children into a government school, followed by young families in outer growth corridors.</p>
<p>Many other parents will live in local government areas with low or no growth, and wonder what all the fuss is about.</p>
<p>As a taxpayer, you should definitely worry about whether schools are being planned effectively. Poor planning places a large and unnecessary burden on state budgets.</p>
<p>The way forward is to depoliticise the planning process, in part by increasing the transparency of detailed supply and demand forecasts.</p>
<p>The focus of our politicians should be on how to improve the quality of schooling for every Australian student, not who gets to cut what ribbon.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/53296/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Peter Goss is School Education Program Director with Grattan Institute, a think tank. </span></em></p>Inner-city parents in urban redevelopment zones are the most likely to have problems getting their children into a government school.Peter Goss, School Education Program Director, Grattan InstituteLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/512012015-11-27T04:28:01Z2015-11-27T04:28:01ZPolicymakers should use caution when drawing lessons from OECD’s education report<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/103397/original/image-20151127-28268-kulwod.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Should the OECD education report inform policy on schools?</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">www.shutterstock.com</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Each year, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) launches a report called <a href="http://www.oecd.org/edu/education-at-a-glance-19991487.htm">Education at a Glance</a>.</p>
<p>The title is ironic because this report can hardly be taken in “at a glance”. At 550 pages long, and with nearly 250 tables, 140 charts and more than 100,000 figures, it provides a comparative account of data on learning outcomes, educational attainment, investment, participation and learning environments across the education systems of 34 OECD nations and 12 non-OECD nations.</p>
<p>The OECD explicitly intends for this publication to inform policy. </p>
<p>But, paradoxically, the very features that make the report so impressive – its complexity and scale – also make drawing inferences and deriving useful policy lessons rather complex and prone to oversimplification.</p>
<p>When making comparisons across a vast range of contexts, many aspects are left out of the story. This makes comparisons rather treacherous. </p>
<p>For example, in some East Asian countries such as Korea and Singapore, parents spend large sums of money on private tutors and cram schools – schools that train students to pass exams – but this does not show up in the report as part of the “investment in education”. </p>
<p>By relying on the reported data alone, one could be misled into emulating policies that appear to get better education bang for buck.</p>
<p>Another major issue is the reporting of data by national averages.</p>
<p>Aggregating data at the national level masks the vast variations within countries. </p>
<p>In Australia, the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) performs as well as many of the highest-performing nations on international assessments, while the Northern Territory (NT) and Tasmania perform below the OECD average. </p>
<p>Talking about Australian trends and focusing attention on national averages encourages national reforms, such as the introduction of a national curriculum and the National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN), which have come at enormous cost, but have resulted in little improvement. </p>
<p>Robert Randall, the head of the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA), <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/national/education/naplan-2015-education-chiefs-warn-students-are-not-improving-20150803-giq6v8.html">accepted that</a> “at a national level we are seeing little change in student achievement”.</p>
<p>That money might have been better redistributed and spent on resources for Australia’s low-scoring states.</p>
<p>Part of the difficulty with making such comparisons is that education systems are extremely complex. Often there are no clear answers even after decades of research. </p>
<p>A good example is class size. </p>
<p>Often, students who are struggling or disadvantaged are placed in smaller classes – these classes would then be correlated with poorer outcomes. </p>
<p>The report shows that in Australia private schools – which <a href="http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/education/private-schools-perform-no-better/story-fn59nlz9-1227302533102?sv=74a9f87c01736b3ef308125778c6267c">perform better</a> – tend to have larger classes than public schools (although the “advantage” is sometimes explained as a factor of social and economic capital). </p>
<p>If we were to draw policy lessons from this data, we might imagine that the way to improve education is to enlarge class size. </p>
<p>But calculating class size is not easy. In the report, class size is calculated simply by dividing the number of students enrolled by the number of classes. </p>
<p>But the reality of class size is somewhat more complex. Class size does not remain the same all day for students – it changes as they move through the school day or attend different subjects. </p>
<p>Many schools also have special needs programs, which may involve in-class or pull-out support for students, or elective options that result in smaller classes. </p>
<p>The report acknowledges these complexities. It also cites evidence from the OECD’s Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS) that larger classes are correlated with more time spent on behaviour management and administrative tasks, and less on teaching and learning.</p>
<p>Nevertheless, it concludes that the evidence of the effect of differences in class size on student performance is weak. The report goes on to suggest, based on data from the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA), that countries should prioritise policies to improve teacher quality. An example is raising salaries to attract good candidates and retain effective teachers – even if the trade-off is larger classes. </p>
<p>The report is meticulous in declaring vulnerabilities in its methodology and in cautioning against over-interpretation. However, these finer points and cautions often tend to be disregarded in the narratives constructed from the report by the media and by the OECD itself for the media and for policymakers.</p>
<p>We should then use these comparisons cautiously. </p>
<p>The report is a good way to alert us to the presence of a problem, but more focused research should be done first before arriving at any policy actions or interventions.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/51201/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Radhika Gorur received funding from Collaborative Research Network for the research that informed this article.</span></em></p>We should be cautious of implementing policies off the back of the OECD’s annual education report, which makes vast comparisons between countries and leaves out crucial data.Radhika Gorur, Senior Lecturer In Education (Pedagogy & Curriculum), Deakin UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/329582015-03-15T19:26:46Z2015-03-15T19:26:46ZSix ways Australia’s education system is failing our kids<p>Amid debates about budget cuts and the rising costs of schools and degrees, there is one debate receiving alarmingly little attention in Australia. We’re facing a slow decline in most educational standards, and few are aware just how bad the situation is getting. </p>
<p>These are just six of the ways that Australia’s education system is seriously failing our kids.</p>
<h2>1. Australian teens are falling behind, as others race ahead</h2>
<p>The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) survey tests the skills and knowledge of 15-year-old students in more than 70 economies worldwide. And <a href="http://www.oecd.org/pisa/">it shows</a> that Australian 15-year-olds’ scores on reading, maths and scientific literacy have recorded statistically significant declines since 2000, while other countries have shown improvement. </p>
<p>Although there has been much media attention on falling international ranks, it is actually this decline in real scores that should hit the headlines. That’s because it means that students in 2000 answered substantially more questions correctly than students in 2012. The decline is equivalent to more than half a year of schooling.</p>
<p>Our students are falling behind: three years behind students from Shanghai in maths and 1½ years behind in reading.</p>
<p>In maths and science, an average Australian 15-year-old student has the problem-solving abilities equivalent to an average 12-year-old Korean pupil.</p>
<p>An <a href="http://www.iea.nl/">international assessment</a> of school years 4 and 8 shows that Australian students’ average performance is now below that of England and the USA: countries that we used to classify as educationally inferior.</p>
<p>The declining education standards are across all ability levels. <a href="http://research.acer.edu.au/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1015&context=ar_misc">Analysis of PISA and NAPLAN</a> suggests that stagnation and decline are occurring among high performing students as well as low performers.</p>
<h2>2. Declining participation in science and maths</h2>
<p>It has been estimated that <a href="http://www.aigroup.com.au/portal/binary/com.epicentric.contentmanagement.servlet.ContentDeliveryServlet/LIVE_CONTENT/Publications/Reports/2013/Ai_Group_Skills_Survey_2012-STEM_FINAL_PRINTED.pdf">75%</a> of the fastest growing occupations require science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) skills and knowledge. </p>
<p>The importance of STEM is acknowledged by <a href="http://news.microsoft.com/download/presskits/citizenship/msnts.pdf">industry</a> and <a href="http://www.bca.com.au/newsroom/stem-strategy-would-help-drive-innovation">business</a>. Yet there are <a href="http://eprints.qut.edu.au/73153/1/Continuing_decline_of_science_proof.pdf">national declines</a> in Australian participation and attainment in these subjects. We are also among the bottom of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (<a href="http://www.oecd.org/about/">OECD</a>) 34 nations on translation of education investment to innovation, which is highly dependent upon STEM.</p>
<p>Fewer than <a href="http://amsi.org.au/publications/participation-year-12-mathematics-2004-2013/">one in ten</a> Australian students studied advanced maths in year 12 in 2013. In particular, there has been a <a href="http://openjournals.library.usyd.edu.au/index.php/CAL/article/viewFile/7625/8461">collapse in girls studying maths and science</a>.</p>
<p>A national gender breakdown shows that just 6.6% of girls sat for advanced mathematics in 2013; that’s half the rate for boys, and represents a 23% decline since 2004. In New South Wales, a tiny 1.5% of girls take the trio of advanced maths, physics and chemistry. </p>
<p>Maths is not a requirement at senior secondary level in NSW, Victoria and Western Australia, although it is compulsory in South Australia, and to a small extent in Queensland and the Northern Territory. In NSW, the requirement for Higher School Certificate (HSC) maths or science study was removed in 2001. The national curriculum also makes no requirement for maths or science study after Year 10. </p>
<p>Australia is just about the only developed nation that <a href="https://theconversation.com/make-maths-mandatory-and-well-improve-our-international-education-rankings-11663">does not make it compulsory to study maths</a> in order to graduate from high school. </p>
<p>A <a href="http://www.pc.gov.au/research/completed/literacy-numeracy-skills">recent report</a> by the Productivity Commission found almost one-quarter of Australians are capable of only basic mathematics, such as counting. Many universities now have to offer basic (school level) maths and literacy development courses to support students in their study. These outcomes look extremely concerning when we review participation and achievement in <a href="http://www.acola.org.au/PDF/SAF02Consultants/SAF02_STEM_%20FINAL.pdf">maths and science internationally</a>. </p>
<h2>3. Australian education is monolingual</h2>
<p>In 2013, the proportion of students studying a foreign language is at historic lows. For example in NSW, only 8% studied a foreign language for their HSC, <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/national/education/number-of-hsc-language-students-falls-to-record-low-20131002-2usv2.html">the lowest percentage ever recorded</a>. </p>
<p>In NSW, the number of HSC <a href="http://www.boardofstudies.nsw.edu.au/ebos/static/ebos_stats.html">students studying Chinese</a> in 2014 was just 798 (635 of which were students with a Chinese background), whereas a decade ago it was almost double that number, with 1,591. </p>
<p>The most popular beginner language in NSW was French, with 663 HSC students taking French as a beginner in 2013. These numbers are extremely small when you consider that the total number of HSC students in NSW: more than 75,000.</p>
<p>These declines, which are typical of what has happened around the country, have occurred at a time when most other industrialised countries have been strengthening their students’ knowledge of other cultures and languages, in particular learning English.</p>
<p>English language skills are becoming a basic skill around the world. Monolingual Australians are increasingly competing for jobs with people who are just as competent in English as they are in their own native language - and possibly one or two more.</p>
<h2>4. International and migrant students are actually raising standards, not lowering them</h2>
<p>There are many who believe that Australian education is being held back by our multicultural composition and high proportion of migrant students. This could not be further from the truth. In the <a href="http://www.acer.edu.au/documents/PISA-2012-Report.pdf">most recent PISA</a> assessment of 15 year olds, Australian-born students’ average English literacy score was significantly lower than the average first-generation migrant students’ score, and not significantly different from foreign-born students. </p>
<p>The proportion of top performers was higher for foreign-born (14%) and first-generation students (15%) than for Australian-born students (10%).</p>
<p>Students from Chinese, Korean and Sri Lankan backgrounds are the <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/national/education/top-atar-hsc-performances-the-result-of-years-of-achievement-20141214-12442a.html">highest performers</a> in the NSW HSC. The top performing selective secondary schools in NSW now have more than <a href="http://www.australianreview.net/digest/2011/05/ho.html">80% of students coming from non-English</a> speaking backgrounds.</p>
<h2>5. You can’t have quality education without quality teachers</h2>
<p>While there are many factors that may contribute to teacher quality, the overall academic attainment of those entering teaching degrees is an obvious and measurable component, which has been the focus of rigorous standards in many countries. </p>
<p>An <a href="http://research.acer.edu.au/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=teacher_education">international benchmarking study</a> indicates that Australia’s teacher education policies are currently falling well short of high-achieving countries where future teachers are recruited from the top 30% of the age cohort. </p>
<p>In Australia between <a href="https://digitalcollections.anu.edu.au/bitstream/1885/45254/3/DP534.pdf">1983 and 2003</a>, the standard intake was from the top 26% to 39%. By <a href="http://research.acer.edu.au/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=teacher_education">2012/2013</a>, less than half of Year 12 students receiving offers for places in undergraduate teacher education courses had ATAR scores in the top 50% of their age cohort. </p>
<p>Teacher education degrees also had the highest percentage of students entering with
<a href="http://research.acer.edu.au/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=teacher_education">low ATAR scores</a>, and the proportion of teacher education entrants with an ATAR of less than 50 nearly doubled over the past three years. We cannot expect above-average education with below-average teachers.</p>
<h2>6. Early learning participation is amongst the lowest in the developed world</h2>
<p>While Australia has recently lifted levels of investment in early childhood education, this investment has not been reflected in high levels of early childhood participation. In Australia, just 18% of 3 year olds participated in early childhood education, compared with 70% on average across the OECD. In this respect, we rank at 34 out of 36 OECD and partner countries. </p>
<p>Australia also ranks at 22 out of 37 on the OECD league table that measures the <a href="http://www.oecd.org/edu/Australia-EAG2014-Country-Note.pdf">total investment across education</a> as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product.</p>
<p>While low levels of expenditure and participation curtail any system, there is more negative impact from a lack of investment in early childhood than there would be from a lack of funding further up the educational chain. Nobel prize winner <a href="http://www.heckmanequation.org/content/resource/presenting-heckman-equation">James Heckmann</a> has shown how investment in early childhood produces <a href="http://www.oecd.org/edu/school/48980282.pdf">the greatest returns to society</a>.</p>
<h2>What to do?</h2>
<p>Funding is a critical issue, and not just in terms of what you spend, but also how you spend it. <a href="http://www.heckmanequation.org/content/resource/presenting-heckman-equation">Research suggests</a> spending on early childhood, quality teaching and core curriculum have the greatest returns on investment. </p>
<p>There is also growing evidence to suggest that a segregated schooling system – for example, <a href="http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1086/672011">socio-economically</a> or <a href="http://wol.iza.org/articles/school-tracking-and-intergenerational-social-mobility.pdf">academically selective</a> schools – is counterproductive and restricts social mobility. High-performing countries have school systems on a <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-lesson-from-canada-why-australia-should-have-fewer-selective-schools-35534">far more level playing field than Australia</a>.</p>
<p>We need a long-term plan across education sectors: from early childhood, to schools, universities and TAFE, which includes plans for supporting and strengthening teacher education in all those sectors.</p>
<p>We also need a louder public conversation about Australian education, and lobbying to shift how we value and invest in education. </p>
<p>When <a href="http://www.oecd.org/pisa/pisaproducts/46581323.pdf">Germany was shocked</a> by its first performance on the 2000 PISA assessment, it started a national conversation that saw education on the front page of newspapers for the next two years. Germany’s education has been improving ever since. </p>
<p>If Australia wants to build a <a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/02188791.2014.924387#.VQJMlfmUeSo">strong and competitive economy</a>, we need fewer front page articles about budget cuts, and more on reform and investment in education.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/32958/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Australia’s facing a slow decline in most educational standards and few are aware just how bad the situation is getting.Rachel Wilson, Associate Professor in Education, University of SydneyBronwen Dalton, Professor, Head of Department of Management, UTS Business School, University of Technology SydneyChris Baumann, Associate Professor in Business, Macquarie UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.