In an attempt to pressure state leaders on schools funding reform, prime minister Julia Gillard revealed new data showing the difference her package would make at the national and state level. The June…
Every now and then we manufacture a crisis in Australian school science. People write reports. These recommend change, including curriculum change, and point out the ways in which current patterns of school…
Geoff Masters, Australian Council for Educational Research
When we were growing up, my father occasionally stood each of us against the back door and marked our height on the door in pencil. He wrote our initials and the date alongside each mark. For us, it was…
This week you might have heard the word “Gonski” even more than usual. That’s because the Gillard government finally announced how it would pay for its school funding reform in the lead up to its meeting…
The A$14 billion federal government proposal based on David Gonski’s call for a better school funding system has not been agreed to at this week’s COAG meeting. In fact, none of the states and territories…
Losing A$200 a student doesn’t sound like a major cut for a multi-billion-dollar industry - so will the new university funding cuts really affect the quality of Australian higher education? Over the weekend…
Prime Minister Julia Gillard’s announcement yesterday about a new school funding and resource standard does not deliver on Gonski’s promise. Gillard said that the plan would mean “better resourcing and…
The Gillard government has two immediate problems with the politics of its A$14.5 billion education funding plan. First, and most seriously, the six-year blueprint, which requires the states to pay one…
With high stakes testing and a crowded curriculum, something fundamental is being left behind in education – storytelling. Some might argue that speaking and listening have always been undervalued in schools…
Trainee teachers would be tested for literacy, numeracy and emotional intelligence under a suite of teacher training reforms released by the Federal Government today. Under the plan, the Australian Tertiary…
Half of Australia’s young male offenders have a clinically significant, previously unidentified language deficit. It’s a shocking figure that comes after ten years worth of research into the oral language…
The Gonski reforms to school funding are front and centre in this election year. But despite their prominence, much of the plan – including who will pay – is yet to be decided. But while we watch what…
There has been a series of disturbing homophobic bullying incidents in Queensland schools in recent months. Some of the cases reported in the media included a Brisbane student being allegedly told by male…
The Labor government is not often celebrated for its policy achievements, but there has been one area where it deserves some recognition – early childhood education. It started reforms to the sector in…
It might come as a surprise to most Australians that our religious education system is not only out-moded but is doing damage to students, families and teachers. Special Religious Instruction (SRI) is…
Adam Smith, Australian Council for Educational Research
Today, as part of an Australian Education Union (AEU) campaign, academics, business and political leaders have signed a letter urging state and federal governments to move on the Gonski reforms to school…
As students head back to school this year, it’s worth sparing a thought for the many students who won’t return. In fact, each year thousands of young people leave school without a Year 12 qualification…
Results released from a major Victorian study on student learning show high achieving children’s performance in tests is “flat-lining”. The study, by Professor Patrick Griffin, followed 36,000 students…
Annette Rome, The University of Melbourne e Adam Smith, Australian Council for Educational Research
For-profit education is something that really doesn’t exist in Australia… yet. But in many other countries around the world it has become a normal part of education and there are now many companies providing…
The results of international literacy, numeracy and science tests released this week should be cause for alarm. In what the minister for education Peter Garrett called “disappointing” results, the Progress…