In a series of research forums young people talked about their fears around going to high school. And what kind of support they want.
Academic rigor, journalistic flair
Australian Council for Educational Research
The Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) is an independent, not-for-profit research organisation that has been supporting the transformation of the education sector for more than 90 years. Our mission is to create and promote research-based knowledge, products and services that can be used to improve learning across the life span.
An international leader in educational research, ACER specialises in collecting and interpreting information to shape strategic decision-making, from the early years to post-compulsory education. We develop high quality assessment and reporting tools and services, and support professionals to develop their capabilities to improve learner outcomes. Our evidence-based publications and resources focus on understanding and addressing the needs of individuals, promoting quality teaching and leadership, and supporting organisational improvement.
We have more than 430 staff located in our 10 offices in Australia, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom.
Links
Displaying 1 - 20 of 37 articles
A major international test has found about 80% of students have “more than elementary” skills in reading comprehension. This is the same result Australian students recorded in 2016.
Only 8% of Australian students said they were learning two or more foreign languages in 2018, compared to 50% of students across OECD countries.
The evidence clearly shows one-on-one tutoring improves disadvantaged students’ skills. An Australian pilot program has now shown the benefits of online tutoring that supports students in their homes.
Students with expert maths teachers scored significantly higher on an international maths test than any other group. But a student’s level of advantage also affects assessment scores.
The NSW curriculum review recommends students be assigned tasks based on their ability, rather than their age. This approach recognises the progress individuals make over the course of a year.
For years you may have been adding and subtracting numbers in your head in a certain way, but these strategies were never formally taught at school. Now they are, and they all have names.
Results from the world’s longest running large-scale international assessment of maths and science show Australia has significantly improved in Year 8 maths and science, and Year 4 science.
Data are about to be released on how well countries teach Year 4 and 8 maths and science Results from the last cycle of testing in 2015 showed Australia’s students achievement had flatlined.
Online learning can actually be as effective as when classes are delivered face-to-face. But teachers need training to do this effectively.
Australian education is still going backwards from where we started in 2000 – new PISA results show.
Every three years, the OECD releases its Programme for International Student Assessment results. Last time, Australia’s education system was doing much worse than some other countries. Has it changed?
A new report out today shows parents are generally unsatisfied with the way reports cards communicate students’ progress.
In 2015, the federal government contributed A$47.2 billion (42%) to education. State, territory and local governments spent A$39.1 billion (35%) and A$25.5 billion (23%) came from private sources.
Although fewer Australian teens planned on going to university or TAFE than 15 years ago, figures were still higher than the OECD average.
Australian students, on average, reported a poorer sense of belonging at school than the OECD average. But issues with sense of belonging aren’t distributed evenly across the population.
NAPLAN has now been in place for a decade and needs ongoing review and refinement to make it more useful to classroom teaching and learning.
Standardised tests are a powerful tool for building an evidence base of what works to guide education policy.
Our current way of assessing students doesn’t let them see the progress they are making over extended periods of time.
Latest TIMSS report shows that students in Australia make very little – if any – progress in maths from Year 4 to Year 8.
Authors
-
Senior Research Fellow, Australian Council for Educational Research
-
Research Director, Australian Council for Educational Research
-
CEO, Australian Council for Educational Research
-
Principal Research Fellow, Australian Council for Educational Research
-
Research Fellow, Australian Council for Educational Research
-
Senior Research Fellow, Australian Council for Educational Research
-
Senior Research Fellow, Australian Council for Educational Research
-
Principal Research Fellow, Australian Council for Educational Research
-
Professor, Australian Council for Educational Research
-
Head Centre for Global Education Monitoring - ACER, Australian Council for Educational Research
-
Principal Research Fellow, Australian Council for Educational Research
-
Research Fellow, Australian Council for Educational Research
-
Research Director, Surveys and International Assessments, Australian Council for Educational Research
-
Research Fellow, Australian Council for Educational Research
-
Deputy CEO (Research), Australian Council for Educational Research
