March
Labor’s education report card is one step forward, two steps back
Efforts to put strict conditions on additional school funding to the states to improve outcomes have already been undercut by creating an alibi for failure.
After months of resistance, Qld signs on to $2.8b schools package
Australia’s schools will benefit from a $30 billion boost to funding over the next decade after Queensland was the final state to sign up to a national plan.
This school may have the answer to improving kids’ maths
Teachers can now sign up for a new program from La Trobe University to teach them how to teach the subject – and not before time.
February
How not to waste Gonski school funding
Additional federal money may unfortunately extend and expand inefficient and ineffective practices rather than lift the quality of teaching.
We asked 4 experts to mark Labor on education. Here’s what they said
Anthony Albanese says education is one of his greatest accomplishments in his first term in government. We asked four experts if that adds up.
January
Ex-Macquarie boss rails against Mosman NIMBY-ism
In a rare interview, Nicholas Moore has highlighted the need for more homes in inner-city suburbs such as the Sydney harbourside suburb of Mosman where he lives.
December 2024
‘Cruiser schools’ and why parents might not be getting what they pay for
Australia has one of the most privatised school systems in the world, but national data suggests not all students are benefiting from their costly educations.
The surprise elite schools that are failing academically
Parents spending $30,000-plus to send their children to high-fee private schools expect educational returns. The truth is more complex.
September 2024
Australia’s five most powerful people in education in 2024
As we hurtle to the end of the year, there are a lot of balls still up in the air for the sector. The question is, how many have landed?
August 2024
Our universities have become talent bottlenecks
Australia’s higher education system is optimised for foreign students. It is neither developing enough local skills, nor keeping the best of overseas talent.
This school has joined the education revolution. What about your kids?
Australian schools are finally catching up with teaching that works after a multibillion-dollar boost to student funding failed to lift learning outcomes.
School reform fight could scupper $16b Gonski funding top-up
A stand-off between the state and federal governments is threatening a new funding deal that is linked to lifting the academic outcomes of Australian children.
NAPLAN puts schools in remedial class
The hopes that the $319b Gonski funding revolution would turn around the worst-performing students are turning into one of the great public policy debacles.
Labor backing a loser with its gambling ads bet
Readers’ letters on gambling ads; the hidden value of private health insurance; rare earths mining; a fix for education; and bidding au revoir to the Paris Olympics.
Boys’ results plummet early in high school
After 10 years of compulsory schooling, about two in five boys are struggling to read and write at a high level. This is a big problem for the nation.
Three ways to end NAPLAN mediocrity in our schools
Governments must lift proficiency levels, boost the quality of classroom curriculums and identify as soon as possible those students who are falling behind.
Minister on a mission needs a break from the states
The latest NAPLAN results are bad news for too many school students. Jason Clare is determined to change that, but will he succeed where so many others failed?
NAPLAN is a measure of wealth, not student ability
This year’s assessment results confirm what we already know – rich kids do well, poor kids don’t. This is to our national shame.
One in three pupils fails to meet baseline literacy, numeracy
The latest NAPLAN results also reveal a stubborn gap between test results of rich and poor children, highlighting the failure of schools to overcome disadvantage.
July 2024
Time running out to fix school funding sticking point
Here we are, 12 years later, with at least one school generation having finished their education, and there’s still no needs-based Gonski funding for disadvantaged students.