A social enterprise providing education and information to protect and enhance the mental health of young people
Amanda Niland, University of Sydney and Marianne Fenech, University of Sydney The decision about whether to send a child to school “early” or “hold them back” can be a tortuous one for families who have a child born in the first half of the year. So a recent New South Wales proposal that all children [...]
Maya Gunawardena, University of Canberra It is not uncommon for kids to complain about school, but studies show significant numbers of Australian students are actually disengaged with their education. A 2017 Grattan Institute report found as many as 40% are unproductive in a given year because they are disengaged. This is a huge concern. [...]
Ragan Petrie, The University of Melbourne and Marco Castillo Since 2008, Australia has spent more than A$11 billion dollars over ten years to expand government-funded preschool (or kinder in Victoria) for four-year-olds to better prepare children for school. But as our new study finds, to date, there is no rigorous evidence to suggest this investment [...]
Brittany Johnson, Flinders University; Alexandra Manson, Flinders University; Danielle Gallegos, Queensland University of Technology, and Rebecca Golley, Flinders University State Liberal leader Matthew Guy has promised a trial to provide free lunches in Victorian public schools if elected on November 26. The A$300 million election policy is aimed at helping families with cost-of-living pressures, through [...]
Kirsten Lambert, Murdoch University We know teachers are under a lot of pressure. Teacher shortages, growing workloads as well as the demands of a complex job mean many teachers are stressed. But my research shows parents are not helping. In fact, they are making the problem worse. Teachers are increasingly copping abuse from parents and [...]
Madeleine Ferrari, Australian Catholic University This week, year 12 students in New South Wales will begin their final exams, with students in other states soon to follow. This can be one of the most stressful times in a students’ life. It can also be very stressful for parents trying to support their children. But there [...]
Joanne Orlando, Western Sydney University This week, one Sydney high school made headlines for banning mobile phones during school hours. Phones can come to school but must stay in locked pouches allowing teachers to “focus on educating students”. This follows other recent phone bans at both public and private schools around Australia. In 2020, Victoria [...]
Rachael Sharman, University of the Sunshine Coast As any parent will tell you, a common feature of the school holidays is an increase in squabbling kids. Whether in the back of the car, at the park or by the TV, you will hear the whingey sounds of “Muuuum, Ollie just called me a stupid head!”. [...]
Kate Highfield, Australian Catholic University It is school holidays in Australia and, in many parts of the country, it’s also raining and bitterly cold. This means many children are stuck indoors and many parents will be grappling with how much “screen time” their kids are having. As as early childhood researcher and parent to a [...]
Anabela Malpique, Edith Cowan University; Deborah Pino Pasternak, University of Canberra; Debora Valcan, Murdoch University, and Susan Ledger, University of Newcastle Learning how to be a confident and communicative writer is one of the most important skills students learn at school. But NAPLAN results show a significant decline in Australian students’ writing performance. Research for [...]
