When five pm hits, Jessica flicks on the TV. She knows Lula, her two-and-a-half-year-old, will pass the witching hour in relative peace watching ABC Kids. Screen time rules proponents may caution her: no more than that per day, until Lulu is ...
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NSW parents angered by schools’ ‘high-pressure tactics’
Has a parent ever complained to you about voluntary school contributions – whether they be excursion, textbook or extracurricular activity-related? If so, you're far from alone. Parents and Citizens Associations of New South Wales, the peak body for NSW school parents, believes ...
More »How parents decide on a private school
As is the practice in some circles, Jessie has already private high school-shopped for her toddler. Her multi-ethnic three-year-old is advanced for her age, so Jessie knew she wanted to choose a school that embraced both multiculturalism and academic excellence. ...
More »A popular classroom app’s ‘disturbing implications’
There's nothing sinister about cute monster avatars, right? Wrong, say University of South Australia researchers. They evaluated the cartoon critter-laden classroom app, ClassDojo, and reached a worrisome conclusion, namely, that it 'promotes controlling techniques of discipline and governance, rather than ...
More »English grammar – how can teachers upskill?
In recent years, there has been ongoing discussion about whether mainstream primary and high school teachers are sufficiently prepared to fully implement the language components of the Australian Curriculum. Over the past decades, educators have successfully delivered the functional genre ...
More »Australian students are among the most test-anxious in the world
Dear Mum and Dad, This is just to let you know that I took the torch, the hammer, the gardening trowel, the plastic strainer, the chocolate biscuits and the stuff that's missing from the bathroom. So it's OK, you haven't been ...
More »Students, particularly girls, ‘switch off’ in maths, but there’s hope yet
If you're a teacher or parent of a high school girl, or know one, have you noticed that they seem disinterested in maths compared to a similar-aged boy? If so, there's truth in your observation. A new, joint UNSW-USYD study has ...
More »Autism friendship belief challenged by research
This year, the international journal Autism replaced its cover art of overlapping grey and red puzzle pieces with scattered circles, after a team of editors decided that puzzles evoked negative connotations of the disorder. Yet autism is puzzling: we still don't even know what causes it. Autism assumptions ...
More »‘Australia’s founders wouldn’t have wanted this’: a case for secular education
Professor Marion Maddox is disappointed with the government. She is worried their injection of extra funds into independent and Catholic schools will further damage "one of the most religiously and economically segregated systems in the western world". Catherine Helen Spence, ...
More »Mitchell Institute: ‘We need capabilities prioritised in Australian education now’
Citizens of the lucky country can no longer rely on good fortune for prosperity - they must rely on capabilities. This is the premise of a new Mitchell Institute report. "Today the question is not if we should seek to teach young ...
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