Education Commons^™

Australia's School Funding System, Andrew Dowling

Policy Analysis and Program Evaluation

Australian governments spend over $30 billion on primary and secondary schools each year.1 Yet the process of school funding, including the way in which amounts are calculated, distributed and reported upon, is unavailable not only to the wider public but to some extent even to those working in education. Although Australia’s total spending on schools is small by international standards (given the size of its population), it is significant enough to warrant a more transparent process.

Asg Student Social And Emotional Health Report, Michael. E. Bernard, Andrew Stephanou, Daniel Urbach

Wellbeing

This report presents the results of sophisticated Rasch measurement analysis and multi-level modelling to validate and support the use of the ACER Social and Emotional Wellbeing (SEWB) student and teacher surveys for reporting on the social and emotional well-being of students from the early years of schooling through to senior secondary school levels. It describes the social and emotional well-being of over 10,000 students attending 81 schools across Australia. Among the more important findings of this research are the characteristics of students with low levels of social and emotional well-being compared with students with higher levels of social and emotional …

Sampling And Weighting Of The 2003 Lsay Cohort: Technical Report No. 43, Sheldon Rothman

LSAY Technical Reports

The 2003 cohort of the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) was drawn from the sample of 15 year-olds in Australian schools who participated in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), conducted by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in 2003. Australia was one of 41 countries that participated in PISA in 2003.

An International Perspective On Active Citizenship Among Lower Secondary Students, Wolfram Schulz

Civics and Citizenship Assessment

The new IEA International Civic and Citizenship Education Study (ICCS) will investigate the extent to which young people are prepared to undertake their roles as citizens across a range of countries. ICCS will survey 13-to-14-year old students in over 30 countries in the year 2009. The ICCS outcome data will be obtained from representative samples of students in their eighth year of schooling and context data from the students, their schools and teachers. ICCS is the third international IEA study in this area and it is explicitly linked through common questions to the IEA Civic Education Study (CIVED) which was …

Assess And Assist: Capacity Building For All Teachers Of Students – With And Without Learning Difficulties, Ken Rowe

Student learning processes

Following a brief discussion of the fundamental importance of monitoring growth, this paper draws from emerging findings from evidence-based research and ‘state-of-the art’ practice in assessment and reporting of students’ developmental and learning progress – whether or not students experience learning difficulties. The monitoring of individual progress over time requires both diagnostic and developmental assessments of such progress on well-constructed scales (or ‘maps’) that are qualitatively described. The use of such ‘maps’ enables early detection of potential ‘risk factors’, and the monitoring of both individuals and groups across the years of schooling. Such ‘maps’ and their reporting products constitute major …

The Review Of Teacher Education For Languages Teachers : Final Report, Elizabeth Kleinhenz, Jenny Wilkinson, Margaret Gearon, Suzanne Fernandez, Lawrence Ingvarson

Teacher education

This report produces a comprehensive national picture of the nature and effectiveness of teacher education and re-training opportunities for languages teachers. The report investigates course entry requirements, course content and structure for primary and secondary languages teachers; identifies structural impediments relating to the development of languages teachers' linguistic and pedagogical competency; and explores the potential application of the Professional Standards for Accomplished Teaching of Languages and Cultures, developed by the Australian Federation of Modern Language Teachers (AFMLTA), in teacher education for languages teachers.

Pisa 2003 Australia : Ict Use And Familiarity At School And Home, Sue Thomson, Lisa De Bortoli

OECD Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) Australia

No abstract provided.

Effects Of Item Positions On Their Difficulty And Discrimination : A Study In Pisa Science Data Across Test Language And Countries, Luc T. Le

OECD Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA)

This study was based on a four-cluster rotation design of 13 linked test booklets from PISA 2006 science data. It investigated effects of item positions on their difficulty and discrimination parameter estimates obtained from one and two parameter IRT Partial Credit models. The analyses were done separately for 57 test language groups from 53 countries with a total of about 340,000 students.

The results revealed that for all of the test language groups the items tended to become more difficult when they were located later in the test. However, a high linear relationship between the item difficulty estimates by the …

Improving Consistency In Teacher Judgements : An Investigation For The Department Of Education, Victoria, Marion Meiers, Clare Ozolins, Phillip Mckenzie

School and system improvement

The Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) was commissioned by the Department of Education in Victoria to undertake an investigation of current best-practice approaches to ensuring consistency of teacher judgements against P-10 state-wide standards.

The investigation encompassed national and international approaches that had been implemented or were under development. A key objective of the investigation was that the approaches identified should be based on current information, research and best practice, and that they should be supportive of the continued development of a learning and assessment culture in Victorian schools. The report of the investigation was required to provide key baseline …

Lsay Cohort Report Of 15 Year-Olds In 2003: 15 Year-Olds In 2003, Catherine Underwood, Sheldon Rothman

LSAY Cohort Reports

This report provides details of the 2003 cohort of 15 year-olds of the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY). Information on this cohort was first collected in 2003 when these young people participated in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), conducted by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). A follow-up telephone interview that year collected further information on the cohort. Information about the activities of the 2003 cohort of 15 year-olds in subsequent years is available in other reports in this series.

Lsay Cohort Report Of 15 Year-Olds In 2003: 16 Year-Olds In 2004, Catherine Underwood, Sheldon Rothman

LSAY Cohort Reports

This report provides details of the experiences of the 2003 cohort of 15 year-olds of the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) in 2004. Information on this cohort was first collected in 2003 when these young people participated in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), conducted by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). A follow-up telephone interview that year collected further information on the cohort. The reference period for this report is 2004, when the age of respondents was 16 years. Information about the activities of the 2003 cohort of 15 yearolds in previous years is available …

Lsay Cohort Report The Year 9 Class Of 1998: 21 Year-Olds In 2005, Catherine Underwood, Kylie Hillman, Sheldon Rothman

LSAY Cohort Reports

This report provides details of the experiences of the 1998 Year 9 cohort of the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY). Information on this cohort was first collected in 1998 when these young people were Year 9 students in Australian schools. The reference period for this report is 2005, when the modal age of respondents was 21 years. Information about the 1998 Year 9 LSAY cohort’s activities in previous years is available in earlier reports in this series.

Lsay Cohort Report Of 15 Year-Olds In 2003: 17 Year-Olds In 2005, Catherine Underwood, Kylie Hillman, Sheldon Rothman

LSAY Cohort Reports

This report provides details of the experiences of the 2003 cohort of 15 year-olds of the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) in 2005. Information on this cohort was first collected in 2003 when these young people participated in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), conducted by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). A follow-up telephone interview that year collected further information on the cohort. The reference period for this report is 2005, when the age of respondents was 17 years. Information about the activities of the 2003 cohort of 15 yearolds in previous years is available …

Australian Young People : Their Stories, Their Families And Post School Plans, Jennifer Bryce, Michelle Anderson, Tracey Frigo, Phillip Mckenzie

Transition and Post-School Education and Training

In 2006, an OECD report noted that Australia has one of the highest gaps between high and low performing students, with the low performing students coming largely from low SES backgrounds. In conjunction with the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER), The Smith Family has been researching the challenges faced by Learning for Life students, all from low SES backgrounds, in making successful post-school transitions. Last year's report flagged how important it would be to tap into the family context more deeply to assess the degree and type of influence that families were having on the decision making processes of …

Perceptions Of The International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme Among Australian And New Zealand Universities, Hamish Coates, Marita Macmahon-Ball, Chris Rosicka

Higher education research

The number of secondary students completing an International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma has risen rapidly in recent years, and the IB is playing an increasing role in preparing people for university study. The International Baccalaureate Organisation (IBO) is interested in universities' perceptions of the IB as a preparation for undergraduate study, and engaged the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) to research this area of higher education. The aim of the study was to investigate university representatives' perceptions of the IB Diploma. A key aspect of the research was to determine what university representatives knew about the IB Diploma, and whether …

Codebook: Lsay 2006 Sample Of 15 Year-Olds Wave 1 (2006) Technical Report No. 42, Sheldon Rothman

LSAY Technical Reports

In 2006, a nationally representative sample of approximately 13 000 15 year-old students was selected to participate in OECD PISA. More than 10 000 of these young people became the fourth cohort of the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth. The PISA sample was constructed by randomly selecting fifty 15 year-old students from a sample of schools designed to represent state and sector. Assessments in mathematical literacy, reading literacy, scientific literacy and problem solving were administered to students in their schools to provide information on school achievement for use in later analyses of educational and labour market participation. Students also completed …

Codebook: The Lsay 1998 Year 9 Sample Wave 9 (2006) Technical Report No. 39, Catherine Underwood

LSAY Technical Reports

In 1998, a nationally representative sample of approximately 14,000 Year 9 students was selected to form the second cohort of the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth. The sample was constructed by randomly selecting two Year 9 classes from a sample of schools designed to represent state and sector. Reading and numeracy tests were administered to students in their schools to provide information on school achievement for use in later analyses of educational and labour market participation. Students also completed a background questionnaire about their educational and vocational plans and attitudes to school. Details on the 1998 survey are provided in …

Codebook: The Lsay 2003 Sample Of 15 Year-Olds Wave 4 (2006) Technical Report No. 41, Catherine Underwood

LSAY Technical Reports

selected to participate in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), conducted by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). More than 10,000 of these young people became the third cohort of the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth. The PISA sample was constructed by randomly selecting fifty 15 year-old students from a sample of schools designed to represent state and sector. Assessments in mathematical literacy, reading literacy, scientific literacy and problem solving were administered to students in their schools to provide information on school achievement for use in later analyses of educational and labour market participation. Students also completed …

Codebook: The Lsay 1995 Year 9 Sample Wave 12 (2006) Technical Report No. 40, Catherine Underwood

LSAY Technical Reports

Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth is a program of surveys of young people jointly managed by ACER and the Australian Government Department of Education, Science and Training (DEST). The surveys focus on the education and labour market experiences of groups of young Australians, beginning from their middle years of secondary schooling. Data collected include basic demographic variables, as well as information about educational and labour force participation and experiences extending over a number of years. The present form of the LSAY program commenced in 1995 with a national sample of Year 9 students. The program also brings together earlier longitudinal …

Australian Young People, Their Families And Postschool Plans : A Research Review, Tracey Frigo, Jennifer Bryce, Michelle Anderson, Phillip Mckenzie

Transition and Post-School Education and Training

This literature review is part of a project commissioned by The Smith Family that is investigating the effects and influences of family expectations on the cost benefit analyses undertaken by students when they are considering their post-school plans. The 2006 report for The Smith Family, On track? Students choosing a career, pointed to the possibility of a strong effect of family expectations on young people’s post-school plans (Beavis, 2006). Post-school plans often include decisions about further education, so a family’s influence or involvement in assessing the costs and benefits associated with this decision is not surprising (Usher, 2005). On track? …

Completing University : Characteristics And Outcomes Of Completing And Non Completing Students, Gary Marks

LSAY Research Reports

This report examines the factors that influence course completion by young Australians who commence university. It also documents the labour market outcomes of those who enrol at a university but who leave before obtaining a qualification. University education involves substantial public and private resources. It is important, therefore, to better understand the factors associated with course completion, and whether even a partial experience of university study may be beneficial in opening up other pathways. The report analyses data from the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) program to address these questions. The data are from a sample of young people …

Research On Performance Pay For Teachers, Lawrence Ingvarson, Elizabeth Kleinhenz, Jenny Wilkinson

Teacher workforce and careers

This report falls into three main sections, in accordance with the project brief. The first provides an overview of current pay arrangements and collective enterprise bargaining agreements for teachers in Australian schools. Within these arrangements, the report gives particular attention to provisions for performance-based pay schemes and to identifying potential impediments to the introduction of performance-based pay for teachers. The second part of the brief called for an overview of recent Australian and international research on the attitudes of stakeholders to performance-based pay schemes for teachers and the impact of these schemes on, for example, teacher retention, improved teaching standards, …

Civic And Citizenship Education In 2009 (Iccs): A Comparative Study, Wolfram Schulz, John Ainley

Civics and Citizenship Assessment

It is over the ten years since IEA last investigated civic education, and in that time new challenges have emerged in educating young people for their roles as citizens in the 21st century. These challenges have stimulated renewed reflection on the meanings of citizenship and the roles of and approaches to civic and citizenship education. In many countries there is a growing interest in using evidence to improve policy and practice in civic and citizenship education. The purpose of the International Civic and Citizenship Education Study (ICCS) is to investigate the ways in which young people are prepared to undertake …

Hoops, Hurdles And High Jumps : Physical Activity And Bodyweight Among 17 Year-Olds., Australian Council For Educational Research (Acer)

LSAY Briefing Reports

The prevalence of children and adolescents who are overweight has recently increased in importance as a public health issue in Australia. The past two decades have seen a rapid rise in the number of children who are overweight or obese, with no sign that this trajectory will plateau. Children and adolescents who are overweight are more likely to be overweight as adults and thus to be at increased risk of future health problems. This increase in the proportion of overweight children has been attributed to dietary changes, a lack of physical activity, increased sedentary lifestyle, increased television viewing and the …

Movement Of Non-Metropolitan Youth Towards The Cities, Kylie Hillman, Sheldon Rothman

LSAY Research Reports

This report focuses on a group of young people who were living in non-metropolitan areas in their final years of secondary school, and the pathways they followed in the years following secondary school, including their geographic mobility and participation in education, training and employment. Rural communities have long felt concern about the rate at which young people leave for urban areas, many never to return. This report analyses the issues involved by mapping the experiences of the same group of young people over an extended period of time. The authors investigate what pathways non-metropolitan youth follow in the years after …

Conceptualising And Evaluating Teacher Quality: Substantive And Methodological Issues, Lawrence Ingvarson, Ken Rowe

Student learning processes

Whereas findings from recent research highlight the importance of teacher quality in improving students’ academic performances and experiences of schooling, substantive and methodological issues surrounding the conceptualisation and evaluation of teacher quality are not well- understood. Such deficiencies are particularly evident in claims for ‘findings’ derived from econometric research – especially from those studies that merely employ conceptualisations and proxy ‘measures’ of quality in terms of teachers’ qualifications, experience, and students’ academic outcomes. Moreover, the econometric models fitted to the available, mostly aggregated data, typically fail to conceptualise and ‘measure’ teacher quality in terms of what teachers should know (subject-matter …

Research Digest Edition 2007/1 : Writing To Learn, Marion Meiers, Pat Knight

Research Digest

This edition of the Research Digest summarises key research studies that provide evidence of the potential of writing-to-learn approaches in improving student learning in a range of subject areas. The research tells us that writing-to-learn strategies can be used by any teacher, in all subject areas, and at all levels of schooling. Throughout the digest there are descriptions of a range of writing-to-learn strategies that demonstrate possibilities for classroom practice. This research digest is based on searches of a number of databases and bibliographic resources, including the Australian Education Index, ERIC, Education Research Complete, British Education Index and Scopus. The …

The Vit Program For Supporting Provisionally Registered Teachers : Evaluation Of Implementation In 2005., Lawrence Ingvarson, Elizabeth Kleinhenz, Siek Toon Khoo, Jenny Wilkinson

Teacher education

The VIT’s Program for Supporting Provisionally Registered Teachers and its registration procedures are increasingly seen as valid and fair. The Program is generally perceived as leading to improvements in teaching practice. Principals and mentors were very positive about the program, and consistently reported high levels of satisfaction with its implementation. Research has repeatedly found that significant reforms are often accompanied by a degree of unease and resistance, and this has been the case with the introduction of the VIT standards and registration requirements. School leaders play a vital role in leading their schools through these changes. This study has found …

Standards For Teaching : Theoretical Underpinnings And Applications, Elizabeth Kleinhenz, Lawrence Ingvarson

Teaching standards and teacher evaluation

The primary purpose of this report was to conduct a critical review of the literature on the application of professional standards to teachers' practice. The New Zealand Teachers Council provided the following questions in the Request for Proposals to guide the review: Where, in the complex mix of factors that can support teachers' professional capacity, do professional standards sit? How can standards support teacher learning? What are the benefits, costs and harms? Which models enhance and which detract from teachers' professional learning and the profession's overall capacity? Can the documented strengths of working with professional standards be gained in other …

Why Would Anyone Want This Job? The Challenge Of Attracting And Sustaining Effective Leaders For Australian Schools, Louise Watson

2007 - The Leadership Challenge - Improving learning in schools

Over the past decade, there has been considerable concern about an impending crisis in school leadership due to a shrinking pool of applicants for principals’ positions. This paper explores the dimensions of this issue in Australia and identifies possible reasons for a decline in interest in principalship. It concludes with ideas and directions for policy reform.