Education Commons^™

Staff In Australia’S Schools 2013: Main Report On The Survey, Phillip Mckenzie, Paul R. Weldon, Glenn Rowley, Martin Murphy, Julie Mcmillan

Dr Phillip McKenzie (retired)

This report provides an overview of the results obtained from the Staff in Australia’s Schools (SiAS) 2013 survey commissioned by the Australian Government Department of Education and conducted by the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER). The work was supported by an Advisory Committee of government and non-government school authorities and other stakeholder groups. The survey was intended to provide a detailed picture of the Australian teacher workforce, and to gather information to assist in future planning of the workforce. It was also designed to provide comparative and updated data following on from the previous SiAS surveys conducted in 2006-07 …

Teach For Australia Pathway: Evaluation Report Phase 3 Of 3, Paul R. Weldon, Phillip Mckenzie, Elizabeth Kleinhenz, Kate Reid

Dr Phillip McKenzie (retired)

This report is the final of three reports of the evaluation of the Teach for Australia (TFA) Pathway, a pilot of an alternative approach to teacher education in Australia. The evaluation was undertaken by the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) over the period 2010 to 2012. The basic design of the TFA Pathway is as follows: 1. High-achieving university graduates are recruited nationally. Applicants are subject to a rigorous recruitment process and are selected on the basis of qualities and skills suitable to the teaching profession, and the possession of a genuine desire to reduce educational disadvantage. 2. Selected …

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

Dr Phillip McKenzie (retired)

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 …

Literacy And Numeracy Interventions In The Early Years Of Schooling : A Literature Review : Report To The Ministerial Advisory Group On Literacy And Numeracy, Marion Meiers, Kate Reid, Phillip Mckenzie, Suzanne Mellor

Dr Phillip McKenzie (retired)

The NSW Department of Education and Communities (DEC) commissioned the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) in August 2012 to conduct a literature review of the evidence regarding the efficacy and effectiveness of the range of literacy and numeracy interventions in use in the early years of schooling (Years K–3). The review was commissioned on behalf of the Ministerial Advisory Group on Literacy and Numeracy (MAGLN).

A significant aspect of the MAGLN’s work involves the examination of evidence about literacy and numeracy teaching practices and interventions that are effective for children with varied learning needs.

The overarching purpose of the …

Teach For Australia Pathway : Evaluation Report Phase 2 Of 3, Paul R. Weldon, Phillip Mckenzie, Elizabeth Kleinhenz, Kate Reid

Dr Phillip McKenzie (retired)

The evaluation of the Teach for Australia Pathway was commissioned by DEEWR and commenced in March 2010. The purpose of the evaluation is to assess whether the delivery of the Pathway can be modified to better achieve intended outputs and outcomes, and whether the Pathway is achieving expected outcomes. This report (Part 2) concerns the second of three phases of the evaluation of the TFA Pathway. The first report (Part 1) was designed to provide a summary of data gathered on the operation of the Pathway in its initial stages. Data for that report were collected via site visits with …

Australian Apprentice Retention Pilot Project: Report To Megt, Justin Brown, Phillip Mckenzie, Adrian Beavis

Dr Phillip McKenzie (retired)

The Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) was engaged in February 2010 by MEGT to conduct research on the retention of first-year apprentices participating in the MEGT mentoring and social networking program. Sponsored by DEEWR, the Australian Apprentice Retention Pilot Project aims to improve the retention of apprentices in skills shortage trades. The project involves the provision of mentors to support apprentices at three sites: in Queensland (Logan/Ipswich); New South Wales (Western Sydney); and Victoria (Southeast Melbourne). The role of the mentors is to visit the apprentice and maintain ongoing contact through social networking tools such as Facebook and Twitter …

Pathways From School To Work., Phillip Mckenzie, Kylie Hillman

Dr Phillip McKenzie (retired)

Drawing on data from the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth, this paper examines the main pathways by which young Australians move from school to work. It identifies which young people take which pathways, discusses the mapping of pathways to work using longitudinal data, and outlines some policy challenges.

Pathways For Youth In Australia., Phillip Mckenzie

Dr Phillip McKenzie (retired)

The concept of “pathways” has been a powerful organising idea in Australian education and training over the past 10 years. The imagery of the pathway, with its sense of order and structure, and linked education and training experiences that lead to employment, has had a significant impact on Australian policy. Two related trends have been affecting young people: a rapid decline in the number of fulltime jobs available to 15-19 year-olds; and increasing education participation rates among 15- 24 year-olds. In this environment policy makers have used the pathways concept in pursuing two major objectives: (1) to strengthen or even …

Key International Developments Affecting Australian Education And Training, Phillip Mckenzie

Dr Phillip McKenzie (retired)

Education and training in Australia are increasingly operating in an internationalised environment Overseas students are major sources of funds and enrolments, Australian institutions operate overseas and form a wide range of international partnerships, and holders of Australian qualifications work throughout the world. This paper discusses three sets of international developments and outlines their potential implications for Australian education and training: the development of bilateral Free Trade Agreements between Australia and individual countries in the Asia-Pacific region; the initiatives of groups of countries such as ASEAN and the East Asia Summit to strengthen educational cooperation on a multilateral basis; and, overshadowing …

Using Longitudinal Data For Research On Vet, Phillip Mckenzie

Dr Phillip McKenzie (retired)

Longitudinal studies can provide insights on young people’s transition from education to work that other forms of data cannot. The Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) program, which is managed jointly by ACER and the Commonwealth Department of Education, Training and Youth Affairs (DETYA), has now accumulated more than 20 years of data that follow successive cohorts of young Australians as they move through education and training and into the labour market. The data are added to every year. This paper explores the potential of LSAY data for research on VET, and also some of the challenges that VET poses …

School Leadership And Learning : An Australian Overview, Phillip Mckenzie, Bill Mulford, Michelle Anderson

Dr Phillip McKenzie (retired)

This paper draws together findings from a recent major review of school leadership in Australia. In 2006, DEST commissioned an ACER team to prepare the Country Background Report as part of Australia's contribution to the OECD's international activity Improving School Leadership. Preparation of the report provided a timely opportunity to consult with key stakeholders and reflect on school leadership issues in Australia. The research confirms that leadership is important for student learning: academic achievement, academic self-concept and engagement in learning are shaped by teacher and school practices that are influenced by school leadership. Leaders contribute to student learning through their …

Patterns Of Success And Failure In The Transition From School To Work In Australia, Stephen Lamb, Phillip Mckenzie

Dr Phillip McKenzie (retired)

This report maps the pathways of a sample of young Australians in their transition from school to work. It focuses on the pathways for those who do not obtain a university degree or TAFE associate diploma or above (or who are not enrolled for such qualifications in the seventh post-school year). By focusing on this group the analysis concentrates on those for whom getting a job was a key concern immediately upon leaving school.