Long reads

Educators across Australia are always trying new ways to improve outcomes for their students. Not all changes result in improvements. Is there a way that we increase the likelihood of a change leading to improvement?

One of the main resources in schools is teachers, and in this column Dr Sue Thomson looks at the provision of teachers to advantaged and disadvantaged students in Australia.

In this fortnightly series, Teacher takes a closer look at some of the Gonski recommendations and what they might look like in practice. Today we explore the role of education research and evidence in driving practice and innovation to improve student outcomes.

The Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) measures Year 4 students’ reading literacy achievement. When the last study cycle was conducted in 2016, students in the Russian Federation outperformed their peers in all 50 participating countries and 11 benchmarking regions.

Discussions and debate around the education of refugee students can often focus on the challenges and difficulties. Finnish researcher Mervi Kaukko has come to Australia to explore the other side of the story – how are teachers helping students to be successful at school?

Student voice has been a core part of staff professional learning at Pakuranga College for several years. Here, two professional learning leaders at the Auckland school reflect on the implementation process and key learnings for teachers.

There are still many children who live in a world where even the most basic of school infrastructure does not exist. In her latest column, Julia Gillard shares how the Global Partnership for Education is helping to get infrastructure and supplies to schools in conflict-affected countries – from classroom furniture in Yemen to handwashing stations in Sierra Leone.

In their new book I’m the Principal, authors Stephen Dinham, Kerry Elliott, Louisa Rennie and Helen Stokes use the Australian Professional Standard for Principals as a framework to consider key aspects and contributors to principal learning, action, influence and identity. In this extract they are exploring what it means to be a principal and the stressors they face.

In this fortnightly series, Teacher takes a closer look at some of the Gonski recommendations and highlights existing work by educators to illustrate what they might look like in practice. Here, we explore the use of internal self-reviews and external quality assurance processes for school improvement.

The Cancer Council has launched a newly revised edition of its Cancer in the School Community resource aimed at teachers, principals and school counsellors. In today’s article we speak to a school-based psychologist about how she’s been using the resource to navigate cancer diagnoses in her school and provide support.