Reading

‘In a year that has seen a great deal of disruption to classes, the relationship between students and their teachers has become far more important.’ In her new column, Dr Sue Thomson explores the latest report from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) and offers insights into how Australian students perceive their teachers.

New data from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) show Australian students report having high levels of self-efficacy and competence, particularly in the face of adversity. In today’s article we take a close look at the new report that explores students’ experiences at school and how they relate to student performance.

‘I can see using this book as a springboard to have further discussion with students about the ways that sports and other aspects of culture have brought people together over time.’ Assistant Professor of Reading Education Jason DeHart shares how teachers can use the graphic novel Dragon Hoops in their classroom.

Family and teachers are seen to be the most trusted news sources for young people, and often act as a news filter for children and teens, according to new research from Western Sydney University and Queensland University of Technology. In today’s article we speak to the report’s lead author, Dr Tanya Notley.

Literacy is a core set of skills that can help students overcome social and economic barriers and underpin success in everyday life. Tanya Vaughan and Susannah Schoeffel share recommendations for the development of good literacy skills among primary students.

Southbank International School in London introduced a structured writing program in the primary years to improve students’ narrative writing. In today’s article, teacher Stefanie Waterman explains what they learned throughout the process.

‘[It] is worrying that in one-third of countries and economies that participated in PISA 2018 more than one in two students said that intelligence is something about them that they can’t change very much.’ In his new Teacher column Andreas Schleicher, OECD Director for Education and Skills, discusses insights from PISA 2018.

A recent study tracked the reading trajectories of children in Grades 1, 2 and 3. Alongside this, the concerns teachers held in relation to their reading, as well as the support they provided, were analysed. Here, the study’s authors discuss the implications of their findings for educators.

‘[My former students] were proclaiming that “Station Eleven is becoming real!”.’ Here, Ben Tiffen shares how Emily St John Mandel’s post-apocalyptic novel is an opportunity for teachers to choose a study text drawing on students’ recent experiences.

The Association of Independent Schools New South Wales (AISNSW) has been working with 38 of its schools on a targeted early years program that aims to help students in Kindergarten to Year 2 master key literacy and numeracy skills.