Student engagement

At ACER’s Research Conference 2025, poster presenter Peter Axford – a Senior Teacher at Malanda State High School and PhD candidate at James Cook University – showcased his research exploring an agency approach to student engagement with the curriculum. Here he shares the impetus for this research and how the findings influenced his own classroom practice.

As a school leader, have you consulted your students, staff and community members on the topic of student attendance and engagement? New research has explored First Nations student engagement and attendance in remote Australian schools by gathering valuable insights from those on the ground.

Megan Gilmour is the CEO and Co-founder of MissingSchool, a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to raising awareness of the educational and social needs of children who miss school because of serious illness or injury. In today’s Q&A we hear more about her work to help students stay connected to their classmates. 

In his first Teacher column for 2025, Professor Geoff Masters AO poses these questions: will schooling be different for children born this year, and if so, how? He then offers 3 suggestions for how learning at school might evolve by 2040.

One of the topics in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) student questionnaire is the quality of student-teacher relationships. This infographic looks at the responses of Australian students in the 2022 test cycle, by state and territory.

Some of our 2024 Teacher Awards winners join us in this special podcast episode, where they share their top tips for starting the new year. From reading recommendations to leadership tips for welcoming and supporting staff for the new year, there’s something in this episode for everyone. 

In this Teacher Awards 2024 winners’ profile, we chat with the executive team at Cessnock High School in NSW. Winners of our Leadership Award for Driving School Improvement, we hear about how they’ve transformed school culture and improved academic achievement.

A week with good food, fun and fellowship is what Big Camp promises its’ attendees every year and has been delivering for more than 95 years. It promotes leadership skills, enhanced engagement with peers and sportsmanship in the 100 attendees for the year.

How are education systems supporting child empowerment? That’s the key question explored in a new international report that reviews the literature and shares examples of effective policy and practice in different countries, and the challenges that exist.

Do you incorporate physical activity into your teaching? A new study from researchers at Queensland University of Technology looks at the ways teachers incorporate physical activity into their lessons, and why they do it.