In this episode of The Research Files, editor Jo Earp is joined by Professor Sandra Gattenhof and Dr John Nicholas Saunders who share findings from their study exploring declining enrolment numbers in year 12 arts subjects in Australia. They also talk about the implications for schools, including the arts educator pipeline, and practical supports for out-of-field teachers.

Absent students miss more than just lesson content; they miss the opportunities to build the habits and skills to succeed at school and in life. New OECD research shows ‘school attendance problems are no longer a marginal issue; they have become a challenge affecting classrooms in nearly every country’.

A UK study involving over 125,000 children and young people has shown an uptick in enjoyment of reading and daily reading habits. Latest findings also include gender differences for reading habits, and insights into what encourages young people to read for pleasure.

In this podcast, Dominique Beech hears from Joanna Baker, Head of Campus at Haileybury Pangea – the fully online campus of Haileybury, and independent co-educational school. The online campus serves approximately 180 students from a range of backgrounds across Australia and in this episode we hear all about what it’s like to teach students in a virtual classroom setting.

In her latest Teacher column, Associate Principal Rachael Lehr shares how insights from mindset coach and author Ben Crowe about the ‘dreaded “E” word’ have prompted her to reflect on what it means to hold high expectations in ways that give purpose and build aspiration for students and staff, rather than add pressure or burden.

A collaborative study involving Aboriginal Elders, families, educators and children across 3 urban schools in Perth, Western Australia, is working to deepen Aboriginal children’s understanding of, and pride in, who they are by strengthening their connections to culture, Country and kin. Professor Cheryl Kickett-Tucker from Curtin University tells us all about the Moombaki Cultural Learnings Project and the impact it is having on Aboriginal students.

Last month, the OECD released findings from the 2025 International Early Learning and Child Well-being Study (IELS). In today's episode, Dr Dan Cloney, Senior Research Fellow at ACER and Lead Researcher for IELS, unpacks some of the key findings from the study, explores what made the assessment design unique, and discusses why it's so important to ensure every child arrives at school with the strongest possible foundations.

Climate-related content appears across the curriculum and teaching it can come with an added layer of emotional complexity. A new study published in the Australian Journal of Education (AJE) shines a light on how primary and secondary teachers are responding to eco-anxiety in their own classrooms, including where they need more support.

The winner of the inaugural Global Schools Prize – an international US $500,000 prize presented to a school to scale their impact – has been announced as The Alsama Project from Lebanon. Find out more about the winner, and an Australian school that also made it all the way to the top 50, in today’s article.

A 2025 survey of 400 school students across Australia in years 7-12 focused on the topic of wellbeing. This infographic shares some of the results related to students’ biggest worries and the top 10 areas where they believe that schools could help them.