Why the Federal Government’s Education Policy Misses The Mark…

With a fair amount of fanfare this week, Australia’s federal government announced that it would invest an additional $1.2 billion from 2018 to 2020 that would be tied to a needs-based distribution of funding and reforms in our schools to “help every parent have confidence that their child is receiving the teaching they require.” Most of the commentary […]

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Gonski isn’t about getting *more* money…

In today’s Sun Herald,  you may have come across a piece headlined, NSW public schools increasingly turning to cashed-up P&Cs for funding. In brief the article points out that: P&Cs are asking parents for annual voluntary contributions of $200 per child or more to help pay for education programs as well as iPads, upgrades to toilets and additional […]

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The Great Australian Education Debate

My somewhat cynical, tongue-in-cheek, superficial (call it what you want) take on the education debate in Australia.

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In the Sydney Morning Herald today…

Imagine for a second you’re booked in for elective surgery, and six months before the operation you’re told it’s your responsibility to provide the hospital with the surgical tools and technology required for your operation. The Department of Health suggests if you can’t afford to pay for the equipment, perhaps you could organise a cake […]

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Gonski, Barry O’Farrell and the Case of the Missing iPod

Imagine for a second you had an iPod. Ok, it shouldn’t be that hard to imagine.  What if last year, your dad Barry – again use some imagination if need be – decided that you didn’t need an iPod. In fact he couldn’t believe that you’d been trusted with such technology in the first place, and took […]

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“Class Size” debate just got farcical…

A couple of weeks back I blogged about the Class Size Myth. I made two simple points. A smaller class size in and of itself does nothing to enhance student learning. A poor lesson infront of 40 kids will still be a poor lesson in front of 20. But, in order to implement the proven strategies […]

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The Class Size Myths – Which do you believe?

Over the Australian Summer I finally decided to read John Hattie’s Visible Learning for Teachers. Hattie’s theories on education are backed up by countless research papers and evidence. In the never-ending quest to improve teaching (and teachers) Hattie is as revered by politicians and system leaders around the world as he is viewed with suspicion […]

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Educational Roulette – Mind the Gap

I stumbled upon this infographic this week. I’ve edited it to suit the layout of my blog. It shows the inequities in educational outcomes between groups of higher and lower socioeconomic standing, across a number of countries. In short, your educational achievement can be predicted at birth based on little more than your parents’ bank […]

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Education Revolution: Right Idea, Wrong Method

I’ve been published on the ABC today giving my thoughts on the current state of play of education reform in Australia. Here is an excerpt: I’m not saying we shouldn’t aim to improve teaching and learning in schools. Of course we should; any profession worth its salt seeks to continually improve its impact. But what […]

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What’s Wrong With the Juvenile Justice System?

Originally posted on The ABC Drum. In the wake of two teenagers being shot by police in Kings Cross, The Sydney Morning Herald has been running a series of articles focusing on the  effectiveness of the juvenile justice system. The facts presented by the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics within the articles are startling. As a result of a […]

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