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ACER UPDATE Australia to take part in international primary reading study Australia will join the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) for the first time in 2011. PIRLS 2011 is the latest in the series of international studies undertaken by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) to measure trends in reading literacy achievement at Year 4, when students are expected to be moving on from learning to read and beginning to read to learn. While previous studies have been completed in 2001 and 2006, 2011 is the first cycle that Australian students will be participating in. This will provide the first international benchmarking of reading literacy levels at this age group for Australia, and combined with the data for maths and science that are collected through TIMSS will provide a rich database on achievement levels for this age group. Australia has elected to use the same schools/same students model for introducing PIRLS to the already established assessment portfolio of TIMSS.This will involve testing the same students at Grade 4 level in maths and science for TIMSS and then at a slightly later date, reading for PIRLS.As such, the field trials and main study will involve the same number of primary schools and Year 4 students as the TIMSS 2011 assessment for Year 4 students. The field trial will take place in the first half of 2010, with the main study to follow towards the end of the year.ACER will produce a national report on PIRLS as well as contributing to the international report that will be prepared by Boston College. Leading Australia's Schools evaluation ACER has been appointed by Teaching Australia to conduct an evaluation of the impact of Leading Australia’s Schools participation on school effectiveness. The project team will design the survey and conduct interviews with Leading Australia’s School graduates from 2006, 2007 and 2008. The report will draw conclusions on the effectiveness of the program in meeting its objectives to enhance the skills, motivation and confidence of participating principals and to extend their capacity to make a real difference in student learning and to plan and implement change and improvement within their own school. The project will commence in October 2009 and conclude at the end of February 2010. CEET 13th annual conference The 13th annual conference of the Monash University-ACER Centre for the Economics of Education and Training (CEET) will be held on Friday 30 October at Ascot House, 50 Fenton Street, Ascot Vale. The theme of the conference is 'Education and training in an era of economic uncertainty.' Conference presentations will address a range of topics including the contribution migrants make to labour supply and skills in Australia; Social inclusion and tertiary education; Australia's workforce development strategy; and Has the economic downturn influenced school-leaver destinations? Further information about the CEET conference, including registration details and the conference program, is available from the CEET website. « Back to eNews
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Australia to take part in international primary reading study

Australia will join the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) for the first time in 2011. PIRLS 2011 is the latest in the series of international studies undertaken by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) to measure trends in reading literacy achievement at Year 4, when students are expected to be moving on from learning to read and beginning to read to learn. While previous studies have been completed in 2001 and 2006, 2011 is the first cycle that Australian students will be participating in. This will provide the first international benchmarking of reading literacy levels at this age group for Australia, and combined with the data for maths and science that are collected through TIMSS will provide a rich database on achievement levels for this age group.

Australia has elected to use the same schools/same students model for introducing PIRLS to the already established assessment portfolio of TIMSS.This will involve testing the same students at Grade 4 level in maths and science for TIMSS and then at a slightly later date, reading for PIRLS.As such, the field trials and main study will involve the same number of primary schools and Year 4 students as the TIMSS 2011 assessment for Year 4 students. The field trial will take place in the first half of 2010, with the main study to follow towards the end of the year.ACER will produce a national report on PIRLS as well as contributing to the international report that will be prepared by Boston College.

Leading Australia's Schools evaluation

ACER has been appointed by Teaching Australia to conduct an evaluation of the impact of Leading Australia’s Schools participation on school effectiveness. The project team will design the survey and conduct interviews with Leading Australia’s School graduates from 2006, 2007 and 2008. The report will draw conclusions on the effectiveness of the program in meeting its objectives to enhance the skills, motivation and confidence of participating principals and to extend their capacity to make a real difference in student learning and to plan and implement change and improvement within their own school. The project will commence in October 2009 and conclude at the end of February 2010.

CEET 13th annual conference

The 13th annual conference of the Monash University-ACER Centre for the Economics of Education and Training (CEET) will be held on Friday 30 October at Ascot House, 50 Fenton Street, Ascot Vale. The theme of the conference is 'Education and training in an era of economic uncertainty.' Conference presentations will address a range of topics including the contribution migrants make to labour supply and skills in Australia; Social inclusion and tertiary education; Australia's workforce development strategy; and Has the economic downturn influenced school-leaver destinations? Further information about the CEET conference, including registration details and the conference program, is available from the CEET website.

ACER UPDATE