LATEST NEWS

22 July 2008
Special Address by Julia Gillard

The Hon Julia Gillard MP, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations, Minister for Education, Minister for Social Inclusion will be delivering a special address at Research Conference 2008 "Touching the Future: Building skills for life and work" on Monday 11th August in Brisbane. Her address will focus on the connection between education, employment and social inclusion.

See Research Conference 2008 for registration and program details.

30 June 2008
Practise what we preach, says leadership study

Leaders need to be treated like students, according to a recent study of higher education leaders from around the country.

The Learning Leaders in Times of Change survey, funded by the Australian Learning and Teaching Council, is a joint project of the Australian Council for Educational Research and the University of Western Sydney. The project surveyed more than 500 Australian higher education leaders from 20 institutions.

Download media release (PDF: 268 KB)

Download report (PDF: 3.2 MB)

26 May 2008
Business Council of Australia paper released

Teaching talent: The best teachers for Australia's classrooms

Teaching talent: The best teachers for Australia's classrooms was released by the Business Council of Australia (BCA)on 26 May. It comprises a paper prepared for the BCA by Professor Stephen Dinham, Dr Lawrence Ingvarson and Dr Elizabeth Kleinhenz of ACER titled Investing in teacher quality: Doing what matters most, preceded by an introduction and recommendations authored by the BCA.

Download report (PDF: 1.4 MB)

Business Council of Australia media release (BCA website)

29 April 2008
Australian Education Review 53 released

Better focus required on principal career paths and roles

Building communities of professional learners is the key to meeting Australia’s school leadership challenge a new review of research has concluded.

The Australian Education review 53: The Leadership Challenge: Improving learning in schools, written by University of Tasmania researcher Professor Bill Mulford, was released today by the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER).

Download media release (PDF: 44 KB)

Download report

8 April 2008
Australasian Survey of Student Engagement (AUSSE) report

University students less engaged than US counterparts

Australian and New Zealand tertiary students are less engaged with their universities than their North American counterparts according to results from a new study of student engagement released today by the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER).

More than 9000 students from 25 Australian and New Zealand universities participated in the first administration of the Australasian Survey of Student Engagement (AUSSE) in 2007.

Download media release (PDF: 44 KB)

Download report (PDF:4.68 MB)

4 March 2008
2008 Employer of Choice for Women

ACER has been awarded 2008 Employer of Choice for Women status by the Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Agency (EOWA). ACER is one of 99 Australian employers to receive the citation.

ACER was awarded the citation on the basis of our policies and practices that support women across the organisation and have a positive outcome for both women and our business. The citation is a significant public acknowledgement of our efforts in the area of equal opportunity for women.

A media release and other information is available from the Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace website

31 January 2008
ACER welcomes National Curriculum Board

Chief Executive of the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER), Professor Geoff Masters today welcomed the appointment of Professor Barry McGaw as head of the new National Curriculum Board and progress towards a national curriculum.  He called on the Board to develop an engaging and relevant core curriculum that will benefit all of the nation’s students.

“The question of how best to prepare today’s students for tomorrow’s world is a question of national significance and the National Curriculum Board will ensure that our best minds are brought together to address this question.” Professor Masters said.

Download media release (PDF: 44 KB)

29 January 2008
Australian Country Background Report for the OECD Improving School Leadership Activity

The Australian Government Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations (previously Education, Science and Training) has released the Australian Country Background Report prepared by an ACER team for the OECD’s Improving School Leadership Activity. 

The report provides an overview of school leadership developments and issues in Australia. Australia is one of 22 countries taking part in the OECD’s international project on school leadership. The Country Background Report was commissioned as part of Australia’s contribution to the project. Prepared in 2006, it provides information and analysis on school leadership in Australia, including school governance, the links between leadership and student learning outcomes, the attractiveness of the leadership role, and training and professional development for school leaders.

ACER’s work was assisted by a National Advisory Committee that included representatives from government and non-government education authorities and professional associations. The ACER team was Michelle Anderson, Peter Gronn (Monash University, now at Glasgow University), Lawrence Ingvarson, Andrew Jackson, Elizabeth Kleinhenz, Phillip McKenzie, Bill Mulford (University of Tasmania) and Nick Thornton.

The report is also available online from the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations.

Further information on the OECD activity, including all the country background reports, is available from: www.oecd.org/edu/schoolleadership

 

24 January 2008
Release of policy paper on school funding

School funding system a maze that encourages blame shifting

Australia must develop a national and transparent model of school funding based on comprehensible measures of need applying equally across the sectors if the funding debate in this country is to rise above a sterile ideological battle, argues a policy paper released today by the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER).

Download Media Release (PDF: 49 KB)

Download policy paper

22 January 2008
ACER and VIF Program give Australian teachers a chance to grow professionally in the U.S

Alliance between ACER and VIF Program offers prospects for Australians

Australian educators have a unique opportunity to explore alternative teaching methods and experience new instructional approaches by teaching in the United States, as the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) today announced a joint initiative with the Visiting International Faculty Program (VIF).

ACER will team with VIF, the United States’ largest international-exchange program for teachers, to provide an opportunity for Australian teachers to have the adventure of living and working overseas as teachers and travellers in the United States.

Download Media Release (PDF: 46 KB)

For more information about VIF Program visit the website www.vifprogram.com

18 January 2008
National Assessment Program - ICT Literacy Years 6 and 10 Report

Study reveals ICT proficiency of Australian students

Australia’s educators and policy makers now have a comprehensive picture of the level of ICT literacy of Australia’s Year 6 and 10 students following a landmark study completed by the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER).

The report of the National Assessment Program – ICT Literacy Years 6 and 10 was released this week by the Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs (MCEETYA). It reports on a study conducted in 2005 involving approximately 7400 students from Years 6 and 10 in around 520 schools across Australia.  

Download Media Release (PDF: 47 KB)

The report is available from the MCEETYA website www.mceetya.edu.au

 

16 January 2008
Staff in Australia's Schools Survey 2007

The SIAS project, undertaken by the Australian Council for Educational Research in collaboration with the Australian College of Educators, gathered information from over 13,000 secondary and primary school teachers and leaders across the country. It aimed to address key gaps in the data available to characterise the teaching profession to support workforce planning. The project also involved extensive consultations with key stakeholder groups on data needs and processes to support long-term workforce planning.

The study was commissioned by the Australian Government Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations (previously Education, Science and Training). It was supported by an Advisory Committee that included representatives from government and non-government education authorities and professional associations.

The project's findings and recommendations are presented in two components that were published on 15 January 2008:

The reports are also available from: DEST website