Research Developments - Articles online
Higher order thinking skills
In today's world it is necessary, but not sufficient, for students to achieve minimal competence in areas such as reading, writing and numeracy. Beyond the achievement of minimal competence, students also need to develop what are often called 'higher order' thinking skills including critical literacy, critical numeracy and cross-curricular competencies. Margaret Forster, ACER's Research Director (Assessment and Reporting) explains.
New effort needed to improve Indigenous education
A recent ACER report - The Case for Change: A review of contemporary research on Indigenous educational outcomes calls for the establishment of a new national research agenda as a means to help improve educational outcomes for Indigenous students. The report's authors, Suzanne Mellor and Matthew Corrigan discuss the findings.
Positive school climate helps students achieve positive results
A recent ACER study of Year 9 students' results on reading comprehension and mathematics tests found that a positive school climate is associated with higher literacy and numeracy test scores. Socioeconomic status (SES), language background, Indigenous status, gender and educational aspirations were also found to have significant effects on achievement in both literacy and numeracy. The study's author's Sheldon Rothman and Julie McMillan, report on its findings.
ACER-led delegation investigates US teacher quality practices
ACER recently led a delegation of representatives from Australian education systems and organisations on a study tour to Washington DC to observe the work of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS).The aim of the visit was to find and share answers to questions on teacher quality in Australia such as: What do we mean when we talk about teacher quality? and how do we know it when we see it? Dr Elizabeth Kleinhenz, reports on the observations made during the visit.
