Contents  Overview...................................................................................................................................2  

Teacher and Principal Quality.................................................................................4  

Recruitment  and  Compensation................................................................................................................ 4  

Initial  Education  and  Training ................................................................................................................... 5  

Career  Ladders ................................................................................................................................................ 6  

Professional  Development .......................................................................................................................... 6  

The Structure of Australia’s Education System...........................................7  

Instructional Systems....................................................................................................8  

System  Design.................................................................................................................................................. 8  

Curriculum........................................................................................................................................................ 8  

Assessment ....................................................................................................................................................... 9  

Instruction ........................................................................................................................................................ 9  

Gateways............................................................................................................................................................ 9  

System and School Organization........................................................................10  

Education  Finance ........................................................................................................................................10  

School  Management  and  Organization..................................................................................................11  

Accountability  and  Incentive  Systems...................................................................................................11  

Parent  and  Community  Participation....................................................................................................12  

Education For All ...........................................................................................................12  

Student  Support  Systems ...........................................................................................................................12  

Low-­Performing  Schools ............................................................................................................................13  

School-to-Work Transition ...................................................................................13  

 

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Overview

European  settlement  of  Australia  began  with  its  establishment  as  a  British  penal  colony  in  1788.    For  almost  200  years  thereafter,  the  Australians  worked  hard  to  bring  Europeans  to  settle  in  their  country,  as  they  felt  that  their  rich  natural  resources  and  sparse  population  made  them  very  vulnerable  to  their  neighbors.  In  1972,  Australia  dropped  its  Europeans-­‐only  policy  and  began  opening  their  borders  to  others,  especially  Asians.    Though  92%  of  its  population  is  still  descended  from  Europeans,  Australia  has  now  become  one  of  the  world’s  most  diverse  nations.  Australia  started  out  as  a  collection  of  colonies,  eventually  becoming  one  united  country  as  a  member  of  the  British  Commonwealth.    Until  the  end  of  the  Second  World  War,  Australia  was,  from  an  economic  standpoint,  oriented  almost  exclusively  to  Britain  and  its  mercantile  system,  sending  raw  materials  to  the  mother  country  and  getting  finished  goods  back.    But  the  Australians  noticed  during  the  war  that  it  was  the  Americans  and  not  the  British  who  came  to  their  aid  at  the  penultimate  moment,  and  after  the  war,  that  the  Pacific  had  become  an  American,  not  a  British,  pond.    Cast  loose  from  their  mercantilist  moorings  to  Britain,  the  Australians  began  to  view  the  entire  world  as  their  market,  to  develop  indigenous  manufacturing  industries  and  to  be  the  beneficiary  of  growing  American  direct  investment.    The  Australian  economy  took  off.  Later,  in  the  late  1970s  and  early  80s,  the  challenges  from  the  Japanese  and  the  “five  tigers”,  major  recessions  in  countries  to  which  they  sold  most  of  their  exports,  and  the  oil  shocks  combined  to  produce  a  major  recession  in  Australia.  

Anxious  about  the  future,  they  looked  up  to  realize  that  the  fastest  growing  markets  were  likely  to  be  not  in  Europe,  but  in  Asia,  their  backyard.    And  their  most  formidable  competitors  were  likely  to  be  from  Asia,  too.    After  centuries  of  looking  to  the  British  for  guidance  and  for  their  customers,  the  Australians  realized  they  needed  a  whole  new  strategy.  Fortunately  for  Australians,  the  very  sense  of  distance  from  the  great  population  centers  of  the  West  that  they  had  up  to  that  time  felt  so  keenly  had  made  them  avid  benchmarkers;  just  like  the  Singaporeans.  Before  beginning  any  great  enterprise,  they  would  routinely  send  teams  abroad  to  see  how  the  leading  countries  did  whatever  they  were  interested  in  doing  and  used  that  information  to  fashion  their  own  approach.    So  that  is  what  they  did  in  this  instance,  putting  together  teams  of  employers  and  representatives  of  labor  to  analyze  the  dynamics  of  the  global  competitive  landscape  to  come  up  with  strategies  to  cope  with  the  emerging  competition.    Australian  labor  leaders  played  a  key  role  in  this  process.  The  benchmarkers  concluded  first,  that,  because  Australia  had  a  relatively  small  population,  they  could  not  possibly  make  the  full  range  of  products  they  wanted  access  to.    That  meant  that  they  would  have  to  be  a  major  exporter  if  they  were  going  to  be  able  to  earn  enough  to  purchase  what  they  wanted  abroad.    Second,  the  path  to  ruin  lay  in  trying  to  compete  with  their  Asian  neighbors  on  wages,  which  were  far  lower  than  Australian  wages.  Their  only  chance  at  maintaining  their  standard  of  living  lay  in  being  able  to  add  much  more  value  to  the  goods  and  services  they  produced  than  their  neighbors.  That,  in  turn,  meant  that  their  salvation  lay  in  investing  heavily  in  

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education  and  training.  The  countries  their  teams  looked  at  to  establish  their  education  benchmarks  were  all  using  standards-­‐driven  strategies  to  accomplish  their  goals.    The  Australians  concluded  that  they  needed  to  bring  both  their  academic  standards  and  their  vocational  standards  up  to  the  global  benchmarks  as  rapidly  as  possible,  but  they  also  concluded  that  they  needed  to  take  a  decidedly  Australian  approach  as  they  did  so.  A  broad  and  stable  political  consensus  emerged  on  these  points.    Reform  commissions  were  put  in  place,  academic  and  vocational  standards  were  created  (standards  that  became  the  envy  of  many  other  leading  industrial  nations),  curriculum  was  developed  and  measures  were  taken  to  further  strengthen  the  teaching  profession.  Today,  thanks  to  the  emerging  world’s  insatiable  demand  for  the  raw  materials  that  Australia  has  in  such  abundance  and  the  wise  management  of  Australian  banks  and  government  finances,  Australia  has  largely  escaped  the  ravages  of  the  global  financial  crises  and  is  well  positioned  to  benefit  from  the  eventual  resumption  of  economic  growth  around  the  world  and  especially  in  their  own  backyard.  Visitors  to  Australia  remark  on  Australians’  frontier  spirit,  their  can-­‐do  orientation,  their  practical  bent  and  their  determination  to  learn  from  others  before  they  decide  on  their  often  rather  independent  course.  Australia’s  education  system  is  decentralized,  with  policy  largely  determined  by  the  education  ministers  in  the  six  states  and  two  territories  rather  than  the  federal  Department  of  Education,  Employment  and  Workplace  Relations  (DEEWR).  However,  Australia  has  been  

moving  towards  a  national  curriculum  and  assessment  system  over  the  last  decade  which  will  provide  a  common  framework  for  the  country’s  states  and  territories.  In  2008,  Australia  began  developing  a  comprehensive  National  Assessment  Programme  (NAP)  and  a  national  curriculum;  the  national  assessments  were  introduced  in  2009,  and  the  national  curriculum  was  adopted  in  2011.  NAP  is  centered  around  literacy  and  numeracy  tests  (collectively  known  as  NAPLAN)  administered  yearly  to  students  in  grades  3,  5,  7  and  9;  additional  national  sample  assessments  in  science,  civics  and  citizenship  and  Information  and  Communications  Technology  (ICT)  literacy  are  administered  every  three  years.  The  results  of  these  assessments  are  presented  to  schools,  government  officials  and  to  the  public  on  a  website,  where  visitors  can  find  test  scores  and  a  great  deal  of  other  information  about  any  school  in  the  nation.  Now  that  both  the  national  curriculum  and  NAP  have  been  developed,  Australia  is  working  to  ensure  that  the  two  systems  are  aligned,  creating  common  educational  standards  for  all  students.  Australia  has  consistently  been  a  top  performer  in  international  assessments.  The  2009  PISA  results  reveal  that  Australian  students  rank  ninth  in  a  field  of  75  (34  OECD  member  countries  and  41  partner  countries  and  economies),  and  far  outpace  both  the  OECD  average  and  the  United  States.  Australia’s  science  scores  have  remained  steady  across  the  PISA  assessments.  The  government  has  turned  its  focus  to  math  and  reading,  which  both  experienced  small  declines  on  the  most  recent  assessment.  

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PISA  2009  Mean  Scores  by  Country  for  Reading,  Mathematics,  and  Science    

 

Source:  OECD  PISA  2009  

The  DEEWR  has  responded  to  this  decline  with  an  infusion  of  nearly  $67  billion  into  the  education  system  between  2009  and  2012,  as  well  as  a  series  of  initiatives  designed  to  target  ailing  school  infrastructures  and  underserved  students.  Among  these  initiatives  are  the  Digital  Education  Revolution,  which  aims  to  improve  students’  skill  sets  in  information  and  communication  technology  and  make  them  more  employable  once  they  complete  their  education;  a  National  Partnership  to  improve  teacher  training  and  retention  through  enhanced  professional  

development  opportunities;  and  the  Trade  Training  Centres  program,  intended  to  revitalize  vocational  education.    Teacher and Principal Quality

In  Australia,  each  state  and  territory  has  jurisdiction  over  how  its  teachers  are  recruited  and  trained,  with  many  pathways  to  teacher  certification,  though  all  require  a  bachelor’s  degree.  Private  schools,  which  are  responsible  for  the  education  of  more  than  30%  of  Australian  students,  are  not  bound  by  state  or  territorial  practices  in  selecting  their  teachers.  Teachers’  salaries  in  Australia  are  about  average;  although  they  are  paid  more  after  15  years  of  experience  than  the  OECD  average  –  $48,233  vs.  $41,701  –  their  salaries  are  capped  at  this  point,  whereas  the  top  of  the  pay  scale  average  for  OECD  teachers  rises  to  $51,317.  Australia  is  currently  working  on  improving  the  quality  of  teachers,  from  new  recruits  to  experienced  educators,  and  on  ensuring  that  the  teachers  are  able  to  teach  the  new  curriculum  and  work  with  the  new  assessment  system.  

Recruitment  and  Compensation  

Teacher  recruitment  in  Australia  is  highly  varied;  each  school  system  directs  its  own  recruitment,  hiring  and  induction  efforts.  However,  recruiting  and  retaining  highly  qualified  teachers  is  now  a  major  focus  of  the  Department  of  Education,  Employment  and  Workplace  Relations  (DEEWR)  in  light  of  a  2004  Ministerial  Council  of  Education,  Employment,  Training  and  Youth  Affairs  (MCEETYA)  report  that  indicated  that  it  was  likely  that  Australia  would  face  severe  teacher  shortages  by  2014.  Australia  does  not  

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provide  official  statistics  on  teacher  retention,  but  various  broad  estimates  place  the  teacher  attrition  rate  in  the  first  five  years  at  between  20  and  25%.    The  Department  has  recently  launched  an  initiative  to  attract  a  wider  range  of  people  to  the  profession  and  to  improve  retention  rates  for  current  public  school  teachers.  DEEWR  has  identified  different  stages  of  the  teacher  “lifecycle”  (“attract,  train,  place,  develop,  retain”),  and  is  currently  targeting  each  of  these  stages  with  specific  programs.  Part  of  the  “attract”  campaign  is  recruiting  the  best  graduates  into  teaching  from  other  pathways,  including  programs  like  Teach  for  Australia  and  short  certification  programs  following  bachelor’s,  master’s  and  doctorate  degrees  in  certain  subject  areas.  Other  proposed  goals  include  improving  the  partnership  between  public  schools  and  university  teacher  education  programs,  so  that  the  programs  closely  match  what  teachers  will  need  to  know  in  the  classroom  and  developing  National  Professional  Standards  for  Teachers  in  order  to  provide  consistency  and  excellence  in  teacher  quality.  Between  2009-­‐2012,  an  additional  $45.7  million  has  been  set  aside  to  develop  career  pathways  for  indigenous  teachers  and  to  promote  the  teaching  profession  among  indigenous  groups  by  providing  easier  access  to  qualifications  and  on-­‐the-­‐job  support.  Teachers’  salaries  in  Australia  are  based  on  a  nine-­‐point  salary  range.  In  2009,  the  most  recent  year  for  which  OECD  data  is  available,  an  entry-­‐level  lower  secondary  teacher  with  the  minimum  education  required  could  expect  to  make  $34,664.  The  same  teacher  can  ultimately  expect  a  salary  of  $48,233  at  the  top  of  the  pay  scale;  for  the  first  ten  years,  pay  rises  are  

essentially  automatic.  The  Australian  GDP  per  capita  for  that  year  was  $39,918.  Ratio  of  Lower  Secondary  Education  Teachers’  Salary  to  GDP  per  Capita  2008  

 

Source:  OECD  PISA  2009  

Initial  Education  and  Training  

All  teachers  in  Australia  must  hold  a  bachelor’s  degree.  However,  there  are  multiple  degree  paths  into  teaching.  Teachers  may  earn  a  four-­‐year  Bachelor  of  Education;  enter  a  joint-­‐degree  program  in  which  one  degree  is  subject-­‐oriented  and  the  other  is  in  teacher  education;  or  pursue  an  initial  three-­‐  or  four-­‐year  degree  in  a  subject  area  and  

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then  complete  a  one-­‐  or  two-­‐year  postgraduate  teacher-­‐training  course.  Australia  has  recently  developed  a  national  framework  for  professional  teaching  standards,  which  will  affect  the  curriculum  of  university-­‐level  teacher  training  courses.  Similarly,  the  taskforce  charged  with  developing  this  framework  is  also  focused  on  the  development  of  new  professional  development  opportunities  for  teachers,  including  leadership  training.  New  high  school  graduates  constitute  only  half  of  the  people  entering  teacher-­‐training  programs.  Because  teachers  can  now  become  qualified  with  a  master’s  degree  or  a  graduate  diploma,  many  people  who  already  hold  bachelor’s  degrees  elect  to  pursue  the  short  teacher-­‐training  option.  Teachers  in  all  states  enter  an  induction  period  after  completing  their  formal  teacher  education.  The  length  of  the  induction  period  varies  from  state  to  state,  but  typically  entails  mentorship  through  team  teaching  and  observation  as  well  as  professional  development  in  the  form  of  conferences  and  workshops.  After  satisfactorily  completing  the  induction  period,  teachers  are  full  members  of  the  profession.  

Career  Ladders  

There  are  no  specific  career  pathways  for  Australian  teachers,  and  a  large  number  of  Australian  teachers  actually  view  teaching  as  one  step  in  a  non-­‐teaching  career  path.  However,  teachers  who  choose  to  stay  in  the  field  and  who  excel  

can  move  into  roles  of  authority  while  remaining  in  the  classroom  as  a  department  head,  into  leadership  roles  in  the  school  and  in  the  local  school  administration,  and,  in  some  cases,  into  educational  research  careers.  Specific  promotions  and  ladders  differ  between  the  states  and  territories,  although  the  pathway  described  above  is  typical.  Many  teachers,  however,  choose  to  stay  in  the  classroom  after  attaining  experience  and  job  security.  Teachers  may  also  seek  professional  development  to  move  into  related  roles  such  as  school  counselor  or  special  education  instructor.  

Professional  Development  

The  Australian  Institute  for  Teaching  and  School  Leadership  (AITSL)  is  currently  working  to  develop  a  set  of  National  Professional  Standards  for  Teachers.  Because  teachers  will  need  to  meet  these  standards  throughout  their  careers,  AITSL  is  also  developing  a  set  of  professional  development  programs  that  will  allow  teachers  to  fully  understand  the  new  standards.  This  new  set  of  national  standards  for  what  teachers  need  to  know  and  be  able  to  do  will  work  hand-­‐in-­‐hand  with  the  new  National  Assessment  Programme  (NAP)  to  increase  school  and  teacher  accountability  as  well  as  student  performance.  Each  state  has  its  own  previously  developed  set  of  professional  development  standards  and  programs  in  addition  to  this  new  initiative;  the  new  standards  will  replace  these,  and  ensure  rigor  and  quality  across  the  states  and  territories.  

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The Structure of Australia’s Education System

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Instructional Systems

System  Design  

In  most  states,  students  are  required  to  attend  school  from  ages  6  to  15.  Typically,  students  attend  primary  school  for  seven  years,  followed  by  three  years  of  secondary  school.  Students  are  allowed  to  leave  school  at  age  15  or  16  or  after  grade  10,  depending  on  the  state,  provided  they  find  full-­‐time  employment.  Most  students,  however,  choose  to  attend  upper  secondary  school,  which  accepts  students  for  grades  11  and  12,  or  until  the  age  of  19.  In  2010,  78%  of  Australians  between  the  ages  of  20  and  24  had  completed  school  through  grade  12,  which  represents  a  7%  increase  from  2001.  Within  upper  secondary  schools,  students  can  take  both  vocational  and  academic  classes.  Students  who  choose  not  to  complete  grades  11  and  12  may  pursue  a  vocational  education  and  training  program  following  completion  of  lower  secondary  school.  These  are  offered  at  Registered  Training  Organizations  (RTOs),  which  range  from  Training  and  Further  Education  (TAFE)  colleges  to  training  programs  at  private  companies.  These  programs  are  not,  for  the  most  part,  equivalent  to  upper  secondary  education,  but  do  prepare  students  for  the  workforce.  TAFE  colleges  also  offer  post-­‐secondary  training  for  students  who  want  to  pursue  a  vocational  path  beyond  high  school.  

Curriculum  

The  Australian  Curriculum,  Assessment  and  Reporting  Authority  (ACARA)  establishes  both  the  curriculum  and  achievement  standards  for  both  primary  and  secondary  education.  New  initiatives  under  the  National  Assessment  Programme  (NAP)  are  working  not  only  

to  unify  the  curriculum  and  standards  across  Australia,  but  to  ensure  that  they  are  closely  aligned.  The  establishment  of  a  National  Curriculum  is  quite  recent;  Australia  began  developing  the  curriculum  using  the  guidelines  in  the  Melbourne  Declaration  on  Educational  Goals  for  Young  Australians  for  2008.  Initially,  ACARA  developed  English,  math,  science  and  history  curriculum  for  grades  1-­‐10;  they  then  followed  up  by  rolling  out  national  content  and  achievement  standards  for  foreign  languages,  geography  and  the  arts.  ACARA  is  now  beginning  to  extend  curriculum  development  to  information  and  communications  technology,  civics  and  citizenship,  business,  economics,  physical  education,  and  health  education  and  design  and  technology.  In  these  other  learning  areas,  states  continue  to  be  responsible  for  developing  their  own  curricula.  In  the  subjects  for  which  ACARA  has  developed  a  national  curriculum,  the  organization  provides  explicit  guidelines  for  teachers  and  administrators,  including  year-­‐by-­‐year  guides  for  what  a  student  should  know  and  be  able  to  do.  They  are  working  to  make  teaching  materials  and  resources  available  online  to  all  teachers.  Much  of  this  information  is  also  available  to  parents.  The  federal  government  has  also  developed  the  Early  Years  Learning  Framework,  which  relies  on  play-­‐based  learning  to  prepare  students  aged  zero  to  five  years  for  primary  school,  with  a  focus  on  communication  and  language,  believing  these  to  be  the  building  blocks  of  literacy  and  numeracy.    For  students  in  primary  school,  the  Ministerial  Council  for  Education,  Early  Childhood  Development  and  Youth  Affairs  promotes  eight  key  learning  areas:  the  arts,  English,  

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health  and  physical  education,  second  languages,  mathematics,  science,  society  and  the  environment  and  technology.  

Assessment  

Australia  is  a  world  leader  in  the  development  of  innovative  national  assessments.  All  national  assessments  are  managed  under  the  National  Assessment  Programme  (NAP).  While  states  and  schools  still  manage  formative  student  assessment,  the  National  Assessment  Programme  Literacy  and  Numeracy  (NAPLAN)  examinations  are  beginning  to  play  a  large  role  in  how  schools  and  teachers  are  assessed,  and  Australia  is  seeking  to  find  new  ways  to  create  greater  ties  between  these  national  assessments  and  formative  assessments.  Over  the  course  of  their  primary  and  secondary  education,  in  addition  to  school-­‐based  formative  assessments,  all  Australian  children  take  NAPLAN  assessments.  These  assessments  show  whether  or  not  students  have  met  literacy  and  numeracy  benchmarks  in  grades  3,  5,  7  and  9,  but  are  primarily  used  to  determine  school  performance.  Every  three  years,  there  are  additional  national  sample  assessments  in  science  literacy,  civics  and  citizenship  and  ICT  literacy.  Finally,  in  some  states,  students  in  grade  12  hoping  to  enter  higher  education  must  take  an  external  exam,  the  results  of  which  becomes  a  component  of  their  Australian  Tertiary  Admissions  Rank  (ATAR),  which  determines  their  admission  to  university.  These  exams  differ  from  state  to  state  and  by  the  student’s  ultimate  educational  goal;  for  example,  students  hoping  to  enter  post-­‐secondary  vocational  education  might  take  a  different  test  from  students  hoping  to  matriculate  at  an  academic  university.  Similarly,  some  states  require  further  

diagnostic  tests  at  different  stages  of  a  child’s  education;  in  Victoria,  for  example,  all  five-­‐year-­‐olds  must  take  a  diagnostic  literacy  test  in  their  first  month  of  school.  Many  states  have  some  form  of  early  diagnostic  testing.  Another  example  is  the  examination  of  Information  and  Communications  Technology  competencies  given  to  tenth-­‐graders  in  the  Australian  Capital  Territory;  similar  assessments  are  done  in  the  Northern  Territory,  New  South  Wales,  South  Australia  and  Queensland.  

Instruction  

Instructional  systems  vary  by  state.  Most  schools  practice  whole-­‐class  teaching  strategies  in  primary  school,  though  many  states  provide  ability-­‐based  differentiated  curriculum  and  concentrations  within  schools  at  the  upper  educational  levels.  Recent  policy  initiatives  have  promoted  the  integration  of  technology  into  the  classroom  and  particularly  into  lesson  plans,  with  the  goal  of  universal  digital  literacy.    Recently,  there  has  been  an  emphasis  by  the  government  on  preparing  all  students  in  employability  skills,  which  include  communicating  ideas  and  information;  planning  and  organizing  activities;  working  with  others  in  teams;  solving  problems;  collecting,  analyzing  and  organizing  information;  using  technology;  and  possessing  cultural  understanding.  Since  the  1980s,  Australia  has  also  been  incorporating  work  experience  programs  into  some  secondary  school  pathways.  

Gateways  

Students  attend  primary  school  for  six  years,  and  then  transition  into  a  comprehensive  secondary  school.  It  is  not  until  the  end  of  lower  secondary  school  that  students  make  choices  about  their  

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academic  pathways.  At  this  point  (at  the  end  of  grade  10  or  age  15/16)  students  may  choose  to  leave  school  with  a  Year  10  Certificate  and  enroll  in  a  general  upper  secondary  school  or  go  into  vocational  education  and  training  (VET).  Students  who  take  a  general  route  earn  a  Senior  Secondary  Certificate  of  Education  upon  completing  upper  secondary  school,  the  prerequisite  for  attending  university.  Prior  to  2009,  each  state  had  its  own  system  for  determining  a  student’s  eligibility;  this  was  replaced  by  the  Australian  Tertiary  Admissions  Rank  (ATAR),  which  is  a  nationally-­‐recognized  percentile  rank  given  to  each  student  based  on  their  upper  secondary  performance  and  their  results  on  a  state  exam  (if  the  state  requires  one).  Students  are  considered  for  admission  at  all  national  universities  based  on  their  ATAR  number,  and  are  ranked  within  their  state,  based  on  state  standards.  Students  from  general  upper  secondary  schools  can  also  enter  community  colleges,  which  offer  sub-­‐bachelor’s  degree  programs  in  a  variety  of  subjects,  or  Training  and  Further  Education  (TAFE)  colleges,  which  offer  vocational  training.    

System and School Organization

Education  Finance  

All  students  who  attend  public  schools  in  Australia  are  entitled  to  free  education,  though  parents  or  guardians  must  pay  for  school  supplies,  including  textbooks.  The  government  provides  financial  aid  to  low-­‐income  families  to  cover  some  of  these  costs.  School  funding  is  derived  from  both  state  and  federal  taxes;  approximately  75%  of  the  funding  comes  from  the  state,  

with  the  remaining  25%  from  the  federal  government.  

Annual  Expenditure  by  Educational  Institutions  per  Student  for  All  Services  

 (2007,  in  equivalent  USD  converted  using  PPPs  for  GDP,  public  institutions  only)  Source:  OECD  Australia  also  has  a  robust  private  school  sector,  with  31%  of  Australian  students  enrolled  in  non-­‐government  (private)  schools,  the  vast  majority  of  which  have  a  religious  affiliation.  These  schools  are  required  to  meet  the  minimum  federal  education  standards  as  determined  by  national  assessments,  but  otherwise  may  choose  their  own  curriculum.  However,  the  majority  follow  the  frameworks  used  

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by  the  public  schools  in  their  state.  Private  schools  also  receive  some  degree  of  government  funding  from  both  the  state  and  federal  levels.  The  amount  depends  on  their  ability  to  raise  sufficient  funds  on  their  own.  On  average,  OECD  countries  spend  $9,860  per  student  per  year;  Australia  spends  $9,056.  This  represents  5.2%  of  Australia’s  GDP,  lower  than  the  OECD  average  of  5.9%.  

School  Management  and  Organization  

Over  the  last  30  years,  governance  of  Australia’s  schools  has  become  increasingly  decentralized;  this  is  due  largely  to  the  increased  belief  that  school  autonomy  leads  to  better  responsiveness  to  problems  and  to  higher  quality  overall.  Private  schools  are  almost  wholly  self-­‐run,  though,  like  government  schools,  they  are  required  to  participate  in  NAPLAN.  The  federal  government  is  responsible  for  broad-­‐based  policy  development  and  reform;  the  Department  of  Education,  Employment  and  Workplace  Relations  (DEEWR)  sets  an  agenda  for  the  states  to  follow  in  a  manner  best  befitting  their  unique  demographics.  Schools  are  also  required  to  participate  in  national  assessments  and  to  teach  the  national  curriculum.  However,  Australian  schools  are  largely  managed  on  the  state  level,  with  the  Minister  of  Education  in  each  state  or  territory  responsible  for  determining  teacher  training  requirements,  student  enrollment  policies  and  school-­‐based  assessments.  Generally,  these  policies  are  quite  similar  across  the  nation.  Since  the  1990s,  there  has  been  a  growing  movement  to  devolve  power  to  school  leaders  and  school  boards.  The  amount  of  

control  that  a  school  board  has  (as  compared  to  the  state  Department  of  Education)  varies  from  state  to  state,  but  a  2004  federal  Schools  Assistance  Act  called  for  the  states  to  give  school  principals  and  governing  bodies  greater  autonomy  over  education  programs,  staffing  and  budgetary  decisions.  In  most  cases,  school  boards  or  councils  have  been  put  into  place  to  allow  for  community  input  at  the  local  government  level.  These  boards  have  varying  levels  of  power,  from  the  power  to  advise  the  principal  to  planning  the  school’s  budget  and  completing  school  budgetary  reviews.  Principals  are  typically  members  of  these  organizations.  Within  schools,  principals  for  the  most  part  have  a  great  deal  of  responsibility.  They  are  in  charge  of  educational  leadership  and  school  management,  and  are  also  the  accountable  body  to  the  educational  authorities  and  school  stakeholders.  Several  non-­‐government  groups,  including  the  Australian  Council  of  State  Schools  Organisations,  the  Australian  Parents  Council,  the  Independent  Teachers  Federation,  the  Australian  Education  Union  and  the  National  Industry  Education  Forum  of  Australia  represent  the  interests  of  parents,  teachers  and  industry  leaders  with  respect  to  the  public  school  system.  Similar  groups  represent  the  private  sector.  These  organizations  serve  as  lobby  and  consultation  groups  to  state  and  federal  education  policymakers.  

Accountability  and  Incentive  Systems  

Australia  works  hard  to  create  transparency  about  school,  teacher  and  student  performance.  Outcomes  and  other  information  is  managed  through  the  My  School  website  established  in  2010,  

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which  is  run  by  the  Australian  Curriculum,  Assessment  and  Reporting  Authority  (ACARA).  The  website  provides  a  great  deal  of  information  about  each  of  Australia’s  schools,  including  the  numbers  of  students  and  staff,  the  socioeconomic  background  of  the  student  body,  results  from  national  literacy  and  numeracy  tests,  student  attendance  rates,  teaching  resources  and  post-­‐school  student  career  and  academic  paths.  Alongside  My  School,  the  National  Assessment  Plan  administers  exams  and  monitors  student  progress  on  the  national  level.  These  include  the  national  literacy  and  numeracy  (NAPLAN)  tests,  as  well  as  assessments  of  student  samples  in  science,  civics  and  information  and  communication  technology  (ICT).  These  sample  assessments  are  given  every  three  years  and  are  given  in  grades  6  and  10,  though  science  assessments  only  take  place  in  grade  6.  Australian  educators  and  policymakers  are  beginning  to  use  the  information  provided  on  the  My  School  site  to  help  schools  improve.  Educators  and  policymakers  can  use  the  information  to  compare  schools  and  make  decisions  about  staffing  and  resource  allocation,  and  parents  can  use  the  site  to  help  choose  a  school  for  their  children.  

Parent  and  Community  Participation  

The  Department  of  Education,  Employment  and  Workplace  Relations  (DEEWR)  welcomes  an  “honest  and  comprehensive”  public  debate  about  school  policy  and  reform,  and  makes  a  great  deal  of  information  about  school  funding,  resources  and  student  performance  readily  available  through  their  website,  including  the  My  School  site,  which  provides  a  comprehensive  breakdown  of  student  background  and  

performance,  as  well  as  teaching  resources,  for  every  school  in  the  country.  Similarly,  as  the  Australian  Curriculum,  Assessment  and  Reporting  Authority  (ACARA)  has  been  building  the  new  national  curriculum,  they  have  made  draft  versions  available  online  and  welcomed  comments  as  part  of  the  development  process.  In  addition  to  encouraging  the  public  to  weigh  in  on  educational  challenges  and  successes,  under  the  Building  the  Education  Revolution  initiative,  community  members  have  full  access  to  new  facilities  (libraries  and  multipurpose  halls,  among  others)  created  by  this  initiative.  Parents  may  elect  to  send  their  children  to  any  government  school  of  their  choice,  provided  there  is  space  in  the  school  for  their  child.  Parents  also  have  access  to  their  children’s  schools  through  parents’  associations,  which  exist  in  each  state  and  territory.  Many  of  these  organizations  provide  a  great  deal  of  information  to  parents  about  volunteer  opportunities  at  their  child’s  school  and  how  they  can  further  encourage  their  child’s  education.  

Education For All

Student  Support  Systems  

While  Australia’s  school  system  is  among  the  world’s  best  performers,  it  has  long  struggled  with  a  set  of  achievement  gaps  between  boys  and  girls,  students  from  high-­‐  and  low-­‐income  families,  and  indigenous  and  non-­‐indigenous  students.  In  recent  years,  the  Australian  government  has  made  a  priority  of  addressing  the  unique  concerns  of  Australia’s  indigenous  communities.  In  June  2011,  the  Department  of  Education,  Employment  and  Workplace  Relations  (DEEWR)  released  an  Action  Plan  that  sets  out  a  common  approach  for  all  states  

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to  work  on  closing  the  gap  between  indigenous  and  non-­‐indigenous  students.  Several  schools  with  primarily  aboriginal  student  populations  will  undertake  the  policies  outlined  in  the  plan,  which  will  then  be  expanded  to  all  schools  with  underperforming  indigenous  students.  The  plan  calls  for  improvement  in  six  key  areas:  school  readiness;  attendance;  engagement  and  connections;  literacy  and  numeracy;  pathways  to  post-­‐school  options;  and  leadership,  quality  teaching  and  workforce  development.  States  are  also  responsible  for  addressing  the  needs  of  students  with  learning  and  physical  disabilities.  They  are  in  charge  of  administering  evaluations  and  providing  learning  environments  for  these  students,  but  accommodations  vary  widely  between  both  states  and  individual  schools.  Students  who  are  able  to  successfully  learn  in  mainstream  school  environments,  even  if  only  for  some  of  their  classes  or  subjects,  are  encouraged  to  remain  in  mainstream  schools.  PISA  2009:  Variation  in  Reading  Performance  Explained  by  Schools’  Socioeconomic  Background  

 

Low-­Performing  Schools  

Between  2008  and  2015,  improving  low  performing  schools  has  been  a  focus  of  the  Australian  government,  which  has  committed  $1.5  billion  to  support  improvement  in  about  1700  schools  nationwide.  This  initiative,  called  the  Smarter  Schools  National  Partnership  for  Low  Socio-­‐economic  Status  School  Communities  requires  matching  funds  from  state  and  territory  governments.  This  funding  is  explicitly  earmarked  to  attract  high-­‐performing  teachers  and  school  leaders,  revamp  management  and  staffing  arrangements,  provide  parents  and  the  community  with  greater  school  accountability,  promote  new  learning  opportunities  for  students  and  help  schools  form  partnerships  with  other  schools,  communities  and  businesses.    The  government  is  also  piloting  new  literacy  and  numeracy  programs  in  select  low-­‐performing  schools,  with  the  hope  that  they  will  be  modified  and  expanded  to  all  schools  where  they  are  needed.  The  government  and  the  National  Partnership  believe  that  improving  student  engagement  and  academic  outcomes  will  help  combat  intergenerational  poverty.    

School-to-Work Transition

Vocational  Education  and  Training  has  a  much  higher  profile  in  Australia  than  in  many  other  advanced  industrial  countries.    All  the  training  done  in  the  system  is  framed  by  a  set  of  qualifications  that  have  been  developed  and  embraced  by  Australian  employers,  labor  organizations  and  government.    To  get  most  jobs  in  the  economy  one  must  possess  the  appropriate  qualification.    Vocational  education  and  training  Source:  OECD  PISA  2009  

 

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programs  are  designed  to  enable  people  of  all  ages  to  acquire  the  qualifications  needed  to  get  the  jobs  they  want.  After  achieving  an  initial  qualification  in  a  given  field,  qualification-­‐holders  typically  continue  to  study  to  earn  additional  qualifications.  The  requisite  training  is  offered  by  high  schools  and  Registered  Training  Organizations.  The  national  Vocational  Education  and  Training  Quality  Framework  outlines  standards  for  all  training  organizations.  The  qualifications  system  is  regulated  by  the  Australian  Qualifications  Framework  (AQF).  The  AQF  differs  from  the  Vocational  Education  and  Training  Quality  Framework  in  that  it  regulates  qualifications  rather  than  standards  for  the  provision  of  training,  and  encompasses  all  of  higher  education,  academic  and  vocational.  Together,  these  frameworks  provide  consistency  across  Vocational  Education  and  Training  programs  in  Australia,  so  that  employers  know  what  credentials  mean  when  they  are  offered  by  applicants  for  jobs,  training  institutions  know  what  training  they  need  to  offer  and  individuals  know  what  qualifications  they  have  to  earn  to  get  the  jobs  they  want.  Australia’s  Vocational  Education  and  Training  programs  also  benefit  from  strong  federal  and  business  leadership.  The  government  is  currently  working  to  improve  the  status  of  Vocational  Education  and  Training  programs  in  order  to  make  both  Australia  and  its  individual  citizens  more  competitive.  To  that  end,  the  government  has  recently  undertaken  a  six-­‐year,  $3  billion  project  to  encourage  workers  to  “up-­‐skill”  or  “re-­‐skill”  by  earning  formal  qualifications.  Part  of  the  project  includes  a  comprehensive  website  for  workers  and  

job  seekers,  directing  them  to  qualifications  programs  in  various  skill  and  job  areas.  The  website  also  includes  education  and  career  guidance  for  Australians  who  are  interested  in  gaining  qualifications  but  have  not  yet  selected  a  field.    Other  lifelong  learning  opportunities  are  available  privately  or  through  on-­‐the-­‐job  training.  Upper  secondary  school  students  can  take  vocational  classes  at  comprehensive  upper  secondary  schools.      About  40%  of  Australian  students  take  at  least  one  VET  subject  in  secondary  school,  while  7%  of  young  people  are  involved  in  apprenticeships  or  traineeships.  Schools  applying  to  establish  a  Trade  Training  Centre  on  their  campuses  may  choose  from  either  a  set  of  approved  traditional  trade  qualifications,  or  petition  to  establish  a  program  for  occupations  in  local  demand,  again  reinforcing  the  link  between  secondary  education  and  the  economy.  Occupations  in  local  demand  are  identified  by  the  Department  of  Education,  Employment  and  Workplace  Relations  (DEEWR).  Over  the  next  three  years,  $2.6  billion  will  be  funneled  into  the  Trade  Training  Centres  in  Schools  Program.  Other  national  school-­‐to-­‐work  initiatives  include  the  NBN-­‐Enabled  Education  and  Skills  Services  Program,  which  will  help  greater  numbers  of  students  build  their  computer  and  online  skills  through  Australia’s  new  National  Broadband  Network,  and  the  Business-­‐School  Connections  Roundtable,  which  has  been  charged  with  developing  guiding  principles  for  a  strong  and  mutually  beneficial  relationship  between  schools  and  businesses.