When Gibb was ready to start school, his mum, Caitlin, took him on a school tour. She had picked this school because of its “small village feel”, thinking they would embrace her son, who has Down syndrome, and provide him with the right support to...
There is an awkward tension in how Australian schools and universities credential the learning of their graduates.On the one hand, Australian credentials issued by schools and tertiary institutions are easy to understand, widely used, based on high standards and carefully regulated. They are relied on for...
The temporary closure of schools is evidence the system is working as it should, writes Allen Cheng, Professor in Infectious Diseases Epidemiology Brunswick East Primary School and Keilor Views Primary School in Melbourne have temporarily shut down after children from both schools tested positive to COVID-19,...
It’s Sunday night, around 8pm, when your ten-year-old tells you she has a sore throat. She doesn’t have any other symptoms, and feels OK. You tell her “let’s see how you feel in the morning” and she happily goes off to sleep. But you’re left wondering...
How do you stay 1.5 metres apart in a rugby scrum? And have we seen the end of communal showers? asks Philip Russo. As we emerge from lockdown, so does our sport. And many sporting bodies are grappling with the best way to do this while...
COVID-19: Australia’s class of 2020 can (and will) overcome adversity, report Dr Michael Carr-Gregg and Kelly-Ann Allen. Developed by psychologists Robert Yerkes and John Dodson back in 1908, one of the oldest laws in psychology is the Yerkes-Dodson law, which suggests an empirical relationship between arousal and performance. The law dictates that...
Girls score the same in maths and science as boys, but higher in arts – this may be why they are less likely to pick STEM careers. Silvia Griselda and Rigissa Megalokonomou report on their research. Last month, the Australian Academy of Science published a report...
Reading aloud reports Margaret Kristin Merga, can help young children learn about new words and how to sound them. There’s great value too in providing opportunities for children to enjoy regular silent reading, which is sustained reading of materials they select for pleasure particular during...
Global school shutdowns in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic have pushed online education and virtual schooling to the forefront of the political agenda, writes Neil Selwyn Millions of young people being educated through Zoom tutorials, Google Classroom, and Microsoft Teams was soon touted as a...
Nikki Rickard writes about the benefits of music education in enhancing not only children’s intellectual development, but also their emotional wellbeing. As always, parents play a key role in encouraging music engagement in children. Music education gives children the foundations for a lifelong love of music,...
