Bill Shorten’s university proposal breaks the deadlock – but design will decide its value
Bill Shorten’s proposal for a university fund tackles a long-standing funding problem – but its impact will depend on how it is designed and delivered.
Recent articles in Education
14 March 2026
Prevention that pays: stop ranking children and start understanding them
Standardised testing and rankings dominate school systems, but improving student wellbeing and engagement requires deeper integration between education and health support.
10 March 2026
The Albanese controversy shows how universities have lost their way
A cancelled venue for a UN rapporteur’s appearance highlights how universities are increasingly restricting debate about Israel and Palestine under pressure over antisemitism.
3 March 2026
Abbott’s finger pointing on overseas students is pure hypocrisy
Tony Abbott blames record numbers of temporary residents and international students on recent governments. But policy changes introduced and maintained under his own leadership played a central role in driving that growth.
2 March 2026
Regions, not postcodes: the structural reality of rural public education
Educational disadvantage in Australia is often framed as urban or socioeconomic. But across regional and remote communities, public schools operate with structurally thin staffing, services and support – and the consequences are cumulative.
20 February 2026
Universities expose racism’s scale – and the dangers of unequal responses
New national data shows racism is widespread across Australian universities. The challenge is responding fairly, without elevating one community’s suffering over another’s.
18 February 2026
How elite private schools distort Australia’s teaching workforce
Fees charged by elite private schools go on rising. But who is paying the price?
4 February 2026
Education savings plans and the quiet erosion of public schooling
Education savings schemes appear sensible and responsible. But their quiet rise reflects a deeper failure – a loss of confidence in Australia’s commitment to properly fund public education as a shared civic good.
30 January 2026
Australia’s China student pipeline is facing a credibility problem
Australian universities remain popular with Chinese students, but online chat reveals growing scepticism about academic rigour, employability and value for money. These perceptions raise hard questions about the long-term sustainability of Australia’s education export model.
18 January 2026
Best of 2025 - The inflation myth propping up private school privilege
Private schools regularly blame inflation for rising fees, yet funding arrangements mean they are largely compensated for cost increases. Their fee-setting power widens the resource gap while feeding back into inflation itself.
17 January 2026
Best of 2025 - How did Australian universities go from free education to $50,000 arts degrees in 50 years?
Australians think students are being asked to pay far too much for their degrees. Just under half (47%) of Australians surveyed by YouGov in June 2025 believe a worker on an average income should be able to pay off the debt for a standard three-year degree within five years. When it comes to the cost of a degree, 58% believe a student should pay $5000 or less per year – less than a third of what arts students now pay.
12 January 2026
Best of 2025 - Lack of China capability can only do harm to society: Our current situation is a disgrace
In March 2023, the Australian Academy of the Humanities sounded the alarm on the decline in our understanding and knowledge of China through a report on “Australia’s China Knowledge Capability”.
19 December 2025
Australia’s school attendance crisis needs urgent national action
School attendance has been sliding for more than a decade, with more than a million Australian students now missing significant classroom time. Governments have set ambitious targets to reverse the trend, but meeting them will require a fundamental shift in approach.
Catch up on other sections
More from Education
11 October 2025
Almost no Australians study Chinese any more. That’s a problem
27 September 2025
Productivity and innovation needs business' own investment in skills
15 September 2025
School funding: Time to break the mould and build a new model
