Education
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Ivy League convulsions – will we be next?
The shock waves continue from Columbia University’s capitulation to Trump administration demands that undermine its independence. The world is watching and waves are already crashing on Australia’s shores. Continue reading »
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Universal early learning and the three-day guarantee
The passing of the Early Childhood Education and Care (Three-Day Guarantee) Bill 2025 marks a major shift in Australia’s early childhood education and care system. For the first time, tens of thousands of children who were previously excluded from early learning will have access to at least three days of subsidised care each week (72 Continue reading »
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Trump is surveying Australian academics about gender diversity and China – what does this mean for unis and their research?
Shortly after taking office, US President Donald Trump issued executive orders banning federal funding on so-called “woke” research. Continue reading »
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Going, going… to the highest bidder: Australia’s school system
Recent headlines confirm that it is now difficult to deal with the market forces that successive governments in this country have unleashed in our school system and which are now driving it in perilous directions. Continue reading »
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Government funding increases entrench private school resource advantage
Government funding increases for Catholic and Independent schools have outstripped those for public schools since 2009 and entrenched a major resource advantage for them. New figures published by the Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority show Catholic and Independent schools have a much higher income per student than public schools across Australia and in nearly Continue reading »
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Why is Israel such a big deal?
I’ll begin with a reminder, for the Zionists in the audience, of what antisemitism is. I grew up surrounded by adults with blue numbers tattooed on their forearms. My primary school teacher relentlessly picked on the three Jewish kids in her class. My high school refused to discipline a girl who punched me in the Continue reading »
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Sorry, the full Gonski won’t be enough
The media chorus says it all: the school funding wars are over, public schools will finally get justice, all the major combatants are onside and there will be peace throughout the land. And when all schools implement a suite of mandatory reforms, our levels of student achievement will make us the envy of the world. Continue reading »
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Beyond the test: Reclaiming education for purpose, compassion and community
The current approach to education in Australia, as reflected in the New South Wales Bilateral Agreement and national funding models, underscores an increasing reliance on neoliberal principles. These policies prioritise efficiency, accountability, and standardised performance metrics, shaping education into a market-driven enterprise where schools and students are treated as economic units rather than as participants Continue reading »
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Rise of the bigot
The Cambridge Dictionary defines a bigot as “a person who has strong, unreasonable beliefs, and who does not like other people who have different beliefs or a different way of life”. Bigotry is an individual attitude characterised by two distinct dimensions, baseless beliefs and an intolerance of others, and is exemplified by xenophobia, racism and Continue reading »
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Inclusive solutions for exclusive schools
The 2025 school year is under way, and every young Australian is sharing the experience of renewing friendships and the routines of school and learning. Continue reading »
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People’s inquiry into campus free speech on Palestine to shine a light on repression
When power oppresses, civil society must hold it to account. Like media and the arts, university campuses in Australia have become sites of censorship and suppression of free speech on the question of Palestine. Continue reading »
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NSW and Qld public schools will lose billions if stand-off is not resolved
A stand-off between the Albanese Government and the NSW and Queensland Governments over public school funding has been going on for more than a year. The longer it lasts, the more public schools will lose. If it is not resolved, public schools in the two states could lose nearly $40 billion in funding over the Continue reading »
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A fantasy: The revolution that shook the world
It began with a whisper. A voice, quiet but clear, weaving its way through the fabric of Australian society, carrying with it a simple, but radical, idea: that power should belong to the people, not just those who sat in Parliament House. At the heart of this movement was an historian, and a woman of Continue reading »
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AAUP calls for urgent reform of university management
The Council of the Australian Association of University Professors has welcomed the announcement of a Federal Parliamentary inquiry into the quality of governance at Australian higher education providers. Continue reading »
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Neoliberal learning: Horses for courses and donkeys in the paddock
This series is built on the firm belief in “a paradigm of care” being the answer to the cancer of neoliberal economic rationalism, and its bedfellows bullying managerialism, monetarism and compliance surveillance. But following the maxim that “no one likes a whinger”, I am also advocating the timeless message from Swiss American psychiatrist and expert Continue reading »
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Public schools bear the greatest burden of disadvantage
A new research paper published by Save Our Schools shows conclusively that public schools bear the greatest burden of disadvantage, but are not resourced to overcome its effect on learning outcomes. Public schools have to do a lot more with far fewer resources than Catholic and Independent schools. Continue reading »
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Want more economics students? Drop the obsession with maths
The Reserve Bank is worried. The number of students wanting to study economics has been falling over the years, and it’s worried this will lead to a fall in the electorate’s economic literacy, which could end up worsening government policy. Continue reading »
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At last the eerie silence on schools funding has ended
With a federal election looming, leaders of two political parties have now announced plans to deal with the protracted under-funding of Australia’s public schools. Continue reading »
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The unravelling of Australian society
Australian society has never really been a cohesive entity. In the past its various socio-economic, religious, ethnic, cultural, and political factions have simply hung together largely through a sense of xenophobia about the outside world (read Asia) rather than a commitment to national unity based on shared values and mutually beneficial interests. But today xenophobia Continue reading »
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The campus under siege
Suppression of critical voices through the instrumentalisation of religious fanaticism in university systems remains a powerful tool for maintaining the status quo, writes Sadaf Shabbir. Continue reading »
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Public vs. private schools: The illusion of collaboration
Carolyn Blanden’s recent contribution to Pearls and Irritations,”Public and private schools are partners in educating all Australian children.” presents a counter-argument to my essay “The silent crisis killing public education”, January 9, 2025. She offers a vision of harmonious collaboration between public and private institutions. I suspect that the author misses the point of my Continue reading »
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Outmoded concepts of disadvantage must be rethought
It’s time to rid ourselves of the concepts of disadvantage and equity and immerse ourselves in the practices of learning and knowledge like never before. Continue reading »
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Public and private schools are partners in educating all Australian children
John Frew’ s recent essay asserts that public schools are increasingly burdened with students facing complex challenges while private schools lure more desirable students with questionable claims of better academic outcomes and stricter discipline. Continue reading »
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The silent crisis killing public education
The exodus from Australia’s public schools is not a quiet migration – it’s an outright stampede. This dramatic shift, particularly in secondary education, reveals a deep crisis that policymakers, academics, and unions acknowledge superficially but lack the courage to confront head-on. At the heart of this issue lies the unspoken truth: public schools are increasingly Continue reading »
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Open access. Break the paywall. Reclaim knowledge now
In my academic career, I’ve always advocated for not-for-profit academic journals. These platforms support academic freedom and align with the principle that research should benefit society, not merely serve the interests of profit-driven corporations. Unfortunately, the academic publishing landscape, dominated by five major commercial players—Elsevier, Wiley, Taylor & Francis, Springer Nature, and SAGE—has become a Continue reading »
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Best of 2024: What makes Chinese students so successful by international standards?
There is a belief widely held across the Western world: Chinese students are schooled through rote, passive learning – and an educational system like this can only produce docile workers who lack innovation or creativity. We argue this is far from true. Continue reading »
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Overreach and technocratic control in Australian University reform
Announced by the incoming Labor government, the University Accord process and review is being touted as a once-in-a-generation opportunity to reimagine the role and funding of Australia’s 40-plus universities. With 1.5 million students enrolled, including 500,000 international students, and generating $35 billion in revenue, universities have been struggling in the wake of COVID-19. Continue reading »
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Maria Montessori: Feminist and educator
Born in 1870, the year of Italy’s nationhood, Maria Montessori was a social reformer. The general militarisation of life, the first great slaughter, the rise of Mussolini and the second slaughter, are only some of what she reacted and organised against. She believed her method – now universally known as the Montessori Method – would Continue reading »
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Endless onslaught: Would Israel’s Mordechai be attacked as ‘antisemitic’ in Australia?
Haaretz, Israel’s oldest and most widely known newspaper, has just published a long, roughly 8,000 word feature article, about the work of Lee Mordechai, the Associate Professor of History at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. He has compiled on line a massive report entitled “Bearing Witness to the Israel-Gaza War.” Continue reading »
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Be alert and alarmed: Campus silencing on Palestine
In a number of countries, universities are now to the forefront of punishing and silencing those who challenge dominant constructions of the conflict in Gaza. Continue reading »
