Australia
121 stories
Julie Bishop resigns as chancellor of ANU
Former deputy Liberal leader Julie Bishop has resigned as chancellor of the Australian National University (ANU) seven months before her term was set to expire. Ms Bishop, who served as Australia’s first female foreign minister, stepped into the role of the ANU’s chancellor in 2020 and was due to finish up in December this year. On Thursday evening, she informed the university and the Albanese government of her decision to step down. The ANU has been embroiled in a number of controversies during Ms Bishop’s tenure, including a scrapped $250 million cost-cutting plan (Renew ANU), a no confidence vote , the resignation of vice-chancellor Genevieve Bell last September, and allegations raised at Senate estimates in August of workplace bullying . The latter were levelled at Ms Bishop and other members of the by ANU executive by demographer Liz Allen. Former vice-chancellor Genevieve Bell resigned in September last year. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Martin Ollman Ms Bishop has categorically denied the allegations. In a statement obtained by the ABC, Ms Bishop said on Friday she was “deeply privileged” to have the opportunity to lead the university and described the institution as “truly a national treasure”. But she added: “The higher education sector is at a crossroads of regulatory overreach in the governance of our institutions or autonomy and academic freedom. “I fear the collateral from this regulatory overreach will be the next generation of students and staff.” The Australian Financial Review reported Ms Bishop believed an intervention by the regulator – the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA) – to direct the selection of the university’s next chancellor was unlawful. More on this story: Staff ask inquiry for academic, student senate at ANU | ANU at ‘critical point in history’ with ‘much work to do’ | ANU was originally set up to be a ‘national asset’ – here’s how it can be again Independent ACT senator David Pocock, a vocal critic of the university’s governance, said in a statement Ms Bishop’s resignation was in the “best interests of the ANU”. “When things go so terribly wrong at the helm of such an important institution, especially one governed by Commonwealth law, there must be accountability,” he said. “A number of processes including a review by the higher education regulator, TEQSA, are yet to conclude and need to be allowed to run their course. “The voluntary undertaking to conduct an independent process to appoint the next Chancellor is very welcome and will hopefully help rebuild trust, confidence and better governance at our national university.” He praised the ANU’s staff and students for having “stood together in the face of poor leadership and governance”. Ms Bishop described the ANU as a “national treasure”. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Gary Ramage. Earlier last week, staff and students rallied at ANU to express their support for interim vice-chancellor Rebekah Brown. They were joined by politicians including Mr Pocock and federal member for Canberra Alicia Payne. National Tertiary Education Union ACT division secretary Lachlan Clohesy, who had also attended the gathering, also praised the ANU community in a statement. “This is a chance for calm and stability. Union members have stood up to protect our national university. “The former chancellor has made two significant decisions which I support: the first was to accept the resignation of the former vice-chancellor, Genevieve Bell. The second was today,” he said. “Now that the fire has been put out, we’ll wait and see if the forthcoming TEQSA report will tell us how it started.” An ANU spokesperson thanked Ms Bishop for her contributions as chancellor. “In her six years in the role and through her advocacy, the Hon. Julie Bishop has raised the university’s profile domestically and internationally and strengthened global connections, including during the Covid pandemic,” they said. “The [ANU Council] thanks the Hon. Julie Bishop for these contributions and wishes her well for the future.” They said the council was committed to “providing a new period of strong and positive governance and leadership” and “restoring” its reputation in the community. The spokesman added pro-chancellor Larry Marshall would act as chancellor in the interim before a permanent appointment is made.
11 May 2026
What the sector wants in the Budget
With the Albanese government set to hand down the 2026/27 Federal Budget on Tuesday, the national dialogue has been dominated by cost‑of‑living pressures, fuel security, housing supply and the government’s push to strengthen economic resilience. Treasurer Jim Chalmers has warned the Australian economy is “hostage to economic turmoil,” pointing to global energy shocks, rising inflation and a national debt approaching $1 trillion. However, the Treasurer has also announced this budget will deliver $64 billion in “reprioritisations” and savings, with key investments for fuel security, productivity and tax reform. The government has already confirmed: $10 billion for fuel security, including a 1‑billion‑litre onshore reserve A new Counter‑Terrorism Online Centre A likely overhaul of capital gains tax and negative gearing A possible one‑off income offset for workers $3.8 billion more for Melbourne’s Suburban Rail Loop East Expanded Medicare Urgent Care Clinics Major NDIS reforms expected to cut $15 billion over four years A decade‑long $53 billion defence funding increase. Last year’s budget offered tax cuts, health spending and fee‑free TAFE places, but no new higher‑education investment. Research funding reform In their pre-budget submissions to government, both the Group of Eight (Go8) and Universities Australia (UA) and said that Australia’s research funding model is no longer viable. “Australia’s university research funding system is broken,” the Go8 submission said, pointing to a widening gap between competitive grants and the indirect costs required to deliver them. On average, $1.19 in indirect costs is needed for every $1 of direct research income, a gap universities have been forced to fill through international student revenue. SERD panel chair Robyn Denholm said “the imperative for change is clear.” Picture: Lyndon Mechielsen/Courier Mail. The Strategic Examination of Research and Development (SERD) final report, released in March, reinforced the urgency . It called for the restoration of Australian Research Council (ARC) and National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) funding, lifting indexation, and the establishment of a national costing framework to determine the true cost of research. “The imperative for change is clear. Future generations of Australians face a substantial reduction in their standard of living unless there are bold, nation changing reforms,” SERD panel chair Robyn Denholm said. The National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) warned that the system is already buckling. “Australia’s research capacity is being hollowed out by a decade of real decline in competitive grant funding,” NTEU national president Alison Barnes said. “When that funding declines in real terms year after year, we lose researchers, we lose capability, and we lose the ideas that drive prosperity.” The union backed SERD’s call to lift the PhD stipend to $50,000, arguing that “Australia cannot ask its next generation of researchers to live below the poverty line.” For staff, the consequences of underfunding include insecure employment, heavier teaching loads, and shrinking research time. “Universities have been robbing Peter to pay Paul for too long,” Dr Barnes said. “A genuine full-cost-recovery mechanism is essential to breaking this structural dependency and putting both research and teaching on a sustainable footing.” European Union president Ursula von der Leyen stands beside Anthony Albanese during her visit to Canberra. Picture: Christophe Licoppe. In the wake of research funding changes out of the US, a major shift came in March, when Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced Australia would begin treaty negotiations to associate with Horizon Europe , the world’s largest research fund. If negotiations succeed, Australian researchers could access Horizon Europe calls from early 2027. “Association with Horizon Europe gives Australia a front‑row seat to the world’s biggest breakthroughs. It places our researchers, industries and institutions inside the world’s most influential collaborative R&D ecosystem – where standards are set, breakthroughs are scaled, and global priorities are shaped,” Go8 chief executive Vicki Thomson said. Whether Tuesday’s budget includes funding to support the negotiations remains to be seen. The workforce pipeline UA stressed that Australia’s skills challenge is now a national economic priority. Modelling shows that more than 50 per cent of new jobs between 2025 and 2035 will require a university degree, yet the system is not funded to meet the government’s target of 80 per cent tertiary attainment by 2050. UA argued that the Job‑ready Graduates scheme has “entrenched perverse incentives,” pricing students out of key disciplines and reducing university funding. It called for the highest student fee band to be scrapped and real per‑student funding restored. Without action, UA warned, the government’s ambition to educate one million additional students a year by 2050 will remain out of reach. International education remains a $52 billion export, but the sector is still recovering from visa uncertainty and geopolitical instability. The UA submission supported a “balanced, risk‑based approach” to regulation but said visa settings must remain competitive.
11 May 2026
Int’l students underpaid $3.18bn in wages
The systemic exploitation of workers on temporary visas has become embedded in Australia’s labour market, a landmark new report has found. The Migrant Justice Institute’s Off the Books report is based on the largest survey of temporary migrant workers conducted in Australian history. It surveyed 8370 migrants working from 2023-24 and found two-thirds were paid less than they should have been under the Fair Work Act. One in five was underpaid by at least $10 per hour. They also received misleading pay slips, weren ’ t paid super, were subject to wage deductions, as well as being employed under sham contracts, the report found. It revealed international students alone were being underpaid by about $61m per week, or $3.18bn annually, indicating the overall amount underpaid to all migrant workers would be “far higher”. Under Australia’s workplace laws, all employees are entitled to an hourly minimum wage – generally determined by an industry award or agreement – regardless of their migration status. For employees whose minimum wages are not covered by an award or registered agreement, they are entitled to the National Minimum Wage. Thirty-four per cent of those surveyed reported experiencing at least one forced labour indicator, a form of modern slavery. These included: being made to work in unsafe conditions excessive or different hours than agreed long periods without breaks being unable to leave a job they wished to leave. “These are not isolated cases of bad employers. This is a system that produces vulnerability at scale, and enables willing employers to exploit it,” Australian Anti-Slavery Commissioner Chris Evans said. “Piecemeal Band-Aid measures will not change an entrenched culture of exploitation. “Increased enforcement will help individuals, but it will not change the system.” Mr Evans said the system required a “reset”. “The vulnerabilities that allow exploitation to flourish must be extinguished to allow fair treatment for migrant workers,” he said. He urged Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to convene national cabinet and co-ordinate a response that integrates policy areas including immigration, workplace relations, higher education, and antislavery. A review of the pressures of visa and tuition fees and access to safe, lawful work for international students was essential, he said. “Addressing systemic underpayment is foundational to preventing modern slavery,” Mr Evans said. “If exploitation is systemic, our response must be systemic too.” The report’s recommendations include establishing a national labour hire licensing scheme, a crackdown on concealment indicators, and stronger whistleblower protections, such as expanded access to the Workplace Justice Visa. It also acknowledged the Albanese government’s sweeping industrial relations reforms in 2022 and 2024 and described them as a “step in the right direction” but concluded they were “inadequate to address the widespread, deliberate underpayment of migrant workers” revealed in the report. Employment and Workplace Relations Minister Amanda Rishworth has been contacted for comment.
11 May 2026
Teacher professional learning – real-world lessons on financial literacy
Mathematics teachers Bianca Drum and Jazmin Nardelli from Marryatville High School in South Australia. Image supplied.
10 May 2026
‘One of the greatest invisible tragedies’: is the loss of childhood imagination inevitable?
We have created the most stifling and sanitised imaginative space conceivable for children, says teacher Brendan James Murray. Today true imagination has become a radical act The six children sit together at the waterline in roaring wind. Seagulls dip and strain, beating their wings against the gusts as, far below, waves crest, thump, whisper. A girl, scarcely three years old, stands suddenly and looks out towards that horizon. Striding past them in the distance, his immense feet hidden beneath the rim of the horizon, is a giant. American artist NC Wyeth painted The Giant in 1923. The low angle emphasises the giant’s immensity, and all the children’s faces are turned away from the viewer. In this way, those children become anyone we care to transpose into this magical scene. What child has not lain in the grass to watch some cloud-image, an animal perhaps, gradually dissolve into the amorphous collection of water droplets that are its banal reality? Continue reading...
10 May 2026
In a hushed room, personal testimonies reveal Australia’s troubling rise in antisemitism
This week, Jewish Australians have spoken about how displays of hostility, discrimination and the Bondi terror attack have changed their lives and their feelings about their place in the community The narrow benches of the public gallery are filled. They have come from all over to offer their testimony, to support friends, to give and receive comfort. They come too, to listen. This, in this small, quiet room, is Australia’s attempt to reckon with the violent modern manifestation of an ancient bigotry. Continue reading...
8 May 2026
Julie Bishop resigns as Australian National University chancellor
Former foreign minister steps down early as finance minister Katy Gallagher says embattled institution must continue ‘rebuilding trust and confidence’ The former foreign minister, Julie Bishop, has tendered her resignation from the position of chancellor at Australian National University (ANU). The finance minister, Katy Gallagher, said in a statement on Friday morning that the embattled institution would need to continue “rebuilding trust and confidence”. Continue reading...
8 May 2026
Infographic: What you love about secondary school teaching
Infographic What you love about secondary teaching FINAL
7 May 2026
Australia news live: woman to appear in court charged with joining Islamic State
Woman arrested at Sydney airport after arriving back from Syria last night; two more women face charges in Melbourne. Follow updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A 32-year-old woman will appear in court in Sydney this morning after being charged on her arrival back in Australia last night with being a member of Islamic State. Janai Safar was part of a group of 13 women and children who arrived back in separate flights – one into Sydney and one into Melbourne – last night. Continue reading...
7 May 2026
If Bikram Lama were alive today, we still couldn’t guarantee him a way out of homelessness | Erin Longbottom
It’s long past time for Australia’s tertiary institutions to live up to their duty of care for the international students they attract In the outpouring of community grief that followed Guardian Australia’s story about Bikram Lama , a comment by a colleague really hit home: The reality is that, even if I met Bikram right now, I still couldn’t guarantee him a way off the street. Continue reading...
7 May 2026
Victorian budget delivers $5.5b for education
The Victorian Budget for 2026/27 is being considered a win for education, with more than $5.5 billion in new investment across schools, early‑childhood learning and the state’s expanding Free TAFE system. Treasurer Jaclyn Symes said the budget “acknowledges the real challenges Victorians are facing” as families continue to grapple with ever-rising costs fueled by global conflict and national inflationary pressures. “Victorians that are doing it tough need affordable healthcare, great education for their kids and safe communities to live and work in,” she said. The government announcement is part of a broader $19 billion education spend this financial year, continuing a decade‑long expansion that has delivered 121 new schools since 2017 and an increase of 40,000 registered teachers. Infrastructure Schools will receive a major infrastructure uplift, with more than $1 billion allocated to maintenance, upgrades and new buildings. This includes $295 million for the expansion of performing arts and sports facilities at 31 schools across the state, $217 million to install modular classrooms in fast‑growing areas, and $104 million to acquire land for future schools in growth corridors such as Wyndham, Hume and Greater Geelong. A further $420 million will build four new schools and campuses and expand several existing ones, while planning begins for three more. Examinations and curriculum To restore confidence in senior secondary assessments, the government will invest $222 million to rebuild the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (VCAA) and implement the recommendations of the Blacher Review , following a series of high-profile examination blunders. The funding will stabilise the VCAA’s budget and overhaul its technology systems to prevent future disruptions. “Victorian students deserve a world‑class education, and this investment makes sure the VCAA can deliver it,” Deputy Premier and Education Minister Ben Carroll said. “The [Blacher] review left no stone unturned in identifying what went wrong with the exams – and we're fixing them. “A stronger, more accountable VCAA means students, families and schools can have full confidence in VCE exams.” Premier Jacinta Allan and Minister for Education Ben Carroll. Picture: NCA Newswire/Alison Wynd. Workforce support Teachers and school leaders will benefit from a renewed focus on professional development and workforce stability. The Victorian Academy of Teaching and Leadership will receive $49 million to expand its programs, while $21 million will fund paid placements and support for pre‑service teachers in regional, rural and specialist schools. Additional funding will support best‑practice teaching and learning, including the rollout of the Year 1 Phonics Check and reforms aimed at reducing teacher workload. Disability support The Budget delivers more than $2.2 billion to support students living with a disability, labelled by the government as “the biggest reforms to disability support in public schools in the state’s history.” The investment will help schools improve accessibility, employ additional specialist staff and expand individualised support for students with complex needs. Every public school in Victoria now receives Disability Inclusion funding, with the government reporting strong improvements in inclusion since the program began. Premier Jacinta Allan said the investment will ensure “every student gets the very best education, whatever their additional needs are.” “It means children with disability can access care close to home at no cost, so families can focus on what matters,” she said. The budget also funds free, safe transport to specialist schools and free High‑Intensity Outside School Hours Care at 31 specialist schools, easing pressure on families. Early childhood expansion Early childhood education received a significant boost, with the rollout of government‑run Early Learning Victoria centres in communities where demand for childcare outweighs supply. Nearly half a billion dollars will go towards new and expanded kindergartens and childcare centres, including 22 new centres to be built on or near school sites to ease the strain of the “double drop‑off” for families. Child safety reforms are being strengthened through a $26 million investment in the new Victorian Early Childhood Regulatory Authority, which will see compliance checks more than double across the sector. Free TAFE and vocational learning The Budget strengthens the state’s skills pipeline with over $459 million going to training, including continued support for Free TAFE, now protected under the Free TAFE Guarantee. Funding will support new TAFE Centres of Excellence, upgraded facilities and equipment, and wrap‑around services for students. “Free TAFE has already saved Victorians millions – we’re protecting it and building on it,” Skills and TAFE Minister Colin Brooks said. A further $137 million will expand vocational learning in schools, including support for the VCE Vocational Major, school‑based apprenticeships and programs connecting early school leavers with training or employment. Australian Education Union (AEU) Victoria President Justin Mullaly. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Josie Hayden. The Australian Education Union (AEU) Victorian Branch welcomed investment in key areas but said the budget still fails to fully fund public schools and TAFEs. “It is completely unacceptable that our TAFEs are not funded to cover the cost of delivering courses,” president Justin Mullaly said. “This government says the budget is in surplus and the economy is strong and growing. If this is the case, how can it be that Victorian public education is at the bottom of the pile? “It is Victoria’s public school and TAFE workforces who step into the breach and make up the shortfall through hours of unpaid work every week.” Meanwhile the student voice is being overlooked, according to Victorian Student Representative Council (VicSRC) chief Julia Baron. “We’re seeing funding for buildings and systems, and targeted investment areas like literacy and numeracy, but less emphasis on the broader support, resources and conditions that shape how students learn,” she said. She said defunding the Teach the Teacher program meant that students have fewer ways to work in partnership with teachers. The innovative program included structured, data-informed feedback from students to teachers, and was internationally recognised. “Without that kind of model, student voice becomes less consistent across schools and more dependent on individual opportunities,” Ms Baron said. “Students need more than buildings, they need support, resources and a genuine role in shaping their learning.” VicSRC praised the extra funding in the budget for areas such as disability support. “Investment in disability support is critical to creating a more inclusive education system, and it’s important to see this recognised,” Ms Baron said.
7 May 2026
State bans disgraced author’s books
Best-selling Australian author Craig Silvey’s works will be permanently removed from West Australian public schools following his guilty plea to child exploitation offences. Mr Silvey, best known for acclaimed novel Jasper Jones , had already seen his books temporarily pulled from shelves and classrooms after he was charged earlier this year. The book has sold over a million copies worldwide. That interim move will now become permanent across the state’s public education system. The 43-year-old Fremantle writer and father of three was charged by WA Police’s child abuse squad following a January raid on his home. His case attracted international attention, with bookstores nationwide swiftly removing his titles from sale, including Jasper Jones and other works such as Runt , Honeybee and Rhubarb . Mr Silvey pleaded guilty on Tuesday to two charges relating to child exploitation material: one of possession and the other of distribution. Another charge of possession and one of producing child exploitation material were dropped. West Australian Education Minister Sabine Winton confirmed the decision to lock in the ban, saying schools would be supported to transition to alternative texts. “There is absolutely no place in our school system for works authored by someone who has admitted to such serious crimes,” Ms Winton said in a statement. “Now that he has pleaded guilty, those texts will not return to the curriculum. “Predatory behaviour against children is abhorrent and has no place in our community, let alone in materials studied by students in our schools.” Ms Winton said students already studying Mr Silvey’s work would not be penalised in ATAR assessments, while schools would be assisted in adjusting lesson plans and replacing texts. Mr Silvey’s novels have long been widely taught and read in Australian schools, as they often explore themes including racism, identity, sexuality and abuse through teenage perspectives. Jasper Jones was also adapted into a feature film, while his broader body of work has garnered literary awards and strong commercial success.
7 May 2026
School mental health checks should be regular
Students’ mental health is one of the biggest challenges facing schools. In Australia, half of all adult mental health challenges emerge before the age of 14 . It is also estimated that more than 50 per cent of children experiencing mental health challenges are not receiving professional help. Schools are increasingly being asked to help identify students who may be struggling and to help identify them early. One way schools do this is through mental health screening . Students complete a questionnaire, and those whose score particular results may be flagged for follow-up. When screening is used, it is often conducted at a single point in time. But when it comes to mental health, we know it’s important to notice patterns or changes over time. Does this means schools are making decisions about support for students based on unreliable snapshots? Our research To explore this, our new study tracked students’ emotional experiences over time. We asked 767 students aged 11-15 years old from schools in Australia and the UK, to complete a very brief check-in, repeatedly across six to seven weeks. Each check-in took around one to two minutes and used a brief, structured measure of emotional wellbeing . For example, students rated how much they had been feeling emotions such as happiness, calmness, worry or sadness. Students also reported on related aspects of their day-to-day functioning, such as sleep, concentration, exercise, and quality of relationships. Together, this allowed us to track changes in both emotional experience and everyday functioning over time, rather than relying on a single snapshot. There is often concern that mental health screening might feel burdensome or intrusive , particularly in school settings. So we also asked students about their experience of this process. What we found What we found challenges some common assumptions. First, students’ scores were not as stable as single screenings assume. In our study, 17 per cent of students moved above and below the low wellbeing threshold during the monitoring period. This means a single-time-point assessment could easily get the wrong impression about how they are really doing, depending on whether it captured a “better” or “worse” point in time. So a student who happens to have a “good day” during a one-off screening might be missed entirely. Conversely, a student having a particularly bad day might be flagged when they would not typically require support. In both cases, decisions are being made on incomplete information. What happens over time? Second, looking at patterns over time provided a clearer and more reliable indication of student’s mental health. Repeated observations made it easier to distinguish between temporary fluctuations and more persistent difficulties. This is exactly the kind of distinction that matters when deciding who may need additional support. In our research, when focusing on a single time point, about 12 per cent of students scored below a threshold and would be flagged for follow-up. This is broadly consistent with other recent school-based screening research , which has identified around 10–20 per cent of students as at risk and needing follow up at a given time point. However, when we instead looked at students who were consistently below this threshold over time, that figure dropped to around five per cent. What do students think? As with any self-report measure, responses depend on students answering honestly. While some students may under-report or over-report their experiences, brief and repeated check-ins may help reduce the impact of any single biased response by focusing on patterns over time rather than one-off answers. Students in our study were also generally receptive to regular check-ins. More than half reported the regular check-ins helped them better understand how they were feeling. Rather than being seen as an added burden, the process appeared to allow some students to think about how they were feeling. This kind of regular reflection may support emotional awareness . Research shows emotional awareness is is an important part of maintaining wellbeing. What now? Our research suggests brief, repeated check-ins can provide a more accurate basis for decision-making around students’ mental health. It also suggests we could potentially reduce the number of students flagged for further support. This finding is especially important when schools say they often do not begin mental health screening because they don’t have enough resources to provide any follow-up required. Checks-ins do not need to be expensive or labour-intensive. They can be done via a short survey on phones or tablets. More broadly, we need to shift how we think about emotional wellbeing in schools. Mental health is not static. It changes over time. Our methods for assessing it should reflect that. Shane Rogers , Senior Lecturer in Psychology, Edith Cowan University This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article .
7 May 2026
School Improvement Episode 68: A people-focused professional learning program
©Monkey Business Images/Shutterstock
6 May 2026
Australia news live: BHP loses Brazil dam collapse case; man charged with hate speech over NSW parliament rally
Mining company cannot appeal against liability for 2015 dam collapse in Brazil. Follow today’s news live Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Good morning and welcome to our live news blog. I’m Martin Farrer with the top overnight stories and then it will be Nick Visser with the main action. A man has been charged by police in New South Wales with an alleged hate speech offence in relation to a protest by a neo-Nazi group outside NSW parliament in November last year. More coming. Continue reading...
6 May 2026
IELS 2025: Thriving at 5 – early childhood learning and development
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6 May 2026
Breaking down barriers to uni
Following the Minister for Education’s call to give more Australians the chance for ‘a crack’ at tertiary education, the Albanese government has launched a guide for universities to establish Fee-Free Uni Ready (FFUR) courses. The courses are designed to be a pathway into higher education for cohorts who are traditionally underrepresented at universities, including those from regional areas, First Nations people, people with disability, and educationally disadvantaged students. The University Accord attainment target goal of 80 per cent of the workforce to have a tertiary qualification by 2050 led to its recommendation for a major increase in funding for short courses that help prepare people for university, acting as a bridge between school and university. “These free bridging courses are part of that [recommendation]. They give you the skills you need to succeed when you get to university,” Education Minister Jason Clare said. Developed by the University of Newcastle with $1.5 million in Commonwealth funding, Fee Free Uni Ready Pathways combines evidence-based ideas with best practice to help universities design new FFUR courses or improve their offerings. “At the University of Newcastle, one in five students do one of these bridging courses first. I want to see this happen in more places. This Best Practice Guide will help more universities do this,” Minister Clare said. “This is all about breaking down that invisible barrier that stops a lot of people getting to uni.” Last year the government invested $173 million into the program, with 36 providers receiving funding, and 25,000 students undertaking courses. This year a further 25,000 are expected to attend. By 2030, this is expected to reach 30,000, representing a 40 per cent increase from 2023. By 2040, the numbers are expected to be double 2023 levels. “We're incredibly proud of our sector-leading pathway programs, which have supported more than 70,000 students from diverse backgrounds to access higher education over more than 50 years,” University of Newcastle vice-chancellor Professor Alex Zelinsky said. “People from all walks of life can succeed at university when the right settings are in place. Sharing what we've learnt, and contributing to a national approach that expands opportunity, is an important part of that work.” The Best Practice Guide website is now available at feefreeuniready.edu.au
6 May 2026
Universities urged to value local publishing
Australian universities pay millions to commercial academic publishers each year. This is one of the main ways academics publish their research and have it recognised by their peers. The money covers staff and students’ access to journals. It also ensures members of the public can read much of the research produced at those universities without a paywall. Meanwhile, another model operates with far less recognition. It’s known as “diamond open access”, and it doesn’t involve any fees. One of several models in the scholarly publishing sector, it’s arguably the most equitable one. Under diamond access, many Australian journals are already free for both readers and authors, yet they survive largely on unpaid academic labour. These journals also receive little formal support from the institutions whose names they often carry. Our research on open access publishing shows there are several things Australia can do to better support this valuable resource. As university budgets tighten and national bodies push for fairer open access strategies , Australia has an opportunity to support its homegrown journals. Green, gold, diamond “Open access” publishing is exactly what it sounds like. When research is published under open access, anyone can read it online without paying a subscription fee. But there are different types . Green open access is the do-it-yourself option, where an author uploads a version of their paper to a free university library repository . Many publishers allow for this as long as certain conditions are met – such as waiting out an embargo period. Gold open access journals make articles free to read, but usually charge a fee to publish. These fees can cost thousands of dollars per article. Australian universities usually cover these costs through “ read and publish ” agreements with publishers. These agreements combine the cost of reading journals with the fees required to publish research openly. Diamond open access journals charge neither readers nor authors. They have no subscription fees and no publishing fees. These journals are typically run by universities, learned societies, or academic communities. They often rely on volunteer work by academics, institutional support, and small grants. Diamond journals essentially operate as a public good rather than a commercial product. The state of diamond access in Australia We spent several years studying Australian academic journals. We surveyed editors, interviewed them, and analysed how the research in their journals is used. A significant share of the 650 Australian journals we identified – about a third – are already diamond open access. Many are in the humanities and social sciences, and cover topics that matter to Australian policy and public life, such as Indigenous topics and Australian legal studies. We also found Australian journals are substantially more likely to be cited in Australian government policy documents than equivalent articles in international journals. Importantly, these journals survive largely on volunteer labour. In our survey of 139 editors , 45 per cent reported receiving no compensation for their work. Interviews with 27 editors revealed a picture of dedicated academics who fit journal work around everything else. They often do so in their own time, sometimes in retirement. Meanwhile, several editors told us their institutions had removed workload recognition for editorial roles entirely. This means the university no longer counts this work a part of their official job duties. One editor was told the university didn’t “recognise that as a role at all”. When the people running these journals eventually step away, many can’t find successors. Our findings show that read and publish arrangements are valuable, and have increased the level of open access to Australian research. However, they don’t address the lack of investment in and recognition of homegrown journals. Beyond financial support, the way Australian universities measure research success disadvantages these journals. Researchers are often pressured to publish in high-ranked international journals over local ones. What other countries are doing Australia is not alone in lacking support for local journals. But we can learn from other countries that are treating scholarly publishing as essential public infrastructure. Canada has a national funding model where government programs provide direct support to diamond journals. These programs require the journals to adopt recognised quality standards such as rigorous peer review and transparency in exchange for funding. Norway recently expanded its national funding for Norwegian-language journals to cover all disciplines. In the United States , a Gates Foundation-funded project is currently mapping the national landscape of diamond journals to identify what support they need. These aren’t isolated cases. In the United Kingdom, the community-led Open Journal Collective brings together university presses to share technical and legal support. It allows them to move away from profit-driven publishing and keep research free for everyone. From this initiative to longstanding, state-supported networks across Latin America and France, the premise is the same: diamond publishing is infrastructure , and infrastructure requires investment. What needs to change in Australia A few things would make a meaningful difference in Australia. First, universities should recognise the important work of editors within their workload models rather than relying on individual goodwill. Second, funding bodies, including the Australian Research Council, could introduce direct support for diamond journals, just like some other countries have done. Third, our research assessment policies must stop marginalising local journals by favouring international prestige over impact on local policy and life. Finally, university libraries, as some have already suggested , could coordinate their efforts, perhaps through the Council of Australasian University Librarians, to provide more effective and efficient support for diamond journals. None of this requires abandoning existing arrangements. It requires recognising what we already have and deciding whether it’s worth keeping and supporting. A journal that takes 20 years to build can close in a single year. Several already have . Hamid R. Jamali , Professor, School of Information and Communication Studies, Charles Sturt University ; Edward Luca , Course Director and Senior Lecturer, Information Studies, Charles Sturt University , and Simon Wakeling , Lecturer, School of Information Studies, Charles Sturt University This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article .
6 May 2026
$50,000 arts degrees look set to stay
For five years, many Australian university students have been watching the amount they have to pay for their studies with alarm and despair . In response, the Senate is considering a Greens bill to slash high university student contributions for arts, law and business students. The bill proposes to reverse student contribution increases imposed in 2021 by the “ Job-ready Graduates ” policy. This includes doubling the cost of arts degrees – which now cost more than A$50,000 as a result . Despite the unpopularity of the Job-ready Graduates scheme in the community, the bill is unlikely to pass the Senate. Only the federal government can fix the problems created by Job-ready Graduates. And in the lead up to the next federal budget on May 12, it shows no interest in doing that. Job-ready Graduates The Job-ready Graduates policy cut student contributions in teaching, nursing, engineering and IT courses. It did so to encourage students to enrol in these degrees, which were deemed “job-ready” by the Morrison government. At the same time, Job-ready Graduates increased student contributions in arts courses, where many graduates take time to find suitable work . Student contributions also went up for business and law courses, despite their above-average graduate employment rates . Three year bachelor degrees in all these fields now cost more than $50,000. Under the new Senate bill , proposed by Greens Senator Mehreen Faruqi, the annual student contribution for arts courses would reduce from $17,399 to $8,164. For business and law, the price would drop from $17,399 to $13,624. These are the pre-Job-ready Graduate scheme rates adjusted for inflation. The flaw in the legislation At a Senate inquiry into the bill this week, most witnesses – which included university leaders, union representatives and researchers such as myself – favoured student contribution reform. But they were less supportive of the Greens bill as the way to improve matters. The reason is the bill would cut student contributions without offsetting increases in public subsidies. The total annual funding rate received by universities per full-time arts student – the student contribution plus the public subsidy via the government – would drop from $18,715 to $9,480. This would effectively halve universities’ revenue from arts students. Law and business funding would drop by 20 per cent. So, many courses currently on offer would not be viable on these reduced funding rates. This policy flaw reflects the Australian Constitution’s constraints rather than the Greens policy. Under the constitution, the Senate cannot “appropriate” money , such as authorising the use of public funds for higher subsidies to universities. The government’s resistance to change Labor opposed Job-ready Graduates when it was in opposition, but in government it has delayed taking concrete action to reverse it. In February 2024 , the Universities Accord recommended “urgent” change to student contributions. In November 2024, Education Minister Jason Clare said the new Australian Tertiary Education Commission (ATEC) would examine student contributions . But legislation passed in March 2026 to formally establish ATEC, did not mention student contributions . Minister Clare has implied cost is the main reason for avoiding student contribution reforms so far. As he told the ABC’s Four Corners program in March: “ I’ve said [the Job-ready Graduates scheme has] failed. I’ve also said it’s expensive to fix and not easy to fix. ” The Innovative Research Universities group (which includes Flinders, Griffith and James Cook universities among others) estimates a full reversal of Job-ready Graduates would cost the government $1.9 billion a year . A possible workaround While the new Australian Tertiary Education Commission cannot directly advise on student contributions (what students pay to go to uni) it can examine the total funding per individual university student. ATEC can also advise on the Commonwealth’s contribution to student funding. The total funding rate minus the Commonwealth contribution equals the student contribution. ATEC can therefore indirectly suggest student contributions. Omitting student contributions from ATEC’s legislation may be a government own goal. It could end up with implied new student contributions that can be calculated with simple maths, but without the political protection of justifications provided by expert ATEC advice. ‘One bite at a time’ In explaining his approach to higher education reform, Minister Clare sometimes uses the proverb of “eating an elephant” – something that is only possible one bite a time. The imagery is off-putting, but the government has implemented other higher education priorities, including a 20 per cent cut in student debt last year. Perhaps there will be a first move on student contributions in next months’s budget, but no hints have been dropped so far. Having already suffered the political cost for resisting reform on student fees, the government may want to keep the budget benefits. What could work instead? My own submission to the current Senate inquiry proposed an incremental approach to reform. Urgent action should be taken on student contributions for arts degrees, as current levels condemn many arts graduates to decades of repayments which may never clear all their debt. Other student contribution decreases, for degrees with better repayment prospects, can be postponed. To limit cost to government, I suggest increased student contributions for engineering and IT courses, which received discounts under Job-ready Graduates. Graduates from these fields have relatively high incomes . The Universities Accord recommended student contributions based on expected lifetime incomes. If this principle is eventually adopted, these interim changes would move in this direction. There is no perfect student contribution system. But we can do much better than now in balancing fairness to students, university funding, and constraints on Commonwealth funding. Andrew Norton , Professor of Higher Education Policy, Monash University This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article .
6 May 2026
Australia news live: banks pass on interest rate hike to customers; Sydney ‘globalise the intifada’ forum held in park
Lenders increase borrowing rates by 0.25%; pro-Palestine meeting barred from council venue goes ahead outside in Darlington. Follow updates live Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Next week’s federal budget will fund a dedicated national centre to detect and disrupt the evolving threat of online violent extremism and terrorism. The home affairs minister, Tony Burke , will announce the $74m in funding over two years for the project on Wednesday. It is part of the government’s response to the Bondi terror attack in December. A bolstered online threat capability will give AFP and Asio the resources they need to target terrorists and violent extremists online. Just because I, and other people, might find it personally offensive does not mean that governments have unlimited power to constitutionally strike down the right of everybody else to freedom of political communication. Continue reading...
5 May 2026
Australia news live: four Australians among passengers on luxury cruise ship hit by deadly suspected hantavirus outbreak
MV Hondius remains off the coast of Cape Verde after a suspected respiratory virus outbreak killed three people and left three more seriously ill. Follow today’s news live Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Good morning and welcome to our live news blog. I’m Martin Farrer with the top overnight stories and then it will be Stephanie Convery with the main action. Mortgage holders are set to be hundreds of dollars worse off per month than they were at the start of the year as the Reserve Bank prepares to unload a third consecutive interest rate hike on borrowers. More coming up. Continue reading...
4 May 2026
One in four humanities students in Australia to take more than 25 years to pay off student loans, treasury finds
Job ready graduates program will also leave almost two-thirds of humanities and creative arts students with debts exceeding $50,000 Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast One in four humanities students will take more than 25 years to fully repay their student loans because of Morrison government changes to university fees, newly public Treasury modelling reveals. The job ready graduates program, introduced in 2021 under the former prime minister Scott Morrison, will also leave almost two-thirds of humanities and creative arts students saddled with debts exceeding $50,000. Continue reading...
4 May 2026
UNSW’s AI companions for student wellbeing
University of NSW (UNSW) researchers have developed new digital AI companions designed to support students experiencing loneliness, isolation and mental-health challenges. Loneliness is increasingly recognised as a significant health risk, affecting physical and mental wellbeing, quality of life and even life expectancy. For students, particularly international students, loneliness can undermine academic performance, social integration and overall university experience. The prototype companions, Tom and Mia, were created by a multidisciplinary team led by Scientia Professor Jill Bennett, director of the Big Anxiety Research Centre (BARC). The digital characters appear on screens, speak in both English and Mandarin, and are designed to offer conversational support that helps students regulate difficult emotions and feel less alone. Tom and Mia were developed with direct input from Chinese international students in UNSW Arts, Design and Architecture’s Work Integrated Learning and master’s programs. Students shared how language barriers, cultural adjustment and limited support networks can intensify feelings of isolation. “Our characters are co-designed by the communities who use them – by people who live with the challenges that we want to design our AI companion to address,” Professor Bennett said. “This makes a significant difference in creating relatable AI companions that people want to interact with.” More on this story: Service fined $500k for helping students cheat | Tech leaders on how AI can help students | Sector gets first AI pro vice-chancellor The project builds on the fEEL ARC Laureate Lab’s long-running work creating digital companions for people in aged care who are living with dementia and other neurodegenerative conditions. The team uses screen-based delivery, including TVs and mobile devices, to make the technology accessible to users who may not be comfortable with traditional chatbots. AI support, not AI therapy Professor Bennett emphasises that the companions are not intended to replace professional mental health services. “The AI companions don’t replace a professional therapist,” she said. “But if you’re feeling down and depressed, our goal is for them to be able to have a relatively skilled conversation, the kind you might have with a friend, attuned to your situation. “It’s about having access to something that can provide useful support in the short term.” The companions are designed to offer gentle challenge, not passive agreement, a key distinction from many commercial AI tools. “We know it’s not good for someone’s mental health to just agree with everything you say,” Prof. Bennett said. “You need some resistance to gently challenge people.” ‘Viv’ (above) is the fEEL ARC Laureate Lab's AI companion for people living with dementia. Picture: Supplied/UNSW. “Our view is that AI is here and we need to engage, but we are not AI crusaders.” The team works closely with clinicians and AI specialists across UNSW to ensure the companions’ responses remain safe, appropriate and aligned with psychosocial best practice. “When people say they’re lonely, we look at what type of conversation they want to have, so it’s not a blanket prescription,” Professor Bennett said. A different kind of AI Unlike typical chatbots, Tom and Mia are designed to feel like skilled friends; patient, empathetic and available at any time. “It’s something AI companions can do very well,” Prof. Bennett said. “Unlike humans, they are obviously even-tempered; they are not going to get irritated or impatient.” Students can talk to the companions about a wide range of topics, from stress and sleep to music or coursework. The team is now working on making the companions’ voices more natural and human, recognising the calming effect of tone and cadence. “To have AI characters speak in a voice you like will be an important part of their development,” Professor Bennett said.
4 May 2026
Why unis are losing out on SEA students
For 20 years I've worked on digital marketing and university recruitment communications across South East Asia (SEA). For the last six years we ’ ve been running recruitment programmes focused on driving regional recruitment across multiple faculties and the same pattern keeps showing up in every market. The student does the research and builds the shortlist, but it is the parents who make the call about which university their children go to. Most Australian institutions know this, and most can cite the research. However, if you read their websites, the open-day decks, and the offer-stage emails, you would never guess it. Recruitment communications are still written with the 18-year-old applicant in mind, while the 48-year-old actually making the decision lands on the same website and finds nothing that answers her questions. This is why Australia is losing ground. The numbers tell a specific story Japan is targeting 400,000 international enrolments by 2027, while Korea is aiming for 300,000. Communications from both universities lead with proximity, safety and graduate employment, in that order. They have also tied study to work pathways in ways that give parents a return-on-investment story they can use to justify their decisions to themselves and extended family. South East Asia sent over 350,000 students abroad in 2022 according to an Acumen study, making it the third-largest source region globally. Historically, Australia has owned a large share of that flow, and that share is now slipping. Visa changes and the student cap debate have had a significant effect, but institutions that blame policy alone are missing another dimension – what has actually shifted in the decision process itself. For instance, Vietnamese parents rank living conditions and total cost ahead of curriculum or academic reputation. Their first question isn ’ t ‘ Is this a good university? ’ It ’ s ‘ Is this a safe, affordable place for my child to live, and will this investment pay off? ’ In other words, an Australian prospectus that opens with rankings is answering a question nobody is asking. What parents are actually evaluating In our work running regional recruitment for Singapore ’ s flagship university, three patterns show up every time we audit how SEA parents experience an institution ’ s communications. Safety stays surface-level Most institutional sites mention “ a safe campus ” once in a welcome paragraph and move on, but parents want specifics: after-hours transport, accommodation vetting, mental health support, incident reporting processes. Japan and Korea answer these in detail, and most Australian sites don ’ t. Graduate outcomes are buried Employment data exists on almost every institutional site, but it ’ s almost never on the pages a parent in Jakarta or Hanoi is actually visiting. It sits three clicks deep, framed as institutional reporting rather than parent-facing reassurance. A parent working out whether an A$80,000 investment will change her child ’ s trajectory needs to find this information in under a minute, and typically she doesn ’ t. Cost narratives are incomplete Parents are running a total-cost model in their heads that covers tuition, living, flights home and contingency, so institutions that lay this out clearly convert better. ‘ Scholarships available ’ isn ’ t a compelling cost narrative. Those that hide behind ‘ contact us for details ’ tend to lose the parent in the first session on the site. This is a communications problem Australian higher education has always been a strong product. Graduate outcomes hold up against the competitor set, support infrastructure is genuinely better than most regional alternatives, and course quality is rarely the reason a family chooses Osaka or Seoul over Melbourne or Sydney. The gap is in who the communications are written for and where they reach. A parent in Manila isn ’ t on TikTok watching campus reels. She ’ s in a Facebook parent group, or at her desk at night running the numbers, or in conversation with an education agent whose framing is shaping her perception more than any institutional marketing is. Most institutions still treat parents and students as one audience when they are in fact two very different ones, researching the same place but asking completely different questions, through different channels, at different times, and often in different languages. The conversation that converts When a student declines an offer without explanation, the instinct is to examine the offer itself or the competitor she chose. Rarely does anyone go back to examine what her parents found, or didn ’ t find, when they looked up the institution on their own. That work is diagnosable. We ’ ve put together The SEA Parent Decision Audit, a framework for checking how any current recruitment communications land for parents across Vietnam, Indonesia, the Philippines and Malaysia. It covers the 12 things most Australian institutional sites get wrong, and what shifts when they are fixed. The institutions that will hold SEA share over the next three years aren ’ t producing a separate parent brochure and calling it done. They ’ re rebuilding the recruitment journey around who is actually making the decision, and then instrumenting it to keep learning what ’ s working. Charanjit Singh is CEO of Construct Digital . He leads campaign strategy across the SEA region and has direct, hands-on experience with the recruitment challenges of universities.
4 May 2026
Podcast: A culture for change in AI era
In this episode Professor Lucy Marshall, deputy vice-chancellor (community and leadership) at the University of Sydney, joins Peter Chun, CEO of UniSuper, to explore the ways workplace culture, change management and staff wellbeing function in academic and commercial settings. They also discuss how the transformation and disruption facing the sector – the effects of the rapid emergence of AI, and changing market demands, for instance – effect those in leadership positions, and how stabilising workplace culture and caring for staff are a prerequisite to implementing change.
4 May 2026
Designing safe AI systems for education
‘Education is not only about acquiring knowledge; it is about learning how to interact with others…’ ©Hero Images Inc/Shutterstock
3 May 2026
Australia news live: housing market slows but rents surge; Penny Wong hails South Korea energy pact
Advertised prices for new rental listings rising at fastest pace since October 2024. Follow updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Thanks so much Martin for kicking us off this morning. I’m Stephanie Convery and I’ll be bringing you live news until mid-afternoon today. Australia has agreed to work together with South Korea to strengthen energy supply chain resilience and to maintain stable, safe and reliable supply of energy resources, including diesel and LNG, foreign minister Penny Wong has confirmed after talks in Seoul, Reuters reports. Continue reading...
30 Apr 2026
Infographic: School uniforms as a barrier to physical activity
Infographic Uniforms as a barrier to physical activity FINAL
30 Apr 2026
Teacher accused of running child abuse website
A Brisbane schoolteacher is facing allegations of managing an online child exploitation site and grooming a child. Jonathan Graham Klupp, 58, appeared in Brisbane Magistrates Court on Tuesday after police alleged they discovered his connection to a child abuse website and personal collection of child exploitation material. Police allege Mr Klupp assisted in running an online child abuse website between February 1 and April 13 of this year. The website allegedly distributed computer-generated images and videos of child abuse to users. Mr Klupp is accused of using an anonymising service in an attempt to conceal his identity in managing the website. It is further alleged Mr Klupp electronically distributed computer generated child exploitation material on seven occasions between February 24, 2026 and April 8, 2026 and possessed child exploitation material on his personal devices. The Brisbane teacher was initially arrested on nine charges on April 13 and granted bail; however, he was further charged on April 23 with grooming and soliciting child abuse material. He is alleged to have groomed a child between February 9 and March 22 of this year, with the intent to engage the child in a sexual act outside of Queensland. Mr Klupp is also accused of soliciting computer-generated child abuse images and videos on two days in February. Police claim the offending took place at a residential address in East Brisbane. Mr Klupp previously held senior positions at Brisbane private schools. Mr Klupp is charged with two counts of using a carriage service to solicit child abuse material, seven counts of using a carriage service to transmit make available, publish, distribute, advertise or promote child abuse material, and one count each of grooming – facilitate procurement of child to engage in a sexual act, administering a child exploitation material website – hidden network/ anonymising service, and possessing or controlling child abuse material obtained or accessed using a carriage service. He has not entered any pleas. Mr Klupp was released on bail with conditions he not attend any playground, school or place designated for children or contact any person under the age of 16 or whom appears under the age of 16. He was also barred from using the internet for any purpose outside of banking, medical and government requirements and forced to surrender his electronic devices. He is due to appear back in Brisbane Magistrates Court on May 15, 2026.
30 Apr 2026
60% of LGBTIQA+ students not safe
For many young people in Western Australia, school is meant to be a place for learning, friendships, and growth. But for many LGBTIQA+ students, it is also a place where they are constantly thinking about safety, how they dress, who they talk to, what they say, and whether being themselves might make them a target. This year for the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia (IDAHOBIT) on May 17, the WA Youth Pride Network (YPN) is centring a simple message: “I Just Want to Feel Safe.” It comes directly from the voices of LGBTIQA+ young people who are telling us that, despite progress in some areas, daily life still involves harassment, exclusion, and fear. These experiences are not rare or isolated. In Western Australia, nearly 60 per cent of LGBTIQA+ students report they do not feel safe or comfortable at school, and fewer than four in 10 feel safe enough to be out. For trans and gender diverse students, the reality is even more stark, with almost half regularly missing school because they feel unsafe. Behind these numbers are everyday experiences that shape how young people move through the world. Students describe hearing homophobic and transphobic language in classrooms and corridors, being bullied, or feeling unable to be open about who they are. For some, this means not participating fully in school life at all. Even small things, such as using their name, wearing a uniform that reflects who they are, or sitting with friends, can become sources of stress or risk. As one young person shared, “School didn’t feel like a safe place to be myself, it felt like something I had to get through.” Another explained, “When things happened, teachers either didn’t see it or didn’t know what to do. Reporting it didn’t really change anything.” This reality sits alongside a wider misunderstanding that things have improved enough already. While visibility and acceptance have got better in some spaces, the lived experience of many young people shows that safety is still not guaranteed. Many say they are constantly assessing their surroundings just to get through the school day. Outside of school, the same pattern continues. LGBTIQA+ young people describe being harassed in public spaces, online, and even in community settings that are meant to be welcoming. For some, online abuse does not stay online. It escalates into real world intimidation and targeted harassment. This has a serious impact. When young people do not feel safe, it affects their mental health, their ability to learn, and their sense of belonging. It can lead to isolation, anxiety, and disengagement from school and community life. It also sends a message that they have to choose between being themselves and being safe, a choice no young person should ever have to make. This is why the 2026 IDAHOBIT campaign is not only about awareness, but about change. Young people are calling for stronger protections under the law: Reform of the Equal Opportunity Act in WA Stronger anti vilification protections A ban on conversion practices Clearer systems that actually protect students when harm occurs. These are not abstract policy ideas. They are responses to real experiences happening in schools right now. When students report discrimination, when harmful language is ignored, or when there is no clear pathway to respond, it sends a message that their safety is not a priority. Young people are not asking for special treatment. They are asking for the same thing every student deserves, to feel safe at school, to learn without fear, and to be treated with respect. As part of this campaign, YPN is supporting youth-led storytelling, a statewide letter-writing initiative, and direct engagement with decision makers. The goal is simple but urgent, to make sure lived experience is not only heard, but acted on. IDAHOBIT is a reminder that homophobia, biphobia, and transphobia still exist, and that silence allows harm to continue. But it is also a reminder that change is possible when young people are listened to and taken seriously. At its core, this campaign is not complicated. It is about safety. It is about schools where young people do not have to hide who they are. It is about communities where differences are not punished. And it is about making sure that every LGBTIQA+ young person in Western Australia can say, without hesitation, “I feel safe here.” Chloe Clements is the manager of Youth Pride Network , a WA advocacy group of young LGBTIQA+ people. Find out more about its I Just Want to Feel Safe campaign here .
30 Apr 2026
Do multi-school organisations work?
Pupil outcomes in Tasmania are the worst of any Australian state bar the Northern Territory. To counter this, Tasmania has launched a trial of multi-school organisations (MSOs) across three primary schools in Hobart. This involves running groups of schools, led by one executive team, modelled on an approach developed in England, called multi-academy trusts (MATs). That's where a single organisation assumes responsibility for running multiple schools and securing pupil outcomes. Taking inspiration from England, Tasmania’s Department for Education, Children and Young People reports the model is internationally proven despite there being no proof that the English approach is any more effective . It seems Tasmanian decision makers believe the hyperbole and have all too willingly engaged with confirmation bias. They are engaging with an inaccurate but popular refrain that aligns with their lofty aspirations to be nation leaders . When Tasmanian representatives travelled to England to speak with leaders of some very high profile multi-academy trusts (MATs) - organisations whose survival depends on growing their offering as evidence of their success - the narrative has repeatedly been positioned as transformative. Why was this structure chosen? How successive English governments arrived at the decision to adopt and impose the structure of multi-academy trusts (MATs) on all publicly-funded schools, however, is dubious. By torpedoing the funding for England’s previous structure, namely local authorities, successive English governments paved the way for a model that was given every chance to financially succeed. Under the guise that schools would manage their own affairs, its subsequent iteration was a school grouping model, the multi-academy trust. While the requirement for schools to be part of a MAT was initially dependent on pupil outcomes, successive political parties have pursued a preferential discourse, whereby all schools must join one despite long-standing objections from educators. Tasmanian educators and unions are now waging a similar fight against MSOs. But progress since January 2026 suggests that what started out as a pilot in Tasmania was most definitely not, with all schools now being required to work in groups. Deliberately opaque practices Tasmanian MSOs are reportedly providing opportunities for schools to pool resources, centralise administrative functions and align practices related to the curriculum and teaching . While sounding like an attractive prospect from a teacher workload and management point of view, England’s approach should provide some genuine glimmers into Tasmania’s future if it follows this course, with consistency and sameness across schools, to include curricula, considered to be hallmarks of effective practice While Tasmania maintains that its schools will retain their identities and autonomy, my PhD into the prescriptive and deliberately opaque practices of England’s MATs told a very different story. Relying on the insights of teachers working within these structures, there was a reported lack (by those who lead MATs) of regard for the diverse communities in which schools operated. Instead MATs involved mandated one-size-fits-all-curricula and prescribed classroom pedagogies. Indicating that all of this diminished the need for teacher expertise, contribution and/or consultation, teachers spoke of the ways in which children’s interests and life experiences were irrelevant in pursuit of school data, wider organisational outcomes and ultimate survival. Pockets of excellent practice Finding what I considered to be pockets of excellent practice, I examined MATs that appeared to adopt a contrary way of working. These MATs understood the importance of school heterogeneity and teacher expertise, with a genuine appreciation of the communities in which schools worked, irrespective of proximity. Flying beneath the radar, these MATs didn’t feel compelled to raise their profile, steal the limelight and wax lyrical about their supposed effectiveness, but they’re the ones that Tasmania should have been seeking out. Sadly, when the noise compels you to follow the echo, an unvarnished view is never likely to be sought. Swept up by the hyperbole and economic efficiencies yielded by funding agreements that focus on high level accountabilities, Tasmanian decision makers only ever wanted to hear one version of events, selecting high profile English MATs to inform their narrative. One can only hope that the rest of Australia seeks to challenge the on-brand commentary, and that none of us, irrespective of where we live, lose sight of what should always matter most in education, namely pupils. Stephanie Flower grew up in Tasmania, initially studying a BA (Hons) degree at the University of Tasmania. She has lived in England since 1996, where she trained as a teacher and worked for three different multi-academy trusts (MATs). She now works as a senior lecturer in education at Oxford Brookes University. Her PhD, completed in 2025, shed a much-needed spotlight on some of the deliberately opaque practices of England’s multi-academy trusts and what could be learnt from those working at the heart of the system, namely teachers. You can find her on LinkedIn . This article was originally published on EduResearch Matters . Read the original article .
30 Apr 2026
Student’s alleged jailing in China over Australian pro-democracy protests sparks calls for inquiry
Human rights commissioner says alleged jailing highlights the ‘growing risks of transnational repression’ in Australia Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Australia’s human rights commissioner has said the Chinese student who was allegedly jailed for six years by Chinese authorities for joining protests in Sydney underscores the “very real and growing risks of transnational repression affecting people in Australia – including international students”. Commissioner Lorraine Finlay told Guardian Australia that while she couldn’t comment on the circumstances of individual cases, “no one should fear punishment abroad for exercising their lawful rights to free expression and peaceful protest here”. Continue reading...
29 Apr 2026
Teacher Staffroom Episode 75: Drawing on expertise in education
We work with experts across all areas of education who share their insights with Teacher readers. ©PureSolution/Shutterstock
29 Apr 2026
Australia news live: Penny Wong wins jet fuel pledge from China in Beijing visit; US lawmaker says Aukus price might go up
Foreign affairs minister says China has agreed to facilitate exports of jet fuel to ease supply disruptions. Follow today’s news live Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Australia’s foreign minister Penny Wong says China has agreed to work to facilitate exports of jet fuel, in an attempt to ease supply disruptions caused by the war in the Middle East, AFP reports. China, a major exporter of jet fuel and diesel to Australia and other countries, has avoided the worst of the war’s energy impacts thanks to its vast oil stocks, but paused exports at the start of the war to protect its domestic supplies. Continue reading...
29 Apr 2026
New VC for University of Melbourne
After an extensive search, the University of Melbourne has announced the appointment of Professor Carolyn Evans as its new vice-chancellor. Professor Evans is currently the VC of Griffith University, which she has led since 2019, and is an internationally recognised expert in the areas of law and religious freedom. She is also the chair of Universities Australia (UA), a position she will maintain until the end of next year. In her time at UA she has been a vocal critic of the Job-Ready Graduates scheme. “In the short term, I would encourage the government to deal with the worst excesses for current students by eliminating the highest level of student contribution and replacing it with the second highest tier,” Professor Evans said in her National Press Club address last year. “That would theoretically cost $770 million a year, it would be a burden shifted back on to the taxpayer, but off the back of students, and there couldn’t be a time when students more critically need it.” Melbourne University Chancellor Jane Hansen congratulated Professor Evans on her new role, emphasising the wealth and breadth of experience she has across the sector. “Professor Evans brings with her a deep understanding of the matters facing higher education institutions and a firm belief that universities are powerful forces for good in our society,” Ms Hansen said. “She holds a deep conviction in universities’ ability to change the lives of individuals, contribute to the wellbeing of our country and the future of our world. “Since 2019, Professor Evans has led Griffith University with clarity and purpose, becoming its first female vice-chancellor, and we are pleased to welcome Professor Evans back to the University of Melbourne as our next vice-chancellor.” Professor Evans started her studies at the University of Melbourne, completing her Bachelor or Arts and Bachelor of Laws with honours, before going on to do her doctorate at Oxford. She later returned to the university, where she held a number of roles, including dean of the law school from 2011 to 2017. “My own life was changed profoundly for the better because of the outstanding education I received at Melbourne as an undergraduate and the opportunities I was given as a staff member,” Professor Evans said. “I am committed to ensuring that Melbourne continues to be a global leader in the higher education sector, while demonstrating its value to the nation and to the communities it serves.”
29 Apr 2026
Calls for inquest into int’l student’s death
The NSW Attorney-General is facing calls to initiate a coronial inquest into the death of an international student rough sleeper whose body went undiscovered for six days in one of Sydney’s busiest thoroughfares. Nepali national Bikram Lama, 32, was found dead in bushes near St James station at Hyde Park, in December last year. It was estimated about 100,000 people walked past his body each day before it was found by staff. Mr Lama had been in Australia to study computer science, but he fell on hard times and was unable to access support services because he was not a permanent resident, the Guardian reported. His death has reignited concerns about the number of rough sleepers who cannot access support services because they are nonresidents. The City of Sydney identified 346 people were sleeping rough in Sydney’s CBD last year, a 24 per cent increase from the previous year. About 18 per cent of those were not Australian residents. Independent MP Alex Greenwich has written to the Attorney-General to initiate a coronial inquest into Mr Lama’s death to understand if policy failures led to his demise. In his letter Mr Greenwich said it was unclear why Mr Lama started to sleep rough or what could have prevented him from becoming homeless. “We know that people on temporary visas do not get access to the health and welfare support that can help other people who are homeless get back on their feet,” he said. “A State Coronial inquest into Bikram’s death that also considers policy failures, the role of universities in the welfare of foreign students, service gaps, and impediments to access to healthcare and support for non-resident people experiencing homelessness would help us understand how the system let Bikram and other homeless people down and what we can do better.” A NSW Attorney-General spokesman said the coroner is waiting for a brief of evidence from police. “Once that is received, the court will review the matter and determine whether it will proceed to inquest as per usual processes,” a spokesman said. Homelessness NSW has backed the call for an inquest into Mr Lama’s death, saying the gaps in services and policies need to be identified to ensure it never happens again. “The death of every person experiencing homelessness is a tragedy and very often a systematic failure,” said CEO Don Rowe. “We strongly support mandating the reporting of homelessness deaths to the coroner to help determine where, when and how deaths occur.” St Vincent’s Hospital in Sydney has been calling for urgent government reform to assist nonresidents in crisis and facing homelessness. Non-residents are unable to access Medicare-funded healthcare, emergency shelter or other support services, making them one the most vulnerable groups in the community that rely on charities for food and essentials. St Vincent’s Homelessness Health Service unit manager Erin Longbottom said Mr Lama’s tragic death highlighted gaps in services available to non-residents. “We are calling on state and federal governments to change the current system to allow nonresidents access to the support they need in a crisis,” she said.
29 Apr 2026
The future of agentic AI for university students
Universities stand at a turning point. For years, headlines have framed artificial intelligence (AI) as a threat to academic integrity. That narrative, while important, misses the bigger opportunity. Used deliberately and responsibly, AI can strip away administrative burden that slows students down, remove learning friction, and return time to what matters: learning, research, and student success. The current reality is that most universities and institutions operate across a patchwork of systems that aren’t fully connected or integrated. Critical data sits in multiple environments – legacy platforms, faculty-specific systems, spreadsheets, shared drives and point solutions – all supported by monolithic processes that have been layered over time. After decades of bolt-on technology and siloed operations, the institutional data landscape has become fragmented, duplicated and difficult to govern. Yet this complexity also signals the size of the opportunity. Because no university today has fully unified systems, seamlessly connected data or end-to-end intelligent workflows, the path forward is wide open. What is agentic AI? Institutions that begin modernising their platforms now will be best placed to unlock the next frontier: agentic AI that can operate across a connected ecosystem, streamline processes and transform the student and staff experience. Most campuses have dabbled in generative AI – a chatbot here, a summariser there. These early tools provide convenience, but they sit at the edges of the student experience. The next leap is agentic AI. Systems that don’t wait for prompts but act on defined goals, collaborate with other systems and adapt to context. Think less “tool you query” and more “infrastructure you rely on.” The future opportunity for agentic AI is integration across university platforms, understanding institutional policies, and coordinating tasks end to end. It can retrieve information, trigger workflows and make bounded, auditable decisions in real time. Instead of bolting AI onto legacy processes, institutions will soon embed intelligence into the core – where it can deliver reliability, speed and scale. Early adopters are seeing stronger retention and improved staff experience. Picture: iStock/Thapana Onphalai. What does agentic AI make possible? Imagine an experience where intelligence is embedded across the student lifecycle allowing simpler, faster student support. Agentic AI can translate complex rules and multistep processes into plain English guidance through a single conversational interface. Whether a student needs to find the right form, understand census dates, request special consideration or update enrolment details, the entire journey becomes intuitive and immediate. 24/7 access that matches study rhythms Many students complete coursework late at night or around work commitments. They should also be able to resolve administrative tasks at those times. Always-on assistance reduces queues, backlogs and stalled progression. More human time where it counts When AI takes care of navigation and routine transactions, staff can redirect their energy toward deeper engagement – mentoring, academic support, complex case management and student wellbeing. These are the interactions that drive belonging, retention and success. Smarter operations Imagine a future where cross-system workflows across finance, procurement, HR and student management all connect; where information moves efficiently, with reduced errors and accelerated decisions. This streamlining alone could lift institutional productivity without added headcount or workload. When technology carries the administrative load, people lean into empathy, judgement and expertise: the distinctly human strengths that make education transformative. As with any powerful technology, trust is non-negotiable. Universities must retain full control over their data, supported by clear accountability frameworks and rigorous safeguards. A responsible approach to agentic AI requires systems that: operate within institution-defined boundaries log decisions for transparency and audit source information responsibly align with policy, regulation and privacy obligations by design. This is how institutions innovate confidently while protecting the trust of students, staff and the broader community. More on this story: Sector gets first AI pro vice-chancellor | The impact of AI on graduate jobs | Experts react to government artificial intelligence plan We’re only scratching the surface Agentic AI, when integrated into core platforms rather than bolted on top, is already unlocking meaningful gains in efficiency and service quality. Early adopters are seeing stronger retention through more consistent support, improved staff experience from reduced administrative load, and more accessible services for students from all backgrounds. These gains aren’t theoretical – they accumulate with every semester and create long-term competitive advantage. We are on the cusp of a fundamental shift in how universities engage with their communities. Within the next decade, institutions will stop thinking in terms of “finance systems,” “HR systems,” “payroll systems”, or even “student management systems.” Those categories will fade. In their place will be a single intelligent interface – a secure, institution-controlled agentic AI underpinned by a rich knowledge base and purpose-built tools. One place to ask, act and achieve. Stuart MacDonald . Picture: Supplied. The shift to agentic AI will not happen overnight, and it will not happen without foundational change. The institutions that begin modernising now – consolidating data, simplifying processes, and moving to unified SaaS platforms – will be the ones who benefit first and most. The opportunity ahead is not about replacing people or reducing the richness of campus life. It’s about removing noise, reducing burden and elevating the human work that defines universities. Agentic AI will shape the future of higher education. The question is not whether the sector will adopt it, but which universities will be ready to lead it. Stuart MacDonald is chief operating officer of TechnologyOne .
29 Apr 2026
PISA 2029: Media and AI Literacy – key concepts, curriculum links and competences
The framework includes ideas for cross-curricular connecting activities, such as exploring in mathematics how algorithms target users based on data. ©Ao Zaa Studio/Shutterstock
28 Apr 2026
News live: King Charles praises ‘ambitious’ Aukus and expresses pride in Australia in speech to US Congress
Nuclear submarine mentioned in part of king’s speech that emphasised defence ties. Follow today’s news live Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Good morning and welcome to our live news blog. I’m Martin Farrer with the top overnight stories and then it’ll be Nick Visser with the main action. Consumer price data coming out today is expected to show the sharp shock that the US-Iran war has dealt to our economy (and our wallets). Continue reading...
28 Apr 2026
‘Culture of misogyny’: teacher surrounded by hundreds of students and pelted with food at elite Brisbane boys’ school, court told
Teacher at Marist College Ashgrove claims she suffered ‘serious psychiatric injury’ after the schoolyard incident Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A teacher at one of Brisbane’s top private boys’ schools has claimed she was subject to a “culture of misogyny” after being surrounded by hundreds of Catholic school students and pelted with food in an incident that left her with a “serious psychiatric injury”. A barrister acting for Victoria Sparrow, a teacher at Marist College Ashgrove, told the Brisbane supreme court that the school allowed a culture of misogyny to “develop and exist”. Continue reading...
28 Apr 2026
Tas teachers say yes to latest pay offer
Teachers in Tasmania have overwhelmingly voted in favour of the latest pay and conditions offer from the government. According to the Australian Education Union Tasmania (AEU), 72 per cent of the votes cast supported the offer. The three-year agreement includes a three per cent pay rise this year and next, with 2.6 per cent in 2028. Adjustments to the base salaries are also on the cards for school psychologists, advanced skills and band 1 teachers (level 13), and assistant principals. Tasmanian Minister for Education Jo Palmer said the agreement recognised teachers in a sustainable way. “We value the hard work of our teachers and school staff, and this agreement recognises the important role they play in our classrooms every day,” Minister Palmer said. “This is a fair and affordable deal that provides long-term certainty, delivers meaningful pay increases, and improves conditions in key priority areas.” In terms of workload, it has also enshrined the right to disconnect, a new professional learning allowance, and reduced the cap for after-school meetings from 100 hours a year to 80. As part of tackling school violence, the department has also committed to spend $10.6 million over the term of the agreement and fund a statewide school psychological assessment hub. “Our government is supporting teachers so they can focus on delivering a high-quality education for Tasmanian students,” Minister Palmer said. Apart from these and other improvements in workload and wellbeing, check the AEU website for the other conditions that were included in the offer.
28 Apr 2026
Vic appoints first minister for boys
Victoria has its first minister for men and boys. Part of a cabinet reshuffle , the role was given to Frankston MP Paul Edbrooke. It comes with an explicit dual focus: on one hand, boys’ and men’s own wellbeing, and on the other, the harms boys and men perpetrate. The role has also been signalled as being a response to the influence of online misogynistic cultures , including the manosphere . The establishment of this cabinet position is politically significant and offers both substantial opportunities and potential risks. The key will be following the evidence, however uncomfortable. A national first Mr Edbrooke’s new role represents the only formal cabinet-level “minister for men and boys” in Australia. There have been calls from some men’s health advocates for such a role to be established federally. For example, Dan Repacholi was appointed by the federal government to be Australia’s first Special Envoy for Men’s Health in 2025. Victoria has previously included a Parliamentary Secretary for Men’s Behaviour Change . The Coalition in New South Wales also announced earlier this year the establishment of a new portfolio dedicated to men’s health ahead of the 2027 state election. But Victoria is the first government to identify “men and boys” as a distinct policy category, signalling that the influences shaping misogynist attitudes requires focused attention. Why now? The timing of this new portfolio is not accidental. It reflects a growing recognition that something has shifted in how misogyny is circulating, particularly among Australian men and boys . In recent years, research has documented the rapid uptake of manosphere content in Australian schools. Teachers are reporting a marked increase in misogynistic language, resistance to women’s authority, and the normalisation of sexist and violent attitudes among some boys. Crucially, Mr Edbrooke acknowledged that responding to the manosphere will be a key focus of his portfolio. Public concern about men’s violence against women has also intensified, alongside renewed attention to the drivers that underpin it. The connection between misogyny and violent political extremism is now better understood, reinforcing the need for a strong prevention response. Taken together, these factors help to explain why the need for a portfolio focused on men and boys has emerged at this time. The question is whether this opportunity will be used to create meaningful change where it is needed. Proceeding with care There is a risk this new ministerial role could deepen existing tensions if it is not carefully designed. For instance, there are calls to do more to address men’s mental health. This is important work and should be done. But improving boys’ mental health should not be overstated as the solution to gendered violence. Responses that treat boys’ and men’s mental health as the key factor in violence against women ignore the complexity of the evidence. Abuse of women and girls is present across all socioeconomic demographics and among those with or without mental ill-health. To make real progress, responses must be grounded in evidence and firmly focused on achieving the principles of gender justice . The policies to prioritise So to make a meaningful difference, what should the minister do? Schools would be a great place to start. Australian evidence is clear that schools are a key site for preventing gender-based violence. This work is most effective when it is whole-school, properly supported and built into systems and curricula. This means proper funding and meaningful support for Respectful Relationships Education , stronger teacher training in violence prevention, and a curriculum that helps young people think critically about gender, power and online influence. It’s also essential that beliefs in boys and men “ falling behind ” or being victims of feminism and gender equality are strongly refuted. These beliefs are promoted by manosphere myths that cause significant harm. The new minister’s policy response must also explicitly name misogyny as an increasingly mainstreamed ideology . This means recognising that it’s a predictor of all forms of violence . United Nations bodies have recently warned about the risks of rising misogyny and all forms of violence. These risks are very real in Victoria and across the country. Now is the time for misogyny to be named plainly and clearly, and for us to emphasise that misogyny appeals to boys and men because of the power it offers them, not because it provides a solution to their suffering. Overall, the creation of a minister for men and boys signals the Victorian government is willing to engage with complex and sensitive questions about gender, men’s violence and misogyny. Now the challenge is for policymakers and the minister to engage meaningfully with the evidence and be courageous enough to highlight the dangers of rising misogyny. Stephanie Wescott , Lecturer in Humanities and Social Sciences, Monash University ; Naomi Pfitzner , Director of the Monash Gender and Family Violence Prevention Hub and Senior Lecturer in Criminology Monash University, Monash University ; Sarah McCook , Research Fellow, Monash Gender and Family Violence Prevention Centre, Monash University , and Steven Roberts , Professor of Sociology, School of Social Sciences, Monash University This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article .
28 Apr 2026
Can the multi-school, top down approach work?
Pupil outcomes in Tasmania are the worst of any Australian state bar the Northern Territory. To counter this, Tasmania has launched a trial of multi-school organisations (MSOs ) across three primary schools in Hobart. This involves running groups of schools, led by one executive team, modelled on an approach developed in England, called multi-academy trusts (MATs). That ’ s where a single organisation assumes responsibility for running multiple schools and securing pupil outcomes. Taking inspiration from England, Tasmania’s Department for Education, Children and Young People reports the model is internationally proven despite there being no proof that the English approach is any more effective . It seems Tasmanian decision makers believe the hyperbole and have all too willingly engaged with confirmation bias. They are engaging with an inaccurate but popular refrain that aligns with their lofty aspirations to be nation leaders . When Tasmanian representatives travelled to England to speak with leaders of some very high profile multi-academy trusts (MATs) – organisations whose survival depends on growing their offering as evidence of their success – the narrative has repeatedly been positioned as transformative. Why was this structure chosen? How successive English governments arrived at the decision to adopt and impose the structure of multi-academy trusts (MATs) on all publicly funded schools, however, is dubious. By torpedoing the funding for England’s previous structure, namely local authorities, successive English governments paved the way for a model that was given every chance to financially succeed. Under the guise that schools would manage their own affairs, its subsequent iteration was a school grouping model, the multi-academy trust. While the requirement for schools to be part of a MAT was initially dependent on pupil outcomes, successive political parties have pursued a preferential discourse, whereby all schools must join one despite long-standing objections from educators. Tasmanian educators and unions are now waging a similar fight against MSOs. But progress since January 2026 suggests that what started out as a pilot in Tasmania was most definitely not, with all schools now being required to work in groups. Deliberately opaque practices Tasmanian MSOs are reportedly providing opportunities for schools to pool resources, centralise administrative functions and align practices related to the curriculum and teaching . While sounding like an attractive prospect from a teacher workload and management point of view, England’s approach should provide some genuine glimmers into Tasmania’s future if it follows this course, with consistency and sameness across schools, to include curricula, considered to be hallmarks of effective practice . While Tasmania maintains that its schools will retain their identities and autonomy, my PhD into the prescriptive and deliberately opaque practices of England’s MATs told a very different story. Relying on the insights of teachers working within these structures, there was a reported lack (by those who lead MATs) of regard for the diverse communities in which schools operated. Instead MATs involved mandated one-size-fits-all-curricula and prescribed classroom pedagogies. Indicating that all of this diminished the need for teacher expertise, contribution and/or consultation, teachers spoke of the ways in which children’s interests and life experiences were irrelevant in pursuit of school data, wider organisational outcomes and ultimate survival. Pockets of excellent practice Finding what I considered to be pockets of excellent practice, I examined MATs that appeared to adopt a contrary way of working. These MATs understood the importance of school heterogeneity and teacher expertise, with a genuine appreciation of the communities in which schools worked, irrespective of proximity. Flying beneath the radar, these MATs didn’t feel compelled to raise their profile, steal the limelight and wax lyrical about their supposed effectiveness, but they’re the ones that Tasmania should have been seeking out. Sadly, when the noise compels you to follow the echo, an unvarnished view is never likely to be sought. Swept up by the hyperbole and economic efficiencies yielded by funding agreements that focus on high level accountabilities, Tasmanian decision makers only ever wanted to hear one version of events, selecting high profile English MATs to inform their narrative. One can only hope that the rest of Australia seeks to challenge the on-brand commentary, and that none of us, irrespective of where we live, lose sight of what should always matter most in education, namely pupils. Stephanie Flower grew up in Tasmania, initially studying a BA (Hons) degree at the University of Tasmania. She has lived in England since 1996, where she trained as a teacher and worked for three different multi-academy trusts (MATs). She now works as a senior lecturer in education at Oxford Brookes University. Her PhD, completed in 2025, shed a much-needed spotlight on some of the deliberately opaque practices of England’s multi-academy trusts and what could be learnt from those working at the heart of the system, namely teachers. You can find her on LinkedIn . This article was originally published on EduResearch Matters . Read the original article .
28 Apr 2026
Australia news live: RSL to review welcome to country policy; Angus Taylor vows to double fuel reserve
Club chief says ‘anodyne acknowledgements’ can be ‘overworked’. Follow today’s news live Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Good morning and welcome to our live news blog. I’m Martin Farrer with the top overnight stories and then it will be Nick Visser with the main action. The RSL has announced it will review its guidance on welcome to country addresses at Anzac Day services after Indigenous leaders were booed at three dawn services on Saturday. Continue reading...
27 Apr 2026
Supporting student transitions – applying ‘back-to-school’ strategies every term
A Vern Barnett School classroom. Image supplied.
26 Apr 2026
Australia news live: Wong heads to Japan, China and South Korea to secure fuel supply; new ADF armoured vehicles ordered
Foreign affairs minister begins another diplomatic tour to secure Australia’s fuel and energy supply chains. Follow today’s news live Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Nationals MP says welcome to country is generally a ‘good part’ of ceremonies Nationals MP Michael McCormack said he thinks welcomes to county were generally a “good part” of ceremonies after the opposition leader, Angus Taylor , said this weekend he thought they were oversized. I can if you have several speakers and every one of them takes a lot of their speech time to do welcomes to country when it’s already been done. If you do it at the start, you do it appropriately, I think most people find that to be a good part of the ceremony, and then you get on with what the actual event is all about. And I think that’s probably appropriate. Continue reading...
26 Apr 2026
Australia news live: Victoria announces one-off car rego rebate; hecklers ‘unworthy of Anzac legend’, Tim Wilson says
Follow the day’s news live Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Good morning and welcome to our live news blog today. I’m Luca Ittimani and I’ll be taking you through Sunday’s breaking stories. Angus Taylor , the federal opposition leader, will be up on the ABC’s Insiders soon as well. Let’s get stuck in. Continue reading...
25 Apr 2026
PM speaks to Vietnamese president on supply chains – as it happened
This blog is now closed Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Allegra Spender says 25% gas export tax would help fix ‘faulty’ system Independent MP Allegra Spender said a 25% tax on gas exports would help rectify what she sees as “faulty” taxation arrangements that have seen an Australian resource sent overseas with minimal benefit to the country. The gas industry is a very profitable industry and pays income tax. And every company in Australia, frankly, should pay income tax on its profits and should pay the proper rate. But the gas companies are different because they also sell an Australian resource which they extract, which we can’t get back once it is sold. I think Australians rightly believe they should share more of that revenue. We’re back here again and they should fix it. We are lucky to be an energy exporter at a time where the world needs energy. We are a great partner in this. But it is a reasonable thing for Australians to get a fair return on that. And, at the moment, we just aren’t. We can’t and I think we need to be really honest about that. If there’s going to be changes to the NDIS – and I’m not a state leader who’s knocking the federal government’s right and probably responsibility to reform the NDIS, it’s cost too much money – but we have to be really frank with people. We can’t offer at the state level the kinds of services that are being rolled out at the NDIS. Continue reading...
24 Apr 2026
An architectural lesson in seating arrangements
‘Seating is not just about where we sit, but how the built environment dictates our capacity to learn.’ ©Monkey Business Images/Shutterstock
23 Apr 2026
Rinehart’s $200m donation to convert homes for veterans welcomed by RSL – as it happened
This blog is now closed Australians ‘uneasy’ about NDIS cuts amid $53bn in new defence spending, Mark Butler concedes Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast James Valentine’s family has released a statement after his death. Here’s what they had to say: James passed peacefully at home surrounded by his family, who adored him. Throughout his illness, James did it his way, which lasted all the way until the end when he made the choice to do Voluntary Assisted Dying. Both he and his family are grateful he was given the option to go out on his own terms. He was calm, dignified as always and somehow still making us laugh. Continue reading...
23 Apr 2026
School apps found to harvest student data
New research is warning teachers that many of the apps used daily in classrooms are quietly collecting children’s data. Widespread tracking, opaque privacy practices and almost no meaningful oversight mean long before a student taps the screen their data is at risk. The study , funded by the University of NSW Australian Human Rights Institute, analysed close to 200 Android apps that were either recommended by state education departments, listed on school app catalogues, or appear in the Google Play Store’s “Kids” and “Educational” categories. Nearly half of these (46 per cent) were found to engage in risky data practices, with 89.3 per cent transmitting data from the moment they were opened. From this point they were sending device identifiers, location metadata and other sensitive information to analytics platforms and advertising networks. “Even if you are not interacting with the app – you just open it and that’s it – it is still transferring lots of data,” researcher and cyber security expert Dr Rahat Masood said. She described this as “tracker-related identifiers and [is] used for the automatic collection and transmission of data to remote servers.” This collection of data is known as idle telemetry. The researchers found 83.6 per cent of apps transmitted persistent identifiers and 67.9 per cent embedded at least one tracker, including Firebase, Facebook SDK and Unity Analytics – none of which are required to actually run the apps. But the biggest shock for teachers and parents may be the privacy policies themselves, with only three per cent written at a level considered “fairly easy” to read. “Nobody will understand these terminologies and jargon,” Dr Masood said. “Comprehension, readability, understandability – all these metrics that we analysed were all very bad.” Even when someone manages to read them, the policies often don’t match reality. Only one in four apps analysed were consistent with their stated disclosures, and some, the researchers said, appear to have been generated using AI tools. Child‑branded apps no safer The UNSW team also found that apps marketed to young children, with names including “kids”, “preschool” or “ABC”, on the whole were less safe than general educational apps: 76 per cent had issues versus 67 per cent. The study labels this “the illusion of safety”, where child‑friendly branding builds trust without offering genuine protection. For teachers, these findings highlight a system where the use of digital tools is often mandatory in the classroom while transparency is optional. The researchers note that Australian education is deeply digital, yet the privacy infrastructure around these tools is weak, inconsistent and largely invisible to educators. More on this story: Children at risk from sexual AI chatbots | Victoria bans phones in non-govt schools | Deepfake apps blocked to all Australians Off the back of these results, the research team is developing a ‘traffic light’ tool to help parents quickly assess an app’s privacy profile. Although this might help, it won ’ t solve all the privacy and data problems, with the team calling for stricter oversight of child‑directed apps, plain‑language privacy policies and bans on idle telemetry. The study’s authors conclude that educators cannot be expected to audit apps themselves, but they need transparency, trustworthy vetting processes, and tools that genuinely protect children’s privacy. “Australia is moving towards digital education, including from kindergarten,” Dr Masood said. “We want to analyse whether Australia, the federal government and education departments are aware of the security and privacy risks.”
23 Apr 2026
My daughter proves AI won’t replace teachers
Last year, my daughter Martina started Year 8 at Siena Catholic College on the Sunshine Coast. She needed to pick her electives, and because I know she ’ s a quiet, introverted thinker, I suggested she try digital technologies. I thought it might suit the way her mind works. A few months in, her digital technologies teacher Paul Dionysious asked me to come in for a meeting. I wasn ’ t sure what to expect. He told me she was really good at coding. He said since she started coding, she hasn ’ t stopped – she was coding during lunch breaks and during every spare moment at school. She was moving so fast that in just a couple of months in Year 8, she had already finished the curriculum of Year 9. Mr Dionysious said Apple wanted to invite some students to go to Sydney in July, and that he would like to take Martina. Martina attended the Apple event in July, 2025, to present her work. At 13, with just a few months of coding behind her, Martina came back from that trip buzzing – I hadn ’ t seen her like that before. After that, she and her fried Julia entered and won the 2025 Queensland Premier’s Coding Challenge with Allergy Aware, an app they co-developed that was designed to support people living with allergies. They also placed third at the Brisbane Catholic Education STEM MAD showcase, which earned them a trip to Adelaide for the national finals. During that trip, Martina met the same Apple representative she met in July. She came home and told me, ‘Mama, he said I'm doing really well. He told me to keep going.’ Martina built an app that helps primary school children manage big emotions. Picture: iStock/Feodora Chiosea, Supplied. For a reserved girl like Martina, hearing that from someone from Apple was unbelievable. It fuelled her even more. She kept going, entering the 2026 Apple Swift Student Challenge with an app that helps primary school children manage big emotions, such as anger and anxiety, through guided check-ins and calming tips. In March, Apple announced that Martina was one of just 350 global winners of this prestigious student coding competition. More on this story: No urgent action on generative AI in schools | Victoria bans phones in non-govt schools | Why tech companies are focusing on education She was selected from thousands of entries across more than 35 countries. Of course, I am proud. But what I really keep thinking about is this: Everyone is talking about AI replacing jobs, replacing teachers, replacing everything. But what happened with Martina is proof that there are things AI simply cannot replace. AI didn ’ t see Martina. Her teacher Mr Dionysious did. He didn ’ t just see that she could complete a task correctly, but he saw her . He saw a quiet girl that had a special passion, and he did something about it. No algorithm would have pulled me into a meeting and told me my daughter had talent. No AI could provide the encouragement and support he did. Mr Dionysious built the coding program at Siena College over seven years. He is a dedicated and inventive teacher, which has been recognised with a number of gongs, including the Queensland College of Teachers 2024 TEACHX Award as one of the state ’ s most innovative teachers. Siena College also supported her every step of the way. When she needed to go to competitions, the school covered it. When she needed flexibility, they gave it to her. They created an environment where this could happen. The same can be said about Apple. It created the program and built the tools. It gave a school on the Sunshine Coast the resources so that a teacher like Mr Dionysious could pass that on to students like Martina. Martina is where she is today because of a company that created the right environment, a teacher who could truly see her, and a school that supported her. She found her passion because real people believed in her. That ’ s something no AI can do. I ’ m sharing her story because I think it ’ s important – not because my daughter won a competition, but because this is what schools and teachers and the right support can do for a kid. And I think people should know about it. Of course I ’ m a proud mum. But more than that, I firmly believe that with all the AI hype right now, what happened to Martina is proof that AI can never replace what a great teacher and the right support can do for a kid. Barbara Vieira is Martina ’ s mother and a parent at Siena Catholic College on the Sunshine Coast.
23 Apr 2026
Headsets should be in every classroom
In K–12 education today, most of the ed-tech buzz falls into two categories: AI and visual tools such as interactive whiteboards and content cameras. But one of the most essential solutions for students falls into neither of those. Headsets are too often overlooked in ed-tech investment strategies. A recent survey conducted by Logitech and THE Journal found that only 21 per cent of IT decision makers prioritise headsets as part of their ed-tech hardware planning. Meanwhile, school case studies indicate that only 18 per cent of students feel confident with earbuds, a common alternative to headsets. Because so many lessons and activities rely on spoken instructions or include essential audio, students must be able to hear clearly before they can engage with content, learn from their peers, or sustain focus. In many learning spaces, unfortunately, that’s not guaranteed. The sound gap Classrooms are usually anything but quiet. The air-conditioner hums, students chatter, chairs scrape, and the noise of digital devices all tend to drag students’ already-busy minds away from what they’re learning. This explains why, according to a 2024 survey conducted by Logitech and the EdWeek Research Center, 97 per cent of teachers say they stop instruction at least twice a day because students didn’t hear the first time. Image: iStock/mediaphotos Each of these disruptions might last a minute or two if you include the time it takes to regain students’ attention, and those minutes add up. The study indicates that 30 hours of instructional time are lost per year just from repeating directions. That’s nearly a week of lost learning. The impact also affects the quality of education we can offer students. For younger learners, especially those ages five to 14, auditory processing is still developing. Missing a single word multiple times throughout class can disrupt comprehension and, over time, derail an entire curriculum. More on this story: Ed-tech 2025: Smart tech, smarter teaching | Strathcona Girls Grammar principal on using tech for inclusivity | Victoria bans phones in non-govt schools Students who constantly miss the thread of instruction may silently fall behind, which is why we need to help students hear clearly and consistently whether they’re in the back of the room or joining remotely. In this context, headsets can be considered instruments for engagement and an aid to effective practice. It seems beyond obvious to say, but when students can hear and be heard clearly, they learn with more confidence. In the same THE Journal survey, 81 per cent of IT decision-makers said their primary metric for ed-tech success is student engagement. Headsets support this goal directly by creating focused, individualised audio environments even in bustling classrooms. They also support equitable learning environments in meaningful ways. For instance, bilingual learners benefit from reduced background noise, enabling clearer understanding of pronunciation and vocabulary. Students with sensory sensitivities may also experience fewer disruptions and more consistent auditory input. Teachers often spend time troubleshooting tech issues. Picture: iStock/courtneyk. And all learners gain autonomy in blended and hybrid learning environments, supporting self-regulation and independent work. It’s telling that when schools don ’ t have enough headsets for all students, teachers spend up to five times more of their instructional time troubleshooting tech problems. Troubleshooting in these schools consumes nearly an hour a week compared to just 10 minutes in better-equipped classrooms. That’s hours of instructional labour each month diverted away from teaching and toward preventable tech issues, an invisible cost districts pay every year. Time to rethink basic ed-tech Schools are wisely investing in advanced technologies, but foundational tools deserve to be considered, too. Diagnosing classroom problems accurately is important to work out which ed-tech solutions will have the greatest benefit. If students can’t hear instruction clearly the first time, no smart board or camera system can fix that. The ability to hear and be heard clearly is the first step for engagement, comprehension, and achievement. As school and department leaders contend with tightening budgets and increasing classroom complexity, they should remember that the right headsets offer a simple, cost-effective solution that helps improve learning outcomes. Madeleine Mortimore is a former teacher and education innovation and research lead for Logitech .
23 Apr 2026
The Research Files Episode 107: Professor Alex Bowers on types of school leadership and targeting professional development
‘And so this is my goal with this kind of work – to use the data … to bring teachers and schools together across the walls of the schools.’ ©BearFotos/Shutterstock.
22 Apr 2026
Gas lobby spends millions on anti-tax ads – as it happened
This blog is now closed Gas companies spending millions on Australian advertising blitz to fight export tax, inquiry told Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Farmers promised more fertiliser imports Australian farmers are being promised more fertiliser imports under a deal struck between the federal government and two major companies, aimed at securing supplies in response to a global bottleneck, AAP reports. We’ve always said through this generational reform process that we’d listen to older people and we’d respond to their experiences. … What they’ve made clear is that they want showering and dressing. We’ve got a $40bn aged care system … and it needs to be sustainable for generations to come. And that’s what this reform process has been about. … We can’t be in a situation where we’re making a promise to the people of Australia about the dignity that they’ll receive through the aged care system if we can’t deliver on it and we can’t keep it sustainable. Continue reading...
22 Apr 2026
Service fined $500k for helping students cheat
The Federal Court of Australia has ordered student-support service Chegg to pay a $500,000 fine for giving students answers to three questions for a Monash University assessment. The case is the first time the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA) has used powers they were given in 2020 to prohibit the provision of academic cheating services. Chegg Inc, one of the world ’ s biggest ed-tech companies, was found to have facilitated cheating through its ‘expert Q&A’ service, where subject-matter experts uploaded the answers to IT and water engineering assessment questions three times throughout 2021 and 2022. Chegg has also been ordered to pay TEQSA ’ s $150,000 legal fees along with the half million-dollar fine. TEQSA has disrupted 370 cheating websites so far. Picture: iStock/demaerre. The service advertises itself as providing ‘24/7 homework help’ where a chatbot provides the ‘solution’ to study questions for USD$10.95 a month. It also has a ‘plagiarism checker’ tool, where students can upload essays and check if they have copied and pasted other work into their own. More on this story: Government to reform ‘toothless’ TEQSA | New standards address racism, disability issues | Students told degrees revoked in WSU hack TEQSA chief executive Mary Russell urged students and staff to report suspected cheating services. “Academic integrity is fundamental to the quality and reputation of Australia’s higher education sector and the academic success and experiences of students,“ Dr Russell said. “This outcome reinforces the importance of academic integrity to Australian higher education. TEQSA will act decisively to address allegations of academic cheating services being provided or offered to Australian higher education students.” TEQSA said it has removed or changed access to 370 websites and 925 social media accounts that offered cheating services since 2020.
22 Apr 2026
Peak bodies demand action on maths education
Bodies representing top science and engineering academics have called for “urgent action” to reverse the decline of secondary and tertiary students studying mathematics. The Australian Council of Deans of Science, the Australian Council of Engineering Deans, the Australasian Council of Environmental Deans and Directors, and the Australasian Council of Information and Communications Technology have banded together to lobby the federal government to encourage more secondary and tertiary students to study maths. Action would include igniting interest in maths in early years, restoring maths as a prerequisite for particular university degrees and encouraging future high school teachers to specialise in maths. The share of Year 12 students studying advanced mathematics dropped below 10 per cent in 2019, and has remained low, at 8.4 per cent in 2023. The group has called for a focus on Year 11 and Year 12 maths enrolments through initiatives that address ‘maths anxiety’ and gender gaps, and clearly link maths study to career pathways. Factors contributing to the decline in students studying maths. Source: ACDS . There should be affordable sub-bachelor programs, such as diplomas and associate degrees, to ensure students without intermediate mathematics can access STEM degrees, they said. To incentivise teenagers to continue maths study through senior high school, intermediate-level maths should be a requirement to enter university courses in science and engineering fields. More on this story: Uni boosts gender diversity by 30% in maths | Sydney uni cuts maths prerequisites for some degrees | “We absolutely need you”: Biologist to girls interested in STEM A joint statement from the bodies said pre-service teachers also need to know that maths study is a pathway. “Compounding these challenges is the fact that 40 per cent of mathematics teachers in Australia are ‘out-of-field,’ teaching without formal mathematics qualifications – arguably the most critical issue, given teaching outcomes compound across all latter stages of education,” it said. “While some states have introduced upskilling programs, their scale is too small to address the national problem.” Engineers Australia chief engineer Katherine Richards has said the decline in students undertaking advanced maths at school is already impacting on the nation’s future skilled workforce needs. “In 2023, only about eight per cent of Year 12 students studied advanced mathematics, raising serious concerns about the long-term supply of engineering graduates needed to support infrastructure delivery, technological innovation and national productivity,” Ms Richards said. “At the same time, Australia’s overall maths participation and performance has remained largely stagnant, and regional and remote students are behind when compared with their city peers. “This has dire consequences for the nation with engineering underpinning around 60 per cent of our nation’s GDP.”
22 Apr 2026
I detected my own plagiarised research
Earlier this year, I published a paper on the ethics of researching military populations. The core argument was straightforward: the standard rules researchers follow to protect participants – for example, informed consent and voluntary participation – don’t work the same in an institution built on hierarchy and obedience. A soldier can, as protected by ethics, say no to participating in research. But when their commanding officer has nominated them, the practical reality of saying no is very different from the legal right to do so. My paper explored the tension between ethical rights and lived reality. A couple of weeks ago I was asked to peer-review a manuscript submitted to a psychology journal on the same topic. It didn’t take long for me to become suspicious. As I read on, I came to realise the safeguards in place to protect research integrity are not keeping pace with the tools that can be used to circumvent them. From factual errors to reproduced memos Within the first couple of pages of the manuscript, I recognised my own work. The manuscript had the same argument as mine, a similar structure and conceptual framework. Most alarmingly though, it contained my reflexive memos, reproduced and paraphrased as though they belonged to someone else. Humanities and social sciences have so far been relatively unaffected by fake science. Picture: iStock/AndreyPopov. Reflexive memos are a kind of research diary, in which a researcher documents their personal reflections on their own research: the dilemmas they faced, the decisions they made, the things they noticed that shaped their thinking. Reflexive memos aren’t drawn from the literature; you can’t find them in another paper and reference them. They come from the researcher’s own life. Mine documented what is was like navigating a 24-month institutional approval process that became an ordeal of lost paperwork, shifting requirements and bureaucratic dead ends. They documented the concept of being “voluntold” – that is, watching defence personnel be put forward for supposedly voluntary training programs, and recognising the unspoken pressure that made refusal practically impossible. In the memos, I also documented the tension I felt as a clinical psychologist between my professional obligations around confidentiality and the reporting requirements imposed on me as a researcher working within the defence organisation. These were reproduced as if they had happened to someone else. The manuscript also got something factually wrong. It reproduced a scenario from my fieldwork on an Australian Defence Force base, describing the force’s values displayed on flags on the main thoroughfare. It substituted the value of “bravery” instead of the correct value, “courage” – a synonym, yes, but any researcher working in this field would spot that immediately. A lucky catch I can’t say with any certainty how the manuscript was produced. Nor am I sure of what happened to the manuscript after I raised my concerns. What I can say is that the systematic paraphrasing throughout, the basic factual error, and the reference list padded with loosely relevant citations, is consistent with the use of AI. The editor-in-chief of the journal, after confirming the plagiarism, reached the same conclusion. The journal ran the manuscript through iThenticate, an industry-standard plagiarism software used by many major academic publishers . It returned an eight per cent similarity match, below the threshold that would normally prompt editorial concern. The eight per cent corresponded to my published article. The rest had been paraphrased thoroughly enough to look like original work. When someone plagiarises a reflexive memo, they’re claiming someone else’s experiences. Picture: iStock/Planet Flem. More on this story: R&D review hands down recommendations | Abdel-Fattah grant defended by ARC | Program stops early-career researchers quitting The incentive structures of academic publishing, where the number of papers you publish affects your career progression and your institution’s rankings, create conditions where the temptation to cut corners is real. The editor-in-chief noted that the humanities and social sciences have so far been relatively unaffected by fake science flooding scientific literature. He told me he hopes the social sciences and humanities will remain relatively spared from this phenomenon, but I suspect this may be changing. The peer review system worked in this case. But only because the manuscript happened to be sent to the person whose work had been reproduced. That’s luck, not a safeguard. Plagiarism tools are designed to find matching text. They’re not designed to ask whether the experiences reported in a piece of writing could plausibly belong to the person claiming them. That’s a question only a human reader with a genuine knowledge of the field can answer. A deeper concern But there was a deeper concern that really got to me. When someone plagiarises a literature review, they steal intellectual ideas. When someone plagiarises a methods section, they steal intellectual labour. But when someone reproduces a reflexive memo and presents it as their own, that isn’t about claiming someone else’s ideas; they’re claiming someone else’s experiences. They’re essentially saying: “I was there, I felt this, this happened to me”. They were not there, they did not feel it, it did not happen to them. I’ve spent more than a decade working as a clinical psychologist within defence mental health services. That clinical experience is what drew me to this research in the first place. The ethical tensions I documented in my article came from my work as a researcher, from real moments, my lived experiences. Reading them reproduced in someone else’s name was a particular kind of violation that I’m not sure our existing language around plagiarism quite captures. Carolyn Heward , Senior lecturer, Clinical Psychology, James Cook University This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article .
22 Apr 2026
Social media age restrictions – early impact of reforms and teacher insights
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21 Apr 2026
Taylor says 25% gas levy would shut industry; more unopened votes in SA – as it happened
This blog is now closed Labor under internal pressure on gas tax as influencer says government ‘stopped working for the punters’ Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast NSW commission proposes heat-safe rentals to help tackle extreme temperature Heat-safe rentals and tougher workplace safety rules for outdoor workers on scorching hot days have been proposed by a state climate policy advisory body, AAP reports. Continue reading...
21 Apr 2026