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• Education

Quality school education is vital for individual potential and a healthy society. All children should have access to an education that is responsive to their needs as well as upholding high academic standards. CIS’s research focus is on policies that improve the quality of teaching and student outcomes.

Education is key for Aboriginal Australia
Nigel ParburyMay 24, 2013

Three times in as many weeks the surprise of elite education for Aboriginal kids has...

My School sheds a welcome light
Jennifer Buckingham OAMMay 17, 2013The Australian

BEFORE NAPLAN and My School were introduced by the federal government, state departments of education...

Fair go fear-mongering flies in the face of facts
Benjamin HerscovitchMay 10, 2013

Instead of getting his government’s fiscal house in order, Treasurer Wayne Swan is fanning fears...

Time to make a deal
Jennifer Buckingham OAMApril 19, 2013

The COAG meeting of education ministers today is a multibillion dollar game of Deal or...

Federal micro-managers to rule the schools
Jennifer Buckingham OAMApril 16, 2013Australian Financial Review

Responses to the federal government’s school funding proposal have been less than enthusiastic. People have...

Gonski reforms at risk of failure to launch
Jennifer Buckingham OAMApril 5, 2013The Australian

The "I Give A Gonksi" campaign gives the impression that the proposed school funding reforms...

Childcare in Australia: A new approach
Gigi FosterNovember 20, 2025RR51

Executive summary Several well-known bodies, from the Productivity Commission to the Australian Competition and Consumer...

Knowledge is power: What do teachers believe about learning?
Trisha JhaOctober 30, 2025AP92

Executive Summary This report presents findings from literature about what teachers believe about how students...

Sex and maths success: myths and interventions
David C. GearyJuly 17, 2025AP83

Executive summary Mathematical competencies at the completion of secondary school influence later educational and occupational...

Early Numbers, Big Ideas. Fostering Number Sense in Young Children
Nancy C. Jordan, Nancy DysonJuly 10, 2025AP82

Introduction Numbers are an integral part of our daily lives, both inside and outside of...

Fractions Minus the Friction. A guide to four teaching practices
Leanne R. Ketterlin-Geller, Allison McClure, Cassandra HatfieldDecember 12, 2024AP78

Introduction Understanding fractions has a significant impact on both individuals and society. Fractions are an...

The Argument For Debate: how school debating can improve academic outcomes and foster a stronger democracy
Deidre Clary, Fiona MuellerDecember 5, 2024AP77

Introduction The Education Goals for Young Australians prioritise “excellence and equity” and the formation of...

Pretend Schools: Educational Apartheid in the Northern Territory
Helen HughesMarch 3, 2008The Canberra Times

The Northern Territory Department of Education reports that only 20% of Indigenous students in remote...

Effective teachers where they are needed most
Kirsten StorryFebruary 25, 2008Online Opinion

The central and essential part of an education revolution will not be laptop computers for...

Raising the school leaving age is not a cure-all
Peter SaundersFebruary 1, 2008The Newcaslte Herald

Morris Iemma and Education Minister John Della Bosca have announced the NSW minimum school leaving...

Rudd revolution must grasp basics
Jennifer Buckingham OAMDecember 17, 2007The Australian Financial Review

The central components of the Rudd education revolution include computers, trade centres, national standards, and...

Charting a new course through schools red tape
Jennifer Buckingham OAMOctober 15, 2007The Age

The state school system in Victoria has gone further towards empowering individual schools and enabling...

Teacher pay and performance
Kirsten StorryOctober 15, 2007The New Matilda

Ten years ago, the front page of a Sydney tabloid identified Mount Druitt High Year...

Behind Every Great Teacher Is a Great System | David Didau, Jenny Donovan & Trisha Jha
Trisha Jha, David Didau, Jenny DonovanMarch 20, 2026

David Didau — education consultant, teacher trainer, and author of Making Kids Cleverer and Intelligent...

Education Reform That Works: Insights from UK, New Zealand & Australia
Glenn Fahey, Nick Gibb, Jason Clare MPDecember 8, 2025

Three leading education ministers — Sir Nick Gibb (UK), Erica Stanford (New Zealand), and Jason...

What do teachers believe about learning? | Trisha Jha
Trisha JhaNovember 6, 2025

This report presents findings from literature about what teachers believe about how students learn: the...

Restoring Excellence in Australian Education | Senator Jonathon Duniam
Glenn FaheyOctober 3, 2025

At this Centre for Independent Studies forum, Shadow Federal Minister for Education Senator Jonathon Duniam...

Evidence vs Ideology: Why the Science of Learning Matters?
Doctor Carl Hendrick, Doctor Simon Breakspear, Glenn FaheyJune 26, 2025

As Australian student outcomes decline and education inequality persists, a growing movement is challenging the...

The science of learning will set students free | Glenn Fahey
Robert Forsyth, Glenn FaheyJune 13, 2025

Robert Forsyth interviews Glenn Fahey, director of the education program at the Centre for Independent...

Submission to Senate Education and Employment References Committee
Michael Wu October 22, 2025CIS

Despite good intentions, Australia’s Early Childhood Education and Care system has expanded well beyond its...

Submission to the Productivity Commission’s Interim Report on Building a Skilled and Adaptable Workforce
Trisha JhaSeptember 18, 2025

Submission at a glance 1. Achieving written curriculum quality is a necessary step for long-term...

Submission to the Independent Review of Education in Tasmania
Trisha JhaOctober 4, 2024

Introduction The Centre for Independent Studies (CIS) is a leading independent public policy think tank...

Submission to the Inquiry into Literacy and Numeracy in ACT Public Schools
Trisha JhaFebruary 27, 2024

This submission does not directly seek to answer the 20 questions posted in the Consultation...

Submission to the Legislative Council Inquiry into the State Education System in Victoria
Trisha JhaOctober 4, 2023

Introduction The Centre for Independent Studies (CIS) is a leading independent public policy think...

Submission to the NSW Curriculum Review Interim Report Consultations
Fiona MuellerDecember 1, 2019

The NSW Government commissioned a review of the state’s curriculum in September, 2018, to be...

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