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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.

‘F’ for flawed literacy report
Jennifer Buckingham OAMMay 18, 2012

One of Adrian Piccoli’s first acts as NSW education minister was to establish a Ministerial...

Mistakes writ large if reading goes wrong
Jennifer Buckingham OAMMay 7, 2012The Sydney Morning Herald

One of Adrian Piccoli's first acts as NSW Education Minister was to establish a ministerial...

Top quality pre-school is child’s play
Jennifer Buckingham OAMApril 30, 2012The Herald Sun

Giving more children access to kindergarten is undeniably a good thing. There is strong evidence...

Overcoming a Culture of Low Expectations
March 28, 2012IA131

The most important thing we can do to encourage disadvantaged Australians into work – including...

Opportunity for major reform
Jennifer Buckingham OAMMarch 26, 2012Education Review

The Gonski report exemplifies the adage that one should not allow the perfect to be...

The Gonski Review: Game Changer or Dust Gatherer. Jennifer Buckingham
March 23, 2012
School Autonomy: A Key Reform for Improving Indigenous Education
Julie NovakJune 21, 2006IA72

The marked educational under-achievement of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in remote area communities...

HELPless: How the FEE-HELP Loans System Lets Students Down and How to Fix it
Andrew NortonFebruary 27, 2006IA68

Australia pioneered repaying student loans through the tax system, the HECS scheme. In 2005, HECS...

Education and Learning in an Aboriginal Community
Veronica ClearyDecember 6, 2005IA65

Educational reforms are urgently needed if children in remote Aboriginal communities are to enjoy the...

Good Teachers Where They Are Needed
Jennifer Buckingham OAMOctober 19, 2005IA64

Allowing qualified professionals to become teachers through school-based education has the potential to reduce Australia’s...

The Free Market Case Against Voluntary Student Unionism (But for Voluntary Student Representation)
Andrew NortonAugust 31, 2005IA62

Introducing ‘voluntary student unionism’ (VSU) into Australia’s universities would do two things: It would make...

Universities in a State: The Federal Case Against Commonwealth Control of Universities
Andrew NortonMarch 24, 2005IA56

At the current time, though most university government funding comes from the federal government, for...

We’ve spent the money, now what about the results?
Blaise JosephFebruary 23, 2026CANBERRA TIMES
We have a great window of opportunity now to finally follow through on education reforms...
Education has become a system designed to issue credentials rather than create knowledge
Steven SchwartzFebruary 10, 2026THE AUSTRALIAN
When a society forgets the difference between learning and performance, between a mind and a...
Science of learning
How revamping education will boost the Australian economy
Trisha JhaJanuary 24, 2026CANBERRA TIMES
If Australia wants productivity growth, it needs to start in the classroom....
Australia’s education system is failing students despite $100bn spending
Fiona MuellerDecember 27, 2025THE AUSTRALIAN
Taxpayers know all too well that massive increases in education funding (approaching $100 billion a...
School child reading book
Turning up a first step to success
Trisha JhaDecember 4, 2025DAILY TELEGRAPH
The best that can be said about the latest national attendance data is that things...
Give teachers clarity: Maths curriculum should build the staircase, not set the high jump
Kelly NorrisOctober 28, 2025EDUCATIONHQ

The national review of the F–2 maths curriculum is a welcome chance to put the...

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 NAPLAN Reporting Review 2019
Blaise Joseph, Jennifer Buckingham OAMMarch 18, 2019

NAPLAN is a key element of government transparency and accountability There is very little evidence...

Submission to the Senate Education and Employment Committee Inquiry into The Australian Education Amendment Bill 2017
Blaise JosephMay 24, 2017CIS Submission
Productivity Commission Inquiry Into Introducing Competition and Informed User Choice into Human Services: Submission in response to issues paper
Trisha JhaJuly 1, 2016CIS Submission

The Human Services Inquiry is ‘examining policy options in the human services sector that incorporate...

Productivity Commission Inquiry into the National Education Evidence Base: Submission in response to the draft report
Jennifer Buckingham OAMMay 1, 2016CIS Submission

The Review of Education Evidence (Draft Report)—the ‘Draft Report’—provides a useful, up-to-date overview of the...

Submission to the Parliament of NSW Standing Committee on State Development: Inquiry into economic development in Aboriginal communities
Sara HudsonFebruary 12, 2016CIS Submission

In seeking to improve Indigenous economic development outcomes it is important to recognise that high...

Submission to the National Commission of Audit
Alexander Philipatos, Jennifer Buckingham OAM, Jeremy Sammut, Robert Carling, Simon Cowan, Stephen Kirchner, Trisha JhaApril 1, 2014T30.08

The federal government’s Commission of Audit (CoA) was established in 2013 to review the performance...

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