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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.

Truly clever country shouldn’t get short-changed on schooling
Glenn FaheyDecember 4, 2019Australian Financial Review

Over the past decade, Australian taxpayers have invested a record $473 billion in schooling. But...

Expel those who fail to educate our youth
Fiona MuellerDecember 4, 2019The Australian

Australia’s education policies are clearly not lifters but increasingly leaners, as the latest global results...

No evidence of hurry to follow Gonski advice on research body
December 3, 2019The Canberra Times

The Commonwealth received the Gonski Review to Achieve Education Excellence in Australian Schools in April...

Why are Australia’s PISA results so bad? Blame mediocre education standards and poor teaching
Blaise JosephDecember 3, 2019The Daily Telegraph

When did we become a nation satisfied with mediocrity? The latest international education rankings confirm...

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...

Co-ed vs  ‘education apartheid’
Blaise JosephNovember 29, 2019Ideas@TheCentre

Many progressive advocates would welcome single-sex schools becoming extinct as alleged “educational apartheid.” Nevertheless, Australia...

Conduct Becoming. The importance of the Behaviour Curriculum
Tom BennettOctober 5, 2023AP56

Introduction Behaviour in many schools in the UK is often far below what it could...

Teaching Behaviour: How Classroom Conduct Can Unlock Better Learning
Tim McDonaldSeptember 28, 2023AP55

Introduction In Australia, and in education settings across the world, student behaviour and levels of...

Starting off on the wrong foot: How to improve Initial Teacher Education in Australia
Glenn Fahey, Rob JosephAugust 14, 2023AP53

Executive summary Australia’s Initial Teacher Education (ITE) sector has been under review for much of...

In Defence of Meritocracy
Steven SchwartzJuly 6, 2023AP50

Introduction Democracies, dictatorships, and all other forms of government face the same dilemma—how to allocate...

Degree Inflation: Undermining the value of higher education
Steven SchwartzMay 18, 2023AP48

Degree Inflation: Undermining the value of higher education — Executive Summary The past 20 years...

ATAR changes
ATAR’s rising relevance: admission standards and completion rates
Rob JosephFebruary 27, 2023AP44

Join us on Wednesday, 27 March, as we welcome Sarah Powell to CIS to discuss...

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...

On Liberty EP83 Who runs our universities?
Gerd Schröder-Turk, Salvatore BabonesMarch 23, 2022On Liberty

We welcomed Murdoch University mathematician Prof Gerd Schröder-Turk, a specialist in nano-geometry and member of...

On Liberty EP80 We must follow the educational science
Glenn Fahey, John SwellerMarch 2, 2022On Liberty

We welcome CIS contributor and University of NSW academic, Emeritus Professor John Sweller. Author of...

On Liberty EP77 Maths wars expose the great divide in education
Glenn Fahey, Salvatore BabonesDecember 1, 2021On Liberty

Australian student achievement has declined more steeply and more consistently than almost any other country,...

Reforming Australia’s Schools
Glenn Fahey, Alan TudgeOctober 28, 2021

Australia’s education system needs policy reform, beyond just throwing in yet more funding. As students...

Overcoming the Educational Odds
Glenn Fahey, Katharine BirbalsinghOctober 14, 2021

High-performing schools make a difference every day in the lives of our younger generation, particularly...

Is educational success key to the wealth of nations?
Glenn Fahey, Eric HanushekSeptember 14, 2021

Australia’s economy is suffering from slow productivity growth and stagnant wages, partly caused by a...

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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