Become a Member Donate Now

• 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.

Discipline always the key to excellence at school
Blaise JosephMarch 20, 2019The Australian

Principals map the paths for their schools. And when it comes to disadvantaged schools, they...

Overcoming the Odds: A study of Australia’s top-performing disadvantaged schools
Blaise JosephMarch 18, 2019RR39

Students from disadvantaged social backgrounds perform worse on average academically than more advantaged students. This...

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...

New CIS research: How disadvantaged schools have become top performers
Blaise JosephMarch 15, 2019MEDIA RELEASE

Ground-breaking new research from The Centre for Independent Studies has identified the common policies and...

Duck and cover once more
James WynneMarch 15, 2019Ideas@TheCentre

At this time of year, universities across Australia welcoming a new crop of impressionable young...

‘School shopping’ is a parental right
Blaise JosephMarch 1, 2019Ideas@TheCentre

A “serious problem” in education was identified this week: many Sydney parents are choosing to...

Scaling up success in majority Indigenous schools
Noel PearsonJuly 8, 2021OP182

Addressing the Centre for Independent Studies, Noel Pearson outlines his insights and observations from decades...

Mind the Gap: Understanding the Indigenous education gap and how to close it
Glenn FaheyJune 24, 2021RR41

Indigenous education disadvantage remains among the most pressing and persistent public policy challenges in Australia....

Confronting Indigenous educational disadvantage: A Kimberley perspective
Lorraine HammondMarch 24, 2021AP20

Overcoming Indigenous education disadvantage is possible with the right teaching approaches and school policies. It...

A 2021 education resolution: keep an eye on the Australian Curriculum
Fiona MuellerFebruary 11, 2021OP179

The COVID-19 pandemic is stimulating debate about the relationship between the governed and their leaders,...

Worlds Apart: Remote Indigenous disadvantage in the context of wider Australia
Jacinta Nampijinpa PriceJanuary 25, 2021PP34

Remote and very remote Indigenous communities have become victims of a ‘wicked problem’. A combination...

Dollars and Sense: Time for smart reform of Australian school funding
Glenn FaheyDecember 1, 2020RR40

Australia is among the world’s highest-spending countries on schooling. Yet, the educational return on this...

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...

No Podcasts Available

• Subscribe

Subscribe now and stay in the loop with our giving appeals, event alerts, newsletters and research updates.

We are always pleased to hear from you. If you have any questions or feedback, please contact us here:

+61 2 9438 4377
CIS Office
cis@cis.org.au
CIS Media
kpincott@cis.org.au