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• Teaching

Our research into teaching focuses on the quality of the teacher workforce, teacher training and ways to improve student outcomes through better teaching methods.

What the Gonski 2 Review got wrong
Jennifer Buckingham OAM, Blaise JosephJune 17, 2018PP6

The Gonski 2 Review into Australian schools failed to fulfill its terms of reference to...

Teaching quality is the biggest challenge facing the bush
Blaise JosephJune 4, 2018The Australian Financial Review

It will surprise few people that students from rural areas tend to perform worse on...

Review needed urgently of L3 literacy program
Jennifer Buckingham OAMJune 1, 2018Ideas@TheCentre

L3 is used in hundreds of schools across NSW and is a core component of...

Why We Need NAPLAN
Blaise JosephMay 13, 2018RR36

The National Assessment Plan – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) is a crucial national assessment, but...

Phonics test for year-one kids offers lots of benefits and no downside
Jennifer Buckingham OAMApril 22, 2018The Australian Financial Review

Many people in education circles are keen for the impending Gonski 2.0 report. But their...

South Australia’s trial of England’s year one phonics check shows why we need it
Jennifer Buckingham OAMApril 10, 2018The Conversation

The proposal to introduce a phonics check — employed in schools in England towards the...

Why Inquiry Based Approaches Harm Students’ Learning
John SwellerAugust 11, 2021AP24

This paper outlines the evidence and scientific reasons that inquiry based learning reduces academic performance....

Writing matters: reversing a legacy of policy failure in Australian education
Deidre Clary, Fiona MuellerJuly 28, 2021AP23

Generational decline in student achievement and teacher expertise in writing skills — the poor cousin...

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...

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...

Overcoming the Odds 2: Where are the top-performing disadvantaged secondary schools?
Blaise JosephJuly 23, 2019PP21

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

The mental health system may be making us sicker
Steven SchwartzApril 6, 2026CANBERRA TIMES

Australia has a mental health crisis, but not the one we think. Despite decades of...

Housing negative gearing tax
Reducing the discount would likely not have any lasting impact in lowering house prices
Robert Carling, Michael StutchburyMarch 21, 2026CANBERRA TIMES

Anyone watching the smoke signals from Canberra knows that moves are afoot to try and...

Alarm bells ringing on more interest rate pain
Michael StutchburyMarch 18, 2026DAILY TELEGRAPH
Australians were losing faith that the combination of Labor’s economic policies and the RBA monetary...
Labor’s capital gains tax myths need busting
Robert CarlingMarch 11, 2026DAILY TELEGRAPH

Labor has long held an axe over the capital gains tax 50% discount and negative...

Measuring affordability in time, not dollars paints a different inflation picture
Marian L. TupyMarch 9, 2026CANBERRA TIMES

Even before new Middle East conflict sparked concern about petrol prices, Australia’s latest CPI release...

Blame diagnostic inflation for the NDIS’ $10b Autism bill
Steven SchwartzMarch 5, 2026AUSTRALIAN FINANCIAL REVIEW

As recently reported in The Australian Financial Review, autism costs the National Disability Insurance Scheme...

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Submission to the Warracknabeal Energy Park Inquiry
September 30, 2025

The Centre for Independent Studies (CIS) welcomes the opportunity to respond to the Warracknabeal Energy...

Submission to the Independent National Security Legislation Monitor (INSLM)
Peter KurtiSeptember 25, 2025

Submission to the Independent National Security Legislation Monitor (INSLM) Review of the definition of a...

Submission to Hunter Transmission Project
September 24, 2025

Claims of delivering affordable electricity are unsubstantiated The EIS repeatedly claims the project will “deliver...

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...

CIS Submission to the NEM Review
September 18, 2025

THEME 1: ENSURING EFFECTIVE OPERATION OF THE SPOT MARKET Recommendation 1: Maintain the real-time regional...

Submission to Ausgrid Trial Waiver Application Consultation
September 16, 2025

  1 What Ausgrid is proposing and the waiver it seeks Ausgrid has applied to...

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