Dr Paul Thomas, 19 Jan 2022. This article, written about the situation in the US, is relevant for Australian educators. Note however, that the term ‘systematic’ phonics in the US generally refers to what Australian educators know as ‘synthetic’ phonics. ALL good phonics teaching is systematic, including teaching phonics in meaningful context.
Martina Tassone, The Conversation, 24 Nov 2021. Children go from playing to being tested in the blink of an eye. This abrupt change in young children’s education is problematic and ignores the research.
EduResearch Matters, 1 Nov 2021. Students need opportunities to catch up with relationships before catching up with learning. Art-informed curricular approaches are powerful for recovery after disaster, strengthening social support and building hope.
The Age, 31 Oct 2021. The pandemic and its long periods of remote learning has had a positive impact on the nation’s trust in teachers and appreciation of their work. Victorian children endured the longest time in lockdown yet gained the best NAPLAN scores in the country.
Lobel, McLeod & Jackson, The Age, 1 Sept 2021. Nelson Mandela said you can judge a society by how it treats children. America’s Joe Biden has committed $US450 billion to children in the crucial early years. The future will being to countries that invest in early learning, but Australia is a long way behind.
The Guardian, 9 Oct 2021. Michael Rosen (poet, author, performer, parent, Ph.D. in education) has written to the new Education Secretary in the UK, asking why the last decade of synthetic phonics hasn’t improved reading in England. An important letter for Australian teachers to consider, given the push (largely by non-educators) for synthetic phonics in Australia.
Trevor Cobbold, SOS Australia, 13 Oct 2021. 700 private schools, including many of the most exclusive private schools, raked in $750 million despite many running surpluses of millions. It is icing on the cake of the billions in over-funding provided under Morrison’s special deals for private schools. Public schools were NOT ELIGIBLE.
Are you using the wonderful resources available on the READING AUSTRALIA website? Reading Australia is an initiative of the Copyright Agency’s Cultural Fund. The resources are written by teachers for teachers, making it easy to introduce Australian literature in your classroom. Highly recommended.
Pasi Sahlberg, The Guardian, 11 Oct 2021. When teachers are trusted, and a culture of professional collaboration exists, we see an improvement in educational performance. (Education systems that treat teachers as trusted professionals adjusted better to pandemic disruption.)
Dr George Variyan, EduResearch Matters, 2 Spet 2021. Politicians focus on achievement instead of wellbeing. For politicians, academic success, measured by numbers, is always first. If we get wellbeing right, we just might find ourselves on the path to the optimal environment for learning rather than the hyper competitive one that we have.
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