Archived News for Education Sector Professionals

School principals in WA will have their normal last-day-of-school celebrations interrupted, as the Government has decided to give them their 2015 budgets just hours before the school year ends.

Ten ways humanity got it right this year

The journal Science has picked its top ten scientific achievements of the year, highlighting some incredible breakthroughs of 2014.

Virtual link to vital studies sees science going rural

Queensland experts are helping more young minds get an insight into the endless possibilities of a career in maths and science.

Willingness trumps knowingness in school success

New studies suggest personality is more important than intelligence when it comes to success in education.

New course could be one step in NT's quest

A new program will see more teachers trained to face the growing shortage in the Northern Territory.

Severed connections could see cracks grow

Budget cuts will leave hundreds of vulnerable teenagers at risk of falling through the cracks, insiders say.

Centre to study critters, creeks and matters of the North

Experts say they are keen to start using newly-announced Federal Government money for research projects across northern Australia.

Sick stats show real rate of faking

Up to 43 per cent of workers aged 18-24 admitted to faking a sick day in the past 12 months, according to an online poll of 1,035 Australian workers.

Bad seems good in fallacy of maths

New research shows many who claim they are “good” at maths actually aren’t, demonstrating once again the incredible power of self-delusion.

Pyne backs NAPLAN after latest report launched

The Federal Education Minister has repeated his support for the NAPLAN scheme.

Teeth and beaks plotted to end old question

The phrase “rare as hen’s teeth” would have made little sense until 116 million years ago, as new research shows up to then many birds had a full set of pearly whites.

Top teachers take prizes

The Australian Awards for University Teaching 2014 have been handed out, highlighting the value of some truly outstanding teachers.

Viking tale twisted by female DNA

Norwegian researchers have discovered new information that shows Viking settlements may have been much more progressive than many believe.

Memories kept behind millions of mental doors

It is annoying when a random piece of information seems to push an important one out of our memory – but researchers say there is so much space that this is almost impossible.

Online tests hardly worth the saliva they require

The National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) says that cheap genetic tests ordered online are like everything else purchased that way – sub-standard, unhelpful and likely misleading.

City's toxic playgrounds pinned on iron trade

Potentially toxic levels of lead, arsenic, nickel and cadmium have been found on playground equipment at several public parks in Queensland.

Childcare shift to stop dodgy swaps

The Federal Government says it will take decisive action to stop dodgy family day care services exploiting “legislative loopholes”, costing taxpayers millions.

Early talk sets scene for later behaviour

Researchers say long-term social, behavioural and educational impacts can come from poor language skills among disadvantaged children.

A small win in a rough week for Education Minister Christopher Pyne, with the passage of legislation aimed at improving the effectiveness of the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA).