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 AUSTRALIAN
CURRICULUM
Teach Mid East politics in schools
SBS, 30 Jun 2015
The Australian
Strategic Policy Institute says schools should teach students more
about Middle East politics to help prevent radicalisation...
 AUSTRALIAN
CURRICULUM
Teach meditation in schools
The Conversation (opinion by
Lea Waters), 29 Jun 2015
Teaching meditation,
such as the popular "mindfulness" meditation, would improve the
well-being, social skills and academic skills of students, a
professor of positive psychology says ...
Mindfulness meditation can
have troubling side effects, The Guardian, 26 Aug 2014
 STUDENT
SUPPORT
Routine inclusion questioned
The Conversation (opinion by
Rachael Sharman), 28 Jun 2015
Inclusion in
regular classrooms of students with a disability might not always be
in the best interests of the included student, a lecturer in
psychology posits...
TEACHER
EDUCATION
Basic skills test for student
teachers
Courier Mail, 28 Jun 2015
 Teacher
education students are about to be given an education-flavoured
literacy and numeracy test. Would you get these five
sample questions correct?...
National literacy and
numeracy test for teaching graduates, Christopher Pyne, Minister for
Education, 28 Jun 2015
No test in Tasmania until 2016, The Examiner, 28 Jun 2015
AUSTRALIAN
CURRICULUM
Add mindfulness to curriculum
HeraldSun, 28 Jun 2015
Including mindfulness in the
Personal Development, Health and Physical Education curriculum would
boost students' confidence, self-esteem and performance, mindfulness
specialist teacher Rachael Fisher says...
 STUDENT
SAFETY AND LITIGATION
Cotton wool playgrounds?
The Conversation (opinion by
Brendon Hyndman), 25 Jun 2015
Playgrounds are changing and
children's play is becoming increasingly restricted as schools face
rising fears of litigation over student injuries...
Father sues school after
playing son crashes into wall, 3AW, 5 Jun 2015
STUDENT
DISCIPLINE
One in 22 students suspended
The Mercury, 24 Jun 2015
 One in 22 students in
Tasmanian government schools were suspended last year, for an
average total of a little over three days each...
Reparations and therapeutic
services needed after suspensions, ABC News, 24 Jun 2015
SCHOOL
FUNDING
No fees for government
schools, says Abbott
news.com.au, 22 Jun 2015
 The Prime Minister, Tony Abbott, has
ruled out the possibility of a federal government requiring
government schools to impose school fees on wealthier parents, but
he has not ruled out preventing the states from doing so...
Tasmania's Minister for
Education and Training, Jeremy Rockliff, says the Tasmanian
government would not require wealthier parents of government school
students to pay extra fees. (ABC News, 22 Jun 2015)
ALTERNATIVE SCHOOLS
Bold new high school plan
couriermail.com.au,
22 Jun 2015
 A radical plan for Adelaide's disadvantaged
Fremont-Elizabeth City High School will see year levels replaced by
academic progress groupings, emphasis on problem solving and real
world applications, failing students transferred to specialist
support teams, learning blocks of up to 80 minutes, extra Year 6-7
transition arrangements, opening hours from 8.00am to 5.00pm, and a
lot more...
 STUDENT
DISCIPLINE
Hold on to ice students
The Age, 19 Jun 2015
Schools should refrain from suspending or
expelling students who take or sell ice because throwing them back
into the community would only compound the problem, a group of Victorian principals
has been told by a youth worker...
 TEACHING
PROFESSION
Last chance to nominate
The Mercury, 18 Jun 2015
Nominations of teachers,
principals, other staff and volunteers for the Education Department
and RBF awards for excellence close this Sunday...
Awards Program, DoE website
 SPORT
Athletics champion Ron Clarke
dies
ABC News, 17 Jun 2015
Olympian Ron Clarke has died on the Gold Coast aged 78...
EDUCATION
POLICIES
Teachers matter, not smaller
class sizes
SMH, 16 Jun 2015
 The allocation of students to particular
teachers is more relevant in determining educational outcomes than
distractions such as class size and performance pay, Professor John
Hattie from the Melbourne Education Research Institute says...
What Doesn't Work in Education: The
Politics of Distraction, Pearson website
EDUCATIONAL SOFTWARE
Very few preschool apps
actually educate kids
HeraldSun, 16 Jun 2015
 Less than 6 per cent
of popular preschool tablet apps promoted as "educational" could be
said to use theories of early childhood education, a Swinburne study
shows ...
 SPORT
New basketball record set
The Advocate, 15 Jun 2015
A new record basketball shot of 126.5 metres has been
set from the top of the
Gordon River Dam in Tasmania. Watch the video...
YOUTH
EMPLOYMENT
O'Byrne takes on new Beacon
position
The Mercury, 15 Jun 2015
 Former minister David O'Byrne has
been appointed Chief Operating Officer of the Beacon Foundation...
THE
CURRICULUM
Teach about all religions
Border Mail, 13 Jun 2015
Making it
compulsory for students to learn about all religions would help
defeat terrorism and religious extremism, an academic and peace
activist says...
 TEACHING
PROFESSION
Morale low
The Examiner, 12 Jun 2015
Larger classes and reduced
resources were causing low morale among staff, and principals in
particular, an unnamed Tasmanian principal says...
CAREER
EDUCATION
Pathway Planners replacement
progresses
Tas Govt media release, 12 Jun 2015
 Under the DoE's My Education
program Kuder
Visions Unlimited has been selected to provide an online K-12 career planning
and support tool for students and teachers, education minister Jeremy Rockliff announced today...
TASMANIAN
EDUCATION SYSTEM
Hothouse ideas released
Hothouse website,
11 Jun 2015
 The top 12 education-enhancing ideas
from the Mofo Hothouse sessions have been placed on the Hothouse's
website...
Break the mindset, The Mercury, 13 Jun 2015
12 ways we can play it smart, The Mercury, 14 Jun 2015
 EXTENDING
HIGH SCHOOLS
Expensive Year 11 students
TasLabor website, 10 Jun 2015
The additional 56 Year 11 students
resulting from the state government's expenditure of $7 million on
extending high schools beyond Year 10 amounts to around $125,000 per
student, Opposition education spokesperson Michelle O'Byrne said
today...
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Diplomas for teacher
assistants
Tas Govt media release, 10 Jun 2015
 Up to 50 teacher assistants will be able to enrol for the
Diploma of Education Support through the DoE's
Professional Learning
Institute, education minister Jeremy Rockliff said today...
ROAD
SAFETY AND CYCLING
Primary kids get bike safety
program
 Tas Govt media release, 10 Jun 2015
The Ride2School program from Bicycle Networks has been
provided with $100,000 to encourage primary school students to ride
bicycles and to do it safely...
REVIEW OF
THE EDUCATION ACT
Public forums loom
Tas Govt media release, 10 Jun 2015
 Community
consultation following submissions to the review of the Tasmanian
Education Act will be held in Hobart, Launceston, Devonport and
Burnie from 27 to 31 July 2015...
Reviewing Tasmania's Education Act website
TEACHING
PROFESSION
Barred from exam over wrong
socks
The Age, 10 Jun 2015
 A Victorian Year 11 student was turned away from an
English exam because she was wearing the wrong brand of socks...
STUDENT
SAFETY
Playground accidents fear continues
The Age, 9 Jun 2015
Coinciding with reports of schools
removing play equipment to play safe and increasing playtime
supervision, schools are promoting student accident insurance and
the Victorian Education Department is reminding parents that it does
not cover the medical costs of injured students in the absence of
negligence...
TASMANIAN
ELECTIONS
Andrea Dawkins elected
ABC News, 9 Jun 2015
 As expected, the countback of
Bass votes following the resignation of Greens leader Kim Booth has
resulted in Greens candidate Andrea Dawkins receiving sufficient
votes to be elected...
SCHOOL
CURRICULUM
Teach the local Aboriginal language
The Conversation
(opinion), 8 Jun 2015
 Unlike the success story in New
Zealand, Australian schools have not embraced the teaching of
Indigenous languages, probably because there are so many Aboriginal
languages and dialects...
 STUDENT
HEALTH AND NUTRITION
Healthy sign
The Mercury, 7 Jun 2015
Tasmania
has the highest proportion of school canteens with healthy eating
accreditation, the Tasmanian School Canteen Association says ...
SCHOOL
CLOSURES
Parents support local school
The Mercury, 7 Jun 2015
 Edith Creek Primary School's parents
are rallying to support retention of their local school, but
education minister Jeremy Rockliff has reiterated that schools
recommended for closure by the Auditor-General will not be forced to
close...
Small rural schools provide a function and a quality of education
not appropriately measured by the Auditor-General's metrics, The
Mercury (opinion by Prof. Michael Corbett), 6 Jun 2015
THE
CURRICULUM
Make school camps compulsory
The Examiner, 6 Jun 2015
 Sufficient
funding should be provided to enable school camps to be made
compulsory thereby ensuring disadvantaged students in particular
benefit from the social development skills such camps provide, state
AEU president Terry Polglase says...
STUDENT
SAFETY
Cottonwool kids danger
The Mercury, 6 Jun 2015
The developing risk-averse culture
in schools is breeding 'cottonwool kids', a study by the Charles
Darwin University says...
TASMANIAN
EDUCATION SYSTEM
Hothouse ideas emerge
The Advocate, 4 Jun 2015
Ideas from the Dark Mofo Hothouse session on Wednesday include
engaging parents in education and re-engaging students with
education...
See also ideas contributed on the
MOFO Hothouse Project website
 LOCAL
GIOVERNMENT
Dorset mayor dies
ABC News, 4 Jun 2015
The mayor of the Dorset Council, Barry Jarvis,
has died in a car accident, apparently after suffering a medical
incident...
BUDGET
REPLY SPEECH
Greens would restore teacher numbers
Tas Greens website,
2 Jun 2015
 Greens Treasury spokesperson Nick McKim says in
the Greens' Alternative Budget Statement that the Greens would
restore teacher numbers to counter the cuts of approximately 200 FTE
positions...
Tasmanian Greens 2015/16 Alternative Budget Statement [pdf], Tas
Greens website [If file does not load, use link in
media release]
Restore teacher numbers, reform health, The Examiner, 2 May 2015
BUDGET
REPLY SPEECH
Budget Reply speech delivered
TasLabor website, 2
Jun 2015
Labor leader Bryan Green focused on innovation in his
Budget Reply speech. The education-related policies had
already been announced:
establish the
Tasmanian Education Partnership
build at least two more
Child and Family Centres
promote the participation
of
children in organised sport
restrict the availability of
sugary drinks and e-cigarettes
...
Building an economy for the future [pdf], TasLabor website
Bryan Green spruiks AFL academy and electric transport, The
Mercury, 2 May 2015
TASMANIAN
EDUCATION SYSTEM
Partnership would be above politics
The Mercury, 1 Jun 2015
 Opposition leader Bryan Green says upon election
to government Labor would create the Tasmanian Education
Partnership in which all stakeholders would consider
and recommend education initiatives, taking a bottom-up rather than
a top-down approach...
Tasmanian Education Partnership policy announced, TasLabor
website, 31 May 2015
Tasmanian Education Partnership [pdf], TasLabor website, 31 May
2015
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