Minnis Journals

ET News Digest

Your Weekly Education Newsletter

Teachers left out of proposed school curriculum change consultations
The government’s planned changes to the curriculum have failed to involve teachers in their formulation and the worry is that implementing the changes will leave teaching staff short-handed and overwhelmed.
A leaked report proposes introduction of learning progressions and online formative assessment across 15 areas of the curriculum which will be very hard to implement and perhaps of little use. Read more

Cyberbullies tracked and smashed with new tool
Nasty personal attacks on social media networks like Instagram can be tracked and smashed with a new digital tool.
Developed by CU Boulder'sCyberSafety Research Center, the software combines several different computing tools to scan massive amounts of social media data, sending alerts to parents or network administrators that abuse has occurred and uses five times less computing resources than existing tools. Read more

St. Bernard’s Primary finds evidence boosts learning
It took some doing, but by taking time to have a good look at what was happening at St. Bernard’s Primary in Melbourne, the school has set itself on course for a more responsive, informed way of teaching and learning.
We’re all supposed to be using data to underpin practice but the problem is how. Having structure and intention is essential and St. Bernard’s has found these through John Hattie’s Visible Learning program Impact Process in partnership with Corwin. Read more

It pays to learn what you can claim at tax time
While tax can be boring, refunds aren’t and it’s useful to know what you can and can’t claim so that return is as nice and fat as possible.
To claim a deduction for work-related expenses you must have spent the money yourself and weren’t reimbursed, it must be directly related to earning your income and you must have a record to prove it. You can only claim the work-related part of expenses. Read more

Don't rush SES changes
If there are changes to be made to the way SES is calculated following the National School Resourcing Board (NSRB) review, rigorous testing and observation should be carried out before anything is done says the The Independent Schools Council of Australia (ISCA).
The council stresses that any new methodology to appraise SES must produce accurate, valid information at the school level and be evenly applied to all non-government schools. Read more

Six $5000 NGS Super Scholarship Awards to be won
Applications are now open for the 2018 NGS Super Scholarship Awards which offers six $5000 scholarships to its members working in independent education.
Winners can undertake professional development or a project or initiative and entrants like Mark Fielding have knocked the lights out, using the funds to support an established partnership with two small, remote indigenous schools located in the East Kimberley. Read more

Better training for rural school principals needed
Principals in the bush face a specific set of challenges and conditions and their training needs to reflect that.
Professional development to equip them to deal with address incidents of domestic violence, juvenile justice, mental health and issues relating to indigenous students, in addition to student learning should be a priority.
Read more