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TEACHING
PROFESSION
Relief teaching preferred
stuff.co.nz, 31 Mar 2017
 Experienced teachers are preferring relief
teaching in order to avoid the increasing unpaid burden
associated with regular teaching roles, a New Zealand principal
observes...
 WILD
WEATHER
The weather closure issues
The Conversation (opinion by Brendon Hyndman), 31 Mar 2017
The closure of schools in the face of bad weather
raises a range of issues for schools to consider in minimising
the consequent impact on student performance, an academic
writes...
 GULLIBILITY
April Fool's Day cancelled this
year
The Conversation (opinion by Joseph Paul Forgas), 31 Mar 2017
Tomorrow's April Fool's Day
called off? Did we catch you with that headline? This
Conversation article explores the concept of
gullibility, commenting on its use in fake news and on how
education can counter its effectiveness...
ANIMALS IN EDUCATION
Range of uses for emotional
support animals
The Conversation (opinion by Jacqueline Boyd), 30 Mar 2017
 The use of dogs, guinea pigs,
horses, dolphins and other non-judgmental creatures in helping
children with autism, intellectual disabilities, and special
educational, therapeutic and social needs is becoming
widespread...
NSW/Qld weather
latest
(ABC News, 31 Mar 2017)
 STEM
Entertainment science the answer?
ABC News, 30 Mar 2017
Some scientists believe that
increased engagement and entertainment are keys to arresting the
declining student STEM participation that was highlighted in
last week's National Scientific Statement...
 STUDENT SUPPORT AND WELLBEING
Alarm over Tas teens' wellbeing
ABC News, 30 Mar 2017
A report by Tasmania's
children's commissioner, Mark Morrissey, draws attention to the
state's high levels of teenage suicide, pregnancy, use of
illicit substances, alcohol abuse and tooth decay ...
 EARLY
CHILDHOOD
B4 Early Years Coalition leaders
named
Tas Govt media release, 28 Mar 2017
The members
of the state government's B4 Early Years Coalition, to be
co-chaired by Elizabeth Daly and Mark Morrissey, have been
announced...
FINANCIAL LITERACY
Finance education needed as money
becomes invisible
news.com.au, 27 Mar 2017
 Parents are under pressure to
give their children practical lessons in finance as money flows
become less apparent due to the use of technology...
CURRICULUM
Preparation for life deficient
educatoronline.com.au, 27 Mar 2017
Victorian-based Mitchell International and a
group of community leaders say schools are not adequately
preparing students for a world of frequently-changing jobs and
automation...
 EXTENSION TO YEARS 11 AND 12
Flinders Island to get Years 11
and 12
Tas Govt media release, 27 Mar 2017
Flinders Island District High
School will be extended to Years 11 and 12 from 2018, Bass MHA
Sarah Courtney said today...
TASMANIAN POLITICS
Attorney-General seriously ill
ABC News , 25 Mar 2017
The Attorney-General, Vanessa
Goodwin, has been hospitalised with brain tumours. Premier Will
Hodgman says he will take on her ministerial portfolios...
Distressing news, Will Hodgman, Premier, 25 Mar 2017
Extraordinarily sad news, Rebecca White, Opposition leader,
25 Mar 2017
Politics put aside, ABC News, 26 Mar 2017
Family statement, Tas Govt media release, 26 Mar 2017
Vanessa Goodwin posts message, 29 Mar 2017
SCHOOL
PHILANTHROPY
Coding event latest Schools Plus
success
ABC News, 25 Mar 2017
 Schools Plus is a
charity that enables large tax deductible gifts to be directed
towards government schools in need of extra support...
 TASMANIAN SCHOOLS
Devonport High tender
Tas Govt media release, 25 Mar 2017
A tender for
upgrades to facilities for Years 11 and 12 at Devonport High
School has been advertised, Braddon MHA Adam Brooks announced...
GEOGRAPHY
"Distorted" map reflects reality
better
The Guardian, 24 Mar 2017
The Boston (US) school district is the first to
dump classroom maps based on the traditional Mercator projection
in favour of the Gall-Peters projection which more accurately
makes Europe and North America smaller and Africa and South
America larger and more elongated. [More disconcertingly, it
makes Tasmania smaller.]...
FOREIGN LANGUAGES
Which foreign languages should
students learn today?
The Conversation (opinion by Warren Midgley), 24 Mar 2017
 The main
foreign languages taught today vary widely from state to state
but, in any case, which are the best ones for students to learn
these days?...
TASMANIA
Population rises
Tas Govt media release, 23 Mar 2017
 Tasmania's population has
reached 519,783, the rise coming from a natural increase,
overseas migration and, unusually, a positive net inflow from interstate...
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
London terrorist attack
ABC News, 23 Mar 2017
 An attacker
driving a car has run down people on London's Westminster Bridge
and stabbed a police officer in the Parliament House precinct,
resulting in four deaths and 40 people injured...
 EDUCATION FUNDING
Survey says schools
under-resourced
The Examiner, 23 Mar 2017
An Australian Education Union
survey shows that the proportion of principals who believe
schools are under-resourced is greatest in Tasmania...
 LITERACY
Dogged listeners
The Conversation (opinion by Gill Johnson), 22 Mar 2017
Although strong evidence is currently lacking, the use of
reading assistance dogs appears to have the potential to help
young struggling readers...
 TASMANIAN SCHOOLS
New Dunalley Primary opened
Tas Govt media release, 22 Mar 2017
The rebuilt Dunalley Primary
School was opened today by the Minister for Education and
Training, Jeremy Rockliff...
 ANZAC
COMMEMORATIONS
Simpson Prize winners announced
Tas Govt media release, 22 Mar 2017
Two students from St
Patrick's College, Launceston, were the Tasmanian winner and
runner-up in the Simpson Prize awards following their research
on soldiers who fought at the Western Front...
LITERACY
Pause for thought over serial
commas
The Conversation (opinion by Roslyn Petelin), 21 Mar 2017
 The outcome of a US lawsuit has
strengthened the case for using the
serial
comma, to the consternation of many people...
 HEALTH
EpiPens recalled
ABC News, 21 Mar 2017
Four batches of EpiPens, all with April 2017 expiry
dates, have been recalled as they may contain a defective part...
 STUDENT SUPPORT
Learning difficulties program
questioned
ABC News, 21 Mar 2017
There is no definitive proof of the effectiveness of the
expensive Arrowsmith program which claims to change the brains of
students with dyslexia by using neuroplasticity exercises, experts
warn...
HEALTH AND NUTRITION
Bread and wraps salt alarm
The Conversation (opinion by Clare Farrand and Jacqui
Webster), 21 Mar 2017
 Many breads and wraps contain
far more salt than people realise, exposing them to increased
risk of high blood
pressure, heart disease and stroke, two researchers from the
George Institute for Global Health write...
Salt awareness needed
over bread in school lunches, SBS, 21 Mar 2017
 CURRICULUM
Fake news testing looms
The Telegraph (UK), 20 Mar 2017
The OECD will expand its global
testing of 15-year-olds next year to measure the ability of
students to distinguish between fake news and real news...
Schools should teach pupils how
to spot 'fake news', BBC News, 18 Mar 2017
 TASMANIAN SCHOOLS
Upgrade tenders
stuff.co.nz, 18 Mar 2017
Tenders have been advertised for
upgraded facilities at the following schools:
 Somerset Primary
Trevallyn Primary
Deloraine Primary...
SEX EDUCATION
Who's teaching consent?
stuff.co.nz, 18 Mar 2017
The issue of the
responsibilities of schools and parents to teach young people
about sexual consent has been the focus of a public
demonstration by New Zealand students and comments by a variety
of New Zealand academics...
Schools already teach
about sexual consent, stuff.co.nz, 14 Mar 2017
Teaching sexual consent is the responsibility of parents, not
teachers, stuff.co.nz (source: Dominican Post), 18 Mar 2017
CYBERSAFETY
eSmart Schools named
Tas Govt media release, 17 Mar 2017
 Twenty-three government schools will trial the eSmart
Schools program to promote student cybersafety in partnership
with the Alannah and Madeline Foundation, education minister
Jeremy Rockliff says...
$157,000 pa anti-cyberbullying program
launched at Port Sorell Primary, The Advocate, 17 Mar 2017
Longford Primary, Deloraine High tackle bullying, The
Examiner, 18 Mar 2017
TASMANIAN POLITICS
Bryan Green resigns
ABC News, 17 Mar 2017
 
Tasmanian Opposition leader Bryan Green has
resigned as the leader of the Parliamentary Labor Party, and has
been replaced as party leader and hence as Opposition leader by
Rebecca White...
Green resigns, The Examiner, 17 Mar
2017
Bryan Green resigns, The Mercury, 17 Mar 2017
Public education continues to be a priority, says Rebecca White,
ABC News, 17 Mar 2017
EARLY CHILDHOOD
Childcare consultation continues
Tas Govt media release, 16 Mar 2017
Michael White, Director of MW
Group Consulting, has been appointed to assist in the state
government's consultation with the early childhood and childcare
sector over the change to a lower school starting age...
SEXUAL ABUSE
Another teacher charged
ABC News, 16 Mar 2017
 Another former Collegiate teacher has been charged
with maintaining a sexual relationship with a student. The
charge relates to the 1990s and the teacher has pleaded guilty...
What did the school know?, ABC News, 21 Mar 2017
STUDENT BEHAVIOUR
Kids behaving badly: Tassie the worst
ABC News, 16 Mar 2017
 Australian classroom discipline
is a "problematic situation" according to the Programme for
International Student Assessment's
PISA 2015 [pdf] report, with Tasmania having
the worst disciplinary climate in science (the subject used as a
sample) classrooms of all the states (page 279)...
PISA 2015: Reporting Australia's Results [pdf]
BULLYING
The reluctance to ask for help
The Conversation (opinion by Kenneth Rigby), 16 Mar 2017
There are many possible reasons why bullied students
do not ask for assistance from teachers, but for those who speak
up there is a variety of interventions a teacher can undertake,
an academic writes...
Bullying interventions in
schools: Six major approaches [doc file], Ken Rigby
STUDENT HEALTH
Four meningococcal cases this year
ABC News, 15 Mar 2017
 People in contact with a
Gagebrook Primary student with meningococcal disease have been
given antibiotics as a precaution, as Tasmania records its
fourth victim this year compared with five for the whole of last
year...
SCIENCE EDUCATION
Tassie top state in science improvement
ACARA, 15 Mar 2017
 Tasmanian students have shown
the best improvement in science literacy according to ACARA's
National Assessment Program - Science Literacy
assessments...
Australian students fall in science and mathematics, ABC
News, 15 Mar 2017
More
engagement in science needed, The Conversation (opinion by
Russell Tytler and Vaughan Prain), 15 Mar 2017
But scientific literacy in Tasmania significantly lower than
OECD average,
PISA 2015 report
EQUALITY OF OPPORTUNITY
Reducing social segregation is the key
The Conversation (opinion by Laura Perry), 15 Mar 2017
 Educational disadvantage is
unfortunately a characteristic of Australia's education system
but it can be countered by reducing school social segregation,
an academic writes...
 STUDENT HEALTH
Screentime diabetes link
The Guardian, 14 Mar 2017
Children who engage in three or
more hours per day of screen time are more likely to have higher
body fat and (unwanted) higher insulin resistance than those who
spend less than one hour per day, a UK study shows...
 EDUCATIONAL
COMPUTING
Behaviour-monitoring apps spark student privacy fears
ABC News, 13 Mar 2017
Apps that enable teachers and
parents to monitor student behaviour and performance are raising
concerns over the invasion of students' privacy...
 TEACHING PROFESSION
Literacy test spells doom for teacher hopefuls
Aust Govt media release, 11 Mar 2017
Almost five per cent of initial
teacher education students did not meet the minimum standards of
the Literacy and Numeracy Test for Initial Education Students in
2016, federal education minister Simon Birmingham says ...
 MAINLAND POLITICS
Labor the winner in WA poll
ABC News, 11 Mar 2017
A major swing away from the Liberal Party and to the
Labor Party and One Nation in the Western Australian election
has given government to the ALP...
CURRICULUM
Design and Technology plummets
The Telegraph, 10 Mar 2017
Design and Technology is no longer offered at GCSE
level by almost half of Britain's schools, while 18 per cent of
schools have dropped Art and Music in the last year...
 LITERACY
Paper preferred over screens
The Conversation (opinion by Margaret Kristin Merga and
Salyidi Mat Roni), 10 Mar 2017
Research shows that kids prefer
to read from traditional paper pages than the screens of ebooks,
two academics write...
COMPUTER SECURITY
Wikileaks CIA device hacks claim
ABC News, 8 Mar 2017
 Wikileaks says it has revealed
how the CIA can hack into common devices such as smart TV sets,
iphones and computers...
Can the CIA listen to
YOU? How to tell if YOUR Samsung smart TV can be hacked, wired.com, 7 Mar 2017
 COMPUTER PROGRAMMING
Coding for girls promoted
ABC News, 8 Mar 2017
Finnish computer programmer
Linda Luikas is in Australia encouraging girls to acquire
computer coding skills...
MY SCHOOL
NAPLAN data out now
ABC News, 8 Mar 2017
 The latest NAPLAN data and other information
comparing schools and showing changes for individual schools is
now on the federal government's My School website...
My School website
 PREMIER'S ADDRESS TO PARLIAMENT
Education the key
Tas Govt media release, 7 Mar 2017
The Premier, Will Hodgman, said
in an address to Parliament called Building
Tasmania's Future that education is a government
priority and is the key to Tasmania's future...
No environment vision in
Premier's speech, Cassy O'Connor, Greens leader, 7 Mar
2017
 YEARS 9-12
Years 9-12 report released
Tas Govt media release, 7 Mar 2017
Education minister Jeremy Rockliff has released the
report Review of Years 9
to 12 in Tasmania
 which was specially commissioned from
ACER...
Download
Review of Years 9 to 12 in Tasmania [pdf], 23 Dec 2017
STATE GOVERNMENT
Government's 2017 "deliverables"
laid out
Tas Govt media release, 6 Mar 2017
The state government has published a list of its
spending, legislative and other actions it plans to undertake
during 2017, grouping them under the headings Jobs and Economic
Growth, Health and Education, and Supporting Tasmanians in Need...
Download
Deliverables 2017 [pdf]
TASMANIAN SCHOOLS
Lenah Valley tender advertised
Tas Govt media release, 4 Mar 2017
A tender for redevelopment works
at Lenah Valley Primary School was advertised today...
 TASMANIAN STUDENTS
TAFE awards announced
Tas Govt media release, 3 Mar 2017
The winners of the 2016 TAFE Student Excellence
Awards have been announced by education minister Jeremy Rockliff...
TasTAFE student
excellence awards announced, The Examiner, 3 Mar 2017
TASMANIAN SCHOOLS
Queechy students national F1
winners
Tas Govt media release, 3 Mar 2017
A five-member all-female team
of Queechy High School students were named National Champions in
the Professional Class at the F1 in Schools National Final held
in Adelaide...
FREEDOM OF SPEECH
Raising Boys author
raises storm
ABC News, 2 Mar 2017
 Parenting expert Steve Biddulph
has withdrawn from a Tasmanian conference on the grounds that a
DoE contract clause would have restricted his freedom of speech,
sparking intervention by the Premier and claims by the
Opposition that a culture of secrecy exists within government...
Rockliff must investigate
attempted gag, Andrea Dawkins, Greens education
spokesperson, 2 Mar 2017
Government must reveal source of gag, Michelle O'Byrne,
Opposition education spokesperson, 3 Mar 2017
 GONSKI FUNDING
Gonski resuscitation
ABC News, 1 Mar 2017
The Australian Education Union has
begun a bus tour campaign to save the Gonski program, saying
that the federal government is tying education funding to
compliance with reforms rather than prioritising the needs of
students...
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