Australian teachers aren’t doing enough to sufficiently engage students in classroom learning, according to university researchers.
The researchers, who assessed the content taught in schools across Victoria and South Australia, found that just under 70 percent of tasks involve superficial learning, that is, simple questions and answers as opposed to comprehensive pedagogy.
Helen Stephenson, an academic specialising in educational outcomes at the University of South Australia, weighed in on the research, claiming that a greater emphasis ought to be placed on engagement in the classroom.
“Deep learning requires the organisation of knowledge into conceptual structures, which we know improves the retention of information and therefore improves learning outcomes. Deep learning also supports knowledge that’s needed for innovations.”
Ms. Stephenson is adamant more of an interactive approach to teaching will better equip students with reasoning ability.
“Interactive engagement in classrooms is where students are involved in activities with other students that stimulate them to develop deeper understanding. They’re making judgements, proposing and critiquing arguments and opinions, and working out solutions to problems,” she said.
Education Standards are Slipping in Australia
The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development’s (OECD) Better Life Index explores the performance of nations based on factors conducive to overall wellbeing, one of which is education.It found that although Australia’s education system is good in terms of attainment, rates of attendance and graduation on their own aren’t reflective of the quality of the education received.
According to the index, Australia currently ranks 17 out of 41 countries based on the average performance of students, behind developmental contemporaries like New Zealand, Poland, Estonia, and Canada. This is despite the fact that 84 percent of Australian adults have completed upper secondary education, higher than the OECD average of 79 percent.
Increased Funding of Australian Education
In 2020-21, public expenditure on schools at both a state and federal level totalled just under $60 billion, an increase from the $51.5 billion in 2017-18 as part of the Gonski 2.0 reforms that will hike total funding to an additional $33 billion in 2029.“Educational attainment rates are below the 2031 agreed targets, average outcomes in national literacy and numeracy testing have improved little, and differences in outcomes across students remain.”
The report also believes governmental arms need to adopt more quantifiable and tangible goals when it comes to educational outcomes.
“A successor agreement should include new targets for academic achievement for all students, and students from priority equity cohorts, with clear benchmarks and timelines. The new targets would help drive reform by drawing attention to key performance measures for which governments are willing to be held to account,” it said.
There is also the reality that subpar education standards at a primary or secondary education level translate into low levels of competency throughout adulthood.
Australia’s most prominent business representative bodies like the Business Council of Australia (BCA) and Australian Industry Group (Ai Group) have become increasingly vocal about workers’ poor abilities related to literacy and numeracy.