6 September 2019

PDF version [240KB]

Dr Shannon Clark
(originally prepared by Marilyn Harrington)
Social Policy Section

This Quick Guide provides links to information about:

• The national policy and administrative framework for school education
• Australian Government funding for schools
• individual schools
• statistical sources—including student achievement statistics and other international statistics
• Indigenous school education
• Australian organisations
• international organisations and overseas education departments and
• state and territory government websites.

National policy and administrative framework

• The Melbourne Declaration on Educational Goals for Young Australians (Melbourne Declaration) agreed to by the Australian Government and state and territory government education ministers in 2008, sets the goals and directions for Australian schooling. A review of the Melbourne Declaration is underway in 2019.
• The Department of Education (DoE) has major responsibility for Australian Government school education programs.
• Australian Government school education programs and funding for Indigenous school students are administered by the National Indigenous Australians Agency, which has primary responsibility for Indigenous affairs, and the Department of Education.
• The Education Council is a standing council of the Council of Australian Governments (COAG). Its membership includes Australian Government and state and territory government education ministers and New Zealand ministers with portfolio responsibility for school education and/or early childhood. It replaced the Standing Council on School Education and Early Childhood (SCSEEC) from 1 July 2014. The Education Council’s website includes an archive of the publications and communiques of the SCSEEC and its predecessors.
• The Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) is responsible for the development of the Australian curriculum, the National Assessment Program, which includes the National Assessment Program—Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN), and national data collection and reporting, which includes My School.
• The National Report on Schooling in Australia, published by ACARA since 2009, provides an overview of school education in Australia, key statistics and funding information. Earlier editions (1989–2008) were published by the Ministerial Council for Education, Early Childhood Development and Youth Affairs (MCEECDYA) and its predecessors and are available on the Education Council’s website.
• The annual Report on Government Services, published by the Productivity Commission, provides an overview of school education in Australia, key statistics and funding information—it provides comparative data for the Australian and state and territory governments.
• The Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL) provides ‘national leadership for the Commonwealth, State and Territory Governments in promoting excellence in the profession of teaching and school leadership’. AITSL has developed standards and provides resources across three focus areas—initial teacher education (including maintaining an accredited programs list), school leadership and teaching.
• School term dates

Australian Government funding for schools

From 2014

• Australian Government funding for schools is provided under the Australian Education Act 2013 (the Act) and the Australian Education Regulation 2013.
• The Act was amended in 2017 and changes to Australian Government school funding arrangements are in place from 2018. DoE’s Quality Schools fact sheets explain the changes and the transitional arrangements in place from 2018.
• The National School Reform Agreement (NSRA) is a joint agreement between the Australian and state and territory governments that sets out strategic reforms to improve student outcomes. The NSRA commenced on 1 January 2019 and ends on 31 December 2023. It is supported by bilateral agreements between the Australian Government and state and territory governments.
• The School Funding Estimator, available on the DoE website, provides estimated Australian Government per student funding for all schools for each year from 2019 to 2021 and for 2029 as well as some brief overall funding information.
• The National School Resourcing Board was established in 2017 to undertake reviews of the Australian Government’s arrangements for school funding. The Board’s first review was the review of the socio-economic status (SES) score methodology. Current reviews are:
  • review of the loading for students with disability and
  • review of needs-based funding requirements.

Further reading—Parliamentary Library publications

• M Harrington, ‘Schools funding legislation passed by Parliament—an update on the amendments’, FlagPost, Parliamentary Library blog, 28 June 2017.
• M Harrington, Australian Education Amendment Bill 2017, Bills digest, 116, 2016–17, Parliamentary Library, Canberra, 2017.
• M Harrington, Funding the National Plan for School Improvement: an explanation, Background note, Parliamentary Library, Canberra, 26 June 2013. Provides information about the Gillard Labor Government school funding arrangements that commenced in 2014. As such, it does not reflect the current school funding arrangements that were implemented in 2018.

Prior to 2014

• M Harrington, Australian Government funding for schools explained: 2013 update, Background note, Parliamentary Library, Canberra, 8 March 2013. Explains the previous funding arrangements and includes a brief history of Australian Government funding for schools and historic funding and statistical information.
• The Report on Financial Assistance Granted to each State in Respect of (year). This annual report provided funding information by program, and a summary of general recurrent and capital grants for individual non-government schools, under the previous systems of Australian Government funding for schools. From 2009, summary information about government schools was not included because of changes in school funding arrangements introduced in 2009. The last issue was for 2013.

Information about individual schools

• The My School website, managed by ACARA, provides information about all schools in Australia and includes key statistical data, financial information and school-wide National Assessment Program–Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) results.
• The Australian Schools List, developed by ACARA, provides an update of all schools and campuses in Australia obtained from state and territory school registration authorities. The information includes school location, school type and school sector attributes.
• The School Funding Estimator, available on the DoE website, provides for all schools estimated Australian Government per student funding for each year from 2019 to 2021 and for 2029 as well as some brief overall funding information.
• M Harrington, Schools by Commonwealth Electoral Division, Parliamentary Library, Canberra. Information includes school name, school type (primary, secondary, combined, special) and address. For non-government schools, campus information and affiliation are also provided. The website includes a list of school enrolments by electorate. (Note: this item is only available to members of Parliament.)

Statistics

• Schools, Australia, published annually by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
• The National Report on Schooling in Australia (year) provides an overview of school education in Australia, key statistics and funding information. Earlier editions (1989–2008) were published by the MCEECDYA and its predecessors.
  • The interactive National Report on Schooling data portal provides access to national data sets for schooling, including key performance measures as specified in the Measurement Framework for Schooling in Australia (2015).
• The annual Report on Government Services, published by the Productivity Commission, provides an overview of school education in Australia, key statistics and funding information—it provides comparative data for the Australian and state and territory governments.
• See also links to Indigenous school education statistical information in the ‘Indigenous school education’ section below.

Student achievement statistics

• The National Assessment Program (NAP), managed by ACARA, includes the annual NAPLAN for students in years 3, 5, 7 and 9 and three-yearly NAP Sample Assessments in Science Literacy, Civics and Citizenship, and Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Literacy.
• The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) is a three-yearly international survey of the reading, mathematics and science capabilities of 15-year-old students.
• Progress in International Reading and Literacy Study (PIRLS), a project of the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA), is a five-yearly international assessment of the reading ability of students in Year 4.
• The Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS), an IEA project, is a four-yearly international survey of the mathematics and science achievement of students in Year 4 and Year 8.

Other international statistics

• Education at a Glance: OECD Indicators provides annual comparative data on the education systems of member and partner countries of the OECD.
• United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Institute for Statistics.

Indigenous school education

• The National Indigenous Australians Agency (NIAA) and the Department of Education administer Australian Government school education programs and funding for Indigenous school students. These include:
  • The NIAA’s Children and Schooling Programme, which provides targeted funding that complements other Australian and state and territory government programs for Indigenous school students and
  • DoE’s needs-based funding for students, including the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander student loading which provides extra funding on top of the base amount for each school student.
• The National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Education Strategy 2015, agreed to by Australian Government and state and territory government education ministers, sets out the principles and priorities for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander education.
• The National Indigenous Reform Agreement (Closing the Gap) (the Agreement) established the education targets for Indigenous Australians. Progress against the targets is reported in the Productivity Commission’s performance assessment report on the Agreement and the Prime Minister’s annual Closing the Gap report.
• Productivity Commission statistical reports:
  • Indigenous Expenditure Report
  • Overcoming Indigenous Disadvantage and
  • Report on Government Services.

Australian organisations

The following are some educational organisations that represent the interests of school education stakeholders and/or undertake research relating to school education. The Australasian Education Directory (available through Informit) provides a comprehensive listing of educational organisations.

• Association of Heads of Independent Schools of Australia
• Australian Council for Educational Research
• Australian Council of Deans of Education
• Australian Council of State School Organisations
• Australian Education Union (AEU)—includes links to state and territory AEU branches and associated bodies
• Australian Parents Council—represents the interests of parents of non-government school students
• Australian Primary Principals Association
• Australian Secondary Principals Association
• Independent Education Union of Australia
• Independent Schools Council of Australia
• National Catholic Education Commission—includes links to state and territory Catholic Education Commissions

International organisations and overseas education departments

International organisations

• The European Commission’s Eurydice Network provides information about, and analysis of, European education systems and policies.
• Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD)—Early Childhood and Schools
• United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)—Education

Overseas education departments

• Canada—the Council of Ministers of Education, Canada is an intergovernmental body of the Canadian provincial ministers of education. It provides links to the education ministries of each Canadian province. Note: there is no federal education department.
• China—Ministry of Education
• Great Britain—Department for Education
• New Zealand—Ministry of Education
• OECD—list of education ministries of member countries. Note: not all information will be in English.
• Singapore—Ministry of Education
• United States:
  • federal Department of Education—includes links to state education departments
  • Education Commission of the States provides access to information about federal and state education policies, legislation, research and statistics.

State and territory government websites

Australian Capital Territory (ACT)

• Find an ACT school
• Education Directorate
• ACT Board of Senior Secondary Studies
• ACT Teacher Quality Institute

New South Wales (NSW)

• Find a NSW government school
• Find a NSW non-government school
• Department of Education
• NSW Education Standards Authority—includes responsibility for non-government schools.

Northern Territory (NT)

• Find a NT school
• Department of Education
• Northern Territory Board of Studies
• Teacher Registration Board of the Northern Territory

Queensland

• Find a Queensland school
• Department of Education
• Queensland College of Teachers
• Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority

South Australia (SA)

• Find a SA school
• Department for Education and Child Development
• South Australian Certificate of Education (SACE Board of SA)
• Teachers Registration Board of South Australia

Tasmania

• Find a Tasmanian school
• Department of Education
• Office of Tasmanian Assessment, Standards and Certification
• Teachers Registration Board of Tasmania

Victoria

• Find a Victorian school
• Department of Education and Training
• Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority
• Victorian Institute of Teaching

Western Australia (WA)

• Find a WA government school
• Find a WA non-government school—Catholic schools and independent schools
• Department of Education
• School Curriculum and Standards Authority
• Teacher Registration Board of Western Australia

 

For copyright reasons some linked items are only available to members of Parliament.

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