Latest National news

Police question GP over "lethal dose" to help patient die

Richard Baker, Nick McKenzie 11:04 PM   Nagambie doctor Alan Kosky did not want to his elderly patients to suffer. But police, the coroner and now federal health officials are probing his provision of end of life care amid concern some patients were not terminal.

Centrelink clients' nightmare before Christmas

Blue Mountains mother Rosa Pascoe said her daughter's birthday was ruined when her regular disability benefit payment failed to arrive.

Noel Towell 10:37 PM   Department says online welfare glitches are over, but clients still nervous.

Doubled up: sisters get identical ATAR

Karen Zhang, left, got 99.95 in her ATAR this year - the same mark as her sister, Kim.

Eryk Bagshaw 7:28 PM   "First I stole your rank, then I stole your ATAR, finally I stole your university."

Demetriou company Acquire Learning accused of unconscionable conduct

Acquire Learning executive chairman Andrew Demetriou.

Michael Bachelard 7:20 PM   Former AFL chief Andrew Demetriou's vocational education company Acquire Learning has been accused of unconscionable conduct, making false or misleading representations and breaching consumer law after selling government-funded courses to tens of thousands of job-seekers.

Hundreds of ATO bosses get 3% pay rise

A new wage deal for ATO employees has been crushed in a staff ballot.

Noel Towell 5:52 PM   Generous wage rise comes hours after deal for rank-and-file public servants rejected deal in a landslide.

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The school where being a nerd is cool

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Alexandra Smith 4:37 PM   At Menai High School this year's HSC students were encouraged to embrace their inner nerd. In fact, the more nerdy they were, the better.

Acquire Learning accused of misleading students

Andrew Demetriou is on the advisory board of Acquire Learning.

Sarah Danckert 3:45 PM   Education company Acquire Learning & Careers has been accused of taking advantage of vulnerable students by the competition regulator. 

HSC Results 2015: NSW students get their ATARs

HEADSHOT FOR ONLINE L-R Sophia Henning, Caitlin Semsarian and Pola Cohen, in Australian Technology Park, came first in History in their HSC, in Sydney. 15th December 2015 Photo: Janie Barrett

Eryk Bagshaw 3:17 PM   Live: The wait is over for HSC students across the state as their final rank, the ATAR, is released

Adoption rates slump, Australians wait years to adopt overseas children

Adoption.

Benjamin Preiss 2:55 PM   Adoption rates in Australia have hit a record low and prospective parents are waiting more than five years to adopt overseas children.

APS wage deal for 4400 falls short by 62 votes

The public service has been warned against too much outsourcing.

Noel Towell 11:52 AM   New wage offer falls short by just 62 votes

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One school's stunning HSC result

The top 20 tends to be dominated by selective schools and high-fee independent schools.

Inga Ting 10:23 AM   In the contest for overall rankings, one school rocketed up the chart - but it wasn't the only big improver.

Check your ATAR

Exam.

10:12 AM   While students will receive their university rank on Wednesday, most will not receive their first round offers, which do not come out until January.

Selective and private girls' schools dominate HSC

Private girls' schools have shone in the 2015 HSC results.

Inga Ting and Eryk Bagshaw 8:56 AM   Selective and all-girls schools dominated the 2015 HSC, but one learning centre stood above the rest.

Top schools: all the VCE data on Victorian schools

VCE students from Nossal High school celebrate the completion of year 12 and the school's VCE ranking.

Henrietta Cook, Timna Jacks and Craig Butt 1:00 AM   Increasingly, parents select schools for their children based on VCE and NAPLAN data. Here, you can find Victorian schools, the programs they offer and data on their students' VCE achievements for 2015.

Rudd's my candidate for UN chief: Nobel Prize winner

Dr Jose Ramos-Horta, then president of East Timor, and then prime minister Kevin Rudd in Canberra in 2010.

Daniel Flitton 11:15 PM   Jose Ramos Horta - Nobel prize winner and global face of East Timor's long struggle for independence - is backing former prime minister Kevin Rudd to become the next chief of the United Nations.

HSC Results 2015: Top 20 HSC schools revealed

Students who came first in their HSC subjects at Australian Technology Park on Tuesday.

Inga Ting and Eryk Bagshaw   Selective schools and high-fee-paying, all-girls schools have dominated the 2015 HSC results.

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Culture shock as Canberra's institutions take Hollywood hit

The National Library of Australia, having recorded a $10 million deficit in the last financial year,  will have to trim $1.5 million from each year's funding.

Noel Towell, Clare Colley and Alexandra Back   Cash stripped from Canberra's cultural attractions will go to pay for Hollywood blockbusters.

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HSC results 2015: Honour Roll high achievers

The HSC results are out.

Search the names of those who achieved Band 6.

Priest accused of lying to Royal Commission to 'save' Cardinal George Pell

Cardinal George Pell's lawyers say the bribery claim arose out of a 'misunderstanding'.

Jane Lee   Former housemate has been accused of fabricating evidence about accusations that cardinal tried to bribe a survivor to keep quiet.

Whooping cough outbreak prompts rush on vaccines

A baby cries as it receives a vaccine.

Harriet Alexander   A shortage of stock means only two types of patients will be given access to vaccines.

HSC Results 2015: The wait is over for 70,000 NSW High School students

Samantha MacKay, came first in one of her HSC subjects

Eryk Bagshaw   HSC Results 2015: The wait is over for 70,000 NSW High School students

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'We have to stop - it is just too dangerous'

The rescue helicopter service does not have enough staff at crucial regional bases, paramedics say.

Harriet Alexander 12:05 AM   Exhausted helicopter paramedics are working long shifts or refusing to fly, fully aware of what that means for patients.

Median explained

Illustration : artwork by Matt Davidson for Education opinion page 9-10-2002.
Shows a group of students trying to shift the V of VCE with a lever

Here is a simple explanation of how median scores are derived.

Victorian Coroner blames missile for blowing MH17 out of the sky

MH17's wreckage was reconstructed  at the Gilze-Rijen Military Base.

Liam Mannix   Coroner Ian West agrees with Dutch inquest into air tragedy, assures relatives that Australians' bodies were treated with dignity.

Patients to pay up to $62 more for medical tests

Doctors are concerned that medical imaging like CT scans may be unaffordable for the most vulnerable people.

Marika Dobbin   The Australian Diagnostic Imaging Association warns the most ill people will be hit hard by the Turnbull government's $650 million healthcare cut.

Only in year 10 but already top of the state

"It was like all my hard work paid off, it's like a boyhood dream": Parunithan Ranganathan topped the state for his course.

Samuel Roberts   Parunithan Ranganathan moved to Australia less than three years ago but is already top of the state.  

The Parliament House parking lottery

Bracket creep will slash up to $4500 from high income workers' pay packets, says a new report

Phillip Thomson   Just how hard is it to get a park at Parliament House? Very.

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Girl power reigns supreme in HSC

Mala Rigby, Grace Parker, and Claudia Nielsen came first in HSC subjects and received their awards at Australian Technology Park in Sydney.

Alexandra Smith   Girls have topped the state in agriculture, primary industries and automotive studies as well as English and history.

Pay offer as good as it gets: Cash

Public Service Minister Michaelia Cash: Her Employment Department has rejected a pay offer for a second time.

Noel Towell   Four thousand public servants at Employment and Environment Departments vote no.