Education
Unis fear proposed tax will scare off wealthy donors
Sydney University vice chancellor Mark Scott says the introduction of a “wealth tax” would make it harder for institutions to attract wealthy donors.
- by Daniella White
Latest
Opinion
Sobbing Newington old boys drown out those with real skin in this game
Inconsolable about the end of male sovereignty at Newington, ageing alumni want to “save” the school. But for “new” parents like me, other considerations spring to mind.
- by Michelle Cazzulino
Exclusive
Students’ confidential details revealed in email blunder at Sydney school
A dossier of highly personal information about numerous students, including health conditions, was sent to parents.
- by Christopher Harris
Opinion
If we want more young people to go to uni, stop screwing them over
A generation of young people is being dudded with unfair levels of debt, indexation and repayment thresholds which mean getting a pay rise may leave them worse off.
- by Chip Le Grand
Opinion
Focus on fairness is an education, but Albanese’s ambition has yet to be tested
The Albanese government has talked a good game on significant education reform. Soon, it will be time for action.
- by Sean Kelly
Opinion
Bogged down by admin, it’s no wonder public school teachers are going private
Many teachers in the public sector operate under excessive workloads, chiefly because they’re juggling extra tasks like running school carnivals and writing newsletters.
- by Caroline Milburn
Students aren’t taught these basic facts about Australia. It’s about to become mandatory
Major events in the history of Australian federation and the significance of parliamentary democracy will be taught under a revised curriculum for NSW schools.
- by Christopher Harris
HECS fee relief could flow by July under proposed university debt overhaul
Australians paying off university debts could save $1000 or more by mid-year under a fee overhaul that Education Minister Jason Clare calls a cost-of-living fix.
- by Paul Sakkal
The reason Sydney schools are axing weekly sport
At least 15 schools have been forced into abandoning after the bus transport bill for students doubled in a year.
- by Christopher Harris
University wealth ‘tax’ proposed in landmark report calling for funding overhaul
The prestigious Group of Eight is opposed to a levy to fund infrastructure across the sector, as a 400-page report declares the current funding model is broken.
- by Lisa Visentin
Newington old boys escalate fight to keep girls out
A breakaway faction of former students will force a special general meeting of the Old Boys Union to present no confidence motions against the Sydney private school’s council and headmaster.
- by Lucy Carroll
Regrets, we have a few: Looking back at school lockdowns
The views of our readers on school lockdowns now are different to the prevailing wisdom at the height of COVID-19.
These five private schools spent more on capital works than 3300 public schools
State education ministers are calling for a dedicated fund for public school capital works, like private schools have already, to make up the gap.
- by Sherryn Groch and Lucy Carroll
Exclusive
Government risking ‘nation’s reputation as study destination’ as visas plummet
Private training colleges are losing thousands of overseas students under a federal directive that has slashed visa approvals by more than half.
- by David Crowe
Teenagers the biggest losers of COVID-era school closures
In the third and final part of this series, experts say the impact of COVID-era school closures on a generation of students is still unclear.
- by Lucy Carroll and Jordan Baker
Exclusive
‘Cease and desist’: The top Sydney school taking on private coaching colleges
The principal of James Ruse Agricultural High School, with the support of North Sydney Boys and Girls, has written to 500 principals and asked the Department of Education to intervene.
- by Lucy Carroll
‘Thou shalt not say nasty things’: How an investment banker took on underperforming schools
Sending outsiders into Australian classrooms would bring a fresh set of eyes to the education system, the UK’s former chief inspector says.
- by Christopher Harris
Exclusive
His dad was dying. So Daniel built a world-first artificial heart – with pipes and magnets
Australia will spend $50 million building the world’s first long-term artificial heart, after the original prototype was built with pieces bought from Bunnings.
- by Sherryn Groch
Violence, anxiety in students as young as 5: Marks of the COVID generation
In part two of this series, experts discuss reports of students struggling and teachers being physically attacked in the aftermath of school closures during the pandemic.
- by Jordan Baker and Lucy Carroll
Colleges blacklist students from entire countries
Education agents say the government’s visa application crackdown has become extreme and is causing panic among universities and other providers.
- by Daniella White
Editorial
Asking the hard questions about COVID school closures
Of the many responses to the pandemic, few had a greater impact than the mass closure of schools.
- The Herald's View
The sites for Sydney’s new public preschools revealed
The Minns government has finalised the 100 sites around the state that will have public preschools for the first time.
- by Alexandra Smith
‘We made the wrong decisions’: COVID-era mass school closures condemned
Closing Sydney’s schools was one of the biggest – and most controversial – calls made during the pandemic. But was it really necessary?
- by Jordan Baker and Lucy Carroll
‘Migration cap by stealth?’ Prestigious unis lash out over foreign student crackdown
An executive at a leading university has questioned whether the federal government is imposing a migration cap by stealth in its dramatic slashing of visa approvals.
- by Angus Thompson
‘Democracy is a bit like breakfast’: The push for nourishing civics education in NSW schools
The new syllabus has been welcomed by educators at a time when more democracies around the world are under threat.
- by Christopher Harris
Second school confirmed to have asbestos as Sydney mulch crisis deepens
Asbestos has now been found at 32 sites across Sydney in what is being described as “the biggest investigation the EPA has undertaken in decades”.
- by Angus Thomson and Clare Sibthorpe
Mulch testing at seven Sydney schools as asbestos found at hospital
Schools across Sydney have been selected for precautionary testing for contaminated mulch, with one closing to students as three new sites are identified to contain asbestos.
- by Jessica McSweeney and Angus Dalton
The learning fads holding back Australian children
“Mindless rote learning and parroting facts” went out of fashion in education – and students’ results slipped.
- by Christopher Harris
More Sydney parents than ever opt for private schools
The growth in independent school enrolments comes as the proportion of students enrolled in the state’s public schools hits a historic low.
- by Lucy Carroll, Christopher Harris and Nigel Gladstone
Mass student enrolment cancellations as universities rush to protect ratings
Many universities are emailing prospective students, cancelling their enrolments or asking them to withdraw after the federal government moved to crack down on international student visas.
- by Daniella White
Exclusive
Foreign student visa rejections to cost unis $310m this year
The government has installed tougher visa rules for international students in order to cut migration, but a group of universities says the cost will be “akin to the impact of the pandemic”.
- by David Crowe
Mass student enrolment cancellations as Sydney universities rush to protect ratings
At least three public NSW universities are among the universities to cancel students’ enrolment confirmations.
- by Daniella White
Exclusive
Hundreds of millions spent on tutoring for struggling kids. The results are now in
The $250 million catch-up program in NSW schools after the pandemic had minimal impact on academic improvement and attendance, a report has found.
- by Christopher Harris and Lucy Carroll
Exclusive
The private schools with the richest parents in Australia revealed
About $1.3 billion, or a quarter of all overfunding for private schools, is flowing to those where family income exceeds $200,000 a year. See the schools here.
- by Sherryn Groch
The one common factor in asbestos-laced mulch discoveries across Sydney
Greenlife Resource Recovery Facility says its mulch is free of contaminants despite multiple finds.
- by Christopher Harris and Anthony Segaert
‘We need a reading revolution’: Schools urged to chase more ambitious targets
At Marsden Road Public, its success in literacy begins with the first lesson of the day.
- by Lucy Carroll
Swimming carnivals are competitive. Safety experts want to change that
Fewer children are learning how to swim, sparking calls to overhaul the focus of the annual swimming carnival.
- by Christopher Harris
Top unis have a lower entry standard for foreign students than locals. Does it matter?
An expert calls for more transparent admissions data as it’s revealed NSW universities with aggressive international recruitment strategies have a large performance gap between local and foreign students.
- by Daniella White
Parent parking ‘breaking the law’ as residents call for school to fix traffic headaches
Hornsby Council says it regularly receives complaints about illegal parking around Loreto Normanhurst, amid an ongoing row over the school’s redevelopment plans.
- by Andrew Taylor
Opinion
Teachers now have the legal right to switch off, but will parents let them?
Teachers are at the centre of a plan to introduce laws that prevent workers being contacted out of office hours. But are we trying to solve the wrong problem?
- by Adam Voigt
‘They were always going to a girls’ school’: Debate over single-sex education rages on amid shifts to co-ed
As a Sydney old-boy cries on TV about his school planning to take girls, and Melbourne parents lament the end of their girls’ school, the question of single sex versus co-ed is back on the agenda.
- by Wendy Tuohy
Exclusive
International students turned away in record numbers
The cut to the education program is the biggest single factor in driving total migrant intake down to 375,000 this financial year.
- by David Crowe
Howard and Hugo have more than an old school tie in common
The former prime minister met scores of students at his old school when he attended the unveiling of a new hall named in his honour.
- by Christopher Harris
‘All of us feel cheated’: How new rules for students crush Satya’s dreams
From inflation to rental prices - international students feel blamed for anything going wrong in Australia.
- by Daniella White
Pop star, philosopher, poet: Taylor Swift is shaking up how we think
The singer’s great works have many similarities with the most revered thinkers and authors in history, becoming a fixture of courses at Australia’s top universities in the process.
- by Jordan Baker
Thousands of families gain access to co-ed schools as catchments expand
Access to co-ed public schools is expanding across Sydney, but a planned merger of two eastern suburbs schools has sparked fierce backlash from the girls’ campus.
- by Lucy Carroll and Christopher Harris
Indian student Raghav found a place to rent. The catch? It was a garden shed
The housing shortage has been especially brutal for overseas students. But some find another place to call home.
- by Jane Cadzow
How three chefs from a hatted restaurant ended up running a school canteen
Chefs Donna Chau and Kenji Okuda, who have spent years working in some of Sydney’s most well-known restaurants, have this term taken over running Stanmore Public’s canteen.
- by Lucy Carroll
Opinion
Why leaving behind my dream degree is the best thing I ever did
Changing degrees can feel like a waste of time – but could also be the best life decision you make as a student.
- by Angus Dalton