Australia

The Byron News reported that students at a primary school in northern NSW went into lockdown this week and were forced to hide under their desks for safety reasons. The lockdown lasted for approximately one hour and was initiated as a precaution while staff handled aggressive and inappropriate behaviour from a student in the playground.

The Western Australia Primary Principals’ Associations this week urged principals to moderate comments on school social media sites and remove inappropriate material as soon as possible. The West Australian reported that schools with Facebook or other social media sites that allow social commentary could be liable for defamatory comments posted by parents.

The Herald Sun reports that Life Saving Victoria (LSV) has asked the Victorian Government to introduce mandatory swimming lessons in all primary schools after the drowning deaths of 79 children in Victoria in the last decade. LSV have successfully tested the suggested before-school program in Shepparton with 70 Year 4 students. Before the program, barely half could swim 100m and by the end of the program this figure increased to 86%.

Federal Education Minister advocates for school vouchers

The SMH reports that Education Minister Simon Birmingham supports adopting a controversial US-style school voucher system to encourage more families to exit the public school system. This system allocates a set amount of funding to individual students that follows them to whichever school their parents enrol them in. Mr Birmingham says that these vouchers could empower low-income families while opponents are concerned it would widen the gap between the public and private sectors.

Sharp increase in number of missing students in WA schools

A notable increase in the number of West Australian students whose whereabouts are unknown by the Education Department has sparked calls for a greater focus on absenteeism in schools. The ABC reported that the Department’s annual report showed 1,076 students were missing according to attendance records, up from 835 in 2014.

Recycled water connected to school drinking supply

The Age reports that authorities are investigating how recycled water came to be connected to a Craigieburn school’s drinking supply. The school has supplied bottled water to staff and students while the water pipes are cleaned out and asked anyone suffering from gastrointestinal illness or experiencing similar symptoms to seek medical advice.

Landmark study reveals 1 in 4 Australian students drop out

The Educational Opportunity in Australia 2015 Report released this week has found that 26% of Australian 19-year-olds have not completed a year 12 certificate or vocational equivalent. The Report from the Mitchell Institute shows that Queensland and Victoria have the highest dropout rates at 23.6% and 23.3% respectively.

South Australian abuse hotline to employ non-social workers to answer calls

The Australian reports that Families SA plans to hire ‘civilians’ instead of social workers to answer calls reporting abuse. Families SA stated that the 10 additional ‘civilian’ workers would follow a script when taking information from callers and prepare reports for qualified social workers to assess. The Public Service Association has warned that this move could lead to double handling and pose a real danger that children will fall through the cracks.

International

Police investigate computer hack at prestigious NZ school

New Zealand police are investigating the email hack at an Auckland high school that resulted in pornography being sent to all students. Stuff.co reports that the school suspended student emails after the security breach and sent an official message to parents apologising for any offence caused.

Student faces jail time for attempt to alter his grades

News.com reported that a student in the US hacked into his school’s computer system to inflate his grades and change his class schedule. The 17-year-old was charged with two counts of burglary and three counts of computer tampering and identify theft and could face up to seven years’ jail time if convicted.

Teacher tribunal deregisters male teacher for ‘inappropriate banter’

A New Zealand teacher has been banned from teaching after engaging in inappropriate sexual ‘banter’ with students in class. Stuff.co reports that the man was found guilty of serious misconduct by the New Zealand Teachers’ Disciplinary Tribunal and admits to making sexual comments to his students.