The information in the Weekly Wrap is aggregated from other news sources to provide you with news that is relevant to the education sector across Australia and worldwide. Each paragraph is a summary of the subject matter covered in the particular news article. The information does not necessarily reflect the views of CompliSpace.

AUSTRALIA

George Pell: Australian cardinal released from gaol after high court quashes child sexual abuse conviction

The Guardian reports that Cardinal George Pell, the former financial controller of the Vatican and the most senior Catholic in the world to have been found guilty of historical child sexual abuse, will be freed from prison and have his convictions overturned following a two-year legal battle. The bench of the High Court in Brisbane on Tuesday granted leave for Pell to appeal, ordering his immediate release and quashing the conviction. The High Court found that the jury, acting rationally on the whole of the evidence, ought to have entertained a doubt as to Pell’s guilt with respect to each of the offences for which he was convicted, and ordered that the convictions be quashed and that verdicts of acquittal be entered in their place. In other words, it was not enough that the jurors found the witness believable, compelling and honest. The other evidence should have called his account into question, the bench found.

“No health risk”: PM talks up ‘free’ childcare as learning set to continue for months to come

The New Daily reports that childcare and schools remain safe for children to attend, according to the Prime Minister, as he unveiled a $1.6 billion plan to extend ‘‘free’’ childcare to all workers during the COVID-19 crisis. The ‘‘free’’ childcare was to start from Sunday and will be offered even to parents who do not send their children to childcare or after-school care while they are working from home. Despite widespread panic among parents and some teachers over the risk of COVID-19 spreading in schools, Scott Morrison last Thursday insisted there was ‘‘no health risk to children going to school or childcare’’. The Education Minister, Mr Dan Tehan, offered no guarantees school children would physically return to school in Term 2. “So we’ll work with the state and territories who have the jurisdictional responsibility for this and we will make sure that we’ve got the best possible arrangements in place so that they will continue their education in term two,’’ Mr Tehan said. Mr Morrison again said there were no “health reasons” why children could not be at school, and that terms would resume after the Easter break even if it was via distance learning.

What’s a verb? Parents struggle to help answer kids’ homework questions

The New Daily reports that families are finding new ways to get through the daily routine and tick off the necessities: jobs, school, housework and homework. More of us are turning to the internet to help with the little things. Last week searches on Google for basic numeracy and literacy spiked. “With an increasing number of Australians working and learning from home, there has been a noticeable surge in search interest for basic literacy and numeracy questions,” Google said in a breakdown of most searches in the past week. The most searched “What is a…?” questions, past seven days in Australia was: What is a verb? What is a noun? What is a prime number? What is a metaphor? What is a synonym? Interestingly, the top trending related topics for childcare are “key worker” and “working parent”, spiking +2,700 per cent and +2,550 per cent respectively.

ABC to broadcast educational shows, mini lessons on kids’ channel

The Age reports that the ABC will broadcast educational shows and mini lessons on one of its children's channels from mid-April, with shows for primary students in the morning and high school content in the afternoon. The broadcaster will create the mini-lessons, run by teachers, for the ABC Education portal and on ABC Me. They will be partially financed by the NSW and Victorian education departments. From Monday April 14, when students in some states will be beginning term two (schools in NSW resume on April 27), ABC Me will run educational programming between 10am and 3pm. Programs will include Ecomaths, ScienceXplosion, and Numberblocks. The ABC will also offer 4000 free videos, interactive resources and games mapped to the Australian curriculum through its education portal.

Don't worry about kids missing school, says university boss

According to The Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney University Vice-Chancellor Michael Spence has urged parents not to worry about children missing school, saying the education system is adaptable and teachers would get children back on track when the COVID-19 crisis is over. Dr Spence said families could have faith that Australian educators would be able to identify and fill gaps in children's learning when classroom teaching resumed. His comments come as parents - particularly those with children in primary school - say they have been overwhelmed with the stress of working from home, and fighting to hold onto vulnerable jobs, while supervising their children's lessons. "I'm not saying education is not important, but I think we can act sometimes as if the education of a young person is a process of jumping through hoops, where every hoop has to be jumped through in the right order at the right height," Dr Spence told the Herald and The Age.

“Now is the perfect time to axe the ATAR” – former principal

According to The Educator, a report from the Mitchell Institute found that just 26 per cent of Australian students enter an undergraduate degree based on their ATAR, leading many to ask the question: is this increasingly unpopular tertiary ranking really worth the stress it causes? Currently, one in four Australian students experience a significant mental health issue, and a recent Guardian Essential poll found that 53 per cent of people surveyed are now very concerned about the threat of COVID-19 – a 14-point increase in only a week. Many educators and experts argue that the end-of-year exams will only serve to intensify this stress and anxiety, and make the ATAR, a system that ranks students against one another, even more unfair. A petition to cancel the ATAR for 2020 was recently launched by Peter Hutton, current founder and director of the Future Schools Alliance, which represents 50 innovative schools across Australia and New Zealand. Hutton, formerly the principal of Templestowe College in Melbourne, is proposing that senior students still demonstrate their competence in each subject, assessed by their teacher and authenticated by another qualified subject teacher.

Schools set to reopen in term two for special student cases

According to The Age, Victorian schools are expected to reopen in term two with a skeleton staff to accommodate children of essential workers and vulnerable pupils, while the majority of students continue their studies remotely. Meanwhile, year 12 students could sit final exams early next year to receive an ATAR score, under plans being considered by Premier Daniel Andrews to grapple with the fallout of the coronavirus pandemic and its disruption to children's education. School holidays have already been brought forward and the first two days of term two declared pupil-free to allow teachers to finalise their preparations to run classes remotely. Teachers contacted by The Age are expecting that any students who attend school in person in term two would receive the same tuition as those learning remotely from home. The Premier reassured year 12 students that his government was working towards ensuring they could receive their ATAR.

Coronavirus pandemic increases pressure on Queensland's first ATAR Year 12 students

The ABC News reports that the Federal Education Minister has not ruled out the prospect of no end-of-year exams for students completing their final year of school during the coronavirus pandemic. Mr Dan Tehan told the ABC that the country's education ministers began talks last week to provide certainty for students, teachers and parents nationwide. Mr Tehan said there were several scenarios currently on the table and he would not rule out having no external examinations. It is understood Education Ministers would try to finalise plans to give students certainty for the year ahead. It comes as many students in Queensland's Year 12 cohort have admitted they feel "confused and unsure" about completing their final year of high school amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority (QCAA) held crisis talks late March to address the "increasing pressures on students, their families and teachers". This year's group would also be the first in Queensland to align with other states and territories to receive an Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR) instead of an OP Score (Overall Position) at the completion of their studies.

Questions over Marshall's mixed messages on schools

According to InDaily, only around a third of enrolled students are still attending state schools in South Australia, with the Education Union warning of “significant serious health and safety concerns” on sites and questioning the Marshall Government’s messaging to parents. A fortnight ago, Premier Steven Marshall said “the advice from health professionals is very clear [that] students must remain at school”, adding he “discouraged” parents keeping their children at home amid the coronavirus pandemic. Since then, though, schools across the state have written to parents detailing changes to their learning programs after a newly-imposed four-day pupil-free period leading into the Easter break. Several schools have conducted surveys to gauge participation rates for term 2.

Coronavirus crisis: University of Western Australia to admit school leavers on Year 11 results, with ATAR exams in doubt due to COVID-19 pandemic

According to The West Australian, WA’s most prestigious university will admit school leavers based on their Year 11 results under a new scheme aimed at reassuring stressed Year 12s who still do not know if ATAR exams will go ahead. “We appreciate that the global COVID-19 pandemic is causing a lot of uncertainty at the moment, particularly for students who will be completing Year 12, and we can assure you we are working on ways to support them,” the University of WA said in an email to schools. “These include opening up a variety of alternatives for students hoping to apply to UWA.” The university said it would offer three different ways for Year 12s to get into its main undergraduate degrees next year — standard entry based on a student’s Australian Tertiary Admission Rank, predicted ATAR entry or a special admissions test.

Vice-Chancellor and Minister announce changes to ease pressure on students due to COVID-19

The Examiner reports that the University of Tasmania will make it easier for year 12 students to go to university next year - based on the recommendation of their school. The School Recommendation Program is aimed at reducing the impact and stress on students of COVID-19. Education Minister Jeremy Rockliff said the program would enable students to apply for most undergraduate courses and be made an offer earlier based on the recommendation of their school. "The criteria for the program will include factors such as students' Year 11 results, an assessment of their capabilities and the perspective of those who have taught them," Mr Rockliff said. UTAS Vice-Chancellor Professor Rufus Black said that after Easter, UTAS would send course guides to all Tasmanian year 12 students who would then select up to five courses they are interested in. "We trust the teachers of Tasmania very greatly. They have great insight into their students and their capabilities and we are very confident that their recommendations are a good guide to a student's likelihood of succeeding at university.” The program is being supported by Catholic and independent schools in Tasmania.

How principals can avoid the most common discrimination claim

According to The Educator, while no school sets out to be discriminatory, everyone makes mistakes and even the most well-meaning of institutes have found themselves facing a lawsuit – here, a leading education lawyer offers his advice on avoiding legal risk and maintaining an unbiased environment. “The most common type of discrimination complaint in schools is disability discrimination,” Nathan Croot, a senior associate with Emil Ford Lawyers, told The Educator. According to Croot, the disability discrimination is a common issue in part because there are many students with disabilities but also because schools are required to make “reasonable adjustments” for students with a disability whereas they don’t have to for other protected characteristics. “This means that schools need to consider the individual needs of each student, what adjustments the school can make and whether those adjustments are reasonable,” Croot said. However, Croot said most schools are good at cooperating with parents to work out a solution before there is an actual claim – this, he says, is the most effective way to minimise risk.

INTERNATIONAL

Singapore closes schools, most workplaces (Singapore)

The Canberra Times reports that Singapore will close schools and most workplaces except for essential services like supermarkets and banks for one month, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong says, as part of stricter measures to stop the spread of the coronavirus. While the city has won international praise for its efforts to stem the spread of the virus, its infections have been rising sharply in recent weeks, to 1114 on Friday, and five people have died. "We have decided that instead of tightening incrementally over the next few weeks, we should make a decisive move now, to pre-empt escalating infections," Lee said in a speech, and promised more support for households and businesses. Food establishments, markets and supermarkets, clinics, hospitals, utilities, transport and key banking services will remain open. The new measures will be in place from April 7 until May 4, while schools will move to full home-based learning from April 8. The measures could be extended beyond a month if the situation did not improve, authorities said.