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

What will Education in Australia Look Like in 2019?

The Age spoke to some industry experts on what to expect in education in 2019. The key themes were:

Focus on Mindfulness and Health: Already on the rise, mindfulness and mental health programs are looking like becoming a regular fixture in a lot of classrooms this year. Organisations such as Smiling Mind, Trinity Kids and The Resilience Project are equipping teachers with apps, activities, talks, music and meditation to help children face the mentally rigorous world of school.

Continuous Teacher Development: Teachers should expect to see changes in the ways they learn and develop new skills throughout the year, according to Ken Wallace, chief executive of digital professional development service Educator Impact. "There will be a shift away from 'once-a-term professional development days' to schools embracing an always-on approach in which teachers are continually improving and being encouraged to try new things to get better at teaching," he said.

Tech and More Tech: Technology itself is now far from a trend and has become an integral part of Australian primary and secondary classrooms. Virtual classrooms and online modules, already so useful to students in rural areas and those studying languages, will become more commonplace for a wider range of students and subjects, says Monash researcher Professor Neil Selwyn.

"Abolish hateful laws": Teachers and Students Join Rally

According to The Educator, with the Federal Government’s ‘Religious Freedoms’ bill due to be released within weeks, pressure is mounting on Prime Minister Scott Morrison to ensure LGBTQ staff and students are protected from discrimination. On Saturday, hundreds of students, teachers, parents, and supporters of the LGBTIQ community joined the “No Exemptions to Equality” rally in Melbourne’s CBD, demanding an overhaul to existing laws that allow religious schools to sack or expel staff and students for being gay or transgender. LGBTQ advocacy groups are accusing the Prime Minister of deliberately stalling the legal process to remove what they say are “outdated, hateful laws”.

Stress, School and Mental Health Top Concerns for Youth

According to Teacher Magazine, stress, school or study problems and mental health are the top three personal concerns for Australian teenagers according to new survey data. Mission Australia’s Youth Survey 2018 asked more than 28 000 15 to 19-year-olds across the country for their views on a range of issues, including education and employment, personal wellbeing, who they turned to for help and their feelings about the future. The organisation says each of the top four personal concerns in 2018 (i.e. coping with stress, school or study problems, mental health and body image) have strong links to mental health. Physical health (25.7 per cent), personal safety (18.6 per cent), family conflict (17.6 per cent); financial security (16.7 per cent), suicide (16 per cent) and bullying/emotional abuse (15.8 per cent) completed the top 10.

New Report Reveals Cost of Schooling

According to The Educator, new research has revealed the estimated total cost of education across all three education sectors (i.e. public, Catholic and private), revealing the most expensive, and cheapest, cities by school fees. The ASG Planning for Education Index data, compiled by Monash University, found that parents who send their child to a top private school in Sydney can expect to pay nearly $500,000 over the course of 13 years. While Sydney was the most expensive city for a private education, it was the most affordable for parents sending their children to a public school ($66,470) – 3.3 per cent below the national average of $68,727. The average median cost of public schooling in metropolitan Australia was estimated at $68,727. Parents considering a Catholic education for their son or daughter in metropolitan Australia meanwhile, can expect to pay $127,027, while the average median cost of a private education in Australia’s capital cities is $298,689.

What are the Key Ed-tech Trends in 2019?

According to The Educator, in schools across Australia in 2019, a number of key ed-tech trends will be taking shape, changing the available tools at students’ and teachers’ disposal to enhance the learning experience. One of them is collaborative learning, which is already having a significant impact in classrooms around the world. Another is blended learning. According to Dr. Matthew Lynch – award-winning author and editor for The Edvocate – the future of education will include AI-based tutoring systems, broadcasted lessons, and access to interactive classroom experiences all over the world.

STEM Focus Leaves Kids Vulnerable to 'Dark Arts' of Fake News: Expert

According to The Age, an over-emphasis on STEM is robbing students of the humanities-based skills they need to navigate the 'dark arts' of fake news, social media and online distortion, a world-leading expert in classroom technology has warned. Subjects such as history and art taught students how to question the status quo and see different perspectives, Professor Punya Mishra from Arizona State University, told a conference in Sydney. "We like to say we suspend disbelief," he told the Herald after the conference. "[But] as humans, we are predisposed to belief. So we need to educate ourselves and our children to learn to disbelieve, to question. You've got to start early. You can't protect people from it, because it's all around. The Harry Potter books talked about defence against the dark arts. I say [online manipulation, 'fake news'] are the dark arts of our time.”

What Challenges are Principals Facing in 2019?

A snapshot of The Educator’s 2019 Education Report has revealed some of the major challenges facing principals as they begin Term 1. In the survey, school leaders were asked to rate from 1 to 5 the following areas in terms of how challenging they expected them to be for their school in 2019 (with the result in brackets):

• adapting to government and regulatory changes to curriculum and funding (4.13)
• introducing or improving new school facilities (3.84)
• keeping up with new technology and teaching methods (3.54).

When asked what their school will do in the next 12 months to achieve their business objectives, 18 per cent said they would invest in staff training and development. In second place was “collaborate with other education providers to improve school operations/quality of education” at 14 per cent. In third place was ‘develop partnerships to create opportunities for students’ at 13 per cent.

Chart of the Day: How Australia Rates in Responding to Child Sexual Abuse

According to ABC News, Australia has finished well behind leader the United Kingdom in a ground-breaking study into how well countries address child sexual abuse. The Economist Intelligence Unit released the Out of the Shadows Index, ranking 40 countries that cover 70 per cent of the world's population under 19 years of age. Australia is ranked top in the Asia-Pacific region, but trails the UK, Sweden and Canada, while Pakistan languishes at the bottom of the index. The overall ranking takes into account each country's "environment" for children, legal framework, the engagement of industry, civil society and media, and government commitment and capacity.

Schools “Critical” to Tackling Inactivity Crisis

According to The Educator, research shows 81 per cent of Australian children are not meeting physical activity guidelines. A report card released by the Active Healthy Kids Australia late last year scored Australia a D-minus for children’s physical activity levels, ranking our nation 32 of 49 countries. According to Sport Australia CEO, Kate Palmer, schools are a “key vehicle” to solving the nation’s inactivity crisis. NSW Secondary Principals Council (NSWSPC) president, Chris Presland, said that a more important part of tackling the inactivity and obesity crisis in Australia is the need to focus on the dietary habits established by parents. "A focus on physical activity is a whole of community task, not just schools. It requires parents, community organisations, governments and sporting clubs to work together in collaboration with schools. Physical literacy begins well before school, as does readiness for learning in literacy and numeracy."

Girls Match Boys in Confidence at Single-sex Schools, Study Finds

According to The Age, girls' confidence tends to fall below boys' from about the age of nine, and the gap doesn't close until they are elderly. But ground-breaking Australian research has found one group bucking that trend - girls at single-sex schools. A study involving 10,000 students found no significant differences in self-confidence between girls and boys in gender-segregated high schools. Dr Fitzsimmons' team surveyed the students at top-performing boys' and girls' schools in Queensland. They answered about 300 questions under test conditions. The results showed there was no difference between social self-efficacy (belief in ability to succeed in social engagements) between the boys and girls, and only a small difference in self-efficacy (belief in ability to succeed in certain situations) in year 10, which was corrected in year 11. In terms of overall self-confidence, there was no difference between boys and girls. But the confidence level of both declined as the students got older. Dr Fitzimmons said one of the key factors protecting the self-confidence of girls at single-sex schools was likely to be watching other girls and women in leadership positions.

Sex Abuse Cases Spike with Worried School Teachers Making More than Three Reports Every Day

According to Perth Now, worried school teachers reported more than three cases of suspected child sex abuse every day last year. The number of mandatory reports from teachers to the Department of Communities spiked to 1323 in 2017-18, up almost 60 per cent from 840 three years ago. Teachers, like doctors, nurses, and police, are legally required to make a report any time they think a child is or has been sexually abused, at home, at school or anywhere else. A discussion paper on children with harmful sexual behaviours, released by the Commissioner for Children and Young People this year, found fellow students were the person of interest in two-thirds of recent child sexual abuse allegations within an institution, such as a school. Boys aged between 10 and 17 who attended the same school as their victims were the most common offenders. Seventy per cent of victims were female and half of all victims were aged 10 to 14, followed by five to nine (23 per cent) and 15 to 17 (18 per cent). The most common offence was sexual touching of female students, followed by harmful sexual behaviour towards male students in a bullying context.

Catholic Church ‘Ellis Defence’ Scrapped in 'Momentous Day' for Abuse Survivors

According to ABC News, after an 11-year battle, survivors of institutional child abuse locked out of suing for compensation are now able to launch civil claims (from 1 January 2019). The so-called ’Ellis defence’, which prevented abuse survivors from suing unincorporated organisations including churches and other institutions, has been abolished after the NSW Government removed a legal road block. The move to scrap it came after recommendations from the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. An institution must nominate a defendant with sufficient assets to pay a survivor's claim.

Experts Deliver Report to South Australian Government Warning Against Making Bullying by Children a Crime

According to The Advertiser, making bullying a crime is not the answer to protecting children, experts have told the State Government. Instead, it should consider requiring families to come together to address problems between children or use existing laws to put protection orders in place in the most serious cases. Police, lawyers, educators and academics attended a roundtable in late September, where they were asked to consider if new laws were needed to make bullying a crime in South Australia. The group has delivered its report to Attorney-General Vickie Chapman which finds that “existing criminal laws are adequate”. The Commissioner for Children and Young People Helen Connolly presented findings to the roundtable, gleaned from interviews with 284 students, which showed that the responses young people wanted to bullying were “not necessarily what adults think would work”.

Education Minister Flags Plan to Simplify “Cluttered” National Curriculum and “Get Back to Basics”

According to ABC News, Federal Education Minister Dan Tehan has flagged a revamp of the national curriculum, saying we need to get "back to basics" like reading, writing and maths before worrying about "soft skills" like teamwork and critical thinking. Mr Tehan used a speech at an education conference to mount his case for a more "simplified" approach in classrooms, which he will take to a meeting of state and territory education ministers later this week. Mr Tehan said he would seek the agreement of state and territory ministers to update the 2008 Melbourne Declaration on Educational Goals for Young Australians. According to SBS News, Mr Tehan said it was time to "look after our teachers" after citing a 2016 Deloitte Access Economic report, which identified teachers as the single biggest influence on a student’s outcome at school. He also cited a Hunter Institute of Mental Health survey of 453 teachers, which found up to two-thirds identified time management as their biggest challenge. More than half of the respondents said they wanted more time for mentoring and planning.

New Child Sex Abuse Laws Go Easier on 'Sexting' Teens, but Paedophiles Beware

According to a Macquarie University Academic Article, NSW has broken new ground with its tough law reforms in response to the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. As further amendments to the Crimes Act 1900 (NSW) come into force as part of the NSW Government’s resounding response to the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, parents and carers aiming to plug-in and keep pace with their children’s sexual development have been given a small reprieve in the form of clearer laws on ‘sexting’ and sexual activity involving under 16s. Teens may now access a limited ‘sexting’ defence to decrease the risk of children being prosecuted for “producing, disseminating or possessing child abuse material” if they were under 18 at the time and a reasonable person would consider their possession acceptable. A ‘defence of similar age’ (known as a ‘Romeo and Juliet clause’ in some foreign jurisdictions) has also been introduced to effectively protect children from prosecution for voluntary sexual acts between persons aged 14 years or older and another who is no more than two years older. However, while the above provisions aim to limit culpability in certain circumstances, the overall reform package delivered by the NSW Government provides some of the most exhaustive, ground-breaking, and evidence-based reforms to child sexual abuse legislation in Australian history.

INTERNATIONAL

(United States) Study: 2018 Worst Year for Gun Incidents in Schools

According to The Inquirer, a new study has been released showing that the past year has seen 93 gun-related incidents in K-12 schools across the United States, the highest number since recording began in 1970 and more than double the number of shootings in 2017. The previous record was 59 incidents, set in 2006, according to data from the Center for Homeland Defense and Security Naval Postgraduate School. The data counts any time a gun “is brandished, is fired, or a bullet hits school property for any reason.” It includes shootings where there was no victim. A running tally kept by Education Week counted 113 people killed or injured in school shootings in 2018, with 23 shootings leading to injuries or deaths. The latest in the report was a Nov. 20 incident in Virginia in which one parent was wounded after a gun in another parent’s pocket accidentally discharged. The top reasons for shootings were disputes, gang-related, or accidental. Just over 9 percent of shootings were suicides or attempted suicides, and 2 percent murder-suicides. Only four shootings were in self-defence.

(Europe) Do Schools Need to Appoint a Data Protection Officer?

According to IT Governance, the EU GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) contains particularly strong requirements for protecting children’s data. These can be seen most clearly in the rules surrounding the appointment of a DPO (data protection officer). The DPO requirement applies to all public authorities, which means that all schools must find a qualified individual to fill the position. A prospective DPO doesn’t need to be a lawyer, but they must have a good understanding of data protection law. They also need to be familiar with information security technology as well as how to implement and manage data protection programmes.