Trevor Cobbold – Page 4

School Choice Increases Social Segregation and Inequity in Education

Trevor Cobbold / May 27, 2019May 29, 2019 / Choice and competition, Equity in education

A new OECD report, Balancing School Choice and Equity, shows that school choice policies have increased social and academic segregation between schools which, in turn, reduced equity in education. Australia is a prime example of the impact of choice on social segregation. School choice has been at the centre of education policy for the last 20 or more years. Australia now has one of the most socially and academically segregated school systems in the OECD and has highly inequitable education outcomes.

On the Definition of Equity in Education

Trevor Cobbold / May 15, 2019 / Equity in education

The Gonski Institute for Education recently published a valuable paper on equity in education titled Improving Educational Equity in Australian Education. It discusses what is equity, why equity in education matters and makes recommendations for improving equity in education. However, its definition of equity in education is limited and imprecise. The paper should have adopted the equity definition of the original Gonski report because it offers a more effective guide for education policy and funding.

The Vast Majority of Disadvantaged Schools are Public Schools

Trevor Cobbold / May 10, 2019May 10, 2019 / Equity in education

The following is a summary of a new Education Research paper published by Save Our Schools. It can be downloaded below.

Data drawn from the My School website show that school systems in Australia are highly segregated by socio-economic background both nationally and in each state, although the extent of the segregation varies between states.

Highly and medium disadvantaged schools are over-represented in public schools and under-represented in private schools. In contrast, highly and medium advantaged schools are under-represented in public schools and over-represented in private schools.

New School Facilities Matter for Student Achievement

Trevor Cobbold / April 29, 2019 / Funding

A paper presented to the annual conference of the American Economic Association in January that examined the largest school construction program ever in the United States found strong evidence that it lead to improvements in test scores, attendance and student effort. It also found that the construction program increased neighbourhood house prices.

Teacher Unions Benefit Schools and Students

Trevor Cobbold / April 23, 2019June 12, 2019 / Funding, Teachers

Strong teacher unions are critical to improving equity in school funding according to a new study published in the academic journal Review of Economics and Statistics. They also play a major role in translating funding increases into increases in student achievement.

Bonuses Increase Retention of High-Quality Teacher and Student Achievement in Disadvantaged Schools

Trevor Cobbold / April 17, 2019April 17, 2019 / Equity in education

One of the challenges to improving results in highly disadvantaged schools is recruiting and retaining high quality teachers. Disadvantaged schools often have high teacher turnover which impacts on student achievement. A new US study has found that selective retention bonuses for high quality teachers leads to increases in student achievement in high poverty schools.

A Public Inquiry into ACT School Results Is Long Overdue

Trevor Cobbold / April 9, 2019April 9, 2019 / ACT issues

An ACT Legislative Assembly Committee report on student test results has re-ignited the controversy over school performance. It draws on several reports showing under-performance in comparison with other states and recommends a public inquiry into the causes.

A full public inquiry is even more necessary than suggested by the Committee. It is needed to address the poor results of disadvantaged students and high inequity in outcomes between rich and poor as well as general under-performance relative to the ACT’s demographic characteristics.

Funding Increases for Private Schools Continue to Outstrip Increases for Public Schools

Trevor Cobbold / March 20, 2019March 29, 2019 / Funding

New funding figures show that government funding increases for private schools continue to far outstrip increases for public schools. Total government funding per student in public schools was cut between 2009-10 and 2016-17 while private schools received a massive increase. Even during the Gonski funding period of 2012-13 to 2016-17 increases in funding for private schools far outstripped those for public schools.

Greater Equity in School Funding Increases Intergenerational Mobility

Trevor Cobbold / March 11, 2019 / Funding

Numerous studies over the past decade or more show that increases in school funding increase student achievement, school completion rates, post-school education and labour market outcomes particularly for disadvantaged students. Now, a new US study shows that more equitable funding of schools increases intergenerational income mobility. Equalisation in school spending closes the gap in investments on the education of low- and high-income students, and this promotes equalisation in their later life outcomes.

Govt. Concealing Catholic Schools’ Use of Taxpayer Funds

Trevor Cobbold / March 5, 2019March 29, 2019 / Funding

Public accountability for the use of taxpayer funding is a fundamental tenet of democratic government. Yet, this principle has long been ignored by Catholic education authorities who refuse to reveal how they distribute government funding amongst their schools despite it being a legislative requirement. Their refusal has been connived at by successive governments that failed to make the Commonwealth Department of Education enforce the legislation. The latest example of this tacit agreement at work is the refusal of the Education Department to fully disclose how Catholic Education Commissions distribute their taxpayer funding.