Opportunities for self-determined online professional development (OPD) are emerging, but their potential for increasing adult learners' agency is not yet fully realised. Faced with the problem of successfully designing a self-determined comprehensive evidence-based online numeracy resource for educators who are often time poor and do not engage…

This book provides an introduction to what it means to be numerate, and how numeracy can best be developed and nurtured in children and in adults. It also presents a cohesive coverage of numeracy development from early childhood to adulthood. This book draws on international research and practice to provide a comprehensive overview on the topic.…

Education is of relevance to everyone but it involves a specialized vocabulary and terminology which may be opaque or unfamiliar to those new to the field. This UK-focused Dictionary of Education provides clear and concise definitions for over 1,100 terms, from A* to zero tolerance, that anyone studying education or working in the field is likely…

The "National Mathematics Curriculum Framing Paper" has been released for consultation until 28 February 2009 (see www.ncb.org.au). Professional associations, teachers, teacher educators and others are taking the opportunity to organise meetings and forums to consider the views presented in the paper and to provide critical feedback and…

National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER) was established in 1981 as a not-for-profit company owned by the Commonwealth and state and territory ministers with responsibility for vocational education and training (VET). It is a professional, independent body at arm's length from government. The company initially conducted research…

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the nature of activities in the change process undertaken by two initiatives to produce national standards in academic disciplines, national assessments and accountability measures. The Common Core State Standards Initiative, a project coordinated by the National Governors Association and the Council of…

In August 2006, Australia's conservative prime minister John Howard convened a history summit in Canberra. The purported goal of the summit was the framing of a nationally-acceptable curriculum in Australian history. However, as this article suggests, Howard's hidden intention was to use the summit as a device for introducing a narrowly…

Between 1937 and 1952 three differing philosophies for the reform of NSW schooling found expression in three successive ministers for education. David Drummond, the Country Party minister during the Great Depression, wanted to extend the well-established democratic principle of equality of opportunity and the formation of character. He emphasised…