In this Indigenous/non-Indigenous collaboration, we examine discourses of 'community engagement' in Australia's blueprint education policy, "Through Growth to Achievement: The Report of The Review to Achieve Educational Excellence in Australian Schools." While the report addresses the education sector widely rather than being…

Drawing from principles of ethical research derived from our review of national and international policy documents, in this paper we reflect on our research experiences working in partnership with Indigenous educators in a project to support young Indigenous children's oral and written language development through collaborative action research.…

In this theoretical article, we respond to a common education policy discourse that represents community participation in educational policy-making as an essentially rational solution to policy problems and as inherently progressive and democratic. We propose that conceptualising participatory politics as 'publics' challenges this discourse and…

Schools reflect society and societies reflect the schooling of their citizens. Amidst the COVID Pandemic, the failures of many nations to respond effectively and in an equitable manner have been on display for the world. The authors highlight the failure of neoliberal educational policies to create compassionate societies and propose a radical…

The academic voice related to learning and teaching (L&T) professional development (PD) is an important consideration in supporting universities' pursuit of improving their teaching as a core function of their mission. Framed by a typology of L&T PD in Australian universities, this paper reports on a study that investigated academics'…

Purpose: Through discussion of research about the leadership of two schools, this paper explores the complexity of school leadership and how various contextual elements interact with the work of principals in schools that are attempting to create inclusive, rich, worthwhile and unique schools. A systems thinking leadership and context model is…

This critical discussion paper explores the epistemic governance of "community readiness" in and for teacher education. Classroom ready is often interpreted as technical skill which places emphasis on practice to the detriment of more complex interpretations of the relational nature of teachers' work, leading to a potential narrowing of…

Initiatives aimed at improving STEM education have largely focused on school-based programs, with the majority of STEM professional development targeting primary and secondary school educators. However, there is growing interest in STEM education in the early childhood years. This paper reviews the available evidence to explore the extent to which…

Much historical scholarship on Indigenous education policy focuses on attempts to assimilate Indigenous peoples. Meanwhile, educational policy debates tend to focus on achievement, framed by deficit. Rarely considered are strategic political actions by Indigenous groups to remodel schooling. This paper examines how Indigenous groups have embraced…

Education policies are enacted differently according to school contexts and geographies. This is particularly the case in large countries such as Australia where context and geographies for schooling differ greatly. Within regional, rural and remote Australia, schools are witnessing a trend in geographic disadvantage in that as distance from urban…

A doctoral study of a program designed to provide access to secondary education for children from a remote Indigenous community was completed in 2014 (Hunter, 2015). This paper reflects on the ongoing commitment of members of this community to a partnership that uses interstate boarding schools as a means of educating their children. It reviews…

The history of Australian mass schooling has seen contestations over school and curriculum purposes, zig-zagging across conservative and progressive directions. In this paper, we examine how possibilities for students to have 'voice', 'participation' and 'leadership' in their learning are currently limited in Australia. Policy framings, we argue,…

Every aspect of the Australian education system is a colonial construct, which was established across the continent and adjacent islands as part of the ongoing British colonisation process. As such, in contemporary music classrooms in Australia, there are decisions made every day that perpetuate settler futurity. This paper explores five ways…

Across most predominantly English-speaking countries, classroom-based language education plays an important role in the internationalization of young citizens. However, the quality of language learning opportunities in many countries is less than ideal. The development of language education policy is influenced in part by broader societal…

This article draws on work with communities in the rural and remote towns of Brewarrina, Wilcannia and Enngonia, New South Wales (NSW) to explore the relationship between low adult literacy levels and the continuing alienation of Aboriginal communities from educational decision making. Building on the analysis of community-school relations…