Purpose: Through description and consideration of 12 models developed as part of the International Successful School Principalship Project (ISSPP), a new model of successful school leadership is developed. Design/methodology/approach: The paper is necessarily descriptive in nature. For the first time, 12 ISSPP models are described together, and…

A more motivating way of introducing students to probability theory is through real-world problems. Since heuristics play an important role in our probabilistic judgement, knowing how to avoid incorrect probabilistic reasoning, which leads to several biases, could help students to develop more critical thinking skills. In this paper, we present a…

Since 2008, all Australian students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 have been assessed in literacy and numeracy through an annual National Assessment Program--Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) test. In 2015, a team of mathematics education researchers across Australia conducted a nationwide research project to identify school practices and policies that were…

We use event history analysis on an aggregate dataset from 1997 to 2018 to understand the state-level antecedents associated with the adoption of test-based grade retention policies. Findings indicate that the educational conditions of a state to be more predictive of retention policy adoption than the political, economic, and geographic measures.…

This study represents an extension of the findings of Kieffer and Thompson (2018) and evaluates potential correlates of state- and district-level achievement gaps in reading and mathematics between monolingual and multilingual students. Using data from the National Assessment of Educational Progress, this study reported that there were substantial…

Major policy changes make teachers reconsider how they teach. In Sweden, a new curriculum, a grading system, and national tests were introduced in science education in Year 6 (Y6) for the 2012/2013 academic year. After two years, the national tests were made voluntary, and they ended the following year. In this interview study, we investigate what…

Readability has long been regarded as a significant aspect in English language teaching as it provides the overall picture of a text's difficulty level, especially in the context of teaching and testing. Readability is a practical consideration when making decisions on materials to match a text with target readers' proficiency. However, few…

The present review is in view of the endeavour of the Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) in framing a national curriculum that is intended to equip all young Australians including those with special educational needs and disabilities. It presents some interesting findings on how teachers and parents engage with…

The purpose of this study was to compare students' results in mathematics from a large-scale standardized assessment, the National Assessment Program: Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN), with a set of teacher-developed, school-based assessments. A case study of an all-boys secondary school in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, was conducted over…

Several national testing processes, involving the administration of standardised tests, are implemented widely worldwide to provide individual summative and formative assessment and/or monitor the quality of educational systems. The longitudinal national Programme for Functional Literacy (PfL) in Cyprus resembles a primarily formative testing…

In this article we propose a framework for reporting mathematics results from national assessment surveys (NAS) such that effective use of the resulting reports can enhance teaching and learning. We explored literature on factors that may contribute to non-utilisation of assessment data as a basis for decision-making. In the context of South…

In April 2017, a three-day Learning Improvement Summit, held in Washington, DC, brought together a broad array of national and international assessment stakeholders. The purpose of the summit was to empower a diverse group of faculty and assessment leaders to develop, refine, discuss, and address evidence-based learning improvement initiatives…

The present study examines the features and quality of visual representations (VRs) created by middle school students with learning disabilities and difficulties in mathematics in response to a released fraction item from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). Relations between VR quality and scores on other measures of fraction…

Since 2007, 'Closing the Gap' between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people has been an ambition of Australian state and federal governments in areas including education, employment, and health. This paper examines media responses to government policies aimed at closing the achievement gap in schools. The paper analyses print and online newspaper…

This paper provides data on patterns of schools' learning intervention provision in 2017, and discusses the utility of online sources to gather this information. Demographic, achievement, and intervention data were collected for a sample of 366 schools offering primary education across Australia's five more populous states. Intervention offerings…