Concern about poor school attendance and participation, particularly of Indigenous children, is a key issue in Australian education; however, strategies to address this issue have been piecemeal and have met with limited success. While much has been written about the issue of school attendance, little attention has been given to absenteeism in…

School completion rates for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students are well below the rates for non-Indigenous students. The target of halving the gap by 2020 in Year 12 (or equivalent) attainment rates between Indigenous and non-Indigenous students is a major national challenge. This paper discusses the causes of low completion rates for…

Characteristics of the American university are examined as they are relevant to the concerns of Australian higher education. Aspects discussed include diversity of institutions, methods of governance, tenure and academic freedom, external peer review of programs and projects, research funding, and curriculum design and patterns of attendance. (MSE)