New publications

This paper contains a selection of education, family and community statistical indicators for New South Wales. It aims to provide a snapshot of trends, with a focus on the overall situation in NSW. Where relevant, comparisons are made to the situation in the other Australian states and territories. This paper updates the education and community sections of the paper, Health, Education and Community Indicators for NSW, published in 2010 as part of the statistical indicators series. The sources of the data used are noted at the conclusion of each indicator. The Australian Bureau of Statistics is the primary source for the paper, but a number of other references have been utilised. (From paper's summary.)

Virtual Worlds are an important tool in modern education practices, as well as providing socialisation, entertainment and a laboratory for collaborative work. This paper focuses on the uses of virtual worlds for education and synthesises over 90 published academic papers, reports and educational websites from around the world. A taxonomy is then derived from these articles, delineating current theoretical and practical work on virtual world usage, specifically in the field of education. The taxonomy identifies rich veins of current research and practice in associated educational theory and in simulated worlds or environments, yet it also demonstrates the paucity of work in important areas such as evaluation, grading and accessibility. (From paper's abstract.)

Uncovering History focuses on developing and applying concepts through historical inquiry. It explains how to use multimodal texts and primary sources to engage students in critical analysis, making comparisons, drawing conclusions and applying their understandings to other settings. Throughout the text the authors explore The Australian Curriculum: History through the use of texts conveyed by live, paper and digital electronic technologies. The authors also explore the links between the Australian Curriculum: English and the Australian Curriculum: History by examining the specific literacy practices that support historical inquiry. Available June 2013 – pre-orders welcome. An ebook version will also be available. Adapted from publisher's description, which also links to professional learning opportunities related to the text.

This book 'presents theory and pedagogical possibilities to reclaim and build upon the knowledge base that was growing when government mandates, scripted commercial programs, and high-stakes tests took over as the dominant agenda for reading instruction in US public schools'. It examines how the teaching of reading 'can be reclaimed via an intensive reconsideration of five pillars as central to the teaching and learning of reading: learning, teaching, curriculum, language, and sociocultural contexts'. From publisher's description.

The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) and Trends in Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) are two highly respected studies of school pupils' academic achievement. English policymakers have been disappointed with school children's performance on these tests, particularly in comparison to the strong results of young people from East Asia. In this paper we provide new insight into the England-East Asia gap in school children's mathematics skills. We do so by considering how cross-national differences in math test scores change between ages 10 and 16. Our results suggest that, although average math test scores are higher in East Asian countries, this achievement gap does not increase between ages 10 and 16. We thus conclude that reforming the secondary-school system may not be the most effective way for England to 'catch up' with the East Asian nations in the PISA math rankings. Rather, earlier intervention during preschool and primary school, may be needed instead. Adapted from report abstract.

This volume brings together leading researchers in education, sociology and geography to address questions of space in relation to education and learning. This collection of essays: examines the changing and diverse spaces and concepts of education; explores where education and learning take place; discusses how spaces of education vary at different stages of education; and 'inspects the ways in which the meanings attached to education and learning change in different national and regional contexts'. It is designed for final-year undergraduates, postgraduates and researchers in geography, sociology, education and policy studies. Adapted from publisher's description.