Is Australia lowering its expectations in school education?
The OECD released on 10 April 2023 its Education Policy Outlook in Australia. It is the most detailed, comprehensive yet concise document on the state of education in Australia, but there is one telling statement that raises a serious concern about expectations for schools, namely, that Australia is described as a high performing country. This is contrary to the generally-accepted meaning of that term, and despite numerous statistics that indicate that there are many shortcomings. It is important to first describe the significance and the many strengths of the report that is recommended reading for all who want a trustworthy account of the “state of the federation.”
The OECD publishes education policy outlooks for many of its members and this is the second for Australia. I made extensive use of those from several countries when I wrote The Alignment Premium in 2018. The reports are prepared by OECD staff on the basis of desk-top reviews of reports from each country, augmented by interviews with senior officials. In the case of Australia these officials were from the Commonwealth as well as the States and Territories. It is reasonable to assume that they helped interpret the various reports and indicators, including the appellation of Australia as a high-performing country.
The basis of the aforementioned assessment was that Australia performed above the OECD average on certain criteria, including the results in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) for 15-year-olds in literacy, numeracy and science. However, it is not only the mostly rich OECD member countries who participate in PISA; about 70 nations/economies do so. For Australia to perform above the average is nothing to boast about, especially as performance has steadily declined over the last two decades. Australia was in the top ten earlier this century when the decline started. Leaders then aspired to regain this ranking. Now it seems that “above average” is the best that can be reported. I am concerned that we may never again be really a top performer, a possibility raised on page 191 of Reimagining Schools and School Systems: “Australia may have to content itself to be a second-tier nation in school education because the top performers will continue their quest to be the world’s best.”