Education
‘A message for the premier: Honour the deal you made with teachers’
Teachers have been betrayed by Chris Minns and Pru Car. They believed the rhetoric that they, like the nurses, child and aged care workers, had done it tough during COVID and deserved a pay rise.
Latest
Is it cool to take your parents to a university open day?
Should you go when you’re in year 12, or is year 9 better? With university open day season about to get under way, experts and students answer these questions and more.
- by Larissa Ham
Thanks to Trump, America is no longer the world’s greatest democracy
The aftermath of Donald Trump’s 2020 election loss proves that the United States has lost its leader of the free world mantle.
Teachers union accuses Minns government of ‘act of betrayal’ over pay
The NSW Teachers Federation has hit out at the state government over a breakdown in pay negotiations, accusing it of backing away from an agreement struck in May.
- by Lucy Carroll and Max Maddison
Sydney teacher found to have racially vilified Indian student
During a year 12 business studies class at Cronulla High School, the teacher allegedly described Indian people as “Uber drivers and Deliveroo people”.
- by Sarah Keoghan
NSW will ‘lead the way’ with teaching Indigenous experience of colonisation
A proposed overhaul to the school history syllabus will include a compulsory unit on Indigenous Australians’ experiences of colonisation in Australia.
- by Lucy Carroll
Exclusive
Indigenous experience of colonisation mandatory under school history overhaul
Indigenous Australians’ perspective of European colonisation will be taught to all year 7 to 10 students under proposed changes to the NSW history syllabus.
- by Lucy Carroll
Exclusive
Distinctions with a difference: Top grades double for students at state’s biggest unis
About 40 per cent of students at the University of NSW and Sydney Uni picked up the two highest grades, new data shows.
- by Lucy Carroll
‘Thrown in the deep end’: Inside the plan to fix the problems with teacher training
Sarah Trestrail did a four-year education degree, then quickly realised she had no practical skills to cope with the realities of the job.
- by Lucy Carroll
Universities Australia defends dropping $1.5m sexual consent campaign
A national survey of 43,000 university students found one in six had been sexually harassed and one in 20 had been assaulted since they began their studies.
- by Natassia Chrysanthos
Girls have overtaken boys in science participation. In workplaces, it’s a completely different story
Young women get better grades in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, but progress on jobs for women in these industries has been painfully slow.
- by Liam Mannix
Where do universities stand on the Voice? For many, it’s complicated
Why are some universities advocating a Yes vote in the Voice referendum while others have not taken a position?
- by Matt Wade
Opinion
School holidays should be whenever parents say so
Principals should not get in the way of a family holiday, even if it is during school term.
- by Brad Emery
Opinion
The crucial area that the Welcome to Sex book gets wrong
Young people need clear advice on the dangers of sending nude images of a person under the age of 18 years
- by Susan McLean
Can you answer these 50 HSC questions?
From mathematics to business studies - take the 2023 HSC challenge.
Carlos got a 95 ATAR. It was 95 more points than he needed
Bump star Carlos Sanson jr was part of the Reddam House cohort that catapulted the school into the HSC top 10. But to achieve his dream career, what he learnt at school mattered a lot more than his ATAR.
- by Abby Seaman
Daniya Syed's top tips for HSC Design and Technology
Syed completed her studies while competing in robotics competitions.
Dr Helen Tam explains how your ATAR is calculated
Dr Tam is responsible for every student's ATAR. Here she busts all the myths about how your ATAR is calculated.
Dr Karl Kruszelnicki gives his tips for HSC Science
Kruszelnicki has made a career out of a love of science.
Carlos Sanson Jr's top tips for HSC Drama
The star of the hit series Bump and former Reddam House student shares his secrets.
Kim Zheng's top tips for HSC Mathematics
Kim topped the state in Extension 1 Mathematics and came seventh in Extension 2 in 2019.
Toby Maroulis's top tips for HSC Electrotechnology
Toby is set to study Electrical Engineering at university next year.
Treading a different path to the HSC
HSC Pathways offers students who have additional needs the opportunity to complete their studies over multiple years.
When the HSC leads straight to a dream job
VET courses help get students job ready. Here’s how to succeed in them.
How an old Disney movie inspired Daniya to create a medical robot
Whether it’s a medical robot or a high-tech weather station, HSC technology subjects are an opportunity to indulge your passion.
Eddie Woo's top tips for HSC maths
Cherrybrook teacher Eddie Woo says explain your solution to a friend to be certain of your own understanding.
Choose work that you love to excel in HSC creative arts
Tips for drama, art and music to help you do your best in this year’s HSC.
Putting a love of history to use for the community
Top tips for succeeding in HSC history, legal studies and business studies.
How high school science led to the perfect career for Eunice
Eunice Cheng was the 2019 HSC science dux. Now she’s researching dementia and is passionate about serving others. Here are her tips for succeeding in HSC science.
Eddie Woo’s five steps to acing HSC maths
The Cherrybrook teacher says you can appreciate mathematics as easily as you can appreciate a Sydney sunrise.
‘Find your voice’ to succeed in HSC English
A top student, a Herald reporter and teacher share their tips for HSC English.
Put your best foot forward: the essentials for tackling the HSC
Be organised, know the rules, and get those dates in your calendars.
School-leavers reject attending university from their bedrooms
Year 12 students say they want to study on campus, as more universities withdraw their pandemic-era online classes.
- by Mary Ward
Cardigans, wigs and canes: Why kindy students are dressing up as 100-year-olds
Barely heard of in Australia a decade ago, more and more teachers are jumping on the 100 Days of School trend.
- by Mary Ward
Andrew learnt to read at three. This year he is the youngest person sitting the HSC
He started high school aged nine, is a member of Mensa and reads astrophysics books in his spare time. Meet Andrew Attard.
- by Christopher Harris
The Sydney suburbs with the most speeding fines in school zones
Fines totalling more than $200 million have been issued to NSW drivers for speeding in school zones since 2017 – and one region of Sydney is the worst offender.
- by Andrew Taylor and Nigel Gladstone
Apology
On Sunday, July 16, smh.com.au published a story with the headline “Nine-year-olds cheating on entrance exams as pressure mounts for opportunity classes”, accompanied by a photograph of a nine-year-old boy.
A teacher said he was destined for a future as ‘factory fodder’. Two habits saved him
Tony Birch was a high-school dropout, but the lessons learnt while training for a marathon set him on the road to becoming an award-winning author.
- by Tony Birch
‘Wealthy families, private schools’: Have universities forgotten who their students really are?
Experts warn funding cuts have led to the rise of universities operating like corporations instead of public institutions. What spiky ideas can fix the sector?
- by Sherryn Groch, Lucy Carroll and Nicole Precel
The Sydney public school where parents voluntarily contribute $1 million
Parental contributions for public schools have not returned to their pre-pandemic levels, yet Sydney Boys High received more than $1 million in financial contributions in 2022.
- by Christopher Harris
Students stuck paying high HECS debts for ‘failed’ scheme
Thousands of young people studying law, arts, commerce or economics will keep paying $15,000 a year, as the government waits on advice about restructuring fees.
- by Natassia Chrysanthos
Dutton for punishment: Liberals failing to learn election lessons
The opposition leader’s dour persona and with his inability to display any soft skills translates is a voter turnoff.
Exclusive
‘Like their Aussie home’: Foreign student homestays floated to ease housing crunch
Encouraging families to rent their spare rooms to students tax-free has been raised as an option to relieve housing stress by members of a high-level panel.
- by Angus Thompson