New learning formats and the lack of socialisation with friends has resulted in worsening mental health after the closure of schools caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, according to students interviewed by Newbytes. The coronavirus has killed more than 400,000 people throughout the world this year and has infected more than 7 million since its spread […]

Prominent sceptic and science writer Ben Goldacre will visit Australia in September for a debut speaking tour. Author of bestsellers Bad Science and Bad Pharma, Dr Goldacre will speak in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. Suzi Jamil and Desh Amila of Think Inc said he had always been on their list of people to bring to […]

Making intelligence cool again is the aim of a company that brings internationally renowned intellectuals to Australia. Run by glamour couple Desh Amila, 34, and partner Suzi Jamil, 24, Think Inc is seeking to bring ideas to a younger audience. Mr Amila was inspired to create Think Inc in 2013 after going to an intellectual […]

A Sunshine Coast school celebrates 30 years of its community fundraiser Strawbfest on 3 September, with live music, prizes and plenty of strawberries. The Twist Brothers Strawberry Farm opposite Chevallum State School donates the fruit from one of its fields for the event. Children from every grade help pick the strawberries, with the motto “pick […]

In the slums around Vizhinjam Fishing Harbor in Kerala, India, poverty is everywhere. In one village children as young as 10 work on fishing boats instead of going to school. Just 2km away from Vizhinjam waves break cleanly on the shores of Kovalam Beach. It was here that Jelle Rigole, a 32-year-old Belgian, realised surfing […]

Educators in Abu Dhabi have welcomed reforms to assessment of senior students in the United Arab Emirates capital. The Abu Dhabi Education Council (ADEC) has updated its assessment process so that cycle 3 students no longer receive numeric marks. The year 10 and 11 students will now be assessed using special letters. They will be […]

From civil war in Somalia to the lazy Central Coast suburb of Wyoming, Somali-born Khalid Ugaas’s life has been dramatically split between two continents, cultures and lifestyles. The softly-spoken 30-year-old business student has come through harsh circumstances to find peace in Australia. Finally, the skies look bright. Khalid, one of 11 children to Ogaden-born parents, […]

Queensland’s south-east will gain 10 new schools, while nine face the axe. Minister for Education John-Paul Langbroek told parliament today the government would build 10 schools in “growth hot spots” including growth belts south of Ipswich and in Brisbane’s outer north. The schools will be built in a public-private partnership, with companies invited to bid […]

The Newman government’s decisions on aged care and education were condemned by Prime Minister Julia Gillard and deputy Wayne Swan at last night’s federal community cabinet in Redcliffe. Mr Swan said the state’s closure of Eventide Sandgate to sell some of the site was “simply cruel”. The Commonwealth pays for residents in state-run nursing homes […]

Gold Walkley-winning journalist Hedley Thomas received an honorary Doctor of Journalism degree at Jschool’s annual graduation ceremony on Friday. Mr Thomas, national chief correspondent of The Australian, urged the new graduates to be constantly vigilant in their coverage of society. He recalled the media-initiated Fitzgerald Inquiry into government corruption in the 1980s to warn that […]

Queensland’s new Domestic and Family Violence Protection Act includes a revised definition of domestic violence and changes to police powers. The new law came into effect this month. Ipswich Women’s Centre Against Domestic Violence program co-ordinator Rebecca Shearman said the 1989 Act was an important milestone but the new legislation took protection a step further. […]

Rolling work stoppages across Victorian schools have been threatened, with the first to occur in Premier Ted Baillieu’s electorate of Hawthorn. As part of Wednesday’s teachers strike Australian Education Union (AEU) members voted not to hold another full-day strike this year but instead implement rolling work stoppages expected to be begin in Term 4. However […]

Opportunities for citizen journalists have been opened in a multi-media newsroom project at the State Library of Queensland. CitizenJ, an innovation of the library’s digital cultural centre The Edge, will let people try their hand at reporting and editing, with a view to adding to media diversity. Training includes journalism, video, film editing, audio production, […]

A $57 million initiative had been axed because it was not the state government’s responsibility, according to Queensland’s Minister for Education. The Skilling Queenslanders for Work initiative had helped 57,000 Queenslanders find jobs and a return would have been made on the funds within 12 months, the Leader of the Opposition told parliament yesterday. Minister […]

The Queensland Teachers Union leadership was criticised by Education Minister John-Paul Langbroek over their role in negotiations following last month’s protests outside Parliament House. Mr Langbroek said in Parliament today the QTU didn’t directly involve themselves in negotiations over the Enterprise Bargaining Agreement either before or after the protest. “There was a rally outside the […]