CYP Matters

Respect and listening

First Nations students are engaged in primary school but face racism and limited opportunities to learn Indigenous languages
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ school experiences are often inaccurately described through what researchers call ‘deficit perspectives’, that aren’t representative of lived experience. It is rare to hear from Indigenous students and young people directly in research and reports. More >

Won’t somebody please think of the children?
Drag as a form of creative, physical and spiritual expression has existed within theatre and cultural performance for millennia, however, cancellation of drag story time events at public libraries in Australia due to protests, overlooks the agency and rights of the events’ intended audiences: children and young people. More >

Safeguarding children who come from black, Asian and minoritised ethnic communities
Everyone has beliefs and prejudices about other people that are formed with or without our conscious awareness. This might result in people making harmful generalisations about specific communities, which in turn is likely to result in children and families not receiving the appropriate level of support and protection. More >

Enjoying and achieving

Doubling support for young carers to continue their education
A funding boost of almost $10 million by the Federal Government will allow Carers Australia to increase financial assistance to young carers so they can continue their education while caring for a loved one.  More >

Why nature-based learning is on the rise
Less than a quarter of 5–14 year olds achieve the recommended 60 minutes of physical activity every day. Some Australian schools are introducing nature play environments to better connect students with the outdoors. More >

Australian education’s AI challenge: Embrace change or face redundancy
For too long, our education system has been based on a design from an industrial era and is still primarily about the delivery and assessment of content knowledge: essays, assignments, exams. AI is about to make that focus redundant, yet our nation’s policymakers are taking their time to make meaningful contributions to this issue. More >

No Batman or Superman in land of Indigenous superheroes
Spider-Man and Batman are nowhere to be seen in a comic book world of Indigenous superheroes and dreaming stories which is focused on how Indigenous peoples of the world can be created into superheroes. More >

Participation

Involving children in evaluation
For people working with children and/or delivering programs that seek to benefit children, involving children in evaluation with purpose and care can give valuable insights and perspectives that might otherwise be missed. More >

Youngsters take the lead role on World Environment Day
From touring theatre plays, to letter-writing, to radio shows: thousands of children in 24 countries across the world marked World Environment Day by drawing attention to issues of the climate crisis and inequality. More >

Prepared for adult life

Regional education commissioner to research keeping regional kids in Year 12
Australian regional education commissioner Fiona Nash is tasked with considering a national approach to improving regional access to education. She views her role as a ‘conduit’ between students, stakeholders, industry, communities and governments so regional, rural and remote education and training is ‘front of mind’ for decision-makers.  More >

Health and wellbeing

Vaping now in primary schools
Recent studies show vaping is now widespread in Australian secondary schools and is becoming increasingly common in primary schools. This is highly problematic for the health and wellbeing of young users due to the addictive nature of nicotine and the adverse effects of nicotine use on the developing brain. More >

How schools and families can take climate action by learning about food systems
Young people are experiencing high levels of climate anxiety characterized by feelings of fear, worry, despair and guilt which can negatively affect psychosocial health and wellbeing. Engaging with food systems presents a major opportunity to act on the climate crisis.  More >

Gone too far
This UK report found children in care who were moved more than 20 miles away from home were more likely to have lower wellbeing and experience emotional difficulty than children placed closer to home. More >

The outsize benefits of school health and nutrition programmes
Although most nations are focusing their efforts on primary education, this report says the steady growth in the number of such schemes over the past 20 years means that 62% of secondary schools worldwide now provide some form of health and nutrition support.  More >

Body Kind Youth Survey Findings
In late 2022, young people in Australia aged 12 to18 years were invited to take part in the first annual Body Kind Youth Survey and to share their experiences and ideas around body image. The survey was developed by leading body image researchers and educators, safely worded, ethics approved, and anonymous! More >

Safe and nurtured

‘Kidfluencer’ culture is harming kids in several ways – and there’s no meaningful regulation of it
Parents share content of their children for myriad reasons, including to connect with friends and family, and to seek validation or support. However, some parents also do this for commercial gain.  More >

Students left with $13 a day as youth allowance falls behind rent rises, analysis finds
This report compares the cost of sharing an average two-bedroom apartment against the maximum income support payments available to young student renters, revealing they are left with little money to cover food, transport, medicine, utilities and other costs. More >

Towards best-practice access to services for culturally and linguistically diverse people with a disability
This research found that many organisations have policies or programs to support inclusion of people with disability and also people from CALD backgrounds, but these policies often do not intersect, implementation is often patchy, and they are often not adequately monitored or evaluated.  More >

Why language matters: domestic abuse is broader than domestic violence
What comes to mind when you hear the phrase ‘domestic violence’? For many, it’s closely associated with incidents of physical violence perpetrated by one partner against another. But domestic abuse doesn’t have to involve physical violence, and its effects are felt by everyone exposed to the abuse. More >

Care criminalisation of children with disability in child protection systems
This is the largest Australian study so far to focus attention on children with overlapping experiences of child protection involvement, disability and criminalisation. It also focused on the experiences of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander and culturally and linguistically diverse children who have these overlapping experiences. More >

Traumatised children find first stable home and support in innovative foster care program
Despite their risk profile, experts say most children in out-of-home care cannot access adequate therapeutic support, leaving their carers struggling to manage the child’s reactions to their damaging experiences. More >