Respect and listening
‘Do things with the information we tell you’: Supporting Quality Engagement with Children
The right of all children to be heard and taken seriously constitutes one of the fundamental values of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. This right is not systematically realised across Australia. More >
The Rainbow Elephant in the Room: What message are we sharing when we don’t talk about family diversity?
We need to do whatever we can to create safe and inclusive learning spaces for all children and families. That includes ‘doing the work’ to understand the role educators play to support, empower and celebrate all children. More >
Kids Rights Index 2024
The 12th edition of the Kids Rights Index reveals that progress towards Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) relevant to children, is severely lagging with only one in three being met or on track to be met. More >
Enjoying and achieving
Linking quality and child development in early childhood education and care: research summary
This research summary presents key findings from a research project examining how specific aspects of quality relate to learning and development outcomes for children in Australia. More >
Green space and student’s academic outcomes explored in new study
The ‘Better green spaces in Australian primary schools’ initiative will look at the benefits of nature and how children’s behaviour, cognitive development, academic performance and wellbeing are influenced by green spaces. More >
Perth Deadly Dreaming workshops focus on self-pride, culture for Aboriginal high school students
The Deadly Dreaming workshops teach Aboriginal students about the success of their story and the strength of Aboriginal Australia rather than a deficit story and stereotypes, leaving the door open for them to see that there are Aboriginal people who’ve been to university, and who are scientists, lawyers, and doctors. More >
School behaviour program Learning Ground is turning lives around but fighting for funding
Disruptive classrooms have been linked to disengagement with schooling. Learning Ground’s personal approach builds self esteem and hope for students’ futures and is turning around schooling for hundreds of young people. More >
Participation
‘Loose parts’ playground Joomunjie Land gives kids alternative way to play amid crates and concrete tunnels
‘Risky play’ could help fix Australia’s teen mental health crisis. Supervised playworkers monitor the children at Joomunjie Land helping them to navigate risk, hazards, and dangers and gain new knowledge and skills. More >
Calls for inclusivity to find a place for children with disabilities in mainstream schools
Parents of children with disability have ‘very real fears’ about sending their children to mainstream schools, however, there is no research that suggests they have better outcomes when they attend special schools. More >
Prepared for adult life
Online driving theory test could help more young people living in regional Australia get their licence
Young people living in regional parts of Australia can struggle to access a licensing centre to sit a learner test. The at-home learner theory test, which can be accessed at any time from a personal device, and re-sat multiple times without users incurring a fee is now available in WA, NSW, Queensland, Victoria, South Australia, and Tasmania. More >
Health and wellbeing
State of Global Air 2024 report
In 2021, more than 700,000 deaths globally in children under 5 years were linked to air pollution. Under 5’s are particularly vulnerable to the knock-on effects including premature birth, low birth weight and lung diseases. More >
Extreme Heat Affects Early Childhood Development & Health
While the dangers of excessive heat for older people are well recognized, its impact on pregnancy, infancy, and childhood often get less attention. However, the consequences are significant. More >
Ending child poverty in Australia
One in six Australian children live in poverty, yet there is no official poverty line or monitoring of poverty in place. Poverty has long-lasting and insidious impacts on a child’s health and wellbeing and can affect their schooling and employment opportunities throughout their entire lifetime. More >
Some of Us R Not OK: The Decline in Youth Mental Health
Is social media to blame for the decline in youth mental health since the early 2010s? This analysis of the drivers of mental health to the Joint Select Committee on Social Media and Australian Society sheds light on this question. More >
Food plays a role in children’s mental health — and some schools are stepping in to help those going hungry
Data shows that mental health disorders among young people have soared by nearly 50 per cent in 15 years, with research showing a link between the quality of people’s diets and their risk of depression. More >
Youth Homelessness Prevention Strategy Released
Youth homelessness is a major public health concern in the USA. Each person’s pathway to homelessness is unique, yet there are common drivers. This strategy provides guiding principles and a prevention framework. More >
Safe and nurtured
How using terms like ‘recruited’ and ‘working’ minimises children’s experiences of criminal exploitation
Terms like ‘recruited’ and ‘working’ mask the harm caused by child criminal exploitation implying that the child or young person is responsible for their situation, and can then prevent them from receiving appropriate support. More >
Being a young man online: tensions, complexities and possibilities
What influences, motivates, shapes and informs the online experiences of young men in Australia aged 16 to 21 years? In their own words; they grapple with what it means to be a man in the digital age. More >
Improving the safety and wellbeing of vulnerable children
This study aims to provide a national focus for reforms to the child protection and youth justice systems by examining recommendations from 61 reports and inquiries between 2010 and 2022. More >
Risk assessment approaches in child protection
This resource sheet summarises risk assessment approaches used by child protection practitioners to assess whether a child is at risk of future maltreatment and discusses their strengths and weaknesses. More >
The world’s biggest AI models were trained using images of Australian kids, and their families had no idea
The privacy of Australian children is being violated on a large scale by the artificial intelligence (AI) industry, with personal images, names, locations and ages being used to train some of the world’s leading AI models. More >