Jun
18
2025
Australian schools are increasingly using artificial intelligence tools for assessment and teacher assistance; to help provide individualised feedback to students and create new ways of learning. However, the take-up has been patchy, says Therese Hopfenbeck, director of the Assessment & Evaluation Research Centre (AERC) at the University of Melbourne, adding: “From a research perspective, we …read more
Jun
18
2025
Australia’s intense focus on nationwide numeracy and literacy test scores such as NAPLAN has made almost no difference to students’ measurable literacy and numeracy over time and comes at the expense of “values education”, says Dr Chris Duncan, CEO of the Association of Heads of Independent Schools of Australia (AHISA). “I think the model has …read more
Jun
16
2025
It took just 72 hours for Aspen Medical to set up a comprehensive clinic to support fleeing Afghan nationals after the Taliban overran Afghanistan in August 2021. The chaotic mass evacuation known as the Kabul Airlift began within days of the Taliban takeover, and the Australian department of foreign affairs (DFAT) contracted Aspen Medical to …read more
Jun
16
2025
Employers should consider taking the time to talk person to person with ex-service people, says former Lance Bombardier Peter Sanderson. Ex-service people understand how to work in teams; they know how to give and follow orders; and they understand the importance of task completion, he says. Importantly, ex-service people might not even know how their …read more
Apr
9
2025
Australia needs “clever” defence systems and equipment to protect the nation’s interests over a huge landmass and expanse of ocean, says Chief Defence Scientist Tanya Monro. “We can’t just assume that we can build scale that will deter an adversary,” she tells The Australian. “So we have to do clever things.” Hundreds of defence research …read more
Mar
25
2025
Artificial intelligence can control increasingly sophisticated uncrewed aircraft and submersibles, changing the nature of warfare and raising questions about the many millions of dollars Australia is now spending on buying and developing crewed aircraft and submarines. Dominant on the frontlines in Ukraine, large-scale swarms of AI drones can overwhelm almost any opponent, says University of NSW …read more
Mar
5
2025
Many tens of millions of government dollars have been spent in recent years to encourage school students to pursue study and careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) – yet girls and young women seem to have been left behind. Most STEM subjects in schools and universities continue to be dominated by males, particularly subjects …read more
Mar
5
2025
Ashlee Caddell first began enjoying science when she was 10 years old. Now 28 and a University of Queensland astrophysics doctoral candidate researching dark matter, she has had a long struggle with gender stereotypes – from being one of just a few girls in a Sunshine Coast state high school physics class, to coping with mean schoolboys …read more
Mar
5
2025
Girls still trail boys in mathematics and science in Australia, according to regular nationwide surveys. Despite extensive government efforts to encourage girls to buck historic trends and consider STEM education and STEM career paths, the gender differential has proved hard to shift. Helen Watt, professor of educational psychology at Sydney University, says in one indication, …read more
Feb
25
2025
The rust lab at the University of Sydney saves Australian agriculturalists many millions of dollars every year. Led by Robert Park, director of the Australian Cereal Rust Research Control Program at the university, a team of scientists uses pathology, genetics and pre-breeding to develop breeds of wheat, oats and barley that are resistant to the …read more