Improving educational outcomes: Why don't remote schools in Australia measure up?

Cornelius, Karen, and Mackey-Smith, Kerrie (2022) Improving educational outcomes: Why don't remote schools in Australia measure up? Issues in Educational Research, 32 (3). pp. 925-942.

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Abstract

The link between one's postcode and probable school 'success' is well recognised. For those in remote Australian schools, it is an indicator that the further one lives from the metropolis, the less likely they are to be successful. Improved educational outcomes are desirable for students in remote communities to broaden their future life choices. This paper considers what neo-conservative policies around 'improvement' and 'success' - largely formed and mandated in metropolitan centres of education governance - mean for students living in remote locations. Using an example of leading a remote Australian school, we consider if educational success for students in remote schools can be readily evidenced through standardised testing alone. We also consider what this means for teachers, teaching in a remote site. This article draws primarily on the experiences of a school leader conducting an autoethnography, following their three-year tenure as a leader in a remote school. Through applied qualitative inquiry, drawing in particular on reflexive self-study, the paper explores one remote school's response to calls from governments for 'improvement'.

Item ID: 76098
Item Type: Article (Research - C1)
ISSN: 1837-6290
Keywords: education policy, improvement, remote schools, standardised testing, student outcomes
Copyright Information: Creative Commons licence: Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-ND 4.0)
Date Deposited: 07 Oct 2022 07:26
FoR Codes: 39 EDUCATION > 3902 Education policy, sociology and philosophy > 390201 Education policy @ 60%
39 EDUCATION > 3902 Education policy, sociology and philosophy > 390203 Sociology of education @ 40%
SEO Codes: 16 EDUCATION AND TRAINING > 1602 Schools and learning environments > 160205 Policies and development @ 100%
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