Columnist articles Teacher Magazine

Will schools of the future be different?

Wed, 12 Feb 2025 07:30:00 +1100

In his first Teacher column for 2025, Professor Geoff Masters AO poses these questions: will schooling be different for children born this year, and if so, how? He then offers 3 suggestions for how learning at school might evolve by 2040.

Assessment reform: Insights from New Zealand

Mon, 22 Jan 2024 07:30:00 +1100

In his first Teacher column of 2024, Professor Geoff Masters AO discusses assessment reforms proposed in New Zealand to reverse that country’s declining student performance.

Teacher’s Bookshelf: World-class learning systems

Wed, 16 Aug 2023 07:30:00 +1000

Our latest Teacher’s Bookshelf features Building a World-Class Learning System: Insights from some top-performing school systems, by Professor Geoff Masters. It explores what British Columbia, Estonia, Finland, Hong Kong and South Korea have in common, the strategies they employ, and the decisions they are making to support students now and in the future.

NAPLAN to stop reporting students’ progress

Mon, 15 May 2023 07:30:00 +1000

‘A parent who is now told that their child’s reading is "developing" in each of years 3, 5, 7 and 9 is never likely to know what that means.’ Professor Geoff Masters AO says recent changes to NAPLAN reporting won’t help teachers and parents, and are ‘bewildering’.

Reform challenges in school education

Mon, 01 May 2023 07:30:00 +1000

‘Schools everywhere face ongoing challenges in better preparing young people for their future and ensuring that every student learns successfully and meets high expectations.’ Professor Geoff Masters AO argues addressing these challenges will require fundamental reform of the framework within which schools operate.

PAT: Leading best practice

Mon, 21 Mar 2022 08:00:00 +1100

‘Underpinning PAT is recognition that every student is at some point in their long-term progress and is capable of further progress given learning opportunities at an appropriate level of stretch challenge.’ In his latest Teacher column, Professor Geoff Masters AO explores what makes ACER’s progressive achievement (PAT) resources special.

Equality, equity and the school curriculum

Tue, 28 Sep 2021 06:00:00 +1000

‘Every student should be on the same (inclusive) path of learning, [and] every student should make excellent ongoing progress and eventually achieve the same high standards,’ Professor Geoff Masters AO writes in his latest Teacher column, adding that the challenge is in creating the conditions to enable this to happen.

Computer Adaptive Testing – challenging traditional thinking

Mon, 21 Jun 2021 06:00:00 +1000

‘Computer adaptive tests offer a glimpse into the future of learning, the curriculum and assessment.’ In his new column for Teacher, Professor Geoff Masters AO discusses the role of adaptive tests in challenging traditional achievement tests, and why they provide a more accurate estimate of the point an individual has reached in their learning, regardless of their age or year level.

How well do grades convey student attainment and progress?

Mon, 19 Apr 2021 06:00:00 +1000

‘Grades do not assist parents to see and monitor their children’s growth in an area of learning across the years of school.’ In his new Teacher column, Professor Geoff Masters AO explores why there is such a mismatch between parents’ beliefs in their child’s learning, and how ready the child is for the year’s curriculum.

‘Big five’ challenges in school education – what progress have we made?

Mon, 22 Feb 2021 06:00:00 +1100

Professor Geoff Masters AO shares details of a special ACER five-webinar series, where expert practitioners, researchers and policymakers will revisit the major challenges in school education he wrote of six years ago, and ask what progress has been made on each, and what needs to happen next.

The equity myth

Mon, 08 Feb 2021 07:00:00 +1100

‘Equity demands a curriculum responsive to individual needs, not blind equality.’ In his new Teacher column, Professor Geoff Masters AO highlights the important difference between equality and equity in education.

Time for a paradigm shift

Mon, 23 Nov 2020 06:30:00 +1100

‘This alternative paradigm is more than a different way of structuring the curriculum; it invites new ways of thinking about teaching, learning, assessment and reporting—in a sense, a redefinition of “normal” practice,’ Professor Geoff Masters AO writes in a new Teacher article.

Is ATAR necessary?

Mon, 03 Aug 2020 06:00:00 +1000

‘I believe we could dispense with ATAR at almost no cost, but significant benefit. There are several observations that lead me to this conclusion,’ Professor Geoff Masters AO writes as he makes the case for change in his latest Teacher column.

Towards a new curriculum

Mon, 06 Jul 2020 07:00:00 +1000

‘The current New South Wales school curriculum is in need of reform. That was the clear message from state-wide consultations and submissions to my review.’ In his latest Teacher column, Professor Geoff Masters AO discusses three aspects of the curriculum identified as being in need of reform.

The role of the curriculum in creating the future

Wed, 24 Jun 2020 07:00:00 +1000

'The school curriculum should embody a society’s vision for its future and play a vital role in achieving that vision.' Professor Geoff Masters AO reflected on this during his review of the New South Wales curriculum and on a study visit to Estonia.

Gonski, learning and the case for changes

Mon, 15 Oct 2018 13:27:00 +1100

Professor Geoff Masters AO has been saying recently that the Gonski 2.0 recommendations may provide our best hope of reversing the long-term decline in the reading, mathematics and science levels of Australian 15-year-olds. Why does he say this? Find out more in his latest Teacher column.

The role of evidence in teaching and learning

Mon, 27 Aug 2018 06:00:00 +1000

Much discussion of evidence-based teaching is based on a narrow definition that would benefit from a broader recognition of the role of evidence in teaching and learning, Professor Geoff Masters AO writes in his latest Teacher column.

Gonski's model for schools

Fri, 11 May 2018 07:00:00 +1000

'Some have interpreted Gonski’s proposal as requiring teachers to develop an individual learning plan for every student. This is impossible in practice.' The recent Gonski report calls for a new model of school education. This is a big call. What is this new model? Professor Geoff Masters AO discusses.

What is ‘equity' in education?

Mon, 30 Apr 2018 08:00:00 +1000

Equity in education is often viewed as equivalence or sameness. A more useful way to view equity is through the lens of ‘fairness’, Professor Geoff Masters AO writes in his new Teacher column.

Is setting higher standards the answer?

Mon, 05 Mar 2018 07:00:00 +1100

Raising the expected performance standard in each year of school and holding all teachers and students accountable for achieving these higher standards may not be the most effective way to improve levels of performance in Australian schools, Professor Geoff Masters AO writes in his latest Teacher column.