Purpose: Little is known about the experiences of school leaders adopting and implementing real-world, scaled-up physical activity interventions in the Australian educational system. Transform-Us! is a novel physical activity and sedentary behaviour intervention available to all primary schools in Victoria, Australia, since September 2018. This…

The tsunami of global educational reform in the past decade has led to national, regional and school-based policy redevelopment to elevate teaching standards, enrich student learning and improve results. Consequently, principals are frequently charged with leading mandated pedagogical reform in their schools. Building on earlier research…

In Australia, a new system of collecting data on school-aged students with disability is in the early phases of implementation. The "nationally consistent collection of data on school-age students with disability" (NCCD) establishes a mandatory data collection process in which teachers categorise and report on individual students' level…

This paper claims a central role for school leaders (principals or head-teachers) in the enactment of social justice policy in schools, who act as key agents or 'gate keepers' for what counts as social justice in their contexts of practice. Social justice means different things in different contexts depending on where leaders -- who use policy as…

This paper describes the development of a brief school-based instrument designed for use in research and in educational practice. The "Survey of School Promotion of Emotional and Social Health" differentiates states of high, moderate, and low implementation of whole-school policies and practices that promote the emotional and social…

Implementation of vegetable and fruit programs in schools is less than optimal. This study aimed to identify, using a theoretical framework, factors associated with implementation of a school vegetable and fruit program; that provides a time in class for children to consume a piece of vegetable or fruit they have brought from home. Three hundred…

Quality physical education (QPE) in primary school optimises children's well-being. However, international research indicates that the preparation of classroom teachers is impeded by systemic barriers, resulting in low-classroom teacher confidence, competence and subsequent interest. This empirical research investigates school principal…

Intercultural education (ICE) is a priority for schools and schooling systems worldwide. While extensive policy and academic literature exists that describes how ICE should be done in schools, relatively little has been published about the pragmatics of implementing and enacting ICE, despite evidence that principals, teachers and schools feel ill…

The impact of quality teaching on student learning has led to an increased focus on professional learning to support and improve teacher practice. Review of the literature on effective professional learning suggests six elements that support sustained change in teacher practice; namely, focus, learning components, feedback, collaborative…

The Independent Public Schools (IPS) program began to be implemented in some Western Australian schools in 2010. The IPS program devolves a number of responsibilities to principals and is part of the political objective of removing the constraints of the education bureaucracy by fostering school level decision-making, problem-solving and…

Success in primary and secondary school mathematics is becoming increasingly important to today's teachers, students, parents and employment providers in Australia. Mathematics is viewed as high status and essential for a range of employment opportunities. The Disability Standards for Education [1] and the Australian Curriculum, Reporting and…

The aim of this study was to investigate the role of the instructional leader when introducing digital technology into the mathematics teaching in the Australian Curriculum. The research reported here involves the principal and five teachers from one school and is part of a larger study. Results indicated that principal-led "crucial…

While grappling with their traditional core business of imbuing students with official curricular knowledge, schools have simultaneously, increasing demands to take on health promotion responsibilities. This paper examines the mandated implementation of the Eat Well Be Active (EWBA) Action Plan and its subsidiary "Smart" policies in…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to report on research into the challenges for leadership in implementation of a new curriculum in a remote region of Queensland, Australia. Design/methodology/approach: Data for the research were gathered through an online survey and semi-structured interviews with teachers and principals involved in the…

This study utilizes a school-improvement perspective to examine the role of curriculum coordination in the integration of information and communication technologies (ICT) into primary schools. The nature and impact of this role is examined in seven primary schools in Australia. These seven schools were drawn from a longitudinal intervention that…