Research

“Across Australia it is only a small minority of students who undertake studies with content or focus on Asia”

Written by Jenny Wilkinson and Gina Milgate, April 2009, ACER for the AEF, this report analysed the extent to which students completed Year 12 subjects with content or focus on Asia using a sample of predominantly tertiary entrance subjects that included: English, History, Geography, International Studies, Politics, and Arts.

•       * Across Australia only a small minority of students undertake studies with content or focus on Asia

•       * Generally there is a strong disposition for the inclusion of content on Europe rather than content on Asia.

•       * Teachers are not likely to select material which they are unfamiliar with or may never have studied.

•       * Simply making content on Asia available as an option in courses does not stimulate the study of Asia.

•       * What teachers teach reflects to some extent the content of their own teritary education.

Research that focuses on the importance of school leadership can be found in a report

The researchers also found that much of the material that does have content or focus on Asia has an Australian or Western focus.

Download Studies of Asia in Year 12 (PDF: 8Mb) report.