“With the Federal Government launching Social Inclusion Week next week, this study is a stark and timely reminder that Australia has a long way to go in addressing the challenge of racism in schools, especially for students from migrant backgrounds,” says Dr Lucas Walsh, Director of Research at FYA. “This report confirms that schools are uniquely placed to engage the challenges and benefits of diversity and that a whole-community approach should support them to do this.”

The research involved 823 students from 18 secondary schools across Australia and examined; their experiences of racism; the effects of that racist behaviour on health and wellbeing; where that racist behaviour most often occurs; how they respond to racism, and their attitudes towards race relations generally. Prepared by Deakin University’s Institute for Citizenship and Globalisation, some of the report’s key findings include:

• the group most at risk of racism is female first-generation migrants in Years 11 and 12;
• an underlying racism permeates schools across Australia with 80% of participants from non-Anglo backgrounds and 55% from Anglo backgrounds reporting experiences of racism;
• school education programs around racism are proven to reduce racist behaviour;
• the experience of racism has serious impacts on health and wellbeing.

Professor Fethi Mansouri, Director of the Institute for Citizenship and Globalisation says, “This report, and other research in the field, tells us that there is an urgent need for well-targeted professional development on intercultural understanding and racism for teachers and school leaders. Schools and students would also benefit greatly from curriculum materials that facilitate constructive and meaningful engagement with the sensitive issues of culture, race and inclusive practice.”

Dr Helen Szoke, Commissioner of the Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission says “The connection between experiences of discrimination and young people’s well-being are well documented. For this reason school-based programs which promote diversity and educate young people about discrimination are important prevention strategies.”

This report coincides with the release yesterday of a report by VicHealth, Building on our strengths, which also shows that there is a clear link between racism and a range of health problems.

Read The Impact of Racism upon the Health and Wellbeing of Young Australians report here

Read The Impact of Racism upon the Health and Wellbeing of Young Australians: At A Glance here

Read the media release here

Read earlier research by James Forrest titled Youth Attitudes to Racism here

HYPAF is the pre-eminent national report on the learning and work situation of young Australians. This year’s report focuses on the global economic downturn and the subsequent impact on young people’s aspirations, employment opportunities and education pathways.

HYPAF 2009 was commissioned by FYA and prepared by the Centre for Post-compulsory Education and Lifelong Learning (CPELL) at the University of Melbourne.

Dr Lucas Walsh, Director of Research at FYA is candid in his assessment of the report’s findings, “In the wake of both recent economic instability and longer term structural challenges, there is no doubt the conditions of earning and learning for young Australians have deteriorated in 2009,” says Dr Walsh.

The report also highlights that:

• the rate of unemployment among teenagers who were not in full-time education has risen from 12.2% in 2008 to 18.5% in 2009, one of the largest annual increases for teenagers over the past two decades;
• the proportion of teenagers not in full-time education or employment varies widely across states and territories, with the ACT having the lowest rate followed by Victoria and NSW;
• the last 12 months has seen reduced rates of entry into full-time work for school leavers;
• those young people living in the wealthiest areas are three times more likely to gain a university degree by the age of 24 than those in the poorest areas;
• females are nearly twice as likely as males to complete a university degree by the age of 23.

“These are concerning signs about the declining wellbeing of young Australians,” says Adam Smith, CEO at FYA. “In these turbulent times, the challenge for all of us is to provide innovative pathways and new opportunities for young people so that they can realise their full potential.”

The HYPAF report draws on the latest data from a range of sources including annual Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) surveys of education and work, monthly ABS national labour force surveys, and the Census of Population and Housing.

To read the report and related material, click on the links below. To download, right click and choose Save Target As.

Read the full report here.

Read HYPAF 2009: At A Glance here.

Read the HYPAF press release here.

Read the HYPAF 2009 Background Document here.

Read related press coverage at our Media Centre.

Read HYPAF 2008 here.

The 2009 How Young People are Faring (HYPAF) report shows that the proportion of teenagers not learning or earning full-time has jumped from 13.4% a year ago to 16.4%, the highest level since the recession of the early 1990s.

HYPAF is the pre-eminent national report on the learning and work situation of young Australians. This year’s report focuses on the global economic downturn and the subsequent impact on young people’s aspirations, employment opportunities and education pathways.

HYPAF 2009 was commissioned by FYA and prepared by the Centre for Post-compulsory Education and Lifelong Learning (CPELL) at the University of Melbourne.

Dr Lucas Walsh, Director of Research at FYA is candid in his assessment of the report’s findings, “In the wake of both recent economic instability and longer term structural challenges, there is no doubt the conditions of earning and learning for young Australians have deteriorated in 2009,” says Dr Walsh.

The report also highlights that:

• the rate of unemployment among teenagers who were not in full-time education has risen from 12.2% in 2008 to 18.5% in 2009, one of the largest annual increases for teenagers over the past two decades;
• the proportion of teenagers not in full-time education or employment varies widely across states and territories, with the ACT having the lowest rate followed by Victoria and NSW;
• the last 12 months has seen reduced rates of entry into full-time work for school leavers;
• those young people living in the wealthiest areas are three times more likely to gain a university degree by the age of 24 than those in the poorest areas;
• females are nearly twice as likely as males to complete a university degree by the age of 23.

“These are concerning signs about the declining wellbeing of young Australians,” says Adam Smith, CEO at FYA. “In these turbulent times, the challenge for all of us is to provide innovative pathways and new opportunities for young people so that they can realise their full potential.”

The HYPAF report draws on the latest data from a range of sources including annual Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) surveys of education and work, monthly ABS national labour force surveys, and the Census of Population and Housing.

To read the report and related material, click on the links below. To download, right click and choose Save Target As.

Read the full report here.

Read HYPAF 2009: At A Glance here.

Read the HYPAF press release here.

Read the HYPAF 2009 Background Document here.

Read related press coverage at our Media Centre.

Read HYPAF 2008 here.

How Young People are Faring (HYPAF) is the pre-eminent research report into the education, employment and overall wellbeing of young Australians. The upcoming 2009 report is the 11th in the series and focuses on the global economic downturn and the subsequent impact on young people’s aspirations, employment opportunities and education pathways.

Commissioned by The Foundation for Young Australians and prepared by the Centre for Post-compulsory Education and Lifelong Learning (CPELL) at the University of Melbourne, the 2009 edition of HYPAF provides an opportunity to assess patterns of engagement in education and training in the context of the Government’s education and training agenda.

Various measures of attainment, participation, and transition are used throughout the report to shed light on a host of policy issues, from access to education to the quality of educational outputs. HYPAF will provide policymakers and others with the opportunity to:

• compare different aspects of education and training for young Australians
• assess the role of different sectors, from school education to higher education and vocational education and training
• identify areas that may need attention to help improve student outcomes and transition.

The 2009 HYPAF report will be available at www.fya.org.au from Thursday, October 8.

Read the 2008 HYPAF report at our publications page.

Despite Australia being a wealthy, developed country, many aspects of the health and wellbeing of our young people have been declining. Many of the key indicators that measure how young people are faring remain unchanged or are worsening. Poor results for children can no longer be seen as the unfortunate side-effect of our economic progress. We need a better balance between economic progress and a socially and environmentally sustainable society… changes that benefit children invariably benefit all of us.

There is growing recognition that prevention is the most effective approach to addressing the problems affecting young people. The challenge is to make the radical shift to a preventive orientation, and to apply knowledge in specific social and political contexts. Primary prevention means identifying and dealing with the factors that lead to problems, rather than waiting until a problem shows up and treating the end result.

This conference will focus on how we can best learn from one another and work together to innovate and take action to improve outcomes for young Australians. The conference aims to build links between international and national experts, researchers, policy makers, practitioners, social entrepreneurs, marketers, business and financiers. It will explore pathways to success, and showcase preventive innovations that are improving the lives of children and young people.

It is our pleasure to invite you to join us in Melbourne, Australia from 2-4 September 2009 to start the process of Transforming Australia for our children’s future: Making prevention work.

Visit the conference website here

To find out more about ARACY click here

Over 1000 Australian schools have participated in ruMAD? since its inception in 2001, either through organising MAD Day, by initiating an ruMAD? (Social change) project, by supporting an ruMAD? Student Foundation, or by becoming an ruMAD? student ambassador.

Diverse themes and issues addressed or pursued to date have included Homelessness, Depression, Poverty, Climate Change, Violence and Landmines.

While the framework allows for flexibility in implementing specific projects, an ruMAD? experience typically consists of three sequential phases (Understanding, Action and Celebration) and is generally facilitated/delivered over two terms.

237 schools in five Australian states took part in ruMAD? activities in 2008. The Australian Youth Research Centre (AYRC) evaluation examines the impact and delivery of the program during this period.

“The kids believe it gives them an idea of what the future looks like. That’s a major plus… [Both] teachers and kids believe they are making a difference” -  [Teacher, Loganlea State High School].

Read the full AYRC report here

Find out more about ruMAD? here

The discussion will be led Sir Gustav Nossal AC CBE on behalf Education Foundation (a division of The Foundation for Young Australians) and the R E Ross Trust.

A new federalism in Australian education: A proposal for a national reform agenda was created by Professor Jack Keating as part of the Collaboration between Education Foundation and The R E Ross Trust. Boardroom to Classroom: The role of the corporate and philanthropic sectors in school education was created by Rosalyn Black, Senior Research Manager with The Foundation for Young Australians, as part of a project commissioned by the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development.

Both reports can be obtained from the Publications page.