© Julie Boyd 2011 2nd Prize Winner Gold Coast Writers Association Annual Short Story Competition: DEJA VU Living at a timber mill in a tiny country town and needing to supply all our own services, ensured all kinds of weird noises in the night, including the clanging of boilers being fed in the building next […]
Standardized Tests
April 26, 2011 by
Teachers who blame students for being bored is the equivalent to yelling at the hammer after you strike your own thumb. Diane Ravitch says: Be careful Canada (and Australia!) I know many Canadian educators who are rightfully sceptical of the debacle that is American Education Reform. We should not be too quick to dismiss […]
A Rural Rendezvous – Horsham and the Wimmera
April 22, 2011 by
(C) Julie Boyd Horsham, in Victoria, is probably not a place that immediately springs to mind as a holiday destination. Located halfway between Melbourne and Adelaide, it tends to be more of a stop-off point for petrol and snacks on the way between Adelaide’s Pandas and Melbourne’s restaurants. However, look more closely and you find […]
Carbon Tax compensation for industry unjustified
April 18, 2011 by
The Australia Institute released a policy discussion paper showing how most of the industry compensation on the table is unjustified. These companies are asking for even more exemptions than what’s being flagged. You can watch an interview with the author here (fast forward to 28:33): http://www.abc.net.au/iview/#/view/746841 You can download the paper here: https://www.tai.org.au/index.php?q=node%2F19&pubid=842&act=display Finally, here’s […]
Two-thirds of teachers want to quit. What is the Purpose of Education
April 4, 2011 by
NEARLY two-thirds of Australian teachers are considering quitting their jobs for a new career. So are teachers all over the world See: A love of teaching, but fear for the future: Fight over collective bargaining leaves one teacher uncertain about career choice http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/42306729/ns/business-us_business The Centre for Marketing Schools was commissioned to survey staff satisfaction levels […]
Australian sea level rise projections
December 16, 2010 by
http://www.ozcoasts.org.au/ Sea level rise projections for some areas of Australia released including Sydney suburbs at risk
Skewering Democracy- Who is Crossing the Line Irresponsibly and What is the Impact on Our Kids?
Our Harry Potter/FightClub Democracy! Questions from an ‘ordinary Australian.’ (C) Julie Boyd Chris Uhlman tweeted today that Czech President Vaclav Klaus – the man Vaclav Havel once described as a “gangster capitalist,” refused to be security checked at Parliament House which means the ABC are unable to interview him as their studios were on the […]