Australia’s overall performance in the Survey of Adult Skills (PIAAC) ranges from average to very good. However, three million adults, representing one-fifth of the working age population, have low literacy and/or numeracy skills.

COVID-19 is likely to leave long-lasting effects on local labour markets. It is accelerating a pre-existing trend towards automation, as firms look even more to new technologies to pandemic proof their operations.

Being literate in the twenty-first century means being an empowered receiver, user and creator of diverse text types communicated across multiple and rapidly changing modalities. English and Literacies: Learning to make meaning in primary classrooms is an accessible resource that introduces pre-service teachers to the many facets of literacies and English education for primary students. Addressing the requirements of the Australian Curriculum and the Early Years Learning Framework, English and Literacies explores how students develop oracy and literacy. Reading, viewing and writing are discussed alongside the importance of children's literature. Taking an inclusive and positive approach to teaching and learning for all students, it explores the creation of texts using spelling, grammar in context and handwriting/keyboarding skills, as well as the need for authentic assessment and reporting. Finally, the text explores the importance of literacy partnerships and how teachers can address literacy challenges across the curriculum.

Greece’s economy had been expanding by nearly 2% for over three years before the COVID-19 shock. Structural reforms, high primary budget surpluses and debt measures underpinned Greece’s recovery and rising confidence. Then the COVID-19 pandemic struck, abruptly interrupting the recovery and adding new challenges to raising inclusiveness, competitiveness and growth.

Wellbeing in Norway is high; GDP per capita is among the top-ranking countries and the country scores well in measures of inclusiveness. Several challenges must be addressed, however, if this good standing is to be sustained. The economy is vulnerable to trade risks. Also, though property markets and related credit appear to be heading for a soft landing, risks remain. Norway has substantial opportunities for more effective public spending remain, and exploiting these will become more important as fiscal space narrows. Productivity growth remains low, requiring attention to business policy.

This collection of essays, first published in 2000, was the first systematic attempt to explain the social, administrative, technical and cultural history of 'European' housing in Australia. Written by a collaborative team of scholars from a wide range of disciplines, it explains how Australian housing has evolved from the ideas brought by the first settlers, and what makes Australian housing distinctive in social terms. This book covers a broad range of topics including the ways in which houses reflect social values and aspirations, the relationship between houses and gardens, the home as a site of domestic production and consumption, and an exploration of how housing provides the basis for developing a sense of community. The book will be invaluable for students of urban affairs and those engaged in housing and the design professions, as well as policy-makers and analysts in the public and private sectors.

Australia’s overall performance in the Survey of Adult Skills (PIAAC) ranges from average to very good. However, three million adults, representing one-fifth of the working age population, have low literacy and/or numeracy skills. Building Skills for All in Australia describes the characteristics of the low-skilled and discusses the consequences that low skills have on economic and social development for both individuals and Australian society. The review examines the strengths of the Australian skills system, highlighting the strong basic skills found in the migrant population, widespread proficiency in use of ICT and the positive role of workplaces in skills development. The study explores, moreover, the challenges facing the skills system and what can be done to enhance basic skills through education, training or other workplace measures. One of a series of studies on low basic skills, the review presents new analyses of PIAAC data and concludes with a series of policy recommendations. These include: increasing participation of women in STEM fields, addressing underperformance of post-secondary VET students and preventing drop-out, improving pre-apprenticeships, enhancing mathematics provision within secondary education and tackling poor access to childcare facilities for young mothers.

This report presents a synthesis of OECD’s empirical work that aims at identifying the types of social and emotional skills that drive children’s future outcomes.

Despite examples of vocational guidance practice being evident in Australia since the mid-1800s, there remains a spasmodic and patchwork approach to practice across the country. For decades it is a field which has been paradoxically boosted and challenged by changing economic and political agendas. Repeated international, national and State reviews emphasise the vital nature of a systemic national approach to career development, however authors repeatedly lament the lack of a sustained focus on career activity as a major national priority. There is no broad comprehensive historical reckoning of the history of career development theory and practice in Australia since this early period. Career development theory and practice in Australia has been forged in partnership with developments in an international context. In documenting the shared history with other countries, the author significantly adds to the body of knowledge on career development as a field in Australia and internationally. The book provides new understandings about the historical development of this field of knowledge, and in particular the challenging and cyclical nature of its policy history.