Evidence for Learning: Submission to the inquiry into the issue of increasing disruption in Australian school classrooms

Submission to the inquiry into the issue of increasing disruption in Australian school classrooms

SVA and E4L’s submission to the Education and Employment References Committee’s inquiry.

Summary

In 2022, the Senate referred ​“The issue of increasing disruption in Australian school classrooms” to the Education and Employment Reference Committee for inquiry.

Social Ventures Australia (SVA) and Evidence to Learning (E4L) made a submission to this inquiry based on E4L’s last seven years of work with Australian schools and a recent project on effective behaviour supports in schools.

In February 2023, E4L published a guidance report entitled ​‘Effective Behaviour Supports in Schools’. This report is based on the best available international research evidence and is designed to support teachers, school leaders and school systems to understand and implement this evidence in their schools and classrooms. It is informed by an advisory panel of Australian education academics and practitioners, including Dr Katherine Dix (Australian Council for Educational Research), Karina Stocker (Docklands Primary School), Tom Cain (Monterey Secondary College), Sarah Richardson (Australian Education Research Organisation) and Dr Russ Fox (Monash University).

Based on this work, SVA and E4L highlighted two specific issues for the Committee’s attention:

  • What the best available evidence says about effective behaviour support in schools; and
  • The importance of supporting educators to understand and implement evidence-based practice, including in managing the issue of classroom disruption.

We invite you to read the full submission below. The ​‘Effective Behaviour Supports in Schools’ Guidance Report that was attached to the submission is accessible from the E4L website.

Authors

Social Ventures Australia and Evidence for Learning.