Response to Inquiry into Disruption in Australian Classrooms

In this response to the Inquiry, SVA shares what the best available evidence says about effective behaviour supports in schools and how to support educators to implement best practice.

This document was submitted to the Senate Education and Employment References Committee’s inquiry into the issue of increasing disruption in Australian school classrooms. As improving education outcomes for students experiencing disadvantage has been a major focus for Social Ventures Australia since its inception, the pioneering Evidence for Learning (E4L) initiative is explored in depth to provide insights and learnings for the Committee.

• Two specific issues are explored in the submission: What the best available evidence says about effective behavioural supports in schools; and the importance of supporting educators to understand and implement evidence-based practices – including in managing the issue of classroom disruption.
• The importance of high-quality, ongoing and targeted professional learning is highlighted as playing a key role in the improvement of classroom management, including additional support required by early-career teachers to help them create a positive classroom climate.
• The submission also outlines the balance between universal behavioural systems which provide foundations, and targeted approaches that best meet the needs of individual students where appropriate.
• Evidence for Learning (E4L) research demonstrated the significant demand for practical, unbiased support – and the submission referenced the E4L report on behaviour being accessed online more than 6,000 times in the first four weeks of publication.