Australian pre-school reading and writing skills are below the international average. (photo by the Herald Sun)
According to the Herald Sun and the Guardian, Australia`s fourth-graders rank 21st in the world in reading and writing skills, but Australian children lag behind international standards in reading and writing skills when they enter primary school. More than half of these children cannot read the alphabet.
The (Progress in International Reading Literacy Study) survey of five hundred and eighty thousand fourth-grade primary schools in 50 countries found that Australia ranked 21st, up slightly from 27th in 2011. Although Australia overtook countries such as Portugal, Spain and New Zealand, it lagged far behind countries such as Russia, England and Singapore.
The study, which surveyed 6341 fourth-graders in 286 primary schools in Australia, found that except for the Australian Capital Territory, fourth-graders in all states and territories had improved their reading and writing skills, and Victorian students had the best performance. However, 7% of fourth-grade students still fail to meet the minimum level of reading and writing.
Australian fourth-graders ranked 21st in the world in reading and writing skills. (photo by the Guardian)
The survey also showed that 1 / 4 of Australian students feel hungry almost every day at school, and that these students have a lower level of literacy and writing skills than non-hungry students. 1 / 5 students are bullied almost every week. One out of three students are bullied every month and perform worse than those who are not bullied.
There is also a gap in performance between male and female students, with 85 per cent of girls proficient in reading and writing, compared with 77 per cent of boys, and 83 per cent and 57 per cent of non-aboriginal and indigenous students, respectively.
In addition, the shortage of resources also has an impact on Australia`s 1 / 3 fourth-graders. In addition, only 12 percent of Australian fourth-graders have a master`s or doctorate degree, lower than the international average of 26 percent.
The survey also pointed out that 1-2 pupils in Australia read and write at school at a lower level, higher than the international average of 1 to 3.
Thomson (Sue Thomson), head of the Australian Education Research Council (Australian Council for Educational Research), said the report sounded a wake-up call for some people who thought children did not need to master reading and writing skills before they went to primary school.
Education Secretary Birmingham (Simon Birmingham) also said children need to master basic reading and writing skills at an early stage to lay the groundwork for future success in school and that parents need to do their part to ensure that children have mastered the skill.
