The Report of the Review of Senior Secondary Pathways, chaired by Society Fellow and Chancellor of Western Sydney University, Professor Peter Shergold AC FRSN FASSA FAICD, was released by the Australian Government in late July 2020. The report, titled Looking to the Future, argues that transition pathways presented to young adults are too often narrowly framed and as a consequence limit choice.  The report notes that the dominance of the Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR) privileges academic capability over the value of vocation education and training, with the emphasis on scholastic achievement paying “too little regard to the other skills and attributes required for successful adulthood”.

Instead, the report makes the case that high school students should focus on building a learner profile that reflects the skills (including leadership, prblem-soling and collaboration) and knowledge gained during the course of their education rather than focusing on how to boost their ATAR.  As conceived, the learner profile should provide a “digital education passport” which students could continue to build during adulthood by adding new qualifications and experience.

To read further about the the work of the Review, please access the Report on the Pathways Review website and see also an article in the Sydney Morning Herald written at the time of the release of the Report in July 2020.