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Research

Parents' experiences of children with a rare disease attending a mainstream school: Australia

To explore the perceptions of parents who had a child or adolescent (6-18 years) diagnosed with a rare disease who attended a mainstream school in Western Australia. Design and methods: A cross-sectional online survey was conducted with 41 parents of children with a rare disease.

Research

Effects of a positive education programme on secondary school students’ mental health and wellbeing; challenges of the school context

Previous research has demonstrated wellbeing benefits for positive education programmes (PEPs) facilitated by clinicians or experts or outside the school context. The current study explored the effects of a Year 10 PEP led by teachers trained in positive education and embedded within the Australian secondary school context.

Research

Children arriving hungry in the first year of school: population trends in Australia from 2009 to 2021

Access to adequate nutrition is a human right. In 2023, 23% of Australian households were severely food insecure, reducing food intake, skipping meals or days of eating. Food insecurity in early childhood is linked to poor health and development. Specifically, breakfast provides children with the necessary nutrients required for sustained attention, memory, and cognitive growth. Australian research has reported that one in three children aged 8–18 years regularly skip breakfast. However, there is little understanding of the prevalence of food insecurity among young children in Australia.

Research

Basic epidemiology of wellbeing among children and adolescents: A cross-sectional population level study

Wellbeing and mental health are fundamental rights of children and adolescents essential for sustainable development. Understanding the epidemiology of child and adolescent wellbeing is essential to informing population health approaches to improving wellbeing and preventing mental illness.

Research

Review of the quality of evidence for preschool and school-based programs to support social and emotional skills, perseverance and academic self-concept

This project provides guidance to help school leaders review the evidence for different programs, as well as a review of universal, evidence-based pre-school and school-based social and emotional learning programs available in Australia.

Research

School Attendance

Each day of school missed makes a difference, with the effect on learning accumulating over time. From an early age, if children are taught that they need to 'show up' for school and make a commitment, this positive mentality aids academic and career success and brings benefits in adulthood.

Research

Western Australian Child Development Atlas

We know that place, location, and geography can all influence health, wellbeing, and disease, and thus are important factors in policy development and service planning.

Research

The development and pilot of the university student embeddedness (USE) scale for student retention within universities: validation with an Australian student sample

A significant number of university students are leaving their institutions before completing their degrees. The present research project applied embeddedness theory, from organizational research, to understand student retention in a tertiary student population, and develop a quantitative instrument that measured university student embeddedness.

News & Events

‘Invisible’ children of imprisoned parents at risk of falling through the cracks

A study by The Kids has found children with a parent who has gone to prison are significantly more likely to have poor development outcomes.

Research

Does the reason matter? How student-reported reasons for school absence contribute to differences in achievement outcomes among 14–15 year olds

We used data from the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children to examine the reasons for 14-15 year old absences and how they relate to outcomes in year 9.