Search
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.
School time represents a significant component of overall glycaemia for children with type 1 diabetes (T1D), and glucose levels during instructional time may be important for optimising academic progress. There is, however, limited literature regarding glycaemia during school hours. This study aimed to evaluate glucose levels during school in primary school-aged children with T1D in Western Australia (WA) and to compare these with non-school days.
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.
School bullying is a public health concern affecting the physical and mental health of children and young people. While school-based interventions to prevent bullying have been developed internationally, the effectiveness of many interventions has been mixed and modest.
Student bullying behaviours are a significant social issue in schools worldwide. Whilst school staff have access to quality bullying prevention interventions, schools can face significant challenges implementing the whole-school approach required to address the complexity of these behaviours.
The majority of children acquire language effortlessly but approximately 10% of all children find it difficult especially in the early or preschool years with consequences for many aspects of their subsequent development and experience: literacy, social skills, educational qualifications, mental health and employment.
In this paper, we aim to contribute to the understanding of the multidimensional nature of school readiness. In a sample of over 4,000 Australian children in their first year of school, we used latent class analysis to examine patterns of school readiness based on child, family, school and community characteristics, and examine the relationship between these patterns of school readiness and subsequent outcomes (reading comprehension, school absence and emotional and behavioural difficulties).
In Australia, the health and education sectors provide universal early childhood services for the same population of children. Therefore, there is a strong imperative to view service use and outcomes through a cross-sectoral lens to better understand and address the service needs of young children and their families.
School readiness is a construct used by educators and policy makers to describe a range of abilities that are beneficial for children transitioning to school. The association of socioeconomic disadvantage with developmental vulnerability when children start school is well established. Parents play a crucial role in supporting children’s transition to school and are acknowledged as their child’s first and foremost teacher.
The National Support for Child and Youth Mental Health Program (the Program) aims to improve mental health outcomes for children and young people, commencing with the early years and going through to adolescence, by providing targeted grants for workforce and education activities that will build capabilities aligned to the Program objectives.