A vision for our future
The benefits of education, both to the individual and to society more broadly, are well documented. Education builds capacity, encourages social participation and can help people overcome disadvantage. It is also critical to improving labour productivity and labour force participation, which are the key components of the economy's supply capacity. Education is a key plank of our economy and our society.
Tertiary education
Australia has a strong tertiary education system — both at the university and vocational education level — but more needs to be done to help us meet future challenges.
We need more universities that rank among the world's best.
We need greater flexibility in funding arrangements for our universities and less red tape so that they can respond more quickly to student demand and the changing needs of a growing economy.
We need to ensure that students with the capacity to benefit from a university place can obtain one.
We need a high-quality system that is responsive to the needs of students and employers, with strong links between schools, the vocational education and training sector and universities.
Schools
While OECD testing highlights that Australian 15 year olds perform well, it also indicates that more can be done with respect to children from disadvantaged backgrounds.
All Australian children deserve a high quality education that enables them to develop the core skills necessary to be able to realise their potential.
Australia's upper secondary achievement has improved over time, but again, more can be done to lift this and improve Australia's performance relative to other OECD countries.
Upper secondary attainment is important — Australians who have not reached this level of attainment are significantly more likely to be unemployed than those who have.
Average full time earnings by
qualification, 2005
Labour force participation rate by age,
2001 (census data)
Realising Our Potential 3