New publications

Schools, Australia (cat. no. 4221.0) is an annual publication of data on schools, students and in-school staff involved in the provision or administration of primary and secondary education in government and non-government schools, for all Australian states and territories. Government schools remained the largest provider of school education in Australia, with a total of 2,342,379 students, compared with 736,595 students attending Catholic schools, and 511,012 students attending independent schools. Student numbers rose for all three affiliations between 2011 and 2012, with the independent sector having the largest proportional increase, 1.8 per cent, which follows a similar rise, 1.9 per cent, in the period 2010 to 2011. Between 2011 and 2012 the number of students attending Catholic schools rose by 1.7 per cent and by 1.2 per cent for those attending government schools. Adapted from Summary.

The focus of this book is on how to implement inquiry and tackle frequently asked questions about its most challenging aspects. The book aims to provide practical advice on how to incorporate student voice, enhance engagement, improve questioning and teamwork, and help students set goals and organise themselves. It also covers fundamental inquiry processes such as reflection, metacognition, assessment and record keeping. An ebook version is also available. Adapted from publisher's description, which also links to professional learning opportunities related to the text.

This year's edition provides a point-in-time snapshot of young people's transitions from school to further study, training and employment. It shows that there have been some solid gains during the last decade, particularly in educational participation. School retention rates have reached the highest level ever recorded. The evidence continues to affirm the benefits of completing year 12 or equivalent. Educational attainment improves the labour market and broader life prospects of young people. But much more needs to be done in response to deeper challenges, such as those experienced by young people experiencing disadvantage and geographic isolation. Adapted from Foreward. The full report is available online.

Sue Polanka brings together a variety of professionals to share their expertise about e-books with librarians and publishers. The book includes an introduction to e-books, e-book technology, the value of the e-book for learning and how libraries may market e-books to a wide range of users. Adapted from publisher's description. See also sequel, No Shelf Required 2: Use and Management of Electronic Books, which includes two chapters on e-books in schools libraries.

While 75 per cent of English spelling is regular, 25 per cent is complicated. In Spell It Out linguistics expert, David Crystal, explains why these peculiarities entered the mainstream, in an epic journey taking in sixth century monks, French and Latin upstarts, the industrial revolution and the internet. David Crystal is honorary professor of linguistics at the University of Wales, Bangor. Adapted from publisher's description.

Karen Wohlwend provides a new framework for re-thinking the boundaries between literacy and play, so that play itself is viewed as a literacy practice along with reading, writing and design. Through a variety of theoretical lenses, the author presents a portrait of literacy play that connects three play groups, using Disney Princess media, sports media, big books and other school texts. These young children 'play by design' using play as a literacy to transform the texts that they read, write and draw, but also as a tactic to transform their relational identities within peer and school cultures. The book provides an argument for re-centering play in early childhood curricula where play functions as a literacy in its own right. It offers analyses and examples of new literacies, popular culture and multimodal discourses; illustrates how children's play can both produce and challenge normative discourses regarding ethnicity, gender and sexuality; and examines the multimodal, multimedia textual practices of young children as they play across tensions among popular media, peer relationships and school literacy. Adapted from publisher's description.