Right now, across Australia, educators, school leaders, and policymakers are rolling up their sleeves – pushing beyond traditional measures of learning success and testing new ways to engage young people in their education. The third cycle of The Power of Recognising More Research – Notes from the Field – captures this frontline work, offering real insights from those leading the shift.
For too long, young people – especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds – have been sidelined by an education system that wasn’t designed with them in mind. Traditional schooling has struggled to recognise the full spectrum of learning that takes place in young people’s lives. Alternative pathways, where they exist, have often been underfunded, inaccessible, or treated as second-tier options. As a result, many disengage – not due to a lack of ability or motivation, but because they cannot see themselves in the system.
But change is in motion.
Notes from the Field explores three key themes – Agency, Capabilities, and Pathways – revealing how schools and systems are evolving to recognise not just academic achievement, but also the problem-solving, leadership, creativity, and resilience that young people demonstrate every day. Schools are designing new ways to foster student agency, empowering them as active participants in their own learning. Teachers are making learning more relevant, giving students a say in what and how they learn. Systems are beginning to create more flexible pathways that don’t force young people into rigid moulds.
At the heart of this shift is trust – but not blind faith. Schools that are leading the way are proving what’s possible when students trust teachers to listen, when teachers trust students to take ownership of their learning, and when systems trust schools to innovate. This is not about lowering standards or abandoning structure – it is about rethinking what success looks like and ensuring that all young people are held to high expectations in ways that recognise their full potential.
Through this research, we’ve seen that when trust is embedded, deeper learning recognition takes root. When students have agency, they engage more. When teachers feel supported, they find new ways to capture and celebrate student strengths. When employers and tertiary providers trust broader learning recognition, young people have more opportunities to transition successfully into further education and work.
This is not easy work. It requires rethinking assessment, restructuring pathways, and challenging long-held assumptions about who succeeds and why. But those leading this change are not doing it alone. Through this research cycle, practitioners have shared both their challenges and their breakthroughs, contributing to a growing body of evidence that shows what is possible.
The road ahead is clear. We need stronger bridges between education and employment, ensuring broader learning recognition leads to real opportunities. We must equip more educators with the tools and confidence to embed these approaches in their practice. We need to build trust between institutions and communities, ensuring place-based approaches align with national standards while remaining adaptable to diverse needs. And we must keep refining, testing, and strengthening these models – not as a static solution, but as an evolving, evidence-based transformation.
We are gaining ground. This is not about tweaking the old system – it’s about fundamentally rethinking how we see and value young people’s learning.
Bronwyn Lee, CEO, Learning Creates Australia
Download Notes from the Field here and read more from the emerging evidence base in the Power of Recognising More Study here.
For media enquiries please contact– Maggie Hill (0404 196 452, maggie@hillplus.com.au).
