Govt blocks websites

It is getting harder for academic cheating services to target Australian higher education students with another 100 academic cheating websites blocked.

This is the third time the higher education regulator TEQSA has used protocols with Australia’s major ISPs to disrupt access to websites targeting students studying with an Australian higher education provider. This brings the number of illegal cheating websites blocked under these protocols to 250 since August 2022.

Cheating websites offer to sell students essays or assignments or accept payment for someone to sit exams on a student’s behalf. Illegal cheating services threaten academic integrity and expose students to criminals, who often attempt to blackmail students into paying large sums of money. Blocking these websites seriously disrupts the operations of the criminals behind them.

Analysis shows that after TEQSA began using these protocols in August 2022, web traffic from Australia to illegal cheating services halved in semester 2 2022 (September – November) compared with the same time in 2021.

The federal government is working with the higher education sector to reduce the risk posed by cheating services. Australia’s anti-cheating laws make it illegal to provide or promote academic cheating services. Penalties include up to two years in prison and fines of up to $110,000. Students who are found to engage in cheating are subject to their institution’s disciplinary penalties.

In addition to TEQSA’s enforcement action and work with providers and international partners to share intelligence, the agency has also developed a range of resources for students and staff.

These include advice on avoiding cheating services for students and a new training course to upskill academics and staff within institutions to deter, detect and respond to cases where students outsource work to third parties.

Suspected cheating services can be reported to TEQSA for investigation at www. teqsa.gov.au/cheating

Educational excellence that places student wellbeing at the heart of learning.

Our students are immersed in an academic program that follows the Australian Curriculum and so our teachers place a strong emphasis on explicit teaching and monitoring of the core literacy and numeracy achievements of our students. This year our NAPLAN data revealed 100% of year 3 students scored ‘Above’ the National Minimum Standard in all Literacy areas and 100% of our year 5 students scored ‘Above’ the National Minimum Standard in all Literacy areas and Numeracy. We use this data alongside an assessment schedule that includes Essential Assessment testing and PAT maths to support individual learning plans. Most importantly, we prioritise student wellbeing as the foundation for meaningful learning. Each day our students engage with their teachers in our Awareness program that is supported by the Australian Curriculum General Capabilities, that ensures that students develop to be able to live and work successfully in the 21st century. Our students’ social, emotional and moral intelligences are cultivated as a normal part of the school day.

Learning from nature through connecting.

Our Bush School program has been developed by Dr. Gen Blades to ensure that this important nature based learning helps to develop problem solving, resilience, environmental and indigenous knowledge, and key educational outcomes. We are committed to providing an experience for our students that builds a deep relationship with nature for life. One of the ways that we do this is by being a River Detectives School. For 8 years we have run this program from Cornish Hill in the Smith Creek corridor, and this year we won the North Central CMA Regional Recognition Award for outstanding contribution to natural resource management.

A rich learning experience that is deeply valued by all of our students.

Our teachers integrate an extensive amount of excursions, incursions and camping programs into learning to inspire our students to discover how they can make a meaningful contribution to their world. We have an elected student action team, Grade 6 Leadership program, and our students run different interest clubs during the colder months. We participate in the Sporting Schools program and provide musical tuition for our students for violin and piano, and music composition.

Our Education program is accessible to all.

You do not need to identify as being Buddhist for your child to benefit from the critical thinking and inquiry skills that a philosophical education instils in children. We aim to be accessible to all families in our community and our school fees are low and are able to be negotiated through our volunteering program and through bursaries. At our school you will meet a friendly learning community who support each other to experience a sense of belonging.

We warmly invite you to contact us at any time for a school tour and experience first hand our outstanding education program.