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It is ever more important for young people to be able to build bridges with those different to themselves .
Open minds
ACER report finds Australian teenagers are respectful of other cultures .
By Wade Zaglas
A recent report released by the Australian Council for Educational Research ( ACER ) has concluded that Australian teenagers ’ respect for people from other cultures is higher than the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development ( OECD ) average .
The nationally representative survey of Australian 15-year-olds was based on data from the global competence questionnaire , which formed part of the 2018 Programme for International Student Assessment ( PISA ) and “ measured the knowledge , attitudes , values and skills deemed necessary to live in an interconnected , diverse and rapidly changing world ”.
The report ’ s authors found a significant 87 per cent of the students said they “ treat all people with respect regardless of their cultural background ” and an equally strong 85 per cent said “ they respect the values of people from different cultures ”.
The OECD average for both questions was 81 per cent and 79 per cent respectively .
“ In a world in which humans need to join forces to address significant challenges , it is ever more important for young people to be able to build bridges with those different to themselves ,” ACER deputy CEO ( Research ) Dr Sue Thomson said .
“ While Australian students are better equipped to thrive in an interconnected world in comparison to their peers across OECD countries , there is always room for improvement .”
Despite the highly multicultural nature of Australian society , issues of race , cultural differences and privilege have often been daunting topics for educators and parents to address . Experts believe that early intervention and open dialogue is critical , and the ABC ’ s three-part series ‘ The School That Tried to End Racism ’ shows what can be achieved when early programs are introduced .
GENDER AND GEOGRAPHIC DIFFERENCES While Australian 15-year-olds as a group were more respectful of other cultures than the OECD average , the report also revealed that girls held greater respect for cultural differences than their male counterparts . For example , 90 per cent of Australian girls reported they “ value the opinions of people from different cultures ” compared to 77 per cent of the country ’ s boys , a substantial 13 per cent difference .
Another disparity was evident across geographic locations , with students from all Australian states and territories – except Tasmania – scoring above the OECD average in their respect for people from other cultures . Fifteen-year-olds from the apple isle recorded similar statistics to the OECD average .
In seeking an explanation for this disparity , Thomson said the state ’ s demographic make-up could be a factor influencing global competence among its teenagers . According to the 2016 census , for example , only 13 per cent of Tasmania ’ s population was born overseas – the lowest in the country .
In contrast , people born overseas comprise between 23 per cent and 35 per cent of the population in the other states and territories .
OTHER KEY FINDINGS IN THE ACER REPORT The ACER report , titled ‘ PISA 2018 : Australian 15-year-old students living in an integrated world ’, also highlighted other important findings related to global competence , including that Australian students reported more positive attitudes towards immigrants than the OECD average .
However , more work needs to be done in some areas , such as taking action on climate change and learning languages other than English . For example , Australian students were one per cent below the OECD average in their response to the statement “ looking after the global environment is important to me ”. The report also found that , when compared to the OECD average , a smaller proportion of 15-yearold Australian students were reducing their energy use at home , supporting environmental protection and buying products based on ethical principles .
One of the most significant findings in the report is that only 36 per cent of Australian 15-year-olds are learning another language at school ; this compares with the OECD average of 88 per cent .
Australia was one of 66 countries that participated in the PISA 2018 global competence questionnaire . ■
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