Improving the outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Students within Catholic Education Tasmanian. Final Report. Hobart: Catholic Education Tasmania

In late 2019 the Tasmanian Catholic Education Office commissioned researchers from Deakin University, Centre for Research for Educational Impact (REDI), and the University of Tasmania, Peter Underwood Centre for Educational Attainment, to conduct research on how to improve outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students within Catholic Education Tasmania. A specific focus was on the Student Success Grant initiative which involved some schools receiving additional funding from the Tasmanian Catholic Education Office to achieve such improved outcomes. There are 38 Catholic Schools and Colleges in Tasmania. Seventeen of these schools from around the state received a Student Success Grant in 2019/2020. The main purpose of the Student Success Grants was to support schools to plan for and ensure sustained and measurable educational improvements for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students in Catholic schools across Tasmania. About 1000 of the approximately total 16,000 students in Catholic schools in Tasmania identify as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander. In the schools that received a Student Success Grant, the number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students enrolled ranged between 7 and 109, representing between 1.8% - 37% of the school population. The research involved a literature review (Auld et al., 2021), survey of school/community leaders from 22 schools, analysis of CET student data; case studies with 10 schools; and collaborative experiences in leadership workshops. All data collection was approved by the Human Research Ethics Committees of Deakin University and the University of Tasmania. This report provides findings based on detailed quantitative and qualitative analysis of all project data. To enhance readability and usefulness, the report has purposely been kept concise. Key findings are highlighted in bold font. The report concludes with recommendations for the Tasmanian Catholic Education Office.