About the Research

Thirteen Christian Schools Australia (CSA) member schools have participated in an exploratory study that has investigated the characteristics of K-12 school workforces, including levels of staff resilience, and their potential connection to student outcomes. The sample represented a diverse snapshot of the CSA network, spanning five states (NSW, Qld, Vic, SA and WA), with workforces ranging in size from 21 to 298 staff, and serving student populations ranging from 99 to 1960. Schools were asked to submit data through exporting HR/workforce information into a template spreadsheet and through voluntary response to a brief online workplace resilience survey. This data was later supplemented by school profile and student outcome data sourced from ACARA. PeopleBench researchers used exploratory data analysis, correlation and tests of mean difference (t-test, ANOVA) to examine relationships between the workforce and resilience survey data and the student outcome data. Significantly, the results of the study will also be compared and evaluated against the State of the Sector survey findings (155 schools across all sectors in Australia, including 22,000 students and 3,800 staff).

School Workforce Research Report 2019-2020

The CSA Schools Workforce Research Project represents a first step into the domains of workforce analytics and systematic resilience-building for many of the participating schools.

Overall, the project has produced a substantial set of reflections for CSA as an Association to continue to reflect on ways in which it might support its member schools, perhaps including ongoing resources and support for schools to:

  • Continue to mature their practices with respect to workforce data collection, management and reporting
  • Continue to monitor and respond to findings with respect to levels of workforce resilience across member schools
  • Continue to offer a supportive community of practice, where learnings about lead workforce practices in schools are shared in order to benefit all member schools
  • Create ongoing member-wide opportunities to continue to explore the relationships in workforce data and student outcomes, in order to continue to improve governance, strategy and workforce performance across all Christian schools

At an individual school level, we recommend that members:

  • Use the project as a catalyst for the development of stronger workforce data management practices so that future findings can increasingly inform school leaders’ strategic decision making at both an individual school, and a CSA member-wide level in the future
  • Establish programs to build resilience at the whole-of-school level (e.g. shaping a culture which fosters a resilient response among staff); amongst school leaders, teams and individual employees) in order to strengthen their likelihood to positively impact on student outcomes as a result.

State of the Sector Report 2018-2019

Schools across Australia face an enormous opportunity right now: to harness the power of information and better understand how the shape of their workforces influence outcomes for today’s learners. This report paints a national, multi-sector landscape of Principal insights to help education leaders everywhere access an evidence base to inform their ongoing improvement — ultimately helping to maximise their impact in the communities they serve.

Learn about other CSA Research Projects

Research Projects