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Objective: This study examined the nature and prevalence of polydrug use in 12–14 year old Australians. Method: Three Australian school surveys (2006, n=4091; 2009, n=5635; 2017, n=1539; age 12–14 years) spanning 11 years were used. Substances included alcohol, tobacco, cannabis, inhalant, and other illicit substances. Risk factors included depressed mood, low emotional control, poor family management and conflict, and academic performance. Latent class analysis was used to discern classes. Regression analyses were used to test the association of risk factors with classes. Results: Consistent across surveys, there was a class of adolescents who engaged in wide-ranging polydrug use, with prevalences ranging from 0.44% (2006) to 1.78% (2017). Emotional control problems, low academic performance, and poor family management were elevated in the polydrug class. Conclusion: A small proportion of 12–14-year-old adolescents engage in polydrug use. Interventions focusing on family risks and emotional control problems may be beneficial., Funding agencies:National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) of Australia APP1087781Centre for Inclusive Education, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia

School liking is an important factor in student engagement, well-being, and academic achievement, but it is also potentially influenced by factors external to the individual, such as school culture, teacher support, and approaches to discipline. The present study employed a survey methodology to investigate the associations between school liking and disliking, teacher and school connectedness, and experiences of exclusionary discipline from the perspective of students themselves. Participants included 1,002 students (Grades 7–10) from three secondary schools serving disadvantaged communities. Results indicated clear differences between students who like and dislike school in terms of their preferred school activities and school disciplinary history, with students who disliked school experiencing overall lower school connectedness. Moreover, students who disliked school experienced less positive relationships with their teachers, and this was even more pronounced for students who had been previously suspended. The findings reveal key differences between students who do and do not like school, differences that may be masked by typical research approaches. This research indicates the need for more nuanced, student-informed approaches to inclusive school reform.

In the original publication of the article, the original citation “National Agreement on Closing the Gap (Australian Government, 2020)” was incorrectly cited as “(Australian Government, 2020)”. And the authors’ inclusion of an “Acknowledgement of Country” was missed. The original article has been corrected.

Well-established evidence of the ill-effects of exclusionary school discipline, its disproportionate use on students of colour, and association with the “school-to-prison pipeline” has, in the last decade, led to systemic reforms in the United States, which are successfully reducing exclusion and improving outcomes. Few studies, however, have similarly investigated overrepresentation in Australia, with little attention to systemic reform as a result. In this study, we analysed suspension, exclusion, and enrolment cancellation rates in Queensland (QLD) government schools between 2013 and 2019 and found Indigenous students were consistently overrepresented. Suspension incidents proportionate to enrolments increased for all students, but this increase was faster for Indigenous than non-Indigenous students and driven primarily by steep rises in short suspensions during primary school (Preparatory-6). Exclusions increased—again disproportionately—for Indigenous students, chiefly in secondary school (7–12). During 2019, Physical Misconduct had the highest incident rate for both groups; however, Indigenous students were most overrepresented in suspensions for Disruptive/Disengaged behaviours. Further, while Indigenous students were overrepresented in all QLD regions, one region’s Indigenous suspension rate was higher than all others despite no difference in the distribution of Indigenous/non-Indigenous enrolments across regions. The scale and nature of Indigenous overrepresentation in exclusionary discipline incidents in QLD indicate clear need for further research to secure political commitment to systemic inclusive school reform, as well as to produce high-quality evidence capable of guiding that reform.

MUSIC THAT GETS "STUCK" IN THE HEAD IS COMMONLY conceptualized as an intrusive "thought"; however, we argue that this experience is better characterized as automatic mental singing without an accompanying sense of agency. In two experiments, a dual-task paradigm was employed, in which participants undertook a phonological task once while hearing music, and then again in silence following its presentation.We predicted that the music would be maintained in working memory, interfering with the task. Experiment 1 (N = 30) used songs predicted to be more or less catchy; half of the sample heard truncated versions. Performance was indeed poorer following catchier songs, particularly if the songs were unfinished. Moreover, the effect was stronger for songs rated higher in terms of the desire to sing along. Experiment 2 (N = 50) replicated the effect using songs with which the participants felt compelled to sing along. Additionally, results from a lexical decision task indicated that many participants' keystrokes synchronized with the tempo of the song just heard. Together, these findings suggest that an earworm results from an unconscious desire to sing along to a familiar song.

The Terms of Reference for this Inquiry are broad and require an understanding of the recent history of education in South Australian government schools, particularly the development of policies and procedures relating to school discipline, to provide a backdrop to the data, discussion and recommendations that follow. The background and context to this Inquiry is considered in Chapter 2, which provides a brief summary of the South Australian schooling community and historical developments including recent inquiries and Royal Commissions relating to the use of discipline in South Australian government schools. As noted above, the Terms of Reference require an analysis of whether the Department for Education is complying with international conventions, legislative requirements, and governmental and departmental policies and procedures in its use of suspensions, exclusions, and expulsions. They also require an analysis of whether policy and procedures align with best practice. In order to address these Terms of Reference, Chapters 3 and 4 consider existing legal and rights frameworks, including recent literature regarding best practice. Specifically, Chapter 3 provides an analysis of obligations under relevant international instruments and Commonwealth legislation and policy, and summarises South Australian legislation, policy and procedure relevant to the Terms of Reference. Chapter 4 follows with an analysis of relevant literature regarding best practice in supporting students’ equal access to education and use of disciplinary practices. Feedback received through focus groups and interviews with stakeholders, as well as responses to the online submissions survey are analysed in Chapter 5. This is followed by an analysis of data received from the SA Department for Education Data Unit in Chapters 6 to 10. Specifically, Chapter 6 considers data relating to the prevalence of take homes, suspensions, exclusions, and expulsions, and includes an examination of patte

This thesis investigated music that repeats persistently in the mind (an 'earworm'), hypothesising that this phenomenon is characterised by automatic mental singing along via working memory resources. In four experiments, a dual-task paradigm was employed to assess performance on a phonological task while participants were experiencing an earworm episode. Earworms were examined for familiar vocal songs, instrumental music, and novel vocal songs. Findings demonstrated that phonological working memory resources are recruited during vocal and instrumental music earworms. This paradigm can be used to determine the types of music most effective in eliciting earworms, and individuals more susceptible to the experience.