This report presents the first internationally comparable results to OECD's 2003 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) Survey of the educational performance of 15-year-olds in reading, mathematics, and science in 25 OECD countries, including Australia.

Papers from ACER's research conference on the the social and emotional development of young people are available online. Among the speakers are Michael Sawyer, who argues that a combination of falling birth rates and increasing rates of adolescent mental health problems has the potential to adversely affect Australia's growth and development.

Lisa de Bortoli and John Cressell analyse the OECD/Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA 2000) data on Australian Indigenous students in comparison with other Australian students and in relation to other countries. They also examine some of the characteristics of the Indigenous students.

Graeme Withers examines statistics on school non-attendance, and makes recommendations for future data collection and policies.

Why do parents choose a public or private school for their children? Geoff Masters outlines the priorities of parents and argues for more evidence to be available help parents to choose a school.