{"id":71093,"date":"2023-12-17T18:05:16","date_gmt":"2023-12-17T23:05:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/world.edu\/?p=71093"},"modified":"2023-12-17T18:05:16","modified_gmt":"2023-12-17T23:05:16","slug":"practically-perfect-why-the-medias-focus-on-top-year-12-students-needs-to-change","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/world.edu\/practically-perfect-why-the-medias-focus-on-top-year-12-students-needs-to-change\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Practically perfect\u2019: why the media\u2019s focus on \u2018top\u2019 Year 12 students needs to change"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"
\nYou may be familiar with the popular TikTok trend, #ATARreaction. You see the face of a Year 12 student logging on to their computer, then they wait a few moments before they collapse in tears, relief and celebration.<\/p>\n

You have just witnessed them receive their final results.<\/p>\n

It is Year 12 results season around Australia. Earlier this week, Victorian and New South Wales students got their marks. Results in Queensland are out today, with Western Australia and South Australia due on Monday.<\/p>\n

Accompanying these scores will be countless celebrations and commiserations, as thoughts turn to life after school. There is also a huge community focus \u2013 via the media \u2013 on students who achieve perfect or near-perfect scores.<\/p>\n

The same kinds of stories focus on the very high achievers each year. While this may seem like a joyous ritual, we should pause to consider how we frame the end of Year 12 and \u201csuccess\u201d, and how we can help students navigate these turbulent times.<\/p>\n

An annual media event<\/strong><\/h4>\n

There is a distinct pattern to the stories about results each year.<\/p>\n

For decades, we have been conditioned to expect the reporting of ecstatic scenarios, with students celebrating\u00a0high or perfect scores<\/a>\u00a0and talking about their feelings and plans.<\/p>\n

A selection of headlines this week include, \u201cPractically perfect in every way<\/a>,\u201d \u201cThe top student in every HSC subject revealed<\/a>\u201d, \u201cJoy at HSC band 5s and 6s<\/a>\u201d and \u201cMeet the duxes of 2023<\/a>\u201d.<\/p>\n

There are also retrospectives on\u00a0past students<\/a>\u00a0who have excelled and showcases of\u00a0schools with the most top students<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Social media has only exacerbated these public displays, with ATAR \u201creaction videos<\/a>\u201d garnering millions of views on platforms like TikTok.<\/p>\n

This reinforces a set narrative to receiving your results: you get them and are immediately overjoyed. While these students should – and have every right to – celebrate their achievements, not all students will feel this way.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

A narrow definition of success<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Alongside these scores for individual subjects, many students will also receive an\u00a0ATAR ranking<\/a>, which tertiary institutions use to help select applicants.<\/p>\n

Disproportionately focusing on perfect scores and rankings narrowly defines what success can be. Indeed, because the ATAR is a\u00a0percentile rank<\/a>, these perfect scores are only ever possible for a handful of students.<\/p>\n

It is also worth remembering that all such scores and rankings are to simplify a very complicated and complex phenomenon \u2013 student learning.<\/p>\n

Any \u201cone size fits all\u201d approach overlooks how success will be different for different people.<\/p>\n

For some, it might be completing Year 12 despite considerable personal hardship or disadvantage. For others, it could be securing entrance to their preferred course and university.<\/p>\n

Failing to embrace diverse definitions of success fails to acknowledge the circumstances and contexts of students and communities. It affects not only this year\u2019s cohort but also younger students who are exposed to this media coverage and are conditioned to think this is what success is.<\/p>\n

How can we approach it this time?<\/strong><\/h4>\n

There are many ways we can overcome this one-dimensional view of schooling success. But it requires an intentional shift to the way schools, politicians, the media and the broader community understand and discuss ATAR rankings.<\/p>\n

First, we should openly acknowledge there is more to life than ATAR and being on an honour roll.<\/p>\n

We should publicly celebrate not only the \u201cpractically perfect\u201d but also the many different kinds of success our students achieve.<\/p>\n

Not every student will even receive an ATAR (some opt not to), as this ranking is only used to determine entrance to some courses at some tertiary institutions. Many universities offer places to students\u00a0without using ATAR rankings<\/a>, including\u00a0pathway options<\/a>\u00a0(such as upgrading to bachelor courses through diplomas and associate degrees), vocational study and alternative entry schemes.<\/p>\n

Put differently, the ATAR only helps determine a student\u2019s entry into a university or course right now. It does not determine which university course they will ultimately enter and complete via these additional possibilities.<\/p>\n

Second, we should emphasise learning is a lifelong process.<\/p>\n

This year\u2019s Year 12s will encounter many different educational needs and opportunities over their lifetime. This might entail formal education via universities and TAFEs, but also on-the-job professional or vocational training and micro-credentialing.<\/p>\n

These offerings will likely have nothing to do with a student\u2019s ATAR.<\/p>\n

Third, and perhaps most importantly, we should encourage students to share any anxieties they have with their parents and peers.<\/p>\n

By publicly discussing the multiple pathways into university and what the ATAR actually means, schools, universities and families can help students minimise their mental health concerns.<\/p>\n

Check in with each other, both in the lead-up to results and in the days and weeks after. Above all else, remind students they are\u00a0always<\/em>\u00a0more than a score.<\/p>\n

Author Bio: <\/strong>Steven Lewis is a Senior Research Fellow at the Australian Catholic University<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

You may be familiar with the popular TikTok trend, #ATARreaction. You see the face of a Year 12 student logging on to their computer, then they wait a few moments before they collapse in tears, relief and celebration. You have just witnessed them receive their final results. It is Year 12 results season around Australia. […]\n… learn more→<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":33,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[15645],"tags":[434756],"coauthors":[11733],"class_list":["post-71093","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-education","tag-year-12-results"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n\u2018Practically perfect\u2019: why the media\u2019s focus on \u2018top\u2019 Year 12 students needs to change - World leading higher education information and services<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/world.edu\/practically-perfect-why-the-medias-focus-on-top-year-12-students-needs-to-change\/\" class=\"yoast-seo-meta-tag\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" class=\"yoast-seo-meta-tag\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" class=\"yoast-seo-meta-tag\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"\u2018Practically perfect\u2019: why the media\u2019s focus on \u2018top\u2019 Year 12 students needs to change - World leading higher education information and services\" class=\"yoast-seo-meta-tag\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"You may be familiar with the popular TikTok trend, #ATARreaction. You see the face of a Year 12 student logging on to their computer, then they wait a few moments before they collapse in tears, relief and celebration. You have just witnessed them receive their final results. It is Year 12 results season around Australia. […]\" class=\"yoast-seo-meta-tag\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/world.edu\/practically-perfect-why-the-medias-focus-on-top-year-12-students-needs-to-change\/\" class=\"yoast-seo-meta-tag\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"World leading higher education information and services\" class=\"yoast-seo-meta-tag\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-12-17T23:05:16+00:00\" class=\"yoast-seo-meta-tag\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/Year-12-results.jpeg\" class=\"yoast-seo-meta-tag\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Kevin\" class=\"yoast-seo-meta-tag\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" class=\"yoast-seo-meta-tag\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Kevin\" class=\"yoast-seo-meta-tag\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" class=\"yoast-seo-meta-tag\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" class=\"yoast-seo-meta-tag\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/practically-perfect-why-the-medias-focus-on-top-year-12-students-needs-to-change\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/practically-perfect-why-the-medias-focus-on-top-year-12-students-needs-to-change\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Kevin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/42c1c1d5ff7ffbdf0bd50ed94c6ae6ee\"},\"headline\":\"\u2018Practically perfect\u2019: why the media\u2019s focus on \u2018top\u2019 Year 12 students needs to change\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-12-17T23:05:16+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/practically-perfect-why-the-medias-focus-on-top-year-12-students-needs-to-change\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":813,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/practically-perfect-why-the-medias-focus-on-top-year-12-students-needs-to-change\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/12\\\/Year-12-results.jpeg\",\"keywords\":[\"Year 12 results\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Education\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/practically-perfect-why-the-medias-focus-on-top-year-12-students-needs-to-change\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/practically-perfect-why-the-medias-focus-on-top-year-12-students-needs-to-change\\\/\",\"name\":\"\u2018Practically perfect\u2019: why the media\u2019s focus on \u2018top\u2019 Year 12 students needs to change - World leading higher education information and services\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/practically-perfect-why-the-medias-focus-on-top-year-12-students-needs-to-change\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/practically-perfect-why-the-medias-focus-on-top-year-12-students-needs-to-change\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/12\\\/Year-12-results.jpeg\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-12-17T23:05:16+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/42c1c1d5ff7ffbdf0bd50ed94c6ae6ee\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/practically-perfect-why-the-medias-focus-on-top-year-12-students-needs-to-change\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/practically-perfect-why-the-medias-focus-on-top-year-12-students-needs-to-change\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/practically-perfect-why-the-medias-focus-on-top-year-12-students-needs-to-change\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/12\\\/Year-12-results.jpeg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/12\\\/Year-12-results.jpeg\",\"width\":680,\"height\":453},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/practically-perfect-why-the-medias-focus-on-top-year-12-students-needs-to-change\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"\u2018Practically perfect\u2019: why the media\u2019s focus on \u2018top\u2019 Year 12 students needs to change\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/\",\"name\":\"World leading higher education information and services\",\"description\":\"Global Higher Education Jobs, University jobs, Lecturer & tenure jobs.\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/42c1c1d5ff7ffbdf0bd50ed94c6ae6ee\",\"name\":\"Kevin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/1e8d491a5f9b9bf3db67c9e46abbba7bb06b26b458bd5025c55e0a4b9b60ea8a?s=96&d=mm&r=g8ba4c352a279c450aa9435d770c1ebf4\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/1e8d491a5f9b9bf3db67c9e46abbba7bb06b26b458bd5025c55e0a4b9b60ea8a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/1e8d491a5f9b9bf3db67c9e46abbba7bb06b26b458bd5025c55e0a4b9b60ea8a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Kevin\"},\"description\":\"Kevin is founder of the world.edu project. The past 28 years have been involved in publishing to the education sector in print and the internet. Kevin has a degree in Education and has a many years experience in developing companies and projects.\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/world.edu\\\/author\\\/kevin\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"\u2018Practically perfect\u2019: why the media\u2019s focus on \u2018top\u2019 Year 12 students needs to change - World leading higher education information and services","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/world.edu\/practically-perfect-why-the-medias-focus-on-top-year-12-students-needs-to-change\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"\u2018Practically perfect\u2019: why the media\u2019s focus on \u2018top\u2019 Year 12 students needs to change - World leading higher education information and services","og_description":"You may be familiar with the popular TikTok trend, #ATARreaction. You see the face of a Year 12 student logging on to their computer, then they wait a few moments before they collapse in tears, relief and celebration. You have just witnessed them receive their final results. It is Year 12 results season around Australia. […]","og_url":"https:\/\/world.edu\/practically-perfect-why-the-medias-focus-on-top-year-12-students-needs-to-change\/","og_site_name":"World leading higher education information and services","article_published_time":"2023-12-17T23:05:16+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/Year-12-results.jpeg","type":"","width":"","height":""}],"author":"Kevin","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Kevin","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/world.edu\/practically-perfect-why-the-medias-focus-on-top-year-12-students-needs-to-change\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/world.edu\/practically-perfect-why-the-medias-focus-on-top-year-12-students-needs-to-change\/"},"author":{"name":"Kevin","@id":"https:\/\/world.edu\/#\/schema\/person\/42c1c1d5ff7ffbdf0bd50ed94c6ae6ee"},"headline":"\u2018Practically perfect\u2019: why the media\u2019s focus on \u2018top\u2019 Year 12 students needs to change","datePublished":"2023-12-17T23:05:16+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/world.edu\/practically-perfect-why-the-medias-focus-on-top-year-12-students-needs-to-change\/"},"wordCount":813,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/world.edu\/practically-perfect-why-the-medias-focus-on-top-year-12-students-needs-to-change\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/Year-12-results.jpeg","keywords":["Year 12 results"],"articleSection":["Education"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/world.edu\/practically-perfect-why-the-medias-focus-on-top-year-12-students-needs-to-change\/","url":"https:\/\/world.edu\/practically-perfect-why-the-medias-focus-on-top-year-12-students-needs-to-change\/","name":"\u2018Practically perfect\u2019: why the media\u2019s focus on \u2018top\u2019 Year 12 students needs to change - World leading higher education information and services","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/world.edu\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/world.edu\/practically-perfect-why-the-medias-focus-on-top-year-12-students-needs-to-change\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/world.edu\/practically-perfect-why-the-medias-focus-on-top-year-12-students-needs-to-change\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/Year-12-results.jpeg","datePublished":"2023-12-17T23:05:16+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/world.edu\/#\/schema\/person\/42c1c1d5ff7ffbdf0bd50ed94c6ae6ee"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/world.edu\/practically-perfect-why-the-medias-focus-on-top-year-12-students-needs-to-change\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/world.edu\/practically-perfect-why-the-medias-focus-on-top-year-12-students-needs-to-change\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/world.edu\/practically-perfect-why-the-medias-focus-on-top-year-12-students-needs-to-change\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/Year-12-results.jpeg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/Year-12-results.jpeg","width":680,"height":453},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/world.edu\/practically-perfect-why-the-medias-focus-on-top-year-12-students-needs-to-change\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/world.edu\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"\u2018Practically perfect\u2019: why the media\u2019s focus on \u2018top\u2019 Year 12 students needs to change"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/world.edu\/#website","url":"https:\/\/world.edu\/","name":"World leading higher education information and services","description":"Global Higher Education Jobs, University jobs, Lecturer & tenure jobs.","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/world.edu\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/world.edu\/#\/schema\/person\/42c1c1d5ff7ffbdf0bd50ed94c6ae6ee","name":"Kevin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1e8d491a5f9b9bf3db67c9e46abbba7bb06b26b458bd5025c55e0a4b9b60ea8a?s=96&d=mm&r=g8ba4c352a279c450aa9435d770c1ebf4","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1e8d491a5f9b9bf3db67c9e46abbba7bb06b26b458bd5025c55e0a4b9b60ea8a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1e8d491a5f9b9bf3db67c9e46abbba7bb06b26b458bd5025c55e0a4b9b60ea8a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Kevin"},"description":"Kevin is founder of the world.edu project. The past 28 years have been involved in publishing to the education sector in print and the internet. Kevin has a degree in Education and has a many years experience in developing companies and projects.","sameAs":["https:\/\/world.edu"],"url":"https:\/\/world.edu\/author\/kevin\/"}]}},"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71093","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/33"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=71093"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71093\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":71113,"href":"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71093\/revisions\/71113"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=71093"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=71093"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=71093"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/world.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=71093"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}