Based on the largest social survey of secondary education ever undertaken in Australia, this book presents a national picture of who succeeds and who fails at school, offering valuable angles on many topical issues such as retention and dropout rates, the relation between poverty and achievement, the gender debate, private versus public schools, and which universities serve which social groups. This survey also sheds light on the inequalities within the Australian education system and presents new information on students' achievements in relation to their attitudes and values, students' destinations in relation to their backgrounds, and student's perspectives on issues from jobs to discrimination. Students' larger views on matters such as careers, marriage and family, the political system, and social justice are also revealed.

Richard Teese is Professor of Post-Compulsory Education and Training, and Director of the Educational Outcomes Research Unit, at the University of Melbourne.
John Polesel is a Senior Research Fellow at the Educational Outcomes Research Unit at the University of Melbourne.