Over in Haemlin Pool in Shark Bay, Western Australia lies preserved rock fossils thought to be almost 3.5 million years old called Microbialites.

These are very fragile fossils and have been at risk of over collecting, degradation and growing pressures.

Erturac, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Over in Haemlin Pool in Shark Bay, Western Australia lies preserved rock fossils thought to be almost 3.5 million years old called Microbialites.
These are very fragile fossils and have been at risk of over collecting, degradation and growing pressures.
<a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Microbialite_lakeVan_2021.jpg">Erturac</a>, <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0">CC BY-SA 4.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons

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Microbialites Rock Formations

The Wire - 13 November 2026

The latest results for NAPLAN show students in Year three, five, seven and nine are improving in numeracy, but not in reading.  

Australian Education Ministers have agreed to return the Year five NAPLAN writing exams to pen and paper rather than on a computer, as research from Edith Cowan University shows students achieve better results this way.  

The Heads-Up Alliance has welcomed the decision and encourages parents and educators to delay children's access to smartphones, social media and excessive screens. 

The Alliance also has launched a petition to ask schools to bring less time off the screens in classrooms. 

National Radio News' Brock Anderson spoke with Heads Up Alliance Member Leila Campbell about the impacts and benefits of this decision. 

The latest results for NAPLAN show students in Year three, five, seven and nine are improving in numeracy, but not in reading. &nbsp;
Australian Education Ministers have agreed to return the Year five NAPLAN writing exams to pen and paper rather than on a computer, as research from Edith Cowan University shows students achieve better results this way. &nbsp;
The Heads-Up Alliance has welcomed the decision and encourages parents and educators to delay children's access to smartphones, social media and excessive screens.&nbsp;
The Alliance also has launched a petition to ask schools to bring less time off the screens in classrooms.&nbsp;
National Radio News' Brock Anderson spoke with Heads Up Alliance Member Leila Campbell about the impacts and benefits of this decision.&nbsp;

Year 5 NAPLAN tests returns to pen and paper in 2028

Advocacy organisation, the Antipoverty Centre, has released an information guide for welfare recipients with compulsory activity requirements in response to a recent reintroduction of payment cancellations last month.  

The guide corresponds with the government's resumed Targeted Compliance Framework which see stricter penalties, including payment cancellations for failure to meet reconnection requirements and work refusal.

Advocacy organisation, the Antipoverty Centre, has released an information guide for welfare recipients with compulsory activity requirements in response to a recent reintroduction of payment cancellations last month. &nbsp;
The guide corresponds with the government's resumed Targeted Compliance Framework which see stricter penalties, including payment cancellations for failure to meet reconnection requirements and work refusal.

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