Support for Research Project – Exploring Secondary Mathematics Enrolments

5 September, 2025

Dear Principal,

I am an Associate Professor in the School of Education at The University of Notre Dame Australia, and I would like to conduct a national research project within Australian secondary schools. The purpose of the project is to investigate the factors influencing Year 11 and Year 12 students in Australian secondary schools to either enroll in or not enroll in mathematics courses. With mathematics and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics) considered national priorities within Australian education, this research may uncover opportune findings about students’ enrolment decisions.

The research project has been granted full ethical approval from The University of Notre Dame Australia’s Human Research Ethics Committee (Approval Number 2024-015F). and from the following jurisdictions listed below. We understand that for research to proceed in Independent Schools, Principal approval is required due to the absence of a system-wide approval process.

New South Wales

New South Wales (NSW) Department of Education (Approval Number DOC24/3115517)

Sydney Catholic Schools
Archdiocese of Canberra Goulburn

Diocese of Parramatta
Diocese of Bathurst
Diocese of Wagga Wagga
Diocese of Wollongong

Victoria

Victorian Department of Education and Early Childhood Development (Approval ID 24-05-335)

Melbourne Archdiocese of Catholic Schools
Diocese of Sale
Diocese of Ballarat

Diocese of Sandhurst

Western Australia
Department of Education Western Australia (Approval D240312353)
Catholic Education Western Australia

I seek your permission as Principal for the study to proceed at your school, and for you to pass on information to the Deputy Principal (Curriculum) on your staff. It is hoped that the Deputy Principal (Curriculum) (or another staff member you would like to nominate) will send both a Project Information Sheet and a Parent Opt-Out Consent Form home to parents through your school’s communication channels as well as a Student Information Letter. It is also hoped that the Deputy Principal (Curriculum) will keep a record of those students whose parents return an Opt-Out Form to withdraw their child from participating in the research. Those children should not complete the survey.

Participation in the study is entirely voluntary and Year 11 and Year 12 students who consent to participate will be invited to complete a single, anonymous, online survey which should not take longer than 15 minutes to complete. The survey asks for information about factors influencing students’ enrolments in mathematics courses, and it can be accessed via:

https://notredame.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_39MGocT0Jr7VyhU

Participation in this research should involve a minimal disruption to student learning, so I am very happy for the survey to be completed during a suitable time selected by the Deputy Principal (Curriculum) or nominated staff member. Due to the opt-out procedure being exercised for this study, parents will only need to return a signed Parent Opt-Out Form if they do not wish for their child(ren) to participate in the research.

The data for this study will be safely stored in a password-protected file on the University’s Qualtrics platform, as well as on my own work computer. Both the website and my work computer are only accessible by me, and after a period of 5 years the electronic copies of any surveys will be permanently deleted. This will be achieved by 14/03/2029. Because the survey is anonymous, data cannot be withdrawn after the survey responses have been submitted.

Consistent with the policies of systems and jurisdictions, a summary of the research findings will be made available to the participating site(s). You can expect this to be available from 12/3/2026. If you have a concern or complaint regarding the ethical conduct of this research project and would like to speak to an independent person, please contact Notre Dame’s Ethics Officer at (+61 8) 9433 0943 or research@nd.edu.au. Any complaint or concern will be treated in confidence and fully investigated. You will be informed of the outcome.

I have also included copies of information that will be provided to the Deputy Principal (Curriculum). If you require further information please feel free to contact me directly. Parents who would like any further information about any aspect of the project are welcome to contact me at any time, and I shall provide my contact details in the Participant Information Sheet enclosed.

I thank you for your consideration of my request.

Yours Sincerely,

Greg.

Chief investigator: Dr Gregory Hine

Telephone: (08) 9433 0152

Email: gregory.hine@nd.edu.au