Research Overview and Ongoing Research Aims

Program Foundation and Scope

QuickSmart is a 30-week intervention program (30 minutes, three times weekly, minimum 90 lessons) that withdraws students from class with clear exit criteria once target skills are acquired. This evolutionary approach combines practical, student-focused learning with theoretical foundations from educational neuroscience and cognitive advances.

Since 2001, QuickSmart has operated as applied research “undertaken to acquire new knowledge but directed towards a specific, practical aim” – representing a longitudinal, programmatic set of coordinated research projects addressing numeracy and literacy under-performance across diverse Australian educational contexts.

Photo: Professor John Pegg and Associate Professor Lorraine Graham – 2001

Current Research Focus

The SiMERR National Research Centre pursues extensive, ongoing longitudinal research as the only justifiable way to advance this contested social-science field.

Core Research Areas:

  • Working-memory load’s role in information processing and literacy/numeracy problems.
  • Cognitive obstacles preventing low-achieving students from reaching acceptable standards.
  • Development patterns across large student cohorts.
  • Scaling evidence-based interventions across sectors and jurisdictions.

Implementation Research:

  • Developing models for successful program scaling.
  • Improving training through analysis of high-growth groups.
  • Assessing self-factors (efficacy, confidence, scaffolded risk-taking).
  • Creating closer learning theory/educational neuroscience links.

Current Scale

Operating across over 1,700 Australian schools spanning urban, regional, and remote communities, SiMERR has collected comprehensive data from over 72,000 students (as of 2025). This extensive implementation provides robust evidence of program effectiveness across diverse educational contexts and student populations.

Assessment and Methodology

Higher-Order Skills Measurement:

  • Students’ comprehension (reading) and problem-solving (numeracy) abilities are assessed using rigorous, independent standardised tests relevant to Australian students.

Comparison Data:

  • Average-achieving students in the same grades complete selected QuickSmart Basic Skills Assessor (QBSA) sub-tests and participate in standardised testing to establish program effectiveness baselines.

Demonstrated Outcomes

Independent assessments consistently show substantial academic improvement for both Indigenous and non-Indigenous participants:

Academic Growth:

  • Effect sizes of 0.60 to 0.94 (representing two-to-three years’ growth in one year, compared to 0.3 for typical yearly growth).
  • Individual student improvement reaching up to seven times normal growth
  • Gains maintained or enhanced in subsequent years.
  • Substantial first-year improvements that increase or double in the second year as schools gain experience.

Broader Benefits:

  • Positive feedback from principals, teachers, aides, and parents.
  • Significant outcomes for Indigenous students mirroring non-Indigenous results.
  • Increased classroom engagement and attendance.

Research Impact and Recognition

  • Inaugural University of New England Vice-Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Research. (2009)
  • NSW Department of Education approval as an intervention program under state/federal partnership funding. (2009)
  • Unique position: Among the few interventions where evaluations examine implementation across all development sites.
  • QuickSmart was awarded the HTB Harris Award for an innovative program that has “proven to successfully fulfill an educational need or problem over time”. (2020)
  • QuickSmart was awarded highest ratings in the field of Education on research Engagement and Impact by the Australian Research Council (ARC) in its national assessment of research contribution to the broader community and the economy. (2019)

Program Development and Support

Developed at the SiMERR National Research Centre with support from Australian Research Council grants, Federal Government funding, and extensive backing from Northern Territory, New South Wales, and South Australian education authorities.

Key Effectiveness Features:

  • Whole school approach with professional learning for principals and administrators.
  • School-based QuickSmart teams including coordinators, instructors, and senior executives.
  • Six-day professional learning program (three two-day sessions).
  • Research-based intervention supported by extensive resources, manuals, software, and practical guidance.
  • Coordinated stakeholder collaboration ensuring program fidelity.

This systematic research fits the definition of “creative work undertaken systematically to increase knowledge stock and devise new applications,” catalysing development of new intervention programs across primary/secondary schooling, at-risk adult learners, technical education, and workplace contexts.

Since 2009, the Ascent Business Services group in Armidale have been subcontracted by SiMERR to administer the packing and sending out of QuickSmart flashcard kits and other resources to schools. More information here: https://www.une.edu.au/connect/news/2009/01/une-maths-program-adds-confidence