A Comparative Study of NSW Public School Students Using and Not Using the Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award Framework: Academic Results and Attitudes

The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award (Duke of Ed) is a Framework used to manage and accredit non-formal education and learning, and in turn support young people to find their purpose, place and passion in the world. The Framework encourages young people to design their own program of activities, set their own goals and challenge themselves to achieve their aims in voluntary service, physical recreation, skills development, and outdoor journeying for their Bronze and Silver Levels, and an additional residential project during the Gold Level. Used in more than 120 countries, this globally recognised accreditation is available to all 14 to 24 year-olds, inclusive of all backgrounds, locations, cultures, and abilities. 

In the short term, the Duke of Ed offers goal setting and social skills acquisition to build a sense of achievement and accomplishment, particularly in tackling challenges, supporting educational engagement and participation. In the longer term, it lays the foundation for ongoing education and workforce participation through enhanced life skills and work readiness. Young people can use the Duke of Ed to build an evidence-based learning portfolio/CV that accredits their core life-skills and non-academic skills and interests alongside academic results. 

Even though it has been calculated that more than eight million young people worldwide have used the Duke of Ed Framework since the first cohort went through in 1956, there has only ever been one study, in Malaysia, that looked at improvements in academic achievement, specifically English, Business Studies and IGCSE results (Yeo & Yap, 2024). The present investigation aims to further understand the effects of using the Duke of Ed Framework on academic achievement by executing a specific methodology to investigate the academic achievements of two similar cohorts of young people – those who have used and completed at least one Level (Bronze, Silver, Gold) of the Duke of Ed, and these who have not.

 Students from five NSW co-educational schools were recruited to take part in this study, the researchers aimed for an equal distribution of Duke of Ed Framework Users non-Users. Data was collected through:

 • English and Maths results given by the schools

• NAPLAN results

• A survey that was constructed to understand student attribution of their learnt skills due to the Duke of Ed and academic perceptions

• Focus groups with the Registered Users.

 This study found that, overall: utilisation of the Duke of Ed Framework does help to support enhanced academic achievement in secondary students.