Queensland schools dropping senior drama subjects as enrolments fall

Drama enrolments in Queensland high schools have plummeted so precipitously that 42 fewer schools offered the senior subjects this year compared to before ATAR started.

Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority (QCAA) data shows that 276 schools offered drama or drama in practice in 2026, compared to 318 in 2019.

Drama Queensland president Scott Andrews, who teaches at a Brisbane private high school, told ABC Brisbane Breakfast that Queensland had an "enrolment crisis in drama".

"Ever since the introduction of ATAR in 2019, we've seen an almost 40 per cent drop in enrolments in Queensland drama," he said.

'ATAR factories'

Mr Andrews said students, in pursuit of high ATAR scores, were dropping drama due to severe subject scaling.

"Because drama scaling is so severe, in 2025, students who scored 100 lost around 15 points, down to 85," he said.

"Schools are deterring students from taking subjects that score quite poorly, mainly because they want high ATARs.

Chair of the National Advocates for Arts Education (NAAE) John Saunders agreed, and said schools were becoming "ATAR factories".

Dr Saunders said the short-term focus on high scores was robbing the state of future artists and arts workers.

"We are supposed to be hosting a cultural Olympiad in the lead-up to the Olympics and celebrating our arts and culture in Queensland.

"We're hearing from institutions like Queensland Performing Arts Centre; they can't find skilled workers in technical roles and skills that are developed in the arts, in production managers, producers, et cetera.

"And we're going to need those certainly for the Olympics and the cultural Olympiad."

Push for ATAR review

Dr Saunders said NAEE had been advocating for a review of ATAR and subject scaling, which the Queensland Tertiary Admissions Centre was doing.

"We're also calling for the QCAA to fix the syllabus. The drama syllabus in Queensland is really poor quality.

"We've been lobbying and advocating for change for about seven years."

A QCAA spokesman said it valued the important role drama and the arts played in students' learning, creativity and self-expression.

"Our drama syllabuses give students opportunities to develop performance and production skills, work creatively with others and express ideas in meaningful ways," he said.

"All QCAA syllabuses are developed in partnership with teachers, academics and other experts.

"Schools decide which senior subjects they offer based on factors such as student demand, teacher availability and resources."

A QTAC spokesperson said the purpose of intersubject scaling was to support fair comparisons between students who had studied different subject combinations for tertiary admission.

"Scaling does not measure the value, importance or merit of an individual subject, nor does it suggest that one subject is more valuable than another," the spokesperson said.

"QTAC strongly encourages students to study subjects that align with their strengths, interests and future aspirations, rather than attempting to achieve a specific rank.

"Students should also consider the prerequisites for their intended tertiary courses when choosing their senior subjects."

The spokesperson said QTAC "would share further information about its forthcoming ATAR study report when it is ready for release".