Independence and personal choice are considered as a high value on Australians place. Therefore, rather than telling students exactly what to do, teachers and course tutors give them a few different options and suggest they pick the one that works best for them. They also expect students to take charge if things don't go as planned and to find help and support on their own.

Australians are also prepared to accept a range of opinions rather than believing there is one truth. This means that in an educational setting, students will be expected to form their own opinions and defend the reasons for that point of view and the evidence for it.

Australians are uncomfortable with disparity in social status and therefore admire the concept of treating everyone equally. An example of this is how the majority of Australian adults address each other by their first names. This emphasis on equality results in Australians feeling uneasy about taking things too seriously and being willing to make jokes about themselves.

Australians believe that life should have a balance between work and leisure time. As a consequence, some students may be critical of others who they perceive as doing nothing but study. Australian notions of privacy mean that areas such as financial matters, appearance and relationships are only discussed with close friends. While people may volunteer such information, they may resent someone actually asking them unless the friendship is firmly established. Even then, it is considered very impolite to ask someone what they earn.

(Source: Complete IELTS Student Book by Guy Brook Hart and Vanessa Jakeman)