The purpose of the Research and Mapping for MCEECDYA Project: Student Academic Engagement was to examine the characteristics of schools with a low Index of Community Socio-Educational Advantage (ICSEA) from all jurisdictions that were identified to be making a difference to student academic and to identify the key drivers and characteristics of successful models of practice for increasing and sustaining student academic engagement. The study had two broad research questions, related to the issues of student academic engagement in low ICSEA schools. These questions were: (1) What are the key drivers and characteristics of successful models of practice for increasing and maintaining student engagement?; and (2) What are the policy implications of these findings for effective, sustained reform at the jurisdiction and national levels? The study examined a sample of low ICSEA schools from across Australia. A case study approach was used to explore school practices in the area of student academic engagement in order to identify which strategies had been successfully employed. The six most important overall findings from the case study schools were as follows: (1) Each of the 12 schools demonstrated that their success in improving student academic engagement in schools was due to the synergy of the special initiatives they undertook; (2) Achieving such synergy is dependent on insightful and effective school leadership working to a distributed leadership model; (3) NAPLAN has made a major impact on improving engagement in these schools by drawing attention to the need to monitor and review student performance and work within evidenced base practice; (4) The National Partnership program has also had a major impact, assisting these schools to improve student academic engagement through the development and implementation of targeted initiatives; (5) All successful schools have used a whole of school data management approach to improve student performance in literacy; and (6) There have been common practices in all successful schools across the areas of: (a) leadership; (b) learning culture; (c) curriculum and pedagogy; (d) management of resources; (e) community partnerships; and (f) collegial professional learning. Appended are: (1) Case Study Reports; (2) Case Study Proforma; (3) Interview Questions for Key Senior Officer/Manager; (3) National Partnership Programs; and (4) National Reform of Indigenous Education. A glossary is included. [This paper was written for the Australian Education Early Childhood Development and Youth Affairs Senior Officials Committee (AEEYSOC).]