Education and Training Directorate

Future of Education

The government committed in 2017 to develop a 10-year strategy for the future of education in the ACT. The strategy’s aim was to emphasise the core value of equity in the ACT school and early childhood education and care systems and the benefits that accrue when equity is achieved. The intention was to inform the strategy’s development through a consultation with a broad spectrum of students, parents and carers, community members, teachers, educators and education leaders, using a ‘community conversation’ to listen to their views.

The first phase of consultation, April-December 2017, was designed to open, generate and capture ideas without filtering. Engagement in the first phase included: visits to community organisations, presentations, graffiti walls, classroom conversations with the Minister, attendance at community events, video booths at school fetes and youth centres, colouring-in activities, multilingual postcards, meetings with school board chairs and parent and citizens’ associations, school leadership forums and YourSay ACT and Directorate social media. Ten themes arose from this first phase.

The second phase consisted of consulting via ‘world café’ workshops over a

two-week period in March 2018. Everyone who contributed in phase one received an invitation to participate and provide feedback on the foundations that arose from Phase 1 themes. A workforce discussion paper and survey invitation were also sent out to all school leaders and teachers in all ACT schooling sectors in May 2018.

The number of people/organisations who participated in the consultation included the following.

Feedback from the consultation phases have been published on the ACT Government’s YourSay website.

As required under the Education Act 2004 the Director-General invites community comment on all applications received by the Education Directorate, relating to the in-principle approval to apply for provisional registration of a new school or registration of an existing school that is seeking to expand registration of provisionally registered schools.

The notifications and invitations to make comment are made on the Directorate’s website. Key educational stakeholders are also notified by email.

During the reporting period the community were notified about applications from:

• Chabad ACT Limited seeking in-principle approval to apply for provisional registration of a new school (Kindergarten (K) – year 3); to be called Canberra Jewish School listing 7 Menkar Close, Giralang as the intended location
• Islamic Practice and Dawah Circle Inc. seeking In-principle approval to apply for registration of Islamic School of Canberra at additional educational levels (years 8 and 9) at the school’s current site in Weston
• Canberra Muslim Youth Inc. seeking In-principle approval to apply for registration of Taqwa School at additional educational levels (years 7 and 8) at the school’s future site at Part Block 1, Sn 33 Moncrieff
• Brindabella Christian Education Limited seeking approval for registration of Brindabella Christian College at additional educational levels (years 5 and 6) at its Charnwood campus, and
• Catholic Education seeking registration of Mother Teresa School at its Harrison site and St John Paul College at its Nicholls site.

As a matter of courtesy, the community were also notified that the Education Directorate had received registration renewal applications from the proprietors of:

• Islamic School of Canberra
• Taqwa School
• Orana Steiner School
• Blue Gum Community School
• Brindabella Christian College, and
• 11 Catholic systemic primary schools.

Consultation on amendments to the Education Act 2004 Chapter 5 Home Education was conducted for a short period prior to introduction of the amendment bill in October 2017.

Consultation was conducted for home educators and home education networks to provide feedback or identify issues with the proposed legislation changes. Engagement also sought to inform people of the legislative process and changes to registration process which may affect them in the future.

Thirteen letters and emails were received as part of written feedback and the Directorate met on several occasions with parents and the home education network representatives to consult on the proposed legislation. Feedback was incorporated into the new process and regulations for home education registration. The amendment bill is expected to be debated in the Legislative Assembly in 2018 with commencement in 2019. Further consultation is due to occur on the proposed regulation changes to accompany the amended legislation and detail the revised process for home education registration.

The opening of the new school located in Taylor, for the start of the 2019 school year provided an opportunity for the local community to be consulted and engaged in determining key attributes of the school including the name, school uniform and logo.

The community engagement plan set out the approach to ensure the local community had the opportunity to have a say on the name of the new school, school uniform and logo. This was achieved using an online voting poll on the YourSay website. The poll was open for six weeks throughout June and July 2018.

Targeting existing and future residents living in the Priority Enrolment Area (PEA) for the new school, the community engagement activities provided an avenue for families to become connected to the school community well before the start of the new school year in 2019.

The Directorate also consulted with family members and the ACT Place Names Committee regarding the nominated names for the school.

Overall, 2,071 people were engaged via the YourSay website, social media posts, emails, face-to-face conversations and by attending a local residents meeting in Moncrieff. The final poll numbers will determine the final name, uniform colours and logo for the new school which will be announced in Term 3, 2018.

A school modernisation program commenced at Campbell Primary School and Narrabundah College during 2017-18. Some buildings at both sites have reached the end of their useful life. The modernisation program will deliver a contemporary learning environment and modern facilities for students, teachers and the local community. The initial step of the consultation was to inform staff, parents, students and neighbours at each school, along with key stakeholder groups including unions and community representatives about the building modernisation program. Details about the relocation of students into temporary buildings and the demolition of the aged buildings was provided using a range of methods such as briefings, newsletters, a mailbox drop, website updates and face to face information sessions at each school.

Campbell Primary School

The engagement program for Campbell Primary School moved to stage two in June 2018 with a focus on obtaining feedback from the community about the design for future learning spaces at the school, so that it best meets community expectations and needs.

A range of engagement activities with staff, students, parents and neighbours occurred throughout 2017-18, including a video recording of current students, community workshops and focus groups.

Feedback received during the consultation will contribute to the development of the conceptual architectural design for the new learning spaces.

Narrabundah College

Stage two of the engagement program for Narrabundah College will commence in 2018 -19.

The directorate continues to work with both school communities, ensuring they are involved in shaping the future learning spaces on each campus.

The ACT Regulatory Authority, Children’s Education and Care Assurance, organises and participates in a range of educative forums and deliberative forums with the early childhood sector.

Each year CECA organises Education and Care Sector meetings three times per year, which includes a Symposium.

On 18 October 2017, CECA facilitated an annual symposium on Quality Area 6 of the National Quality Standards. The half-day session centred around collaborative partnerships with families and communities and allowed for leaders and educators within the sector to hear from others and ask questions to an expert panel.

Included on the day were presentations on:

• Developing Strategic Inclusions Plans, presented by Rebecca Johns (Inclusion Hub manager) and Rowena Muir (Pedagogical Leader MOCCA) and Becca Jones (Inclusion Professional)
• Meaningful engagement with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Communities, presented by Stephanie Woerde and Tessa Keenan (Narragunnawali: Reconciliation Australia in Schools and Early Learning)
• Effective Collaboration with schools and families in the provision of care outside school hours, presented by Alice Castrission (Catholic Education Office) and Bronwyn Newth (Director, Holy Spirit Early Learning Centre), and
• Bringing relevance to engagement with your community, presented by Jacinta Dale (former educator at Lyons Early Childhood School).

In 2017–18 CECA has delivered three Education and Care Sector meetings to over 500 participants on topics such as the amended National Law, National Regulations and National Quality Standards; Engagement of children with High Care Needs; Inclusion Support Plans; Contributing to the Future of Education Strategy; Playing with Gratitude and feed Australia.

In addition, the Quality Assurance team undertook a survey of the education and care services who had received a final assessment and rating report between

1 July 2016 and 31 December 2017, to seek information that may assist in ensuring reports are relevant, able to be understood in terms of the ratings given and useful for ongoing continuous improvement. 77 response (60 per cent) were received out of a total of 129 services included in the survey. The majority of respondents felt that the report reflected their service well, with a very high per centage of service (76 per cent) indicating that they felt the report clearly explained the service rating. In addition, the sector indicated that the Quality Improvement Notes were extremely supportive and liked the inclusion of links to best practice resources and information.

Both the Director-General and the Director for Early Childhood Policy and Regulation continue to visit ACT education and care services to gain firsthand knowledge and understanding of programs and practices in these settings. The visits provide a great opportunity for services to show case their unique approaches while demonstrating the individual needs of children and their families.

The Early Childhood Advisory Council was established by the Minister for Education and Early Childhood Development in August 2017. The Council is made up of 14 representatives from the ACT’s early childhood education and care sector.

Members represent a strong cross-section of the early childhood education and care sector, including community not-for-profit services and the Independent and Catholic education sectors. Members were selected not solely as representatives of their organisations but also on the basis of their individual skills and expertise. In 2017-18 the Council met seven times to discuss the themes the Minister is considering for the Early Childhood Strategy.

On 15 June 2018 the Minister provided the sector with a Communiqué outlining the work of the Council to date and the next steps in the development of the Early Childhood Strategy.

The Board of Senior Secondary Studies, through its community based membership, provides stakeholder engagement with all school sectors, tertiary institutions, training providers, parents, business and unions. The Board has four advisory bodies which provide advice to the Board. The bodies are the:

• Assessment and Certification Committee (ACC)
• Curriculum Advisory Committee (CAC)
• Vocational Education and Training (VET) Committee, and
• Innovation Committee (INC).

Representation on these groups is community based. Each group is chaired by a Board member with the group members drawn from a variety of stakeholder groups pertinent to the nature of the group. The groups meet regularly and report directly to the Board.

The Board facilitates community input through representation on committees, course writing teams, accreditation panels, working parties and at consultation forums. Groups represented include parents, teachers, principals, tertiary institutions, industry, business and unions.

The Board Website is regularly updated to reflect changes to Board policy and procedures and complies with WCAG 2.0 accessibility guidelines. The Board operates Facebook and Twitter accounts to provide alternative channels of communications with the wider community.

The Board encourages and welcomes both positive and negative feedback and is committed to responding to complaints in a timely and positive manner. This enables staff, students, parents and community members to contribute to the Board's continuous improvement strategy. The Board’s Feedback and Complaints policy is available on its website. The Board received one formal complaint in March 2018 through the ACT Human Rights Commission with regard to the ACT Scaling Test. The Human Rights Commission closed the complaint in June 2018 as it had been dealt with to their satisfaction.

Cultural Integrity describes the policy, resource and cultural shift being implemented across the Directorate to meet the needs and aspirations of all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students.

Building the Cultural Integrity of schools and Education Directorate staff creates welcoming and engaging environments for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students, families and communities.

Cultural Integrity ensures all students have opportunities to develop their knowledge of and appreciation for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories, cultures and languages.

The Cultural Integrity policy development process has benefited greatly from the critical advice and guidance of the following groups:

• The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Reference Board – comprising of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander members drawn from Indigenous business, the tertiary education sector and the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Education Consultative Group
• The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Student Resource Allocation Project Policy Group – comprising of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander teachers and principals, non-Indigenous principals and Education Support Office (ESO) executive, and key Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander ESO staff, and
• The ACT Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Education Consultative Group – comprising of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander parents/caregivers and community members.

The Continuum of Educational Support (CES) model is being implemented in all high schools from 2018. A key component of this model, at the end of the Continuum, is the provision of alternative education for students whose needs are best met ‘off campus’, outside of the mainstream classroom environment within fit-for-purpose contexts (Tier 3). To ensure that the ‘Off Campus’ Alternative Education Program (the Program) provides a holistic and integrated approach to meeting the educational and wellbeing needs of this group of young people, the Education Directorate has undertaken collaborative workshops and design conversations with students, school leaders, community sector and government stakeholders.

Collaborative Workshops

Two collaborative workshops have been facilitated by the Education Directorate on 9 November 2017 and 7 June 2018.

The first workshop was attended by 40 participants that included school leaders and community and government stakeholders. The purpose of the workshop was to assist in understanding how to meet the diverse needs of young people to inform the design of a responsive offering that meets both the educational and wellbeing needs of students.

The second workshop was attendance by invitation with 20 selected participants attending. This targeted strategy was implemented to ensure that key community stakeholders were represented and provided the opportunity to share their valued expert opinions and views within this space. The aim of this workshop was to build on the significant work that was undertaken at the initial Collaborative Workshop that was held in November 2017. The workshop was an opportunity to test the conceptual service offering and to further examine the importance of cross agency collaboration in successfully delivering the Program, while identifying the structural elements required to ensure that productive collaboration is achieved.

Student Design Conversations

Over 60 students in total were a part of the six design conversations that were facilitated with selected groups of learners participating in innovative and future focused learning contexts. The aim of these design conversations was to test and refine the conceptual service offering of the Program.

These conversations have been instrumental in ensuring that the program genuinely reflects the value of being student-centred. To ensure that the Program is sustainable and responsive to the changing needs to young people, ongoing design conversations will continue with young people into the future, with conversations being scheduled with selected groups of young people for the remainder of 2018.