Thank you for the opportunity to speak again at the ACEL breakfast.
I value the opportunity to speak with educational leaders as we continue through this period of considerable change in education.
Change is always difficult.
So it’s important that we all remember why we are engaged in change.
It’s all about better outcomes for students.
Central to this is the need to raise the status of the teaching profession.
Equally important is giving educational leaders the ability to run schools more independently - to better align them with the opportunities and challenges school communities face.
Naturally this includes allowing schools leaders to decide who teaches in their school and how to attract and retain the best teachers by enabling leaders to build more rewarding careers for their staff.
You know this – so does the Government.
We have made this our mission over recent years.
Last year I spoke at length about the drive to enhance teacher quality, provide greater school autonomy and cut red tape for schools.
This morning I would like to spend a moment taking stock of the reform process so far and to outline the journey ahead for the remainder of this parliamentary term.
Delivering on teacher quality
An important component of our approach to enhance teacher quality has been the establishment of the ACT Teacher Quality Institute.
Budget funding was provided last year and the legislation creating the Institute passed the Legislative Assembly in 2010.
I was very pleased Professor Dennis Goodrum agreed to be the inaugural chair of the Institute’s board with Anne Ellis as the Institute’s CEO.
This is a highly skilled and respected team to get this important institution up and running.
Delivering on school autonomy
We are also making good progress on school autonomy - with eight schools part of the new process and improvements noticeable already.
Schools are advertising and hiring using direct recruitment and single line item budgets are being finalised.
The transition process is a complex one, and it will take time to implement across the entire public system.
But it will help our public school leaders manage their schools by moving from an archaic point-based system to an easier to understand ‘real-world’ budgeting system – a system more like those used in other government and non-government organisations.
Delivering on cutting red tape
We have also cut red tape for schools through the use of an integrated school staff management system, cluster cleaning contracts, centralised maintenance management and SchoolsNET.
Implementation of these reforms continues and I am confident that over time, they will further free-up our school leaders - enabling the focus to be on the core business of educating young Canberrans.
Looking to the future now, I shall return to some key themes that you would have heard me speak on previously.
These are:
improving evaluation processes to improve teacher quality;
reforming salary structures and career pathways;
providing more information for schools and parents; and
smoothing and improving educational pathways for students.
Grattan Report – Teacher Evaluation
An area that is often neglected – or misunderstood in the way we think about driving educational improvement - is teacher evaluation.
In education – as in just about every other form of human endeavour - how we measure success often determines what is done.
Importantly when it comes to education we are improving measurement techniques – through NAPLAN in particular.
Nobody pretends for a minute that NAPLAN is the be-all and end- all when it comes to measuring educational outcomes.
But equally I know of no one who seriously argues that a great education is possible without students being proficient in literacy and numeracy.
And if recent surveys are to be believed, it’s clear most educators see the merit in NAPLAN as part of measuring effectiveness.
Surveys undertaken by the Australian Centre for Education Research, and the OECD show that overwhelmingly teachers and school leaders want to do the best job they can - and that they know feedback provides opportunities for learning, development and improvement.
Better reporting on educational basics is central to this.
As leaders, it is up to us to provide a system which enables everyone involved in education – parents, teachers, school leaders, students, bureaucrats and ministers - to see how they are delivering education – and what might need improving.
Teacher performance and evaluation is too important to be a tick-box exercise.
Where this is the case the losers are students as well as great teachers who want to build great careers.
This needs to change – and we are changing it.
In April this year the Grattan Institute explored the issue of assessing teacher performance – and proposed eight separate but interlinked evaluation measurements.
These include:
student performance and assessments – at either the teacher or the school level;
peer observation and collaboration – focused on teaching methods and their effect on learning;
direct observation of classroom teaching, student surveys and feedback;
360 degree assessment and feedback –using information from a range of sources to provid holistic assessment,
Self-assessment;
Parent surveys and feedback – used in conjunction with other data - mindful of the fact parental views can be coloured by their children’s individual experience; and
External observation – allowing schools to look outside their environment to assess strengths and weaknesses.
A combination of these tools will allow sophisticated evaluation which will help us to further improve teacher performance and educational outcomes.
The appropriateness of particular measures and how they should be implemented in the ACT needs to be discussed and debated - and I welcome this discussion.
But make no mistake: more robust and effective systems of professional evaluation are needed and will be delivered.
Teaching Structure
To accompany more effective evaluation, we aim to provide better pathways and opportunities for teachers.
We will be moving to overhaul the career structure for classroom teachers.
A new system that better encourages and rewards the very best teachers is central to what we want to see coming out of the current enterprise bargaining process.
We have long flagged our intent in this area and the recent ACT Budget provides significant additional funding to achieve this.
This is our agenda – and it fits firmly within the national reform agenda.
Indeed the Australian Government has used this week’s Budget to announce funding for high-performing teachers to receive bonuses of around 10 per cent against nationally developed performance standards.
We await further information from the Commonwealth Government on the implementation of this initiative
Greater scrutiny of education systems and educators - along with stronger incentives for great educators - signals the end of the era of advancement by exhaustion.
No longer will pay rates be determined by length of service alone.
Experience makes a difference - but it should not be the only factor.
Instead, accomplishment, technical performance, energy and leadership will all be necessary for advancement.
To raise the status of the teaching profession, we must reform the teaching profession.
This is once-in-a-generation opportunity which must be taken.
It may not come again.
My School 2.0
I noted in my speech last year that 2010 was the year of My School.
And in that speech I also said the “poker machine” approach to education funding was over – that no longer could government just insert another dollar and hope.
This year we have seen enhancements to the information available on MySchool – especially on funding and cohort academic gain – which will help us put an end to that ‘poker machine’ approach.
With MySchool 2.0 we have new data and another tool to assess what works and what doesn’t.
We have a new opportunity to ask ourselves what needs to change and how to best deploy resources.
In the area of funding MySchool data has exploded the myth of vast disparities between government and non-government schools in the ACT.
It has shown that in terms of average per student funding levels - we have the smallest gap between the government and non-government school systems - when compared to other jurisdictions.
Along with the new financial data, My School 2.0 has for the first time also published measures of academic “gain” over a period.
As with the funding data there have been - and will be - discussions as to how to interpret this data.
Feedback I get from teachers and parents is that most welcome the opportunity to examine how their school is adding value to educational outcomes.
And again – this new “gain” data will help everyone involved in education determine where we need to deploy additional resources and different methods.
Ladies and gentlemen - I have said many times before - as has the Prime Minister - that the old public - private debate is over.
There are some who maintain the rage.
I suppose those who do serve a purpose increasingly like the remnants of the Berlin Wall – which is now a tourist attraction reminding us of an era long gone.
I think the additional data on MySchool 2.0 helps to make this point.
For example - there were predictions the publication of the new data would see parents drag their children out of “low-performing schools” and flock to “high-performing schools”.
It was predicted “low performing schools” would be doomed to receive an ever diminishing pool of resources.
However the data in the most recent ACT school census shows these fears were unfounded.
Sure parents have been asking more, and better informed, questions about how their child’s education can be improved.
But the data is showing us that rather than dumping a school, families are seeking to work with their school to improve performance.
And to their credit, school leaders and teachers have been asking tough questions of themselves and each other, and coming up with answers.
With more information available parents and carers are now more engaged in conversations with educational professionals.
Rather than splitting schools between “successes and the failures” – this better informed engagement can only help to improve the outcomes in our schools.
While My School is not the whole of the answer – it is a valuable toolto help parents and educators work together for better outcomes.
2011/12 Budget initiatives
While NAPLAN and MySchool data is extremely useful in helping us target expenditure – it is not the last word here either.
This is obvious from the recent budget which included funding for:
new and upgraded schools in areas of population growth – Bonner, Franklin, Macgregor and Watson;
increased support for students with disabilities;
new ICT initiatives for schools;
increased frontline support services in schools; and
support for arts, sport and water safety programs in schools.
The ACT Government’s total commitment to education and training for 2011-12 is approaching $1 billion.
This represents around a quarter of all ACT Government expenditure.
In passing it is worth noting that around 70% of this budget goes to investment in human capital – investment in our staff.
This is a significant proportion of the budget which is why it’s so important that we ensure we are getting the value for the tax-payers dollar.
National Partnerships
Of course, the ACT Government isn’t the sole funding provider for education in the Territory.
We work very closely with the Commonwealth though various educational National Partnerships.
We lead the nation on delivering our BER projects which are providing staff and students with state of the art facilities in which to teach and learn.
We are leaders in the implementation of the Australian Curriculum – a development that will help students from interstate settle in faster – and make it easier for teachers to move in and out of the ACT to pursue advancement.
As principals with greater autonomy, you will now have access to a larger workforce teaching agreed curricula from across the country.
If you need a maths teacher, and can get a highly experienced one from Queensland or Western Australia, this process will be all the easier.
And teachers will be able to spend less time writing curricula - and more time teaching.
Federal Funding Review
We also welcome and are participating in the Federal Government’s Review of Funding for Schooling.
This is the most far-reaching review of education funding in almost 40 years.
In our submission we will state our strong belief that states and territories should retain responsibility for the operation of our school systems, including the development of policy and service delivery.
We will seek to change the funding model to ensure a greater share of funding for all ACT schools - as well as arguing that future funding models should have student need as its highest consideration.
We will also be seeking increased autonomy to target all resources - including Australian Government funding - to where it is most needed.
Along with this we naturally accept the need for greater jurisdictional accountability.
High School and College Reform
Since I became Education Minister in 2006 our education system has been through a great deal of change.
Much of it has been driven locally – some of it in the context of National Partnerships.
All of it has been directed at one simple goal – improving educational outcomes.
We have set the policy direction – and set about delivering that reform.
And today I have provided an update on where we are with delivering that reform.
So perhaps - to the relief of many - I don’t come here today with a long list of new policy reform ideas – as the focus this year is delivery.
But there is one area where there’s more policy work to be done – and that’s in the area of secondary education.
As Treasurer Swan made clear this week – Australia cannot afford to have one person of working age being idle.
It’s no different in the ACT.
Our economy – like the Australian economy really faces only one constraint – skills.
In the area of high school and college education this throws up a few simple but important questions.
What do we need to do to ensure students have the best possible transition from high school to work, vocational training or college?
How do we ensure the smoothest transition from college to either work or further study?
In short how do we ensure our high schools and colleges better meet the needs of students – and prepare them for a productive future of work, study and life-long learning?
If we are to ensure our education system equips Canberrans to participate in the modern economy we have to find the answers to these questions.
Soon the Government will release the platform for high school and college reform.
But I can give a short preview today.
It is built on three key themes:
advancing distinctive secondary schools,
flexibility, pathways and partnerships and;
strengthening the system
Theme 1: Advancing distinctive secondary schools
A key focus for the government will be the advancement of distinctive schools.
These schools will focus on better engaging all students – those at risk of disengaging because they are struggling – those who are gifted and talented and require extra challenges to remain engaged.
We will work to develop centres of specialisation and excellence in our high schools and colleges, and we will improve provision and access to vocational learning opportunities in our high schools and colleges.
This includes seeking Commonwealth funding to provide Trade Training Centres in ACT public schools.
Theme 2: Flexibility, pathways and partnerships
We will also develop clearer learning pathways and improved transition planning between local schools and further education providers.
This would align with greater specialisations for our schools, as well as providing opportunities for our brightest and our disengaged.
For an example of how this might work you need look no further than the partnership between the University of Canberra, Kaleen High and Lake Ginninderra College.
It’s a partnership that I am confident is going set new benchmarks in delivering better outcomes for students, as well as current and prospective teaching staff.
We will continue to examine and develop new and flexible ways of teaching and learning.
For example - this year, we are rolling out our new virtual learning environment - the connected Learning community – or CLC.
It provides the means for students and teachers to connect online in dynamic ways – including instant and ongoing communication with other students, teachers and parents.
In addition to the cLc, all Canberra schools have access to the Scootle web portal, which includes links to the Australian Curriculum through the Curriculum Connect Portal and other digital resources.
Understanding the digital world – its capabilities and pitfalls - is part of the basic literacy of life in the 21st century – and therefore must increasingly become part of daily life in our schools.
Beyond the realm of ICT we continue to look at how more traditional systems operate within our schools.
To help students make better informed decisions we will improve the quality and scope of career education and counselling in schools.
We will enhance local decision-making by further increasing school autonomy and school board autonomy.
Some may have thought school autonomy was a “trial”. It’s not – more autonomy and accountability is here to stay.
To deliver these changes the 2011-12 Budget provides $750,000 over two years for a Secondary School Innovation Fund to fund innovation and improvement.
I want to support new ideas and educational leaders prepared to champion them.
Theme 3: Strengthening the system
We will also continue to strengthen the entire ACT education system – by applying good ideas no matter where they come from.
We’ll do this by building on the collaboration already in place between the government and non-government sectors – such as we do on the Safe School Taskforce and the Teacher Quality Institute.
In line with our commitment to the Australian Curriculum, we will establish a cross-sectoral committee.
This committee will provide advice direct to the Education Minister on the formation of a curriculum certification and regulatory body.
Canberra Institute of Technology/ University of Canberra Reform
I have talked a lot today about reform in the school sector.
I can assure you this work does not stop at the end of year 12.
The Bradley Review of Higher Education and the report of our own Tertiary Taskforce are shaping the future of the VET and tertiary sectors in the ACT.
The Commonwealth has made clear in its Budget that skills and higher education is a top priority.
Labor will invest almost $560 million to create 130,000 training places - including $100 million to ensure 40,000 apprentices get their qualifications sooner.
As such the ACT Government is keen to take full advantage of this renewed Commonwealth commitment.
Following the ACT Government’s response to the Tertiary Taskforce Report - and in light of the Commonwealth Budget - we will investigate models for greater collaboration between the UC, CIT and Government.
Key to this will be the ability for the sector to develop innovative and collaborative ways of delivering industry- and research-driven tertiary education.
I have commissioned Professor Denise Bradley to undertake this investigation.
Professor Bradley has had a distinguished career in education - as a teacher in secondary schools and colleges – and as Vice-Chancellor and Chancellor of the University of South Australia.
She was of course the Chair of the 2008 Commonwealth Review of Higher Education, which colloquially bears her name.
Professor Bradley is uniquely qualified to undertake this investigation.
The Government has requested that Professor Bradley:
Explore and report on the opportunities for formal collaboration between UC and CIT, including amalgamation;
Assess these opportunities against the vision, goals and principles contained in the Federal Government’s review of higher education;
Assess how the VET sector can be strengthened to meet the needs of the ACT, including strengthening VET in schools; and
Recommend arrangements to achieve these objectives.
I envisage this work will be complete within 8 weeks.
Ladies and Gentleman - there’s no doubt that for everyone involved in education in the ACT – the past five years have been a period of significant change and reform.
Many more challenges and opportunities lie ahead – and all must be navigated with a single-minded focus on our core business – ensuring the education system continues to deliver for students, for our economy and for our community.
I look forward to working with you in this exciting era for Australian education.
Thank you.
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