1. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships LITERACY AND NUMERACY PARTNERSHIP PROJECT Karen Webster Director Curriculum and Student Services Support

2. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships Established to replicate and amplify the successful lifting of student performance as per the Literacy and Numeracy National Partnership in 2010 and 2011 Participating schools commit to collectively contribute to the project’s target of raising the State’s NAPLAN achievement in 2013 and 2014. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project

3. Curriculum Partnerships effective and evidence-based teaching of literacy and numeracy strong school leadership and whole-school engagement with literacy and numeracy monitoring of student and school literacy and numeracy performance to identify where support is needed. What are the three key reform areas? The Department’s partnership agreement with each participating school focuses on three key reform areas:

4. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships What are the principles that underpin our approach? Embed a strong culture of literacy and numeracy improvement by: having a high level of expectation and teacher efficacy focusing on what matters most, with a real emphasis on literacy and numeracy, so the basics of all future learning are achieved using data to drive improvement using a case-management approach building teaching and leadership expertise ensuring structured and explicit teaching to ensure all students succeed building and maintaining a culture of sharing and responsibility tailoring initiatives to the overall direction of the school.

5. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships planning within the context of a whole-school approach to literacy and numeracy using information about student performance to set improvement targets, monitor progress and provide ongoing feedback to inform learning, teaching and leadership strategies that underpin school planning developing a Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project School Plan using the prescribed template that indicates student achievement targets and how these will be achieved What is expected of schools? Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project schools are expected to use their current and additional funding to improve student achievement in literacy and numeracy by:

6. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships implementing program recommended literacy and/or numeracy learning and teaching strategies that have demonstrated effectiveness, and monitoring the effectiveness of selected intervention strategies focusing attention on students achieving at or below the national minimum standard, in particular Aboriginal and English as an Additional Language/ Dialect (EAL/EAD) students emphasising the key role of the principal in ensuring there is effective learning and teaching in every classroom and building instructional leadership capacity establishing and maintaining school structures and processes to enable ongoing staff development and team ownership of student achievement (e.g. focused distributed leadership, team approaches to data analysis and planning, inclusion in staff performance management).

7. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships reporting achievement against project milestones and case- management targets every term via the online monitoring tool intervening early for students who start school behind or who fail to make progress in the first years of school implementing a case-management approach for students not progressing well providing extended services for those students with complex needs collaborating with other schools where this would benefit students continuing to establish and build productive community and home-school links.

8. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships What does using a case-management approach mean? In order to use data to drive instruction and select resources and appropriate strategies, schools should use a case-management approach. This can be achieved by: setting realistic targets for the next stage of learning identifying and planning learning and teaching support to help students achieve their literacy and/or numeracy targets and overcome barriers to learning being inclusive of students’ cultural, social and academic considerations encouraging teachers in the school to take collective responsibility for all students ensuring ongoing review of data and other information related to student progress

9. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships ensuring diagnostic and formative assessment tools are in place that allow all staff to monitor student progress throughout the year using data to inform the ‘next steps’ for meeting the needs of each student and ‘next steps’ for meeting the professional development needs of the teachers within the school interventions to address the specific learning needs of students experiencing difficulty in literacy and/or numeracy should be evidence-based, data driven, individually targeted, systematic and intensive – intervention approaches do not necessarily require one-to-one instruction.

10. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships What support is available? Manager, Curriculum Partnerships 2 x Consultant Principals Principal Consultant Literacy Principal Consultant Numeracy Principal Consultant EAL/EAD

11. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships WHOLE-SCHOOL APPROACH TO LITERACY AND NUMERACY

12. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships School Improvement and Accountability Policy Principals, in collaboration with school staff are required to undertake a school planning process that includes the development of a School Plan, operational planning and classroom planning.

13. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships Procedures School principals, in collaboration with school staff: develop and make publicly available a School Plan spanning a number of years, that provides a succinct, strategic direction for the school include in the School Plan objectives, priorities, improvement targets, major strategies, resources, reference to systemic policies and directions, evaluation measures and a timeframe, including a provision for annual review

14. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships Procedures (cont.) develop operational plans, in forms that best suit the school’s context, detailing how the School Plan will be implemented in each school year monitor the alignment of classroom planning to school planning through performance management School Councils: take part in establishing and reviewing the School Plan.

15. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships School improvement cycle Assess –Collect and analyse data Plan –School (Strategic) Plan is evidence-based and improvement focused –Strategic Plan, operational planning and classroom planning are aligned Act –Implement and evaluate school planning ASSESS PLAN ACT

16. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships Three levels of planning 1.Strategic – describes ‘what’ 2.Operational – describes ‘how’ 3.Classroom – connects the ‘what’ and ‘how’ to daily planning

17. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships Strategic planning Public document Sets long term directions (spans a number of years) School Council engaged in development and review

18. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships Critical elements: Objectives Priority areas for improvement –school (guided by information generated from and analysed through school self-assessment processes and a review of previous school planning) –system (Classroom First, Plan for Public Schools, Focus 2012) Long term improvement targets related to student achievement, academic and non-academic Major strategies (usually whole-school) Key evaluation measures A timeframe, including a provision for annual review In addition may include beliefs and values (optional, brief)

19. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships Operational planning Not necessarily ratified by the School Council Schools are able to structure their plans in ways that suit their school’s context e.g. learning area, phase of learning or priority plans

20. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships Guided by: Strategic Plan Information generated from and analysed through school self-assessment processes A review of previous strategic and operational planning

21. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships Critical elements: Short term improvement targets related to student achievement Specific strategies related to major strategies in Strategic Plan Resources Timeline Responsibilities Monitoring

22. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships Classroom planning Aligned to strategic and operational planning Responsibility of teachers Monitored through performance management

23. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships Overview of School Planning Process Whole-school approach to literacy and numeracy Literacy Overview School (Strategic) Plan The Strategic Plan is a response to school data assessed over time and is the context for operational plans. Strategic Plans typically span a number of years. Objectives, priorities, improvement targets, major strategies, resources, references to systemic policies and directions, evaluation and a timeframe should be included within the plan. Operational Plans Operational plans detail how Strategic Plan objectives will be implemented in that school year. Plans characteristically include improvement targets, specific strategies, who is responsible for the strategies, resources allocated to support the strategy and ways that the implementation will be evaluated. Classroom Planning Classroom planning is the responsibility of teachers and should be aligned to school planning. Classroom planning is monitored through performance management. Numeracy Overview

24. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships Beliefs and understandings Leadership Home, school and community partnerships Identification, intervention and case-management School and class organisation Professional learning Instructional practice Monitoring and assessment Standards and targets Adapted from Hill and Crevola (1997) Planning Model

25. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships Beliefs and understandings 1.Do we believe that all students can be successful? 2.What do we believe about how our students learn best? 3.Why do the Principles of Learning and Teaching (Curriculum Framework, 1998) guide whole-school planning and classroom practice? 4.Are students provided with opportunities to observe and practise the actual processes, products, skills and values which are expected of them? 5.Is a connection between existing knowledge, skills and values evident with learning extending and challenging current ways of thinking and acting? 6.Are learning experiences meaningful with teachers engaging students in doing, imitating, planning, creating and making and then reflecting on the process? Back

26. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships Beliefs and understandings (cont.) 7.Are learning experiences motivating with their purpose clear to the student? 8.Do teachers respect and accommodate differences between learners, acknowledging that students develop at different rates, have different learning styles and bring different cultural and linguistic backgrounds to the classroom? 9.Do learning experiences encourage students to learn both independently and collaboratively? 10.Do teachers create environments in which students feel safe and confident to attempt new tasks even if at first they are unsure about how to tackle them? Back

27. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships Leadership 1.Do school leaders exhibit the characteristics of instructional leaders? 2.Do school leaders encourage staff to share knowledge, responsibility and ownership of school programs and strategies? 3.Are all staff encouraged to take collective responsibility for all students? 4.Is a distributed model of leadership employed with literacy and/or numeracy specialist teachers deployed to mentor and work ‘shoulder-to-shoulder’ with colleagues? 5.Have curriculum committees been established to enable representatives from phase of schooling teams to participate in decision-making related to literacy and numeracy? Back

28. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships Leadership (cont.) 6.Are systematic, coordinated approaches utilised in the implementation of key instructional strategies and assessment practices? 7.Does the approach consider the resources required to facilitate successful change management e.g. quality professional learning, identification and training of expert teachers, time for expert teachers to model, coach and mentor, time for staff to collaborate, moderate, reflect and review? 8.Do performance management practices include focused self-reflection in relation to the teaching of literacy and numeracy and the setting of challenging but realistic goals for improvement? 9.Do school leaders facilitate improved literacy and numeracy achievements by attending to all elements of whole-school approaches to literacy and numeracy? Back

29. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships Standards and targets 1.Do all staff engage in a continuous cycle of school improvement involving assessing performance, planning for improvement and actioning plans? 2.Do staff share high expectations for students? 3.Does the school have clear expectations in relation to student achievement? Are expectations referenced to achievement in relation to NAPLAN proficiency bands, percentages of students at and above the NAPLAN national minimum standard and grades allocated on student reports? Back

30. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships Standards and targets (cont.) 4.Has the school established a systematic, continuous and comprehensive self-assessment process that provides verifiable judgments about student achievement, academic and non-academic, and the effectiveness of school processes and operations? What data is considered when determining student academic performance? What data is considered when determining non-academic achievement e.g. attendance, behaviour, values, social and emotional well-being? 5.Does data analysis consider:  longitudinal analysis over time, trends  comparisons with like schools and state norms  performance of sub-groups in the school e.g. gender, EAL/EAD students, Aboriginal students  value adding that has occurred? Back

31. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships Standards and targets (cont.) 6.Does the Strategic Plan include priorities for improvement based on the analysis of student performance data? 7.Does the Strategic Plan reflect Department priorities and key strategic directions? 8.Does the Strategic Plan and operational planning state targets in relation to identified areas for improvement? Are targets referenced to NAPLAN included? 9.How does the school ensure that improvement targets in the Strategic Plan and operational planning translate into classroom practice? 10.Does the school make evidence-based decisions about the actions required to maximise student achievement? Back

32. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships Standards and targets (cont.) 11.Are improvement strategies resourced appropriately ensuring effective change management? 12.Does operational planning state specific milestones providing interim evidence that a strategy is on course? 13.Is classroom planning evaluated for effectiveness in terms of student achievement? Back

33. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships Monitoring and assessment 1.Do all staff believe that the primary purpose of assessment is to enhance learning? 2.Why do the Principles of Assessment (Curriculum Framework, 1998) guide whole-school planning and classroom practice? 3.How are teachers supported to utilise valid, educative, explicit, fair and comprehensive assessment tasks? 4.How does the school guarantee that students receive supportive, timely and relevant feedback? 5.What processes does the school have in place to ensure systematic monitoring and assessment of student progress in literacy and numeracy? Back

34. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships Monitoring and assessment (cont.) 6.Have staff engaged in decision-making related to the school’s use of monitoring tools such as the On-entry Assessment, Literacy Net, Numeracy Net, phonemic awareness assessments, concepts of print assessments and running records? 7.What evidence do staff draw on when using the Literacy Net and Numeracy Net to screen students? 8.Is the ESL/ESD Progress Map used for students who do not demonstrate English language proficiency? 9.How are staff supported to utilise agreed monitoring tools? 10.Has the school made decisions related to the storage of key information related to student progress and achievement? Back

35. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships Monitoring and assessment (cont.) 11.How does the school ensure the comparability of judgments in the reporting of student achievements on prescribed system reports? 12.Has the school made known to the community an assessment and reporting policy based on the principles of the Curriculum Framework? 13.Are opportunities provided for ongoing communication with parents/caregivers about student achievement and progress? Back

36. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships Instructional practice 1.Has the school developed whole-school approaches to learning and teaching literacy and numeracy that are founded on sequences of content and instructional practices that are consistent within and across phases of schooling? 2.How does the school achieve consistency in teaching from year to year and across phases of schooling? 3.Do staff utilise the Australian Curriculum: English and Mathematics and the Department’s K-7 Literacy and Numeracy Learning and Teaching Resources, linked to First Steps materials, to support the explicit teaching of core literacy and numeracy skills? Back

37. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships Instructional practice (cont.) 4.Do teaching and learning programs specifically incorporate all aspects of literacy including phonological awareness, phonics, spelling, grammar, text structures, vocabulary knowledge and comprehension? 5.Do teachers plan programs that support students’ oral language development? 6.Do Kindergarten teachers lay the groundwork for the Australian Curriculum through intentional teaching of content based on the general capabilities of the curriculum, focusing on personal and social competence, and preparatory literacy and numeracy capabilities? 7.Do Kindergarten to Year 2 teachers utilise the Early Years Learning Framework and the Director General’s statement The early years of schooling to guide early childhood pedagogical practice? Back

38. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships Instructional practice (cont.) 8.How do programs for EAL/EAD learners allow students to learn the necessary vocabulary, language structures and communication skills? 9.How are staff supported in the implementation of key instructional strategies e.g. modelled, shared and guided reading and writing? 10.Do students have the opportunity to learn as a whole class, in small groups and individually? How are student groupings determined? 11.How are literacy and numeracy lessons structured to scaffold learning? 12.Are uninterrupted literacy and numeracy blocks embedded in daily classroom practice? Back

39. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships Instructional practice (cont.) 13.How are information and communication technologies used to enhance learning? 14.Does the school provide a balanced curriculum ensuring appropriate emphases at different phases of schooling? 15.How does the school plan for a balanced approach across all literacy and numeracy outcomes? 16.Do K-7 students receive at least 50 percent of curriculum instruction in literacy and numeracy? 17.How is literacy and numeracy teaching incorporated across learning areas? Back

40. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships Professional learning 1.Does the school consider itself as a community of life-long learners with staff members encouraged to engage in professional learning related to educational best practice? 2.How does the school develop a positive school culture in which staff members have the confidence to experiment with new strategies? 3.How are professional learning needs determined? 4.Does professional learning include opportunities for the whole staff, identified groups and individuals? 5.Is there a close alignment between professional learning and strategies articulated in the Strategic Plan and operational planning? 6.Is there a close link between professional learning and an effective performance management process? Back

41. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships Professional learning (cont.) 7.Are alternative modes of professional learning considered? 8.Have structures to support collaboration been established e.g. phase of learning teams? 9.How are professional reading and action learning encouraged and supported? 10.Are opportunities provided for staff to form mentor relationships with school-based literacy and/or numeracy experts? 11.Are staff provided with time to visit other schools and observe successful practice? Back

42. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships School and class organisation 1.How are students and teachers allocated to classes? 2.How are staff allocated to support classroom programs e.g. Literacy and/or Numeracy Specialist Teachers, Literacy/Numeracy Support Teachers, Learning Support Coordinator, Aboriginal and Islander Education Officers, Education Assistants? 3.How are support staff assisted to develop the knowledge and skills to facilitate effective support to teachers in improving students’ literacy and numeracy achievements? 4.Are resources purchased to assist implementation of improvement strategies e.g. mathematics manipulative materials, texts that take into account students’ level of development, cultural and linguistic background and interests? Back

43. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships School and class organisation (cont.) 5.How are resources allocated to ensure Literacy and Numeracy Specialist Teachers can effectively fulfil their roles? 6.Does the school’s timetable acknowledge the importance of uninterrupted literacy and numeracy blocks? 7.Is collaborative DOTT time considered within the timetable to allow teachers of like year levels to work cooperatively? 8.Does the school provide additional time for school teams to collaborate, moderate, reflect and review? 9.Are staff meetings and school development days used effectively for school improvement planning initiatives? Back

44. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships Identification, intervention and case-management 1.How is data used to identify individual student learning needs so that teachers can effectively differentiate instruction? 2.Are interventions to address the specific learning needs of students experiencing difficulty in literacy and/or numeracy evidence-based, data driven, individually targeted, systematic and intensive? 3.What support is provided to teachers in the planning of interventions for individual or groups of students with identified needs? 4.Is specific support provided to develop case-management plans for students identified by the On-entry Assessment in Pre-primary and Year 1? Back

45. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships Identification, intervention and case-management (cont.) 5.Do interventions acknowledge cultural and linguistic diversity providing specific strategies for EAL/EAD and Aboriginal students? 6.Do teachers consult and collaborate with students, parents and relevant professionals in the development of individual education plans for students with complex needs? 7.Are interventions documented in either individual education plans for students with complex needs or case-management plans for students requiring curriculum differentiation? 8.Are resources provided to support identified individuals and groups of students as part of mainstream programs? Back

46. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships Home, school and community partnerships 1.How do teachers build productive relationships with students? 2.How do we encourage and maintain positive partnerships with parents? 3.Are parents supported in ways they can best contribute to their child’s learning? 4.Do we encourage parents to share knowledge of their children’s development? 5.What opportunities are provided to share information about student progress and achievement with parents/caregivers? Back

47. Literacy and Numeracy Partnership Project Curriculum Partnerships Home, school and community partnerships (cont.) 6.Have any community partnerships been established e.g. universities, local council, local businesses? 7.Do opportunities exist to use community expertise in classroom teaching? 8.Do School Council members participate in setting school directions and reviewing the standards the school is achieving? 9.How does the school provide the community with information about their performance, including information about progress against improvement targets? 10.Has the school established partnerships with other schools to share ideas and expertise? Back