Aboriginal Learning and Engagement Centre Guidelines
Rationale
The NSW Department of Education is committed to improving the educational outcomes and wellbeing of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander students so that they excel and achieve in every aspect of their education. It is the goal of the department that Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander students will match or better the outcomes of the broader student population.
The Aboriginal Learning and Engagement Centre (AL&EC) guidelines provide direction for Directors, Educational Leadership, Principals and schools on the process for establishing, effectively running, and sustaining an AL&EC within a secondary school.
A key focus of the AL&EC is to improve Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait secondary student engagement, attendance, retention, HSC attainment and support for secondary students at key transition points.
Monitoring and evaluation are key requirements of this initiative.
Schools use existing data sets including system data as a baseline to measure and evaluate the impact of their AL&EC. This data includes but is not limited to; student voice, attendance, retention, HSC Minimum Standard, Tell Them From Me and HSC attainment.
Timeframe for use:
Schools and school leaders can use this as part of the school planning process to improve Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander student engagement, attendance, retention, HSC attainment and support for students at key transition points.
Intended audience:
Directors, Educational Leadership, Principals and schools.
Instructions for use:
Schools can opt to self-fund an AL&EC to support in increasing HSC attainment for Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander secondary students. Additional support to establish an AL&EC can be sought through contacting the Aboriginal Outcomes and Partnerships Directorate aopcorrespondence@det.nsw.edu.au.
Evidence base:
Closing the Gap:
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students achieve their full learning potential; Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students reach their full potential through further education pathways and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander youth are engaged in employment or education.
Alignment to School Excellence Framework:
Learning domain – Learning Culture, Learning domain – Wellbeing, Learning domain – Reporting, Learning domain – Student Performance Measure, Teaching domain – Data Skills and Use, Teaching domain – Learning and Development, Leading domain – Educational Leadership, Leading domain – School Planning, Implementation and Reporting, and Leading domain – School Resources.
Consulted with:
These guidelines were developed in collaboration with the department’s School Performance, Aboriginal Outcomes and Partnerships Directorate and Teacher Quality and Impact directorates, and the NSW Aboriginal Education Consultative Group Inc.
Reviewed by:
Aboriginal Outcomes and Partnerships Directorate.
Created/last updated:
November 2023
Anticipated resource review date:
This resource will be reviewed in December 2024. To ensure ongoing improvement of this resource, feedback on this resource can be provided via the survey or QR code below.
