Evaluation of Curriculum Reform Communities
Evaluation of Curriculum Reform Communities (CRC) and an illustration of practice to support curriculum communities and networks.
Overview of the initiative
The CRC initiative was designed to support schools across NSW with the implementation of new syllabuses as part of Curriculum Reform. The initiative also focused on building leadership capability for curriculum change.
Through professional learning, mentoring and collaborative networks, CRC provided equitable access to curriculum support for educators in metropolitan, regional, rural and remote schools.
An evaluation of CRC examined how the CRC initiative helped schools implement the new curriculum, improve collaboration between schools, and build leadership capability.
Key findings
The evaluation highlighted that CRC were valued for:
- Equitable information sharing – CRC provided timely access to syllabus updates, teaching resources, and implementation strategies.
- Building leadership capability – CRC leaders and school coordinators benefited from mentoring and professional learning opportunities with leading education experts.
- Collaboration across schools – the initiative supported the creation of networks and communities where schools could share best practice and curriculum insights.
- Flexible and accessible learning – face-to-face, online, and hybrid sessions ensured teachers in metropolitan, regional, rural and remote areas could engage in equitable professional learning.
Strengthening curriculum support
Based on this evaluation, realigned models of curriculum support include:
These models build on the strengths of CRC by:
- supporting schools through different phases of curriculum implementation
- offering in-depth opportunities for schools to refine curriculum delivery
- providing professional learning that is timely, relevant, and directly linked to effective curriculum implementation.
The realigned model retains what worked well in CRC while enabling tailored support for primary, secondary, and unique school settings.
Illustration of practice
In this illustration of practice video, teachers and leaders at the Cecil Hills, Bondi, and Shellharbour CRCs explain how their curriculum communities were organised. They also describe the positive benefits of participating, including curriculum updates, opportunities to share practices and ideas, and collaboration with teachers from other schools.
Watch 'The benefits of Curriculum Communities' (4:18).
[Music]
Narrator
Curriculum Reform Communities support schools to implement new syllabuses. They provide schools and teachers K-12 with up-to-date information and resources on curriculum reform, as well as an opportunity to collaborate and share practice. A CRC meeting typically starts with an information update. School coordinators then get a chance to discuss new support resources, collaborate, and plan with colleagues.
Julian Floriano
So I lead the Cecil Hills CRC. We meet once a term face to face, during the regular school day. Just a great chance for us to get together, share a space, and share our stories together.
Nicole Reilly
The biggest benefit I found is the opportunity to have time to have genuine collaboration with other schools living the same things, we've made some genuine connections that have formed in the meeting, and have continued out of the meeting. Once the meetings are done, I go back to school, I take the opportunity to explore the resources further, share them with the relevant staff members.
Anita Sarkees
The biggest benefit for me coming to the CRC is actually engaging with primary and secondary school teachers, so we know how the journey continues for our primary school students, and just sharing of ideas of how to implement the new curriculum.
Marianne Bunt
I lead the Shellharbour CRC. We meet Week 5 every term. I get a lot of up-to-date information about what's happening in curriculum reform that I can relay not just to the staff here at my school, but also to the community that I'm working with in the Shellharbour network. One of the biggest benefits is the time and space to collaborate and talk and share ideas. Everyone has their own unique context, but we all find problems of practice as we try to implement the new curriculum. The CRC has really enhanced collaboration, because we have people that we know we can talk to and share ideas, people have exchanged emails and details. I've seen pairs and groups within meet one another, so they're actually able to work on similar problems of practice and share ideas and resources across schools. And anything where someone's already got something created that you can use saves us all time, so, really seeing that benefit. The groups really appreciate the time just to share, and sometimes it's to share about what the struggle is, there's so much going on, so sometimes just to know that we're all in that space together. Just a really rich time to talk about what's doing, share practice, that we otherwise wouldn't make the time for, and there is great sharing amongst our CRC, of resources that people have developed. People sharing ideas that others go and take away or tweak to their context.
Patrick Madden
You get to hear about what's happening in the new curriculum space, the updates, the new things that are coming out from the Department of Education. The opportunity to meet with other people from other schools to see what they're doing in implementing the new curriculum. As well as learn and share resources around assessment, planning, and programming.
Penelope Earp
Everybody gets the PowerPoint afterwards, and then they get the up-to-date information, it's an efficient way of rolling out such a big program. The school coordinators for the CRC aren't necessarily the principal, or the executive. They are teachers. And those teachers are getting firsthand, up-to-date knowledge, and they are able to work with their colleagues. And that, I think, will make it sustainable, that'll mean that everybody has a sort of collective ownership of the syllabus.
Cherie Smith
It's been so beneficial to hear about maybe things that worked or didn't work in other schools. Share advice from our context. And sometimes get a little bit of support from our colleagues.
Anita Sarkees
I would definitely recommend that all schools attend these meetings.
[End of transcript.]
The department would like to acknowledge and thank staff at the following schools and the CRCs for their involvement in this illustration of practice:
- Wairoa School and Bondi CRC
- Cecil Hills High School and Cecil Hills CRC
- Mount Warrigal Public School and Shellharbour CRC.