Narrator

Enact is the second phase of curriculum implementation.

In the enact, teachers teach, assess and report using the new syllabus. School leaders evaluate implementation to refine practices and systems.

School leaders and teachers will participate in a variety of activities supported by new and existing resources.

These include: 

• communicating curriculum changes with the school community.
• creating opportunities for professional learning and collaboration to optimise learning for all students.
• ensuring processes and structures are in place to support staff to teach the new curriculum.
• refining school processes for assessing student progress, analysing student data and reporting to parents.
• evaluating school processes and structures to ensure they support new syllabus implementation.

During the enact phase you could consider these reflective questions with colleagues:

• Is the school community aware of the changes to the curriculum? 
• How are all staff planning effective learning experiences for the full range of students?
• What whole school processes and structures are in place to support staff to collaboratively plan and teach the new curriculum?
• How effective are the processes in place to support changes to assessment and reporting?
• How effective are the processes and structures in place to evaluate the implementation of new curriculum?

Professional learning, resources and advice are available to support school leaders and teachers throughout curriculum implementation.

During the enact phase it is important that school leaders and teachers evaluate the way they teach, assess and report using the new syllabus.

The length of time may vary depending on your school context and the stage you're teaching. You may move in and out of this phase depending on the syllabus you are implementing.

To support you, role-specific curriculum implementation journeys have been created for principals, middle leaders and teachers with links to professional learning, resources and advice.

For more information visit the department’s phases of curriculum implementation web page.

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Purpose of resource

The phases of curriculum implementation (Engage, Enact, Embed) can be used as a guide to support activities and reflective thinking in schools when implementing a new syllabus. They are informed by evidence for effective implementation in schools and aligned to department policies. These phases can be used flexibly across a range of schools and in variety of specific roles to guide effective curriculum implementation.

Target audience

The audience for this resource is school principals, school leadership teams and school staff.

When and how to use

Curriculum implementation is core and ongoing business in schools and effective curriculum implementation drives student growth and attainment, and school improvement.

New syllabuses provide schools with a unique opportunity to re-focus and place curriculum at the heart of school planning. This resource can be used to highlight the thinking schools may consider during each phase of curriculum implementation. Reflective questions and suggested activities are included to support this process for specific roles in both primary and secondary schools.

Research base

This resource was developed by the Curriculum Directorate. The research base used was NESA’s NSW Curriculum and the department's What works best in practice.

In addition the following research was considered:

• Albers, B and Pattuwage, L. (2017). ‘Implementation in Education: Findings from a Scoping Review. Melbourne: Evidence for Learning
• Dao L, (2021) ‘Challenges and enablers encountered by a curriculum leadership team in implementing the national curriculum in one Australian school’, Leading and Managing, 27 (1): 77-98
• Gouëdard P, Pont B, Hyttin S, Huang P (2020) ‘Curriculum reform: A literature review to support effective implementation’ OECD working paper, no. 239 20-45. OECD Publishing [Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development], Paris
• Jones, C and Anderson M (2001) ‘Managing curriculum change. Learning and Skills Development Agency, London
• Sharples J, Albers B, Fraser S, Deeble M, Vaughan T. (2019) ‘Putting Evidence to Work: A School’s Guide to Implementation, Evidence for Learning.

Alignment

Alignment to system priorities and/or needs – NSW Curriculum Reform.

Alignment to School Excellence Framework:

• Learning domain – Curriculum, Assessment, Reporting
• Teaching domain – Effective classroom practice, Learning and development
• Leading domain – Educational leadership

Alignment with the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers – 2.3, 6.3, 7.2

Contact

Email questions, comments, and feedback about this resource to contactcurriculumimplementation@det.nsw.edu.au using the subject line ‘Phases of curriculum implementation’.