- Familiarise and lead teacher understanding of the changes in the new syllabus (see the department’s Professional learning – Curriculum K-12 and NESA Online Learning hub).
- Work in partnership with middle leaders to support teachers to understand the evidence underpinning the new syllabus (see Reading and numeracy guides and research toolkits).
- Work closely with the middle leaders to explore Literacy and numeracy professional learning needs of teachers.
- Support colleagues to access and share practices across networks with other AP, C&I and schools (see Curriculum Reform Communities).
Curriculum implementation journey–assistant principal, curriculum and instruction
Guidance for assistant principals, curriculum and instruction (AP, C&I) implementing a new syllabus. Suggested activities, reflective questions and useful resources can be used flexibly across a range of schools for each phase of curriculum implementation.
The AP, C&I works in partnership with middle leaders and leadership teams in their school. Middle leaders could include assistant principals, aspiring leaders, highly accomplished teachers and lead teachers. Access strengthening leadership for the Assistant Principal, Curriculum and Instruction and the Assistant Principal, Curriculum and Instruction - Companion guide for schools (PDF 442 KB) to gain an understanding of how to work in partnership with middle leaders.
Engage
In the engage phase, AP, C&I:
- explore aspects of literacy and numeracy in the new syllabus
- identify effective practices to improve student literacy and numeracy outcomes through curriculum
- work in partnership with middle leaders to plan changes required for effective curriculum implementation.
Suggested activities
Explore
Identify and plan
- Identify and plan for alignment of curriculum implementation to the Literacy and numeracy priorities and National Literacy and Numeracy Learning Progressions.
- Contribute to whole school planning and identify literacy and numeracy literacy and numeracy resources aligned to Strategic Improvement Plan initiatives (see Curriculum implementation planning support).
- Allocate time to work collaboratively with staff to evaluate, select and adapt literacy and numeracy classroom resources.
- Provide guidance to staff to ensure literacy and numeracy knowledge and skills are represented accurately in the adaptation of curriculum resources (see Planning programming and assessing K-12).
- Work collaboratively with middle leaders to identify and plan for assessment using advice from the Literacy and numeracy assessment.
- Work collaboratively with middle leaders to develop processes for the collection and analysis of student literacy and numeracy data to identify the needs of teachers and students.
- To what extent do my colleagues and I have a deep understanding of the literacy and numeracy demands and evidence underpinning the new syllabus?
- What literacy and numeracy resources do we need to commence syllabus implementation and to meet curriculum planning and programming, assessing and reporting requirements?
- How will I work in partnership with middle leaders to build the literacy and numeracy expertise and capabilities of our teachers?
- To what extent does the implementation plan allocate time for literacy and numeracy evaluation and reflection as a leadership team?
Enact
In the enact phase, AP, C&I:
- lead and support the teaching, assessing and reporting of literacy and numeracy using the new syllabus
- evaluate to refine literacy and numeracy practices and systems.
Suggested activities
Teach
- Communicate literacy and numeracy changes in the new syllabus with parents and carers through authentic community engagement in line with agreed school processes.
- Work with middle leaders to access and lead professional learning with staff to enhance teaching and learning.
- Support staff to collaboratively plan and optimise learning for all students (see Curriculum planning K-12 professional learning).
- Coordinate and lead professional learning on meeting the literacy and numeracy demands of the syllabus to build the capabilities of teachers.
- Plan and lead practice-based classroom observations to build teacher and team capability (see Quality Teaching Model).
- Ensure processes and structures are in place to support staff to collaboratively plan for literacy and numeracy, teach the new curriculum and evaluate practice (see Planning programming and assessing K-12).
Assess and report
- Support staff to use literacy and numeracy formative and summative assessments to identify student progress and achievement (see NESA Assessment)
- Provide literacy and numeracy guidance to staff on monitoring and collecting assessment evidence to show student progress (see Five elements of effective assessment practice).
- Work collaboratively with middle leaders and teachers to analyse data to identify student strengths and areas for growth in literacy and numeracy.
- Work with the leadership team to refine processes for reporting to parents.
Evaluate
- Work with the leadership team to evaluate school processes to ensure effective teaching strategies are used to improve students’ literacy and numeracy achievement.
- Collect and evaluate literacy and numeracy evidence that is aligned to initiatives in the Strategic Improvement Plan.
- To what extent are parents and the school community aware of the literacy and numeracy changes in the new curriculum?
- How will I lead and support the teaching of literacy and numeracy to optimise learning for all students?
- How will I work in partnership with middle leadership to plan for effective literacy and numeracy teaching aligned to the new syllabus?
- How effective are the processes for supporting changes to literacy and numeracy assessment?
- How will I work with the leadership team to evaluate whole school literacy and numeracy processes and structures?
Embed
In the embed phase, AP, C&I should focus on strengthening and scaling literacy and numeracy to ensure sustainable practices and systems.
Suggested activities
Strengthen
- Work with all staff to create a culture of evidence based reflective teaching and ongoing improvement.
- Sustain a culture that supports meaningful teacher collaboration, observations, co-teaching and planning, reviewing evidence and reflecting on practice.
- Strengthen ongoing literacy and numeracy professional development to ensure effective teaching and learning of the new syllabus.
Scale
- Work with the leadership team to evaluate and scale processes and structures for whole school monitoring of planning and programming, assessing and reporting.
- Review implementation data and work with school leadership to make changes to the Strategic Improvement Plan to meet system expectations for future syllabus implementation (see Evaluation resource hub).
- Work collaboratively with middle leaders to refine effective literacy and numeracy teaching and learning for future syllabus implementation.
- How has the explicit teaching of literacy and numeracy led to improvements in student learning?
- How have I worked collaboratively with teachers to build their literacy and numeracy capability?
- How will I measure and evaluate the impact of literacy and numeracy assessment and teacher practice?
- What are the literacy and numeracy enablers and barriers for future syllabus implementation?
- How do I work in partnership with middle leaders and leadership teams to guide whole school improvement?
