National Catholic Education executive director Jacinta Collins has last week welcomed the endorsement by Commonwealth, state and territory education ministers of the new Australian Curriculum (F-10), following a lengthy process of review, the first since 2014.
“Catholic education supports a consistent national curriculum that meets the needs of students and teachers, now and into the future,” Ms Collins said.
“The review of the Australian Curriculum has focused on refining, realigning and decluttering the content of the curriculum, while improving consistency across achievement standards.
“We have been working with the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) throughout the consultation process to achieve these aims.
“The new curriculum, which can be taught in Australian schools from 2023, will allow our schools to focus on the essential knowledge and skills students should learn and will provide teachers greater clarity on what they are required to teach,” she said.
“It will also sharpen the focus on the development of foundational skills required for deeper learning and on educational outcomes for all students including students with disability and additional needs.
“I congratulate the ACARA on steering the review process and acknowledge and thank our educators and leaders for their contribution to the ACARA review.
“The accompanying website will allow teachers to access the curriculum and make it more usable for programming and planning,” Ms Collins said.
The updated curriculum will be available from Term 2, 2022 and will be implemented by schools according to the timelines set by education authorities in states and territories.
NCEC is the peak body for Catholic Education in Australia and is responsible for the national coordination and representation of Catholic schools and school authorities.
Nationally, there are 1,755 Catholic schools educating more than 785,000 students – or one in five Australian students and employing over 102,000 staff.