Job Opening - Head of CSSA Exams (Ref: 202/20)
The Head of CSSA Exams is a permanent full time position and plays a critical strategic and operational role in leading the successful delivery of the CSSA trial HSC exams. The CSSA Exam division, which has recently come under the auspices of Catholic Schools New South Wales, has a strong reputation as the leading provider of trial examinations producing 49 trial papers and marking guidelines for nearly 40 HSC subjects with more than 185,000 papers distributed annually.
To find out more about this employment opportunity please click here.
An easier way to issue student transport concession cards (Ref: 199/20)
Issuing student concession entitlement cards will be a whole lot easier this year with pre-printed cards that you can order in bulk.
Transport for NSW is moving student concession cards onto our hard-wearing, machine-printed, Transport Concession Entitlement Card.
From 30 September 2020 you will be able to place bulk orders for cards including:
- Senior Secondary Student Concession Card (16 years and over)
- Mature Secondary Student Concession Card (18 years and over)
- Proof of Age card (child 4 to 15 years)
- Distance Education Student.
Our plastic Transport Concession Entitlement Cards are more durable which means you’ll spend less time ordering replacements and there will be no more unused cards and foils.
There are no changes to students’ eligibility for the cards.
Cards for 2021 will be ordered via the new process. We’ll provide more information including easy-to-follow steps soon.
You will be able to use the TfNSW School Portal with your existing login to access new features that will make it faster to distribute cards to students. The changes will reduce the time you spend handwriting students’ details and sticking foils onto cards.
Please share this with other staff from your school including registered School Portal users or team members who issue the cards but may not receive our emails. Any staff who manage Concession Entitlement Cards but do not currently have TfNSW School Portal access will need to request an account.
Youth in the time of Coronavirus Study (Ref: 201/20)
Office of the Children’s Guardian – Child Safe Standards Survey (Ref: 191/20)
As part of its ongoing consultation regarding implementation of the Child Safe Standards, the Office of the Children’s Guardian (OCG) has developed a short survey to better understand how they can support organisations providing services to children in NSW.
This short survey is designed to prompt reflection on what organisations consider their strengths, and where there are opportunities for improvement. Organisations can use it to reflect on their child safe practices to consider whether they are providing the best quality service to keep children safe from harm. Responses to the survey will also provide the OCG with some insight into the cultures and practices in organisations so that they can better target their capability building and support work.
The survey is available here. It will take about 5 minutes to complete. The OCG requests that the survey be shared  with teachers, colleagues and organisations in your network. The survey can be completed by anyone who works in, or has a child that attends, an organisation that provides services to children in NSW. The OCG has requested that the questions be answered honestly and critically. All responses are anonymous.
Any queries regarding the survey or the data collected should be directed to the OCG Policy team, policyteam@kidsguardian.nsw.gov.au .
Let’s talk about…Principal Care sessions 2 and 3 (Ref: 193/20)
In response to feedback from our first and highly successful session on the Principal Wellbeing Survey, Catholic Schools New South Wales in association with The Association of Catholic School Principals Ltd, invite you to continue the conversation, ‘Let’s talk about…Principal Care’ .
Thursday 17 September join Clinical Psychologist Andrew Fuller in conversation about practicalities and realities of managing the stresses of the principal role. Â Follow this link to register for this session.
Thursday 12 November join Rob Unsworth, experienced principal and principal mentor, in conversation about the benefits of networks of support to build professional capital. Follow this link to register for this session.
Education and Care Services National Amendment Regulations 2020 (Ref: 184/20)
Education Council has introduced new requirements under the National Regulations for approved providers of education and care services that offer, or arrange, transportation of children. The new requirements will commence on 1 October 2020.
Children are sometimes transported, or travel on transport arranged, by children’s education and care services – for example, transport to and from the service and a child’s home or other location.
Transporting children may present additional risks, including during transition between a vehicle and a service premises or other location. To better manage these risks, all governments have decided to introduce new requirements to strengthen oversight arrangements when children are being transported under the care of an education and care service.
From 1 October 2020, approved providers of education and care services that offer, or arrange, transportation of children will be required to have in place transportation-specific policies and procedures. New requirements for transport-specific risk assessments and obtaining written authorisations will also apply. Minor corresponding changes relating to excursions that involve transporting children will also take effect.
The Education and Care Services National Amendment Regulations 2020 are available here and will also be available on the NSW Government legislation website.
This ACECQA information sheet provides details of the changes. It includes links to relevant risk assessment templates that providers may wish to incorporate within their own risk material. Updates to the Guide to the NQF will be published in September ahead of the changes taking effect.
The Australian Teacher Workforce Data (ATWD) initiative (Ref: 185/20)
The ATWD is an exciting initiative that is building a comprehensive picture of the national teaching workforce, across all systems and sectors, from initial teacher education through to end of teaching career.
Learning from teacher experiences
To properly understand the teaching workforce, AITSL need to hear from teachers. The ATWD Teacher Survey is the teacher voice in the ATWD, providing an opportunity for teachers to help us understand their work experiences and how we might address the opportunities and challenges facing the profession.
The ATWD Teacher Survey
This year, teachers and principals will be invited to participate in the ATWD Teacher Survey via an email from the NSW Education Standards Authority on 17 August 2020. Please watch out for your invitation.
If you’re a school leader or teacher, AITSL encourage you to complete the ATWD Teacher Survey yourself, and encourage colleagues to also participate.
The survey takes no longer than 10 minutes to complete and is voluntary. Data in the ATWD is fully de-identified.
The work experiences of every teacher and principal in New South Wales are an important part of the picture of our workforce and AITSL appreciate your input into this important initiative.
For more information about the survey: https://www.aitsl.edu.au/atwd/atwd-teacher-survey
For more information about the ATWD initiative: https://www.aitsl.edu.au/atwd
2021 Commonwealth Bank Teaching Awards (Ref: 198/20)
Applications and nominations for the 2021 Commonwealth Bank Teaching Awards are now open. After a year of challenges, this is a wonderful opportunity to recognise teachers and school leaders for their passion and commitment to education.
The Teaching Awards, an initiative Schools Plus runs in partnership with the Commonwealth Bank, celebrate great teaching and leadership in schools across Australia, recognising those innovate, inspire and create change for their students.
The selected 12 outstanding educators will each receive a $45,000 Teaching Fellowship, which includes $10,000 to support their professional development, $25,000 for a major school project, and a group visit to a high-performing education system.
Applications for the Awards are open from 14 September 2020 – 16 October 2020. For more information, visit teachingawards.com.au.
The value of a good educator’s work lasts a lifetime, but the chance for them to be recognised is today.
NESA delivered Professional Learning 2020 (Ref: 190/20)
The attached information provides a summary of the professional development delivered by the NESA Liaison team in 2020. The mode of delivery (on-line or face to face) is also detailed. Liaison officers will, where possible, deliver face to face workshops to an individual school staff or team. All queries regarding these courses, which are all NESA registered, should be directed to the Liaison Officer for your school or Diocese. Liaison officer contact details can be accessed here.
Parent resources to spread the 'eat more fruit and veg' message (Ref:200/20)
A set of four resources to assist school parents in increasing fruit and veg intake at home have been developed for Fruit and Veg Month. These resources cover:
- how much fruit and veg family members need
- how to include more fruit and veg in family meals and snacks
- how to choose local and in season fruit and veg
- how to reduce fruit and veg waste
Does digital work best for you? newsletter snippets have been provided that contain links direct to the resources. So all you have to do it insert the snippet into your digital communications and press send! You could also upload the resources to your school app.
Do your parents prefer printed? Download and print out the parent resources to send home. You can still include the newsletter snippet in a cover note or in your hardcopy newsletter.
The bonus? Parents who read the resources and answer a short three-question survey, have the opportunity to win shopping vouchers. Links to the survey can be found on the resources.
You can find the resources under the Parent resources section of the Fruit & Veg Month 2020 Resources webpage.
Enter the NSW Children's Week 2020 Art Competition (Ref: 197/20)
Create an artwork to show how you are keeping safely connected with your family, friends and community during this time. Artworks can include drawings, paintings, photographs, digital illustrations or videos.
The competition is open to all children and young people up to the age of 18 living in NSW. It’s not about being a good artist, it’s about finding inspiration and sharing your voice through art.
Age group categories: Under 5, 6-11, 12-18
There will be 9 winners (3 from each age group.) Winners will receive a prize from a $1050 prize pool.
For more information and to enter visit: www.digitallunchbreak.nsw.gov.au
Go directly to the entry page via: bit.ly/ART20CW
Entries close Friday 9 October 2020.
Sound Scouts is now being used in over 1,200 Australian schools, for free!
From Perth to Port Macquarie, schools across the country are screening their K-12 students for hidden hearing issues.
With the recent cancellation of incursions and excursions, many schools are taking advantage of this time to screen their students’ hearing.
There’s no specialist training needed. Teachers and support staff can use the app to screen their students’ hearing
in-school by simply reviewing our School Resources. Test results are instantly analysed by our advanced algorithm and a Report is emailed.
The Sound Scouts team are always at the ready to lend support.
For more information please click here.
Save the date: 2020 World Teachers’ Day (Ref:186/20)
This year, NSW will celebrate World Teachers’ Day on Friday 30 October 2020.
It is an opportunity to acknowledge the immense work of the 160,000+ early childhood, primary and secondary school teachers in NSW.
Teachers have gone above and beyond for their students and communities over the past year – ensuring students are supported and continuing to learn during the COVID-19 pandemic.
NESA have a range of #WTD2020 resources available to help recognise teachers, including thank you card templates for you to send out to your school community, upload to your school website, or share on social media.
To access the resources please click here.