Here is a summary of some meetings attended over the past 4 weeks:

School Education Advisory Group (SEAG) – these meetings are held with the Education Executive and key stakeholders -NTPA, Union, Cogso and Isolated Children’s Parents’ Association (ICPANT). Topics of discussion included the Federal Government’s $ 40 million commitment to Alice Springs; the Preschool and Secondary Review; an update from Student Wellbeing and Inclusion services and teacher attraction and recruitment.

FARMS (Finance and Resource Manual) Committee

Hopefully you have all had the chance to review the new FARM document and provide any feedback through the consultation process. NTPA are pleased that members now have one document and resources to help support schools to manage their resources and finances. NTPA have also continued to advocate that policies should not add to principal or school leader workload nor add additional layers for approval.

Occupational Violence and Aggression in Schools Committee

The purpose of this committee is to oversee the implementation of the 19 recommendations from the OVA in schools report. NTPA have been a key stakeholder providing advice and feedback on how the recommendations can be implemented. This is an important area which has a direct link to school leader wellbeing.

NT Secondary Review

Don’t miss your opportunity to have a say on the NT secondary Review Discussion Paper developed by Deloitte based consultation with a range of schools and stakeholders. We are encouraging all school leaders to provide feedback by the 26^th June. To have your voice heard, visit HaveYourSay

The Review is part of delivering on the department’s commitment through the Education NT Strategy 2021-2025 to ‘review and strengthen secondary education (Years 7–12) with a focus on increased participation, retention and completion, particularly in remote areas.’

The Review aims to design a secondary education system that is responsive to the unique and diverse delivery contexts in the NT, reflects the rich cultural diversity among learners, and provides a pathway for all students to achieve success.

Please make sure this has been shared with your staff, students, families and communities to provide perspectives on opportunities to improve secondary education in the Territory.

Education Minister Meeting

NTPA met this month with the Minister of Education, Eva Lawler to discuss a range of topics including:  the new National School Reform Agreement; teacher and principal shortages and recruitment, update on Federal Funding for the Central region- incentives for staffing; the increasing levels of student wellbeing and mental health issues; ongoing issues with DCCD, DIPL and GEH services and the lack of consistent support for school leaders.

Student Wellbeing and Inclusion

NTPA are a key stakeholder for the reform work that is occurring within SWI. This includes the multidisciplinary team operating model, the student with disability funding model, school counsellors and the Inclusion Framework. Recently 3 NTPA school leaders joined SWI staff to attend the ACEL National Disability and Inclusion Conference in Melbourne. This provided them an opportunity to reflect on our current inclusion practices, to appreciate the outstanding work already occurring in the NT and to learn how to strengthen our work.

Key takeaways from the conference for our school leaders were:

1. As educational leaders we are responsible for facilitating Disability Inclusion in schools.
2. Students are partners.
3. That we need to build staff capacity and grow and develop the skillsets of our teachers and support staff
4. Victoria has introduced through a staged roll out over 5 years their approach to delivering inclusive education, this will come at a cost of $1.6 billion. Victorian Department of Education has changed the funding model. Numerous presenters showed and talked about the 3 Tiers Funding Model from what this looks like from a Central Office perspective to what it looks like in schools.

We need to move from a deficit Medical Model of diagnosis to a strength based Social Model.

Australian Government Student Wellbeing Boost

Recently information was shared with principals regarding the Australian Government Student Wellbeing Boost. This was a Federal Government commitment announced earlier in the year ‘Half a billion-dollar investment into student wellbeing’. As part of the Boost, every school in Australia will benefit. On average each school will get $20,000 depending on its need and size.

The Boost will provide:

• $192 million in additional one-off funding to every school to support their students’ mental health and wellbeing, with schools receiving on average $20,000 for use in the 2023 school year.
• $10.8 million for a new voluntary mental health check tool to enable schools to ensure students get the support they need.

If you would like to read more about this please refer to the February Media Release.

https://ministers.education.gov.au/clare/half-billion-dollar-investment-student-wellbeing

Make your voice count for the next National School Reform Agreement

Minister for Education Jason Clare says teachers, parents and students are being encouraged to take part in a national survey to help shape the future of school education. The survey is being as part of the Expert Panel Review into the next National School Reform Agreement. This is all about ensuring those directly involved in the education system get a say in how we make it better and fairer. Survey participants can have their say on range of issues including: Improving education outcomes; Supporting student health and wellbeing, and Supporting and retaining teachers.

The Principal Safety, Health and Wellbeing Report data reflected these areas to be critical issues:

• Workload and sheer quantity of work
• Lack of time to focus on teaching and learning
• Staffing shortages
• Student Mental health and wellbeing
• Staff Mental health and wellbeing

 What to do?

• Complete the survey yourself https://www.education.gov.au/review-inform-better-and-fairer-education-system/consultations/review-inform-better-and-fairer-education-system-consultation

The survey options are aligned towards national agendas so please use the additional boxes to make suggestions relevant to the NT and your school’s context.

• Share the survey with your staff
• Share with your school bodies (explain why it is important) and communities - there is a Facebook link via the NTPA Facebook site NTPA facebook pinned post
• The survey is available online until 23 June 2023.

NTPA continue to advocate for 100% funding of the Schooling Resource Standard (SRS) for all students in the NT no matter where they live. Federal Minister Jason Clare often states we need to make our education system better and fairer by funding our most disadvantaged children and young people to provide them equitable educational opportunities. We are the most underfunded jurisdiction in the whole of Australia, and have an opportunity to change the narrative.

The National School Reform Agreement (NSRA) is a joint agreement between the Commonwealth, States and Territories to lift student outcomes across Australian schools. For more information read this article: https://theconversation.com/what-is-the-national-school-reform-agreement-and-what-does-it-have-to-do-with-school-funding-202847