Applications Open - Schools Plus funding opportunity for Schools (Ref: 196/21)
Schools Plus is a national not-for-profit that helps children facing disadvantage succeed at school.
Schools can now submit an application to the Smart Giving open round to receive up to $60,000 in funding for a project that will bring profound change to their students.
Schools eligible for support through Schools Plus must have a value below 1000 on the Index of Community Socio-Educational Advantage (ICSEA). Eligible schools can lodge a simple application for a chance to be matched with a donor who will provide funding for a project designed to improve student outcomes.
Applications are open until Friday 20 August.
To find out more visit the Smart Giving page.
Questions should be directed to: (02) 8880 0296 or [email protected]
NSW ACEL 2021 Award Winners (Ref: 197/21)
NSW ACEL 2021 Award Winners
ACEL NSW The Dr Paul Brock Memorial Medal:
- Professor Patrick Duignan – Emeritus Professor of Australian Catholic University
- Professor Pasi Sahlberg – Professor of Education Policy and Research Director at the Gonski Institute for Education at UNSW
ACEL NSW Educational Research Award:
- Associate Professor Rachel Wilson – The University of Sydney
- Associate Professor Scott Eacott – The University of New South Wales
ACEL NSW Media Award:
- Cameron Malcher- Coach, Advancement Via Individual Determination Australia
ACEL NSW Leadership Awards:
- Yates Avenue Public School Leadership Team
- Jackie Staudinger – Director of KU Children’s Services Macquarie Fields
- Bradley Swibel – Deputy Head of School at St Andrew’s Cathedral School
- Phillip Pratt – Trinity Grammar School
- Sue McIntyre – Educational Leader of ECTARC Clipper Road children’s Centre
- Terry Martin – Careers Adviser at Port Hacking High School
- The School Leadership Institute Team – NSW Department of Education
- The Jarara Indigenous Education Unit – Catholic Education Diocese of Parramatta
- Prue Horan – Assistant Director, Education Services at Catholic Education, Diocese of Wagga Wagga
ACEL NSW Mary Armstrong Award for Early Career Teacher Leadership:
- Haneul Lee – English teacher at St Andrews Cathedral School
- Olivia Phillips – Teacher at St Agnes Catholic High School
A virtual ceremony will be held on Monday October 11th at 5pm. Click here to register online.
Opportunity to teach in the Northern Territory (Ref: 195/21)
Catholic Education Northern Territory is seeking experienced teachers from Catholic schools, especially those with EAL/D training, to apply for a position at one of their Aboriginal Catholic Community Schools.
Teachers should read the circular for more information: Catholic Education NT Circular
The following document provides information for Principals regarding Secondment of staff: Secondment of Teachers for NT Aboriginal Catholic Community Schools
Mental Health Education Program (HeadSpace Schools) (Ref: 198/21)
Schools play an important role in supporting the mental health needs of young people and their families. This program developed by Headspace Schools delivers free mental health education workshops to secondary school communities across Australia.
Workshops are facilitated via webinar during COVID-19.
The workshops have been developed to increase awareness, knowledge and skills in mental health literacy, accessing support and improving wellbeing in secondary students and their parents and carers. Workshops are interactive, strength-based and evidence-informed and timed to fit a standard school lesson.
For more information please contact the Program Manager at [email protected]
AEDC NSW 2021 Research Symposium (Ref: 175/21)
For educators, school leaders and policy makers the AEDC NSW 2021 Research Symposium is taking place Thursday 12 August 2021.
Event Title: We collected the AEDC data, we have our School’s Preliminary Report – what next?
Australian Early Development Census (AEDC) NSW invites you to their 2021 research Symposium. This symposium will show case how different stakeholders utilise AEDC data and the value of the dataset in informing policy and practice.
We look forward to welcoming you to this forum as we explore the value of AEDC datasets and how we can respond to school level, community level, state level and national data from the 2021 AEDC data collection.
Presenters include representatives from Local Councils, Telethon Kids Institute, Schools, Early Childhood Education Directorate, NSW Department of Education Educational Standards Directorate and UNSW Researchers.
Venue: The event will take place online using Zoom platforms.
Date and time: Thursday 12 August 2021 from 8:30am
Cost: There is no cost to participate in this event.
Target Audience: educators, school leaders and policy makers, researchers and community workers from schools, preschools, childcare centres, government agencies, university researchers and research institutes.
Enrolment: Register your interest to attend this event by 10 August 2021
Please complete the enrolment form using this link: https://nsweducation.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_rxTf04l2T0K19vuH-kUmlg
More information is available on the symposium event page and this will be updated to include the agenda at the start of Term 3 2021.
COVID-19 guidelines for Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) services (Ref: 192/21)
COVID-19 guidelines for Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) services
Click here for the latest guidelines for ECEC services. Read the latest communication to services on the current public health orders including answers to FAQs.
These guidelines are to help early childhood education and care (ECEC) services prepare for, prevent and manage an outbreak of COVID-19.
COVID-19 School Lockdown - Revised Copyright Guidance (Ref 190/21)
- Where possible, use the many free legal sources of content for students to access without teachers needing to make copies for, or send copies to, students. For example, if a music teacher needs students to listen to a particular song, consider whether it is available for students to access themselves legally via services such as Spotify or YouTube? If you want students to listen to a news item, consider whether it is available for students to view on a catch-up TV service such as ABC iView that students can access themselves? If so, use those freely available sources.
- If students need to read or view content that is available on the internet, send students an email or document with links to those resources rather than sending students actual copies of the resources (i.e. in word or PDF form) or making copies for them. Where possible, students should use their home internet connection to access research reports, newspaper articles or instructional videos from the actual websites where these resources appear (rather than a teacher making a copy of these resources and sending them to students).
- Consider the many subscription services that students can access from home. For example, if the school has a subscription to services such as Hot Maths or Reading Eggs, students should be able to access those resources by logging in from home (rather than teachers copying the content for students).
- If the above options are not possible or suitable, you may be able to provide copies of copyright materials to students (e.g. via a DTE), however different rules apply depending on the type of material you are using as part of your teaching. Some guidance on the different types of material are set out below.
- If you are teaching remotely and need to use copyright material in your lessons (either held via a video conferencing platform such as Zoom or recorded for students to watch later), there is no clear permission in the Copyright Act that allows you to do so. However, you can take the following steps which may lower (if not in some cases eliminate) the risk of copyright infringement:
- ensure that you only use copyright material where it is for the educational purposes of the school or for the purposes of educational instruction
- only use a small amount of copyright material (i.e. extracts) not the whole of a work, video or song etc
- ensure the lesson or any recording is only made available to those students who need it as part of their studies (e.g. via a username and password in a closed environment not on an open internet page) rather than making it available to the whole school
- instruct students, where possible, to only watch the lesson or recording when physically located in their homes, not in a community space or their parent’s workplace
- make the lesson or recording “view only”, so that no further copies can be made or downloaded
- only make recordings available for the period of time for which they are needed
- archive or disable access by students to recordings once they are no longer needed (e.g. when normal teaching resumes)
(https://smartcopying.edu.au/covid-19-school-lockdown-copyright-guidance/)
In addition, the National Copyright Unit has published a number of FAQs to assist schools. Of note:
- Teachers can hold virtual classes or lessons for students to watch in real-time, using copyright material, so long as the rules outlined at 5. above are complied with).
- When making recordings of lessons for students to view ‘on demand’, these rules should also be complied with as well as including a notice for students about the restricted use of the copyright material.
- There are specific rules for which material can be uploaded to a DTE for students to access (with the same rules applying to material mailed to students or made available in hard copy). These specific rules vary depending on the material, but the underlying principle is that it should only be made available for educational purposes, and restricted to those students who need it and for the time they need it. For materials from textbooks and resources, this should only be a short extract (ie less than 10% or a chapter).
The FAQs can be accessed in full here.
Also bear in mind that the School Storytime Agreement which was in place during 2020 has now expired, meaning that schools are restricted in the ways they can read Australian stories to students. Now, teachers can only virtually read stories to students when required for educational instruction (such as in a virtual classroom) and only via password protected digital teaching environments.
For further clarification or help on the revised guidance, you can also contact the Catholic Schools NSW Legal Hotline on 1800 4Catholic Schools New South Wales (1800 427 679).
Change in financial reporting requirements for ACNC-registered charities (Ref 189/21)
The Assistant Treasurer has announced a number of reforms to the financial reporting requirements for charities registered with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC). These reforms are as follows:
- Change in the annual financial reporting thresholds which will become effective from 1 July 2022 (reporting against the 2021-2022 financial year), as follows:
- Small charities will increase to under $500,000 annual revenue
- Medium-sized charities will increase to under $3 million annual revenue
- Large charities with two or more key management personnel will be required to report remuneration paid to responsible persons (directors) and senior executives on an aggregated basis in their 2022 Annual Information Statement. This change will become effective from 1 July 2022.
- All charities will be required to report related party transactions in their annual reporting to the ACNC from 1 July 2023. The purpose of this change is to increase the transparency of transactions with related people or organisations that pose a higher risk of conflicts of interest.
All entities which are ACNC-registered charities should start preparing for these changes, and speak to their accountant or auditor to find out how the changes could impact them. The ACNC will issue guidance later in the year for charities on implementing these reforms. More information here.
Kids to Farms now more accessible (Ref: 199/21)
The Kids to Farms program, an initiative aimed at increasing primary school students’ engagement with agriculture, will soon be more accessible to schools across NSW.
As early as next month, NSW primary schools will be able to apply for up to $1,500 to visit a farm or agricultural site through the Kids to Farms program, funded as part of the Australian Government’s Educating Kids About Agriculture: Kids to Farms program, which is delivered through the NSW Farmers’ Association.
Through excursions to farms or incursions in the classroom, the Kids to Farms program enables school kids to learn where their food comes from and how a farm works. “Where a few decades ago most people had a connection to farming, our younger generations are less exposed to this vital aspect of Australia’s social and economic fabric,” said Charlotte Groves, Young Farming Council Member from NSW Farmers.
“The Kids to Farms Program is an initiative seeking to close that gap, but some schools face a financial barrier in accessing the program.” Grants of up to $1,500 will be available for excursions conducted between 12 July 2021 and 17 December 2021.
The funding must be applied for one month prior to the excursion taking place, and will be in the form of a reimbursement once the excursion has taken place.
If you have any questions about the funding program please contact the Kids to Farms team at [email protected] or 02 9478 1067.
If you would like further information about the Kids to Farms program please click here.
Grattan Institute surveys (Ref: 191/21)
The Grattan Institute is running a survey about pressures on teachers’ time.
Principals, deputy or assistant principals are invited to take part in the school leader survey here.
Primary and secondary teachers are invited to take part in the teacher survey here.
The survey is anonymous and will take around 10 minutes. Your responses will help the Grattan Institute to develop a better understanding of issues affecting Australian teachers’ time.
Students Enrolling to Vote (Ref:193/21)
Voting is a democratic process that gives Australian citizens aged 18 years and older the right to have their say in federal, state and local government elections. While the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) encourages students to learn about this democratic process, the AEC has become aware of suspicious enrol to vote applications submitted by students undertaking a curriculum activity.
For the most part, students follow a teacher’s instructions and complete the enrol to vote application available on the AEC website without submitting the application. Unfortunately, in some instances, the AEC believes students have acted fraudulently, entering false details and submitting the enrol to vote application.
When completing an AEC enrol to vote application, students need to be aware that it is a criminal offence under section 137.1 of the Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth) to provide false or misleading information to a Commonwealth entity.
National Meals on Wheels Day Campaign Kit for Primary Schools (194/21)
For over 60 years, Meals on Wheels has been supporting the health and wellbeing of older and vulnerable people within the community. Every year, Meals on Wheels celebrates National Meals on Wheels Day on the last Wednesday in August.
Meals on Wheels are also looking to inspire ‘the next generation’ of volunteers by collaborating with Australian primary schools.
In the lead up to, or during the week of National Meals on Wheels Day on Wednesday the 25th of August, primary school students are encouraged to create ‘thank you’ cards, for volunteers at their local Meals on Wheels service.
More information on this activity, including a downloadable campaign kit can be found on the Meals on Wheels Australia website.