Pre-compulsory and compulsory education services:
- provide education including appropriate curriculum, teaching practice and assessment for students of compulsory education age;
- recommend curriculum for the pre-compulsory years; and
- license and monitor child care services.
A range of support services strengthen the provision of pre-compulsory and compulsory education and child care.
The delivery of pre-compulsory and compulsory education services is undertaken through the School Education Division with review of these services undertaken by the Office for Educational Review.
School Education Division
Schools: Pre-compulsory (Kindergarten) and compulsory education (Prep to Year 10) is delivered in 209 schools through three regional branches (North-Western, Northern and Southern). There are 140 primary, 26 combined, 31 secondary and 12 special schools. Schools are grouped into 27 clusters that align with geographical communities and which share collective responsibility for the students who live in that area. Support services are provided by guidance officers, social workers and speech and language pathologists who are based in schools. Education is also available through Distance Education Tasmania for students who are unable to attend a school.
Curriculum Standards and Support is responsible for:
- recommending curriculum for the pre-school years;
- determining and supporting curriculum for government schools K-10;
- providing curriculum advice for K-12;
- through partnerships, supporting curriculum work in Catholic and independent schools; and
- developing curriculum standards.
Curriculum Standards and Support provides curriculum implementation support for those working in the pre-school years and for teachers and principals working to implement the Essential Learnings in the compulsory years of schooling. Support includes policy and guidelines documentation and publications to support curriculum, pedagogy and assessment transformation.
The Curriculum Standards and Support section also includes the Early Years Directorate responsible for promotion of pre-school learning and all aspects of child care licensing and regulation. Within this directorate, the Child Care Unit supports the development of high-quality child care programs and services by licensing and monitoring services, developing and implementing standards and providing advice and assistance.
Leadership and Learning is responsible for the provision of dedicated services for disability and special education, supportive and inclusive schooling and Aboriginal education.
Support is provided to teachers and other staff, and the branch ensures that schools are equipped to implement policy requirements.
Leadership and Learning is also responsible for:
- all professional learning and leadership initiatives for the implementation of the Essential Learnings;
- professional learning for supportive and inclusive schooling and improving school effectiveness;
- the use of ICT in teaching and learning; and
- all distance education and flexible learning services, including Distance Education Tasmania and the new Centre for Extended Learning Opportunities (CELO).
The Office for Educational Review
The Office for Educational Review is an independent unit whose principal functions are to report to the secretary on significant educational issues and to provide advice on all matters relating to the evaluation and review of educational processes and the assessment of student learning outcomes. The office is responsible for:
- monitoring and measuring students’ performance, including levels of achievement in literacy, numeracy and other curriculum areas;
- managing the collection of student, school-based, and non-school-based data for departmental reports;
- moderation processes for the Essential Learnings curriculum;
- the School Improvement Review program; and
- the Student Assessment and Reporting Information System (SARIS).
New arrangements
The Online Campus was incorporated into Distance Education Tasmania within Leadership and Learning.
The Centre for Extended Learning Opportunities (CELO) was established within Leadership and Learning, providing educational support for gifted students in schools and communities from 2005.
The State Support Services were renamed Inclusive Learning Support Service and incorporated into Leadership and Learning.
Essential Learnings