The Department of Education is responsible for providing services throughout Tasmania in the areas of:
- Early years education and care
- School and college education
- Vocational education and training, and adult and community education
- Libraries, archives and online access centres.
These service areas are supported by business units responsible for corporate support, policy development, regulation, and assessment and review. Many of the department’s business units contribute to more than one service area.
Early years education and care
The Early Years Office within the School Education Division is responsible for the promotion of pre-school learning and all aspects of child care licensing and regulation. Within this office, 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.
School and college education
The department provides school and college education from Kindergarten to Year 12 covering the pre-compulsory, compulsory and post-compulsory years of schooling.
Schools
Tasmanian government school education is the responsibility of the School Education Division. Tasmania’s 207 primary, secondary and combined (district high) schools provide education services from Kindergarten to Year 10. Services and support are provided to schools through the Southern, Northern and North-Western branches, and schools are grouped into 27 clusters.
A board of principals associated with each of the clusters coordinates learning support, particularly for students with special and additional needs. Support services are provided by guidance officers, social workers, speech and language pathologists and support teachers, who are based in schools.
Distance Education Tasmania provides education services for students who are unable to attend a school.
Within the School Education Division:
- Curriculum, Standards and Support branch provides curriculum implementation support for teachers and principals implementing the Essential Learnings curriculum in schools. Policy and guidelines documentation and publications are provided to support curriculum, pedagogy and assessment transformation.
- Leadership and Learning branch provides services for students who require additional support and assistance to achieve maximum benefits from schooling. The branch is also responsible for professional learning and leadership initiatives associated with the implementation of the curriculum, professional learning in relation to 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 the Centre for Extended Learning Opportunities (CELO).
Evaluation and review of educational processes and the assessment of student learning outcomes is undertaken by the Office for Educational Review (OER). The office is an independent unit which reports to the secretary on significant educational issues and is responsible for monitoring student performance, collecting school data and managing other school moderation and review processes.
Colleges
Tasmania’s eight government senior secondary colleges provide education in Years 11 and 12. A number of high schools and combined schools also provide access to a range of education and training opportunities for students who have completed Year 10.
Resourcing and accountability for senior secondary colleges is managed through the Office of Post-Compulsory Education and Training (OPCET), which provides advice to the Minister about the policy, planning and provision of post-Year 10 education and training services.
Assessment, accreditation and certification for senior secondary college students are provided by the Tasmanian Qualifications Authority (TQA). As a statutory authority, the TQA reports separately.
Vocational education and training, and adult and community education
The Office of Post-Compulsory Education and Training (OPCET) provides policy advice, support, and strategies for achieving accessible, relevant and up-to-date skill development opportunities for industry and the community. This is achieved through the development of vocational education and training (VET) and adult and community education (ACE) in this state.
The office purchases VET services from the Institute of TAFE Tasmania, a public registered training organisation (which is a statutory authority that reports separately), and other registered training organisations offering VET in Tasmania. It provides ACE services predominately through Adult Education.
The office also provides services to support Tasmania’s apprenticeship and traineeship system, supports high schools and colleges in the implementation of vocational learning programs, determines training responses to support industry development, and provides improved opportunities for Tasmanians to participate in post-compulsory education and training in meaningful ways through the implementation of Tasmania: A State of Learning.
Registration services for VET and non self-accrediting higher education providers, and accreditation services for courses in these areas are provided by the Tasmanian Qualifications Authority (TQA).
Libraries, archives and online access centres
Public library services are provided through the State Library of Tasmania, a statewide network of seven city libraries, 40 branch libraries (including seven community libraries) and five reference and specialist collections. The network provides Tasmanian communities with access to information that will meet their educational, cultural and recreational reading needs. The libraries are linked by the statewide, networked and automated catalogue and electronic information service TALIS.
The Archives Office of Tasmania provides access to state and local government records, and non-government records which have a continuing value to the community and to government. It provides formal guidelines for government recordkeeping, and statutory authorisation for destruction or retention of state records for appropriate periods of time. The Archives Office identifies those records that should be retained as the state’s archives and provides long-term preservation of state archival material in suitable storage, as well as housing a major collection of non-government records and manuscripts.
Tasmanian Communities Online is a community access strategy which enables Tasmanians to have access to computer technology close to where they live. There is a network of 66 online access centres around the state providing access to online information and lifelong learning opportunities.
Corporate support
The following areas provide corporate support to the service areas of the department.
Finance, Facilities and Business Strategy Branch manages the department’s current and emerging resource needs through management of the budget, financial operations and physical assets of the department. The branch also provides financial assistance for students, services for international students, business support to schools and business improvement strategies for the department.
Human Resources Management Branch provides services including HR policy development and implementation, processing of payroll and employee entitlements, staffing and establishment services, employee health and rehabilitation, workplace consultancy, and legal and industrial advice.
Information Management Branch provides information and communications technology services for the department, including identifying and managing emerging and future information and communications technology needs.
Ministerial and Coordination Unit is the primary point of contact between the department and the office of the Minister for Education, and is responsible for managing the flow of information, advice and documents between the two. The unit also assists with policy and administrative matters for the department.
Public Communications Unit provides media and public communication services for the department and promotes the department and public education to the community.
Corporate Reporting Unit provides support for the department’s strategic policy and planning frameworks and coordinates the department’s Tasmania Together and other reporting requirements. The unit also provides executive support to the Schools Registration Board.
Department of Education Information Services Unit provides policy and advice on information management practices for the department. It also provides media library services to schools, corporate library and records services and management of the department’s websites.
Internal Audit provides the secretary with reports on the administrative effectiveness and efficiency of programs conducted by the department and conducts special investigations as required.
New arrangements
The Office of Youth Affairs transferred from the Department of Education to the Department of Premier and Cabinet in April.
Secretary's letter