By Helen McAllister
NCWQ Education Adviser
Higher education and the federal budget have not led to any resolution in the fees debate. In Queensland, the role of the government continues to support the transition of Year 7 to the secondary education sphere.
I have included articles relevant to different areas of education. The first gives direction to the early childhood education and the NQF. In addressing this issue, further input can be found from Early Childhood Australia (ECA) which also contributes to what is necessary in adapting to this moving and living framework. ACE is also holding a webinar to find innovative ways to support children’s rights in early learning settings and provide the chance to share creative ideas and discussion.
In 2015 the National Children’s Commissioner and Early Childhood Australia launched the ‘Supporting Young Children’s Rights: Statement of Intent’. The document relates to the early childhood sector, day-to-day practice, the NQF and the UNCRC. It outlines key mechanisms for participants to provide ideas and examples of child rights in action.
The second article is about literacy and changes. With the school age commencement now for Prep, those children lagging behind in reading or literacy are hard pressed to keep up with what is being taught and expected of them when entering Years 1and 2. This interesting article points to the change in mindset from reading to literacy, encompassing much wider skills and knowledge, providing a wider scope for learning and involvement, particularly with children who have English as a second language or those experiencing delay or difficulties. It also gives us a glimpse into the management of rebranding and business uptake and stakeholder engagement. I hope they might be interesting lead-ins to further research if needed. Articles are accessible from the websites of ECA, ACECQA, and Wiley.
Warm regards- Helen McAllister (Education Advisor).
National Quality Framework -ACECQA Newsletter Issue 5 2015
The National Quality Framework raises quality and drives continuous improvement and consistency in Australian education and care services. Established in 2012, the NQF applies to most long day care, family day care, preschool/kindergarten and outside schools hours care services.
Introducing the National Quality Framework–The National Quality Standard; National Law and Regulations; Assessment and ratings.
Educators and Providers-As an educator or service provider, you will find this section contains detailed information on the National Quality Framework, its implementation and how it applies to you.
Families- Our Families section outlines how quality education and care is vital to your child’s development and explains what the National Quality Framework means for you.
It provides practical information so you know what to look for, what questions to ask and where to find answers.
Learn more–Starting Blocks; What’s Changed; The National Quality Standard; The NQF and ACECQA
Useful links for Families–National Registers; Families Library; Translated resources; NQF video resources; Families FAQs
Regulatory Authorities-A regulatory authority in each state and territory regulates and assesses children’s education and care services. In this section regulatory authority staff will find information and resources to support their work.
The latest figures in the NQF Snapshot Q1 2015 show that the proportion of children’s education and care services to receive a quality rating has increased to 56 per cent, with 8287 services now rated.
The report contains information about the number of services rated as Exceeding or Meeting NQS as well as the number of services rated Working towards NQS. Highlights include:
14 827 children’s education and care services operate under the NQF across Australia; 34 per cent of services are rated as Working Towards NQ;66 per cent of services are rated as Exceeding or Meeting NQS; 33 services are rated Excellent by ACECQA.
Download the NQF Snapshot Q1 2015. Copyright http://www.acecqa.gov.au
