Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting

Australian Curriculum

The Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority is responsible for the development of an Australian curriculum for all schools from Foundation to Year 12 (F-12). ACARA is directed by the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) Education Council and reports to all Australian Education Ministers through this Council.

The Australian Curriculum sets the expectations for what all Australian students should be taught, regardless of where they live or their background.

Schools and teachers are responsible for the organisation of learning and they will choose contexts for learning and plan learning in ways that best meet their student’s needs and interests.

Catholic schooling authorities in Queensland take responsibility for supporting school leaders and staff to meet the learning needs of every student by using effective planning, teaching, assessing and reporting practices.

For more information see our fact sheet on the Australian Curriculum.

In Queensland, the Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority (QCAA) supports all schools, including Catholic schools, in implementing the Australian curriculum by providing access to resources.

Assessment

National Assessment Program

The National Assessment Program (NAP) is run at the direction of the COAG Education Council. It includes:

• the National Assessment Program –Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN)
• three-yearly NAP sample assessments in science literacy, civics and citizenship, and information and communication technology (ICT) literacy
• international sample assessments.

Read more about the National Assessment Program here.

NAPLAN

The National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) annually tests all students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 in the domains of Reading, Writing, Language Conventions (Spelling, Grammar and Punctuation) and Numeracy.

For more information see our fact sheet.

Replacement student NAPLAN reports

Schools can request an additional copy of a student report if a parent, other than the primary carer, requests a copy or if a report is lost.

For an additional copy of a student report Catholic schools should submit an application using the online form Application for additional copy of student report available from the Test administration login of the NAPLAN portal, using the school BIC and password.

Please note: The Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority can only take requests from and provide replacement student reports to schools for issue to parents/carers.

New Queensland Senior Assessment and Tertiary Entrance systems

The Queensland Government introduced a new Senior Secondary system in 2019. This has commonly been referred to as the New QCE (Queensland Certificate of Education). This has involved the introduction of new subjects, syllabus and a new assessment program, comprising both internal and external assessments.

From 2020, graduating Queensland secondary students will have the opportunity to gain an Australian Tertiary Admissions Rank (ATAR), replacing the OP and bringing Queensland into line with other states and territories. Importantly, the Queensland system has learnt from those in other states and territories and under the Queensland system, internal assessments are not scaled against external assessments, and vocational education and training qualifications can also contribute to a student’s ATAR. These are important differences providing

The implementation of the New QCE  has been overseen by the Minister’s Taskforce comprising representatives from Catholic, Independent and State schools, parent associations, the Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority and the Queensland Tertiary Admissions Centre. Catholic sector representation on the Taskforce includes QCEC Executive Director, Dr Lee-Anne Perry AM, and representatives of the Catholic Secondary Principals Association Queensland and the Queensland Parents and Friends Federation.

Reports from each meeting of the Taskforce can be found here.

Detailed information about the new systems is available on the QCAA website.

Reporting

A – E reporting

To fulfil the legislative requirements of the Australian Education Act and Regulation 2013 schools must report to parents on student achievement and progress at least twice a year using a five-point scale. Teachers use standards and social moderation processes to describe how well a student has demonstrated their learning based on a collection of evidence.

Achievement standards

The Australian Curriculum sets out what all young people should be taught through the specification of curriculum content and the learning expected at points in their schooling through the specification of achievement standards.

An achievement standard describes the quality of learning (the depth of understanding, extent of knowledge and sophistication of skill) expected of students at points in their schooling.

Annual School Report

All Queensland schools are required to publish annually a minimum set of information for parents and the  community.  The Annual Reporting Policy for all Queensland Schools incorporates both the Queensland Government and Australian Government annual reporting requirements for schools. To view a specific school’s annual report visit the school website.

Find school details here.

My School website

In 2009 Australian education ministers committed to the publication of school information.  The My School  website is developed by the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) a Ministerial Statutory authority.

My School provides parents and the community with information about a school’s context, achievement in NAPLAN, and school finances.

The My School website enables schools to provide a brief overview of the school community context on their school’s profile page. School profile pages have a link to the school’s website where more detailed information about the school can be found.

MySchool provides financial information about each school that summarises the recurrent income together with its capital expenditure. Income sources are listed as Australian Government funding; State/Territory government funding; and fees, charges or parent contributions. Caution should be taken in using the information to make direct funding comparisons between schools as financial resources available to schools are directly influenced by the nature of the school (including its location and profile), its programs and operations.