Teacher Accreditation

TEACHER ACCREDITATION AND PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE

Teacher Accreditation

Melanie Taylor Dean of Professional Practice

Over the last two years, several significant changes have occurred in NSW Teacher Accreditation. In November 2020, NESA made considerable changes to the Maintenance of Teacher Accreditation Policy. In November 2021, the Teacher Accreditation Act 2004 was amended in response to the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. The Teacher Accreditation Amendment Bill 2021 was assented by Sarah Mitchell, the Minister for Education and Early Learning, on the 29thNovember 2021. Some of the amendments include the creation of a Public Register of Teachers and NESA’s plan to be the TAA for all NSW teachers. The withdrawal of TAA status included ISTAA (AISNSW), other sector authorities, and all relevant schools. NESA released the new Teacher Accreditation Manual on the 24th of October 2022. Main Teacher Accreditation implications for teachers in 2023

• Public Register of Teachers on eATAMS (live as of 30th of June 2022) • NESA is now the TAA for all teachers in

NSW (29th November 2022) • Elective Professional Development will now be logged by teachers independent of eTAMS. Elective PD will no longer require an evaluation. (Exact date of 2023 implementation TBC) • Teachers who began a new

Maintenance of Professional

Development Cycle from November 2020 require accredited professional development hours across all four of

NESA’s priority areas to meet their accreditation requirements.

The Public Register of Teachers became live on NESA’s eTAMS website on 30th June. https://etams.nesa.nsw.edu.au/ PublicRegisterSearch . NESA states that “Anyone can search the Public Register. Returned results will display a teacher’s: Full name, NESA Accreditation number; and Type of accreditation (Active).” This brings NSW in line with all other Australian states that also have a public register of teachers.

With NESA now the TAA for teachers in NSW, all King’s School teachers will continue to be provided extensive support from the school at all levels of accreditation. This includes contextualised resources on KingsNet and Canvas and provision of teacher accreditation supervisors and coaches. Internal procedures will remain similar. Once a teacher is ready to submit their relevant level of teacher accreditation, The Headmaster, or his delegate, will make a recommendation to NESA to finalise a Proficient Teacher Application or a Maintenance of Teacher Accreditation Cycle. NESA will then have 28 days to make a final decision to accredit a teacher at proficient. NESA will make a decision on the Maintenance of Teacher Accreditation Cycle, based on the Headmasters attestation, before the teacher’s Maintenance of Teacher Accreditation Cycle expires. For more information, please see 4.6 and 5.3 of NESA’s Teacher Accreditation Manual. https://educationstandards.nsw.edu.au/ wps/portal/nesa/teacher-accreditation/ resources/policies-procedures/ nsw-teacher-accreditation-manual-2022

NESA has stated that from 2023 (exact date TBC) Elective Professional Development will be logged by teachers independent of eTAMS and will no longer require an evaluation. An Elective Professional Development log, illustrating 50 hours of elective PD, will be required by each teacher when they submit their maintenance cycle. The King’s School Institute is currently establishing a series of recommendations for TKS teachers on how to diarise their elective professional development from 2023 onwards.

Teachers who began a new Maintenance of Professional Development Cycle from November 2020 require accredited professional development hours across all four of NESA’s priority areas to meet their accreditation requirements. NESA’s Accredited Courses (NESA Endorsed Courses 2004-2020) now focus on the following four priority areas:

• Delivery and Assessment of NSW

Curriculum/Early Years Learning

Framework (as applicable), • Student/Child Mental Health, • Students/Children with Disability, and • Aboriginal Education and Supporting

Aboriginal Students/Children.

The King’s School Institute, in partnership with the Heads of all campuses, has begun to plan several professional learning courses across all of the four priority areas to ensure, that over the course of 5 years, TKS teachers have access to 50 hours of accredited PD.

TKS Accreditation of Professional Development Courses

In July 2021, NESA acknowledged the important role schools play in developing and implementing targeted professional learning for their teachers. NESA has again allowed independent schools to provide accredited courses in the four priority areas: delivery and assessment of NSW Curriculum/Early Years Learning Framework (as applicable), student/ child mental health, students/children with disability, Aboriginal education and supporting Aboriginal students/ children. In 2022, TKI accredited several courses:

• Youth Mental Health First Aid Course in line with NESA Accredited PD Priority

Area 2: Student/ Child Mental Health. • Introducing New Maths Syllabus and

Assessment-Capable Teachers &

Learners in line with NESA Accredited

PD Priority Area 1: Delivery and assessment of NSW Curriculum or Early

Years Learning Framework • A range of Stage 6 Best Practice

Assessment courses in line with NESA

Accredited PD Priority Area 1: Delivery and assessment of NSW Curriculum or

Early Years Learning Framework Teacher Accreditation: NESA, Highly Accomplished & Lead Teacher (HALT)

NESA have recently revised the Highly Accomplished and Lead Teacher Policy (HALT policy 2022). This revised policy was launched on 15th May 2022 and replaces the previous Accreditation at Highly Accomplished and Lead Teacher Policy (HALT policy, 2018). In a statement released by Education Minister Sarah Mitchell on the 15 May 2022 (https://www. nsw.gov.au/media-releases/educationaccreditation-halt ), she states that she hopes to see the number of HALT teachers grow to at least 2,500 by 2025.

Currently there are 274 teachers accredited at HALT in NSW. Mrs Elizabeth Vierboom, a Music Teacher in the Preparatory School, is a HALT and has recently successfully submitted her HALT Accreditation renewal. Several of The King’s School teaching staff that are involved in the teacher expert networks (TENs), which supports the NSW Curriculum Reform, are also exploring the possibility of completing this process.

NESA have made several changes to make achieving HALT Accreditation more accessible and streamlined. These changes include improvements to previous processes such as:

• A module-based approach so that teachers can access feedback along the way. • The ability to resubmit evidence after each module if the evidence for the descriptor is deemed partially or not met.

• The introduction of a staggered payment plan to remove the financial barrier of applying. There are a series of three payments over the course of the three modules.

If you wish to apply, please discuss your application with The King’s School Institute. For more information please visit: https:// educationstandards.nsw.edu.au/wps/ portal/nesa/teacher-accreditation/apply/ higher-levels Teacher Accreditation: AISNSW, Experienced Teacher

Under the Independent Schools NSW/ACT Standards Model (Teachers) MEA, teachers can achieve Experienced Teacher Level Accreditation. Eligibility and an explanation of the related salary progression is in the Independent Schools NSW/ACT Standards Model (Teachers) Multi-Enterprise Agreement 2017 Clause, Classification, Rates of Pay and Related Matter.

AISNSW have recently reviewed the Experienced Teacher Program and have made several amendments, such as: removing references, increasing the descriptors covered in the Head of School Report, removing the digital portfolio, and creating a classroom observation process that will replace the previous testimonial document. Caraline Cloke, the AISNSW Head of Regulation and Accreditation, states that as result of an extensive review and feedback of this program, the Experienced Teacher process will continue to undergo several changes over the coming years.