Consultation on the Draft K-10 Australian Curriculum

ACARA has sent out the following letter:

Click here to download the letter in PDF format.

I am writing to provide an update on the development of the Australian Curriculum which is being undertaken by the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA).

In the week commencing 22 February, the draft K-10 Australian Curriculum in the four learning areas of English, mathematics, science, and history will be released for national consultation, which will extend through to 23 May, 2010.

You will be aware that the release of the draft curriculum is the next stage in a process that commenced in August 2008 when lead writers were appointed to develop outlines for the curriculum in these four areas. In October 2008 national meetings were held to consider directions for the development of the English, mathematics, science and history curriculum and in early 2009 there was a period of national consultation that resulted in the publication of a series of Shape of the Australian Curriculum documents.

These documents provided the instructions for writers to draft the curriculum which will be available for consultation. Through the development of shape papers and the draft curriculum, a significant number of teachers, curriculum experts, academics and professional association representatives have directly been involved in the development process and/or have provided feedback. ACARA is pleased to now engage the education and broader community across Australia in a conversation about what it is we want young people to learn in these four areas.

Feedback is easy to provide. The draft K-10 English, mathematics, science and history curriculum will made be available on a consultation website for everyone to read, review, download or print. The consultation website will also include information about the development of the Australian Curriculum. It will be the place where individuals and groups can comment directly on the draft curriculum content and achievement standards as they are viewing and reading them.

The consultation website will also include an on-line survey that can be completed by teachers, curriculum leaders and members of school leadership teams. If required, additional feedback notes can be attached to a survey response. ACARA will also be gathering feedback on the draft curriculum in two other ways – via activities in approximately 150 schools across Australia between March and May 2010, and via state and territory and national consultation forums during March and April 2010. The consultation forums will be run in co-operation with State and Territory education and curriculum authorities.

The results of the feedback from schools and the broader community, the in-school activities and the forums will assist ACARA to revise and refine the draft curriculum and publish a final  national curriculum in English, mathematics, science, and history, later in the year.

I will write to you again next week to provide further information about the process including the specific dates and website details.

Yours sincerely
Dr Peter Hill
Chief Executive Officer ACARA