Curriculum Framework Policy

Help for non-English speakers

If you need help to understand this policy, please contact the office on 9560 6371 or glen.waverley.south.ps@education.vic.gov.au

Purpose

The purpose of this framework is to outline Glen Waverley South Primary School’s organisation, implementation and review of curriculum and teaching practices and to ensure that, taken as a whole, all eight learning areas are substantially addressed, unless an exemption applies.

The framework shows, at a high level, how the school will deliver its curriculum, how the curriculum and teaching practice will be reviewed, how we assess student learning, how we record and monitor student performance, and when and how we report to parents.

This curriculum framework should be read alongside our whole school, curriculum area, year level and unit / lesson curriculum plans.

Overview

Glen Waverley South Primary School provides all students with a planned and structured curriculum to equip them with the knowledge, skills and attributes needed to complete their schooling and to make a successful transition from school to work, training, or further education.

Glen Waverley South Primary School is committed to offering a comprehensive curriculum based on the Victorian Curriculum F-10. The key points in this framework, and in line with the F–10 Revised Curriculum Planning and Reporting Guidelines, are a commitment to:

• A defined curriculum content is the basis for student learning
• Curriculum planning that is based on two-year bands of schooling rather than each year level
• Developing and publishing a separate whole-school curriculum plan that documents our teaching and learning program
• Reporting student learning against the achievement standards in the curriculum
• Reporting student learning to students and parents in line with the Department’s Reporting Student Achievement and Progress Foundation to 10 policy.

Glen Waverley South Primary School is committed to lifelong learning by providing an inclusive, supportive and nurturing community in which diversity is valued and celebrated. Our innovative curriculum and culture of excellence creates a stimulating learning environment that engages and challenges students to achieve personal success and make positive contributions to society. Our school encourages students to strive for excellence in all of their endeavours.  At Glen Waverley South Primary School our 21st century curriculum presents students with the opportunity to develop deep understandings on a range of concepts throughout their school lives. Our broad curriculum is planned and taught sequentially and allows students to have some ownership in all aspects of their learning. It is designed to develop thinking and social skills, foster engagement with the wider community and include use of a wide variety of technology to assist in student learning. To support the delivery of the curriculum at our school we access and select a wide range of suitable educational resources, set homework that enhances classroom learning and undertake a range of student assessment and reporting activities.

Implementation

Glen Waverley South Primary School implements its curriculum across all Levels Foundation - Level 6, including 4 specialist areas including Physical Education, The Arts (Visual and Performing), LOTE (Japanese) and STEM.

At Glen Waverley South Primary School, class time is structured into a weekly timetable, with 5 hours of learning per day, broken into 5 x 60-minute sessions.

Further information on how our school implements the curriculum, including the learning areas provided at each year level/band of schooling, and the capabilities that are developed by students across these learning areas and the approximate time allocations for each learning area, is provided in our whole school, curriculum area, year level and unit / lesson curriculum plans.

Pedagogy

The pedagogical approach at Glen Waverley South Primary School is implementing the Gradual Release of Responsibility Framework to provide appropriate instruction, moving students towards independence. This approach aligns with FISO 2.0, and incorporates all the High Impact Teaching and Learning Strategies:

Setting Goals	6. Multiple Exposures
Structuring Lessons	7. Questioning
Explicit Teaching	8. Feedback
Worked examples	9.Metacognitive Strategies
Collaborative Learning	10. Differentiated Teaching

 

Assessment

Glen Waverley South Primary School assesses student progress in line with the Department’s Assessment of Student Achievement and Progress Foundation to 10 policy.

Students at Glen Waverley South Primary School will have multiple and varied opportunities to demonstrate learning and achievement. Teachers use assessment tasks that cover multiple curriculum levels to ensure that evidence of learning and growth is captured for every student.

• Teachers at Glen Waverley South Primary School use a combination of formative assessment for learning (to focus feedback and guide future learning) and summative assessment of learning (to determine what the student has learned at the end of a sequence of learning), alongside student self-assessment and reflection.
• Assessment is used in an ongoing way, to guide future lessons and learning, as well as to keep students and parents informed of student progress.
• Teachers will use a variety of assessment strategies to gather evidence about student achievement. The agreed assessment processes and tasks are documented in the Assessment Schedule. The assessments may include, but are not limited to, tests and assignments, projects, portfolios, performances, discussions or student-teacher conferences.
• Assessment tasks are developed to support students to show their knowledge, skills and understandings and will include clear instructions, relevant supporting documents (scaffolds, planning documents, etc) and allow sufficient time for completion. Teachers will make modifications to the task to cater for students with additional learning needs.
• Glen Waverley South Primary School will develop Individual Education Plans (IEPs) for students who are part of the Program for Students with a Disability (PSD), Koorie students and students in ‘Out of Home’ care, in consultation with students, parents and where appropriate, with outside agencies.
• Teachers will assess the achievements of students with disabilities and impairments in the context of the Victorian Curriculum and the ‘Towards Foundation Level Victorian Curriculum’ where applicable.
• The English language proficiency of English as Additional Language EAL students will be assessed using the Victorian Curriculum F-10 EAL.
• Where possible, staff will participate in cross marking of assessment tasks (moderation) involving assessment rubrics and work samples so that staff can apply consistent judgements of student progress against Victorian Curriculum Standards across the school.

Reporting

Glen Waverley South Primary School reports student progress to parents in line with the Department’s Reporting Student Achievement and Progress Foundation to 10 policy. In addition, Glen Waverley South Primary School ensures that there is continuous sharing of assessment information formally and informally with parents/carers throughout the term/semester, including through twice-annual formal reporting.

At Glen Waverley South Primary School the report will be in a written format easy for parents/carers to understand and will be accessible in digital form.

• Glen Waverley South Primary School  will report directly against the Victorian Curriculum F-10 achievement standards or, if reporting on students for whom English is an additional language, the Victorian Curriculum F-10 EAL achievement standards.
• Both student achievement and progress will be included in the report. 
• An age-related five-point scale, where the quality of a student’s achievement against what is ‘expected’ for students of that year level at the time of reporting, will be used for reporting against the achievement standards.
• Opportunities will be provided for parents/carers and students to discuss the school report with teachers and/or school leaders. 

Parent-teacher interviews, conducted twice-yearly, enable the opportunity to discuss the students’ progress and how they can continue to be supported at home. Interpreting services will be made available where required. 

Curriculum and Teaching Practice Review

School curriculum and teaching practice is reviewed against the Framework for Improving of Student Outcomes (FISO 2.0). FISO and the FISO improvement cycle help identify focus areas for improvement and to evaluate the impact of introduced initiatives.

Review of school curriculum

Layer of review/planning	Process and data used	Responsibility	Timeframe
Whole school	Staff Meetings NAPLAN, Teach Judgement & PAT data	School Improvement team & School teaching staff	Yearly
Curriculum Areas	School Improvement Team meetings	School Improvement Team & Curriculum Area Leaders	Termly / Yearly
Year levels	PLC meetings & Planning Days Victorian Curriculum data, NAPLAN data, PAT data, Essential Assessment data, English online interview data, Maths online interview data, Other formative assessment data (E.g. Pre/post-tests, conferencing, observational)	PLC teams & Individual teachers	Daily Weekly Termly
Units and lessons	PLC meetings & Planning Days Pre/Post tests, Essential Assessment Data, Anecdotal data, feedback from students

 

Review of teaching practice

Glen Waverley South Primary School reviews teaching practice via:

• Professional Learning Communities, which link the learning needs of students with the professional learning and practice of teachers and provide an opportunity for teachers to collaboratively evaluate the effect of high impact teaching strategies; and
• the Performance Development cycle, which provides an opportunity to provide feedback to teaching staff on their performance to support ongoing learning and development, with a focus on how student learning can be improved through improving teaching practice.

Further information and resources

• Policy and Advisory Library:
  • Curriculum Programs Foundation to 10
  • Framework for Improving Student Outcomes (FISO 2.0)
  • Assessment of Student Achievement and Progress Foundation to 10
  • Digital Learning in Schools
  • Students with Disability
  • Koorie Education
  • Languages Education
  • Physical and Sport Education — Delivery Requirements
  • Reporting Student Achievement and Progress Foundation to 10
  • Sexuality and Consent Education
  • School Hours (including variation to hours)
• This policy should be read alongside:
  • whole school curriculum plan
  • teaching and learning program for each learning area and capability
  • teaching and learning program for each year level
  • unit plans/sequence of lessons.

POLICY REVIEW AND APPROVAL 

Policy last reviewed	August 2024
Approved by	Principal
Next scheduled review date	August 2027

 

Appendix 1:

At Glen Waverley South Primary School, class time is structured into a weekly timetable, with 5 hours of learning per day, broken into 5 x 60-minute sessions

Subject	Sessions	Notes
Literacy	8-10 per week	Includes: Reading & Viewing Writing Speaking & Listening
Mathematics	5 per week	Includes: Number & Alegebra Measurement & Geometry Statistics & Probability
Wellbeing	1 per week	Voice sessions include: Social & Emotional Learning Personal & Social Capability Student Voice & Agency Cyber Safety Project Respectful Relations, Rights & Responsibilities
Inquiry	1-2 per week	Our inquiry units cover the following areas throughout a two-year cycle: Humanities – History, Geography, Civics & Citizenship, Economics (Level 5/6) Science Health Design Technologies
Sport	1-2 per week	In addition to Physical Education: Foundation – PMP Level 3/4 – Friday sport Level 5/6 – Interschool Sport
Library	1 per week	Critical Literacy focus
Specialists	4 per week	Our specialist areas are: Physical Education – 60 minutes The Arts – 60 minutes Visual Arts (1 semester per year) Performing Arts (1 semester per year) LOTE – 60 minutes Japanese STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Maths) – 60 minutes