This edition of Commission Communique has been prepared by Chris Woolley, Acting Executive Director, QCEC.   

As this is the last edition for Term 3, we take this opportunity to wish all Catholic school communities a safe and restful break.  This part of the of year is always busy, and we hope you have an opportunity to recharge ahead of the commencement of Term 4.

The Queensland Human Rights Commission (QHRC) has recently completed a very significant review of the operation of the Anti-Discrimination laws in Queensland.  The QHRC has made a series of recommendations which, if progressed, will potentially impact Queensland Catholic schools in the future. 

The QHRC’s Building Belonging: Review of Queensland’s Anti-Discrimination Act 1991 contains 122 recommendations, including that a new Anti-Discrimination Act replace the current Act and come into force by 1 July 2023.

The recommendations are complex and require careful analysis. They remain under consideration by the Queensland Government which has been asked to formally respond within three months.

The recommendations include a number of proposals which will potentially impact schools in the areas of employment and industrial relations, provisions for students with disabilities and other students coming under new protected attribute classes, religious exemptions and exemptions for educational institutions established for religious purposes.

The Queensland Government will now consider the extent to which these recommendations are implemented through legislative changes. There are likely to be further opportunities for consultation about these matters with the education sector in the future.

Further updates will be provided as this process progresses.  

The Australian Early Development Census (AEDC) 2021 Queensland Data Report is now available here.

The report provides a summary of the AEDC 2021 results for Queensland including a discussion of the impact of COVID-19 and how AEDC results in Queensland differ across key equity groups. The results of the 2021 AEDC indicate that:  

• Queensland had the highest level of improvement across all jurisdictions  
• Queensland has seen a significant increase in the proportion of children who are starting school on track on all developmental domains  
• Queensland vulnerability rates are still higher than the national average, but the gap has narrowed  
• Vulnerability is not equally distributed across all cohorts of children.  

This report is designed to promote AEDC data use in Queensland communities and influence programs, policies and planning to support early childhood development and transition to school. 

The Australian Council for Educational Leaders (ACEL) has announced their National Awards winners for 2022. 

I would like to congratulate the following members of the Queensland Catholic education sector who were awarded below: 

ACEL Fellowships 
Outstanding contribution to the improvement of student and organisational outcomes. 
Dr Patrick Coughlan 
Dale Morrow 
 
ACEL Leadership Award 
Excellent educational leadership in developing and implementing a significant educational initiative, conducting research or influencing educational policy. 
Townsville Catholic Education: Tammi Webber, Krista O'Connor and Janelle Knack. 

This week 1,300 Catholic education delegates attended the National Catholic Education Conference in Melbourne. This is the first time in six years that a national conference has been possible, after the pandemic delayed an in-person conference in previous years.

The event, themed The Future is Listening offered many insightful presentations across a three-day program covering Catholic identity and mission, leadership and governance, teaching and learning, student wellbeing, and parent engagement.

QCEC’s Shannon O’Gorman presented on School Refusal: A systemic, trauma informed response.

Event updates and photos are available on the National Catholic Education Commission Facebook page here.

The Australian Catholic Bishops Conference has released a guide on gender and identity to support Catholic schools in responding to the individual social and pastoral needs of students.

The guide is titled Created and Loved: a guide for Catholic schools on identity and gender and outlines a pastoral approach shaped by the contexts in which Catholic schools operate.

The framework states that it is intended to provide guidance to Catholic school leaders to make judgements in specific circumstances and to adopt approaches suitable to their own contexts. It emphasises that Catholic schools are communities of faith where love is witnessed through the care and respect shown to all those in their care.

The framework also encourages school leaders to contact their local Catholic education office (in systemic settings) or governing body for advice and support where necessary. The guide can be accessed here.

All registered Queensland Catholic School teachers should have received an invitation from the Queensland College of Teachers to take part in the 2022 Australian Teacher Workforce Data (ATWD) Teacher Survey.

The purpose of the ATWD Teacher Survey is to provide a reliable, robust national dataset which links initial teacher education (ITE) data and existing teacher workforce data. It provides national data on workforce issues such as teacher numbers, graduate employment, teacher career paths and experiences as well as the number of teachers entering and leaving the profession, along with their future directions.

QCEC encourages registered teachers to participate in the survey as it will ensure the voice of Queensland Catholic teachers is heard and reflected in the national dataset to inform future reforms, policy and funding. The ATWD survey will close mid-October. Find out more here.

Edmund Rice Education Australia (EREA) has announced the retirement of Peter Chapman, Director of Schools Queensland at the end of 2022.

Peter is an experienced and highly regarded leader in Catholic education who has been in his current role for the past eight years.

QCEC wishes to sincerely thank Peter for his contributions to the work of the Commission and more broadly to Catholic Education over many years.

Image source: EREA website

The Queensland Catholic Education Commission will host a series of governance webinars with the first event to be held next month.

The first webinar will provide information and guidance on current trends associated with the Non-State Schools Accreditation Board’s (NSSAB) approach to compliance reviews and complaints management.

The governance webinar will be held on 21 October and will run from 2.00pm to 3.30pm. Register here.

A short survey has been prepared to gather feedback on the elements of Catholic Education Week (CEW) 2022.

Any feedback will be valuable for the working group moving into the planning phase for CEW 2023.

The closing date for the survey is Friday 16 September 2022.

Complete the survey here.

Are you interested in becoming an Assessor of Highly Accomplished and Lead Teachers?

Expressions of Interest (EOI) in training and appointment as an Assessor for 2023 are now open.

The training for eligible participants will be delivered across two training days in Brisbane by the Queensland College of Teachers (QCT). The certification of HAT and LTs is a national approach to voluntary certification based on the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (APST).

Assessors review the applicant’s portfolio of evidence and then make a recommendation to the Certifying Authority (QCT) on whether the applicant demonstrates the APST at the relevant Highly Accomplished or Lead Teacher career stage.

Applications will close at 4pm on Wednesday 12 October. EOI’s can be submitted online through the QCEC Highly Accomplished and Lead Teacher website here.

Well done to All Hallows’ School who were recently named the 2022 Champion School at the Queensland Debating Union Competition Grand Final.

The school received the title for having the most successful debating program in the state. This is a huge achievement, and I would like to congratulate the three teams who competed in the grand final which saw All Hallows’ crowned champion for Year 11 and Senior A debating and runner up for Year 10 debating.

I would also like to commend Senior A debater Zoe Fraser who was awarded best speaker of the competition.

I would like to commend Sarah Savage from St Elizabeth’s Primary School, Tarragindi for her outstanding achievement as part of the 38th Dorothea Mackellar Poetry Awards.

The Year 3 student was awarded first place in the lower primary section category for her poem entitled Clash.

The young poet submitted her entry in response to this year’s theme In My Opinion, which provided students with the freedom to use their voice to tackle any topic.

Read Sarah’s award-winning poem here.

I would like to congratulate four staff on their new Principal appointments to commence in 2023.

Kay Gleeson has been appointed Principal of Lourdes Hill College, Hawthorne; Simon Mahaffy will begin his new role as Principal at Holy Cross Primary School, Wooloowin; Mark Ballam will become Principal of Stella Maris Primary School, Maroochydore and Matthew Beacroft has been appointed Principal of Our Lady of the Angels’ Catholic Primary School, Wavell Heights.

I would also like to thank all current principals for the contribution they have made to their Catholic school communities.

Photo L to R: Kay Gleeson (source: Moreton Bay College website), Simon Mahaffy (LinkedIn), Mark Ballam (Unity College website) and Matthew Beacroft (St Mary of the Cross Primary School website)

Applications for the Non State Schools Transport Assistance Scheme (NSSTAS) will open on 1 October, 2022.

The NSSTAS provides financial assistance for families transporting students to non-state schools in Queensland.

To find out more about the initiative and eligibility requirements click here.

Highly Accomplished and Lead Teacher Certification
QCEC and trained diocesan facilitators are delivering in-depth certification workshops for Queensland Catholic school teachers who intend to apply for Highly Accomplished and Lead Teacher Certification in 2023. These workshops detail the certification process in greater depth, building on the understandings gained in the introductory session. Find out more here.


NCCD workshops
Nationally Consistent Collection of Data on School Students with Disability (NCCD) workshops will be held in Term 4. The Reflection and Planning workshops will guide NCCD school teams through an analysis of their student data and staff feedback. These workshops were developed for school NCCD teams, including principals and school leaders with responsibility for the NCCD. To view the program or to register click here. This activity is supported by funding from the Australian Non-Government Reform Support Fund.

Missed a Circular? Below is a list of Circulars that have been issued recently. Use your login to access them.    

2022 Circulars 

086    Opportunity to operate an ECEC facility  
087    Teacher Suspensions and Cancellations 
088    The Queensland Premier's ANZAC Prize 2023 
089    Nomination School Transport Reference Committee 
090    A Mission Practice Relationship Framework 
091    2022 ATWD Teacher Survey 
092    ACARA F-6 Network Nominations Request 
093    Commission meeting dates in 2023 
094    Grant Application: Smart Giving Program 
095    NAPLAN 2022 Summary Report 
096    EOI for training and appointment as HAT or LT Assessor for 2023 Certification Processes 
097    NAPLAN 2022 Student Results 
098    Evaluation of the National School Chaplaincy Program (NSCP) 
099    Australian Early Development Census (AEDC) 2021 QLD data report 
100    Review of Early School Leavers Survey 
101    Governance Webinar 
102    Announcement new Principal Lourdes Hill College 
103    Young Mentors: eSafety 
104    Announcement Retirement EREA Director of Schools Queensland 
105    Teacher Suspensions and Cancellations 
106    Final Report of the Review of the Anti-Discrimination Act 1991