SSABSA and the Essential Learnings

A quiet revolution is taking place in the shape of the SSABSA syllabus.

While the learning areas are being maintained, a new emphasis on the Essential Learnings will bring a new 'real world' focus to senior students' learning.

The process began with the decision by the Senior Secondary Assessment Board of South Australia (SSABSA) in 1999 to incorporate the Essential Learnings into the senior years subject offerings.

Last year, SSABSA chief executive Dr Jan Keightley told a gathering of senior years teachers at Henley High School that the Essential Learnings were important and were already incorporated in both parts of the curriculum statements for theYear 12 learning areas.

Part 1, the curriculum statements, are the legislative part that every senior years teacher in the State must follow.

Part 2 is the support material and exemplars where SSABSA can show how these can incorporate or develop the Essential Learnings.

Dr Keightley said: "They are there because, simply, they are sound learning goals and because of the SSABSA Board's 1999 decision that the Essential Learnings are critical 'cross curriculum learnings', like the key competencies."

SSABSA saw them as detailed in the in the SACSA framework as "capabilities, understandings, values and dispositions developed throughout a person's education and beyond (into lifelong learning)".

Dr Keightley told teachers that they would soon see the Essential Learnings permeate assessment items in both school-based and publicly examined assessments, in the same way that they now permeate the curriculum statements.

The SACSA Framework's Year 12 Standards describe the Essential Learnings developed by the end of year 12 in learning programs including SACE, VET or other year 12 curriculum and states that that teachers are to continue to develop the Essential Learnings in all of the varied curriculum in the senior years.

Senior Years teachers, working together with students will integrate Essential Learnings into learning tasks in ways appropriate to students and their context.

Dr Keightley said it was critical that the teacher in collaboration with the student, not the curriculum statement, decides which Essential Learnings were to be emphasised.

She praised the Essential Learnings as a way of "re-energising the teaching learning process" and rejected the view that the Essential Learnings would provide less rigorous outcomes for students. In fact, she said, they would enhance those outcomes.

For the first time SSABSA was "making a real effort to integrate cross curriculum learning' in the teaching and learning programs for the senior years".

SSABSA officers and DETE personnel are continuing to work together to develop illustrative models to smooth the transition to the implementation of the SACSA Framework in the Senior Years.

Commencing in 2002, a team of three SSABSA officers, Stephen Inglis, Anne Harvey and Kathy Teague, will work with subject advisory committees to develop exemplar support materials which embed the Essential Learnings.

Development will occur in many subjects including those which have recently been re-accredited, for example, mathematics, languages, English communications, English studies, English as a second language, social studies, accounting (Stage 1), information technology, visual arts, tourism, geography, integrated studies, women's studies, personal information and publishing.

SSABSA has put aside some funds as payment for educators who wish to contribute to the development of these exemplars.

SSABSA project officer Stephen Inglis said: "The Essential Learnings are interwoven through the curriculum statement and they're for teachers and learners to develop them at the teaching and learning stage,"

Stephen was responsible for the development of two illustrative school programs on Stage 2 Tourism: one which highlighted Interdependence and one, Futures. These can be accessed on http://www.pceta.asn.au/ (click 'Forums').

DETE Curriculum policy officer, Senior Years, Lyndall Bain said teachers had found the two examples very useful as they highlighted how a concentration on a particular Essential Learning flavoured the programs, activities and assessments.

Stephen suggested that teachers start with a four to six week program, identify one or two Essential Learnings¾there were clues in the Learning Outcomes and Scope?and develop activities that incorporate that Essential Learnings perspective. He suggested teachers then revisit the summative task and document changes for next time.

Stephen saw the Essential Learnings as a generic range of skills which differed from the SSABSA learning outcomes?formerly known as "objectives"?which are specific to that learning area. He said in future teachers and students would be working together to develop the Essential Learnings they chose to focus on.

Stephen said that the "flavour of the Essential Learnings will be there - though they were not yet explicit in the learning outcomes for all subjects".

However, he said, in the geography curriculum statement, the words "interdependence" and "futures" are stated explicitly and they would colour the assessment exercises students produce.

Stephen said that the SSABSA/SACSA process was at the stage of providing opportunities for the Essential Learnings to be developed within support materials

For example, when a subject advisory committee was writing support materials, it is Stephen's role to try to get Essential Learnings flavour into illustrative school programs.

Stephen said it was worth recognising that there are a set of 12 SSSABSA student qualities which are not subject specific.

There were now some direct links with the Essential Learnings.

For example in Part 1 of the Curriculum Statement, he said the statement ". . . so that they may become informed citizens capable of making sound decisions in the world of work and their personal environments". incorporate the Essential Learnings of Identity, Thinking, Futures and Interdependence."

The Essential Learnings are now placed in italic descriptions beside the SACE students qualities.

For example: No 4 "works and learns individually and with others in and beyond school to achieve personal or team goals" (interdependence, collaboration, identity) and No 5. Applies logical critical and innovative thinking to a range of problems and ideas (thinking, enterprise, problem-solving, futures).

But how the successful year 12 graduate develops such skills and uses them in their real world interactions has teased the minds of both DETE and SSABSA staff and that's the issue that being explored in the mapping of the Essential learnings in the SACSA Framework.

Teachers who wish to contribute to the development of support materials are encouraged to contact Stephen or another member of the team, on 8372 7529.