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Curriculum

Curriculum is all the planned, guided and implemented learning that occurs in a school. (DET, 2007)

Curriculum in Queensland schools is aligned through the Queensland Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting (QCAR) Framework.

Queensland state schools develop school curriculum plans using the Early, Middle and Senior Phase Curriculum documents including:

The Essential Learnings describe the knowledge, understanding and ways of working that students need for ongoing learning, social and personal competence and participation in a democratic society. While the Essential Learnings are the part of the curriculum that is to be common across all schools, schools continue to have the flexibility to organise their curriculum in ways that meet the needs of their students. (QSA, 2008)

Curriculum Adjustments

The process of making adjustments is crucial for developing an inclusive curriculum for all students. Teachers intuitively make adjustments for many students, but sometimes lack confidence to do this for students with disabilities. Bringing together curriculum and specialist expertise at appropriate times enables teachers to draw on their existing knowledge to weave the needs of students with a disability into their current practices.

There is specialist support available to ensure this process is successful. This includes:

advisory visiting teachers (AVT) located in every district;
Disability Support Services Unit (DSSU) that has specialist staff to support school personnel and a statewide loans service of specialised equipment and resources;
special education program teachers within a school;
occupational therapists, physiotherapists and speech-language pathologists located within each district;
information and resources available on the Education Queensland and DSSU Professional Communities.

Curriculum Planning

Planning appropriate learning activities needs of all students in every setting is the responsibility of all teachers.

Students with Disabilities: Individual Education Plan

Currently, many schools use the Individual Education Plan (IEP) process for some students with disabilities to bring parents, educators and the student (where appropriate) together as a team, to consider the student's current level of performance and to determine the student's educational needs and future learning priorities.

Schools have used an IEP and/or a range of other documentation as tools to record:

the intended curriculum for a student where it varies from that of their same age cohort
adjustments being made for individual students which are specific to the student's learning needs; and/or
individual learning goals (e.g. managing self) and strategies that vary from those of same age cohort in intent or intensity, but are essential to the student's capacity to meaningfully engage with their intended curriculum.

Individual Student Plan

From 2009, a record of student planning will be detailed in the student's 'Individual Student Plan (ISP)'. The ISP, which will be created within OneSchool, will provide the opportunity for schools to document:

a student's individual learning goals
substantial curriculum adjustments
curriculum access/engagement strategies.

The ISP will enable planning to be completed online by accessing and retrieving relevant information already entered within the OneSchool system.

Attachment 1 Guidelines for Students with Disabilities
http://education.qld.gov.au/curriculum/framework/p-12/docs/guidelines-swd.doc

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