Supporting our schools
Schools are best placed to identify and respond to early warning signs of student disengagement from education. We are working to support schools to have the tools and resources they need to engage and retain every student in school.
Promoting high-quality alternative settings
Our
quality pathways for all young people: a commitment to alternative education lays out the shared commitment of the non-state and Queensland Government schooling sectors to provide high-quality education to young people in alternative schools. This commitment is imperative because while we know mainstream school is the best place for most young people, there are a small number of students who require an alternative learning setting.
Quality alternative settings
Queensland's mainstream schooling system spans the state, independent and Catholic sectors, and caters to the vast majority of children and young people—together forming a system that affords students the best chance of finding success and making strong and sustained transitions to further education, training or employment.
For a small number of young Queenslanders, success may not be found in a mainstream setting. For these young people, alternative settings in the state and non-state sectors complement the mainstream system by addressing their complex health, safety and wellbeing needs in a tailored environment.
Successful school systems are those that combine excellence and equity in their education priorities (PDF, 4.8MB), ensuring all children have opportunities for a quality education.
Meeting and exceeding quality standards
All state and non-state alternative settings are required to uphold the mandatory requirements outlined in legislation. In striving for excellence in educational delivery, alternative settings invest and prioritise a wide range of practices to support students to succeed.
In addition to these mandatory requirements, quality pathways for all young people: a commitment to alternative education identifies 13 standards for high-quality practice in alternative settings, which can be considered under 4 quality areas:
- equity in delivery
- precision and quality
- focus on outcomes
- collaboration and partnerships.
Explore the quality principles to consider what these evidence-based quality standards look like in schools and how all educational settings can implement supporting practices to deliver the very best outcomes for all students. Access the
summary of high-quality practices.
Practice insights
Our schools set out to support every student to succeed. However, each year, too many young people disengage from education, training and employment pathways. What we do in our schools can have a great impact on the future wellbeing of young people. While each school and cohort are unique, research and evaluation of effective practice has identified key practices that underpin the academic achievement and meaningful engagement of every student. These practices apply across diverse settings, in different contexts, and can respond to varying student needs.
These
practice insights provide an evidence-based guide for schools seeking to promote best practice in student engagement alongside academic achievement. It uses established research to define capabilities and practices that put engagement at the heart of professional practice. Schools can use this framework to evaluate their efforts in identifying students at risk of disengagement, connect with students who have disengaged and take steps to better support students to re-engage with education, training and employment pathways.
The following practice insight postcards have been designed to support discussions with your colleagues about engagement practices in your school.
Everybody's Business
Everybody's Business outlines an evidence-based approach to meeting the needs of children and young people who are at risk of disengagement, or who are disengaged from education. It outlines components of a strong and inclusive system. It has been developed to support Queensland state schools, regional staff in the Department of Education and other stakeholders to maximise engagement and re-engagement of young Queenslanders in education.
Components of a strong and inclusive system