All ACT public school students will have access to consistent, high-quality literacy and numeracy education.
20 June 2024
The ACT Government is working towards a consistent approach across the public school system.
From 2025, it will start implementing all eight recommendations of the Final Report of the Literacy and Numeracy Education Expert Panel.
The Panel’s overarching message was that to achieve equity and excellence in education, ACT public schools need a system-wide approach to teaching and learning.
The 2024–25 ACT Budget will support this with funding to implement all recommendations.
A new suite of system-wide literacy and numeracy initiatives – called Strong Foundations – will ensure all students at ACT public schools have access to consistent, high-quality literacy and numeracy education.
Under Strong Foundations, Canberra families will have access to:
- evidence-informed and consistent teaching practices in every classroom
- common assessments, including a year 1 phonics test
- advice and resources for parents, to support their children with literacy and numeracy
- multitiered systems of support for students in every public school.
Centralised support for teachers
Strong Foundations will offer more system support, to help reduce teachers’ workloads.
It will also allow school staff to collaborate and move between ACT public schools, without needing to learn new systems and ways of working.
Teachers can also access additional teaching resources, such as lesson planning support.
More resources and equipment
From the start of 2025, each public school classroom from kindergarten to year 2 will receive additional funding for system-approved literacy and numeracy teaching materials and equipment.
This will include decodable readers and maths resources.
The full four-year implementation plan for Strong Foundations will be shared with community later this year.
As part of this four-year plan, the Expert Panel will be invited to undertake an annual independent review of implementation.
It will report directly on progress to the Minister for Education and Youth Affairs.
Strong Foundations focuses on supporting students up to year 10.
Support for college students
From 2025 the Board of Senior Secondary Studies (BSSS) will introduce new Bridging Literacy and Bridging Numeracy courses to support students in years 11 and 12.
These courses are designed to support students who need additional targeted support. They will help them work towards the minimum standards of the Australian Core Skills Framework level 3 by the end of their schooling studies.
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