Teacher workload impacts will be considered as part of new government initiatives in schools.
Federal, state and territory governments agreed to the move under the Better and Fairer Schools Agreement (BFSA) which took effect from this year.
The 10-year joint agreement between Commonwealth and state and territory governments outlines funding arrangements and sets goals to improve the education system.
Workload consideration central to agreement
A Teacher Workload Impact Assessment (TWIA) is now attached to any initiatives stemming from the BFSA.
This means governments must consider the following questions when approving reforms:
- What initiatives are already in place? (This involves genuine consideration of timeframes, essential professional development and the reality of implementation.)
- Is additional release time, administrative support, training or more staff needed to support new policy initiatives?
- Are any proposed changes likely to disrupt the continuity of student learning?
- Do new policy initiatives add to the duplication of existing administrative tasks?
