Overview of the New System

The new post-compulsory system for students in Years 11 and 12 will use an outcomes focused approach rather than the current input syllabus approach.

The decision arises from the public expectation through Government that teachers should be held accountable for what students learn.

Being clear on what students are expected to learn while they are at school, enables schools and teachers to demonstrate accountability.

The adoption of standards of achievement also strengthens this accountability.

The recent agreement signed by WA to accept funding from the Australian Government requires all schools to make publicly available school performance information.

In Western Australia, both the University of WA and Curtin University are currently implementing an outcomes based approach to their programs.

A paper on the New Courses and Year 11 and 12 Subject Relationships is available here.

Outcome Focused Education

Education is highly valued by the community and is fundamental to success in this knowledge age.

Being clear about the outcomes we expect all students to achieve from their education and ensuring they do achieve them is one way in which quality can be described and is fundamentally what an outcomes focused approach is about.

This approach underpins the WA K-12 Curriculum Framework, which began implementation in all schools in this State in 1999. The move to an outcomes focused approach to education in Year 11 and 12 is consistent with this Framework and has the endorsement of all school system/sectors and all universities in this state.

More about outcomes focused education, can be found in a series of papers written by Professor Sue Willis.