OECD reviews of evaluation and assessment in education. Australia 2011.

190 Pages·2011·1.56 MB·English

by  OECD

OECD Reviews of Evaluation and Assessment in Education
AUSTRALIA
How can student assessment, teacher appraisal, school evaluation and system evaluation bring about real
gains in performance across a country’s school system? The country reports in this series provide, from an
OECD Reviews of Evaluation
international perspective, an independent analysis of major issues facing the evaluation and assessment
framework, current policy initiatives, and possible future approaches. This series forms part of the and Assessment in Education
OECD Review on Evaluation and Assessment Frameworks for Improving School Outcomes.
AUSTRALIA
Contents
Chapter 1. School education in Australia
Chapter 2. The evaluation and assessment framework Paulo Santiago, Graham Donaldson,
Chapter 3. Student assessment Joan Herman and Claire Shewbridge
Chapter 4. Teacher appraisal
Chapter 5. School evaluation
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Chapter 6. Education system evaluation E
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Please cite this publication as: U
S
OECD (2011), OECD Reviews of Evaluation and Assessment in Education: Australia 2011, OECD Reviews of T
R
Evaluation and Assessment in Education, OECD Publishing. A
http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/9789264116672-en L
IA
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91 2011 22 1 P

OECD Reviews of
Evaluation and Assessment
in Education:
Australia
2011
This work is published on the responsibility of the Secretary-General of the OECD. The
opinions expressed and arguments employed herein do not necessarily reflect the official
views of the Organisation or of the governments of its member countries.
This document and any map included herein are without prejudice to the status of or
sovereignty over any territory, to the delimitation of international frontiers and boundaries
and to the name of any territory, city or area.
Please cite this publication as:
OECD (2011), OECD Reviews of Evaluation and Assessment in Education: Australia 2011, OECD
Publishing.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/9789264116672-en
ISBN 978-92-64-11663-4 (print)
ISBN 978-92-64-11667-2 (PDF)
Series: OECD Reviews of Evaluation and Assessment in Education
ISSN 2223-0947 (print)
ISSN 2223-0955 (online)
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3
FOREWORD –
Foreword
This report for Australia forms part of the OECD Review on Evaluation and
Assessment Frameworks for Improving School Outcomes (see Annex A for further
details). The purpose of the Review is to explore how systems of evaluation and
assessment can be used to improve the quality, equity and efficiency of school education.
The Review looks at the various components of assessment and evaluation frameworks
that countries use with the objective of improving student outcomes. These include
student assessment, teacher appraisal, school evaluation and system evaluation.
Australia was one of the countries which opted to participate in the country review
strand and host a visit by an external review team. Members of the Review Team were
Paulo Santiago (OECD Secretariat), co-ordinator of the Review; Graham Donaldson
(formerly Her Majesty’s Senior Chief Inspector of Education in Scotland; United
Kingdom); Joan Herman (Director, National Center for Research on Evaluation,
Standards, and Student Testing at the University of California – Los Angeles, United
States); and Claire Shewbridge (OECD Secretariat). This publication is the report from
the Review Team. It provides, from an international perspective, an independent analysis
of major issues facing the evaluation and assessment framework in Australia, current
policy initiatives, and possible future approaches. The report serves three purposes:
(1) Provide insights and advice to the Australian education authorities; (2) Help other
OECD countries understand the Australian approach; and (3) Provide input for the final
comparative report of the project.
Australia’s involvement in the OECD Review was co-ordinated by Ms. Kristie van
Omme, School Improvement and Transparency Branch, Curriculum, Assessment and
Teaching Group, Australian Government Department of Education, Employment and
Workplace Relations (DEEWR). An important part of Australia’s involvement was the
preparation of a comprehensive and informative Country Background Report (CBR) on
evaluation and assessment policy, published by the Australian Government in 2010. The
Review Team is very grateful to the authors of the CBR, and to all those who assisted
them for providing an informative document. The CBR is an important output from the
OECD Review in its own right as well as an important source for the Review Team.
Unless indicated otherwise, the data for this report are taken from the Australian Country
Background Report. The CBR follows guidelines prepared by the OECD Secretariat and
provides extensive information, analysis and discussion in regard to the national context,
the organisation of the educational system, the main features of the evaluation and
assessment framework and the views of key stakeholders. In this sense, the CBR and this
report complement each other and, for a more comprehensive view of evaluation and
assessment in Australia, should be read in conjunction.
The Review Visit to Australia took place on 21-30 June 2010 and covered visits to
Canberra and the states of New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria and Western
Australia. The itinerary is provided in Annex B. The visit was designed by the OECD in
OECD REVIEWS OF EVALUATION AND ASSESSMENT IN EDUCATION: AUSTRALIA © OECD 2011
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– FOREWORD
collaboration with the Australian authorities. The biographies of the members of the
Review Team are provided in Annex C.
During the review visit, the team held discussions with a wide range of national, state
and territory authorities; statutory bodies at the national and systemic levels; teacher
unions; parents’ organisations; representatives of principals; students; representatives of
employers; and researchers with an interest in evaluation and assessment issues. The team
also visited a range of schools, interacting with school management, teachers and
students. The intention was to provide a broad cross-section of information and opinions
on evaluation and assessment policies and how their effectiveness can be improved.
The Review Team wishes to record its grateful appreciation to the many people who
gave time from their busy schedules to assist in its work. The education community
clearly attached great importance to the purpose of the visit and the fact that the Review
Team brought an external perspective. The meetings were open and provided a wealth of
information and analysis. Special words of appreciation are due to the National
Co-ordinator, Kristie van Omme, and her colleague Jessica Yelavich, Curriculum,
Assessment and Teaching Group, DEEWR, for going to great lengths to respond to the
questions and needs of the Review Team. We were impressed by their efficiency and
expertise and enjoyed their kindness and very pleasant company. The courtesy and
hospitality extended to us throughout our stay in Australia made our task as a Review
Team as pleasant and enjoyable as it was stimulating and challenging. The OECD
Review Team is also grateful to colleagues at the OECD, especially to Stefanie Dufaux
for preparing the statistical annex to this report (Annex D) and to Heike-Daniela Herzog
for editorial support.
This report is organised in six chapters. Chapter 1 provides the national context, with
information on the Australian school system and the main recent developments. Chapter 2
looks at the overall evaluation and assessment framework and analyses how the different
components of the framework play together and can be made more coherent to effectively
improve student learning. Then Chapters 3 to 6 present each of the key components of the
evaluation and assessment framework – student assessment, teacher appraisal, school
evaluation and system evaluation – in more depth, presenting strengths, challenges and
policy recommendations.
The policy recommendations attempt to build on and strengthen reforms that are
already underway in Australia, and the strong commitment to further improvement that
was evident among those we met. The suggestions should take into account the
difficulties that face any visiting group, no matter how well briefed, in grasping the
complexity of Australia and fully understanding all the issues.
Of course, this report is the responsibility of the Review Team. While we benefited
greatly from the Australian CBR and other documents, as well as the many discussions
with a wide range of Australian personnel, any errors or misinterpretations in this report
are our responsibility.
OECD REVIEWS OF EVALUATION AND ASSESSMENT IN EDUCATION: AUSTRALIA © OECD 2011
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TABLE OF CONTENTS –
Table of contents
Acronyms and abbreviations .................................................................................................................... 7
Executive summary .................................................................................................................................... 9
Chapter 1: School education in Australia .............................................................................................. 13
Main features of the school system ........................................................................................................ 14
Main policy developments: the national agenda for education .............................................................. 18
References .............................................................................................................................................. 23
Chapter 2: The evaluation and assessment framework ....................................................................... 25
Context and features ............................................................................................................................... 26
Strengths ................................................................................................................................................. 30
Challenges .............................................................................................................................................. 36
Policy recommendations ........................................................................................................................ 40
References .............................................................................................................................................. 46
Chapter 3: Student assessment ............................................................................................................... 47
Context and features ............................................................................................................................... 48
Strengths ................................................................................................................................................. 55
Challenges .............................................................................................................................................. 59
Policy recommendations ........................................................................................................................ 63
References .............................................................................................................................................. 70
Chapter 4: Teacher appraisal ................................................................................................................. 73
Context and features ............................................................................................................................... 74
Strengths ................................................................................................................................................. 83
Challenges .............................................................................................................................................. 86
Policy recommendations ........................................................................................................................ 91
References .............................................................................................................................................. 97
Chapter 5: School evaluation .................................................................................................................. 99
Context and features ............................................................................................................................. 100
Strengths ............................................................................................................................................... 106
Challenges ............................................................................................................................................ 110
Policy recommendations ...................................................................................................................... 114
References ............................................................................................................................................ 120
Chapter 6: Education system evaluation ............................................................................................. 121
Context and features ............................................................................................................................. 122
Strengths ............................................................................................................................................... 125
Challenges ............................................................................................................................................ 131
Policy recommendations ...................................................................................................................... 134
References ............................................................................................................................................ 142
OECD REVIEWS OF EVALUATION AND ASSESSMENT IN EDUCATION: AUSTRALIA © OECD 2011
6
– TABLE OF CONTENTS
Conclusions and recommendations ...................................................................................................... 145
Education system context ..................................................................................................................... 145
Strengths and challenges ...................................................................................................................... 146
Policy recommendations ...................................................................................................................... 152
Annex A: The OECD Review on Evaluation and Assessment Frameworks
for Improving School Outcomes................................................................................................. 159
Annex B: Visit itinerary ........................................................................................................................ 161
Annex C: Composition of the Review Team ........................................................................................ 171
Annex D: Comparative indicators on evaluation and assessment ..................................................... 173
Tables
Table 1.1 Structure of school education across states and territories ........................................................ 14
Table 1.2 COAG’s National Productivity Agenda – Schools .................................................................... 19
Table 2.1 Levels of evaluation and assessment in Australia ...................................................................... 29
Table 4.1 Levels of teacher registration/accreditation across Australia .................................................... 75
Table 4.2 Framework for teachers’ performance management in government schools
across Australian jurisdictions ......................................................................................................... 77
Table 4.3 Advanced Skills Teaching schemes in government schools across Australian jurisdictions .... 79
Boxes
Box 2.1 Equity within the performance framework .................................................................................. 32
Box 2.2 Data information systems in New South Wales and Victoria ...................................................... 35
Box 2.3 Strengthening monitoring on literacy and numeracy in Ontario .................................................. 44
Box 3.1 Validity criteria to judge individual student assessments............................................................. 54
Box 3.2 Strategies to improve the reliability of teacher-based summative assessment ............................ 66
Box 3.3 Individual Development Plans for students in Sweden ................................................................ 69
Box 4.1 The teaching profession in Australia – Main features .................................................................. 81
Box 4.1 The teaching profession in Australia – Main features (continued) .............................................. 82
Box 5.1 Information reported on the My School website ........................................................................ 105
Box 6.1 Sample surveys in the Netherlands and New Zealand ............................................................... 138
Box 6.2 Use of data systems for decision making by educational districts in the United States ............ 139
Box 6.3 Proposed monitoring of schools in all sectors in Victoria .......................................................... 140
OECD REVIEWS OF EVALUATION AND ASSESSMENT IN EDUCATION: AUSTRALIA © OECD 2011
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ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS –
Acronyms and abbreviations
ABS Australian Bureau of Statistics
ACACA Australasian Curriculum, Assessment and Certification Authorities
ACARA Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority
ACER Australian Council for Educational Research
ACT Australian Capital Territory
AITSL Australian Institute of Teaching and School Leadership
ALGA Australian Local Government Association
AQF Australian Qualifications Framework
AST Advanced SkillsTeaching
ATAR Australian Tertiary Admission Rank
BARS BehaviourallyAnchoredRating Scales
CBR Country Background Report
COAG Council of Australian Governments
DEEWR Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations (Australian Government)
EOL English Online Interview
ESSA Essential Secondary Science Assessment
ICSEA Index of Community Socio-Educational Advantage
ICT Information and Communication Technologies
IEA International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement
LBOTE Language Background Other than English
MCEECDYA The Ministerial Council on Education, Early Childhood Development and Youth Affairs
MCEETYA The Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs
NAP National Assessment Program
NAPLAN NationalAssessment Program Literacy and Numeracy
NCTES National Centre for Education and Training Statistics
NCVER National Centre for Vocational Education Research
NEA National Education Agreement
NP National Partnership
NSSC National Schools Statistics Collection
NSW New South Wales
NT Northern Territory
OECD Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
PIRLS Progress in International Reading Literacy Study
PISA Programme for International Student Assessment
QCAT Queensland Comparable Assessment Tasks
RTO Registered Training Organisation
SA South Australia
SES Socio-economic status
SMART School Measurement, Assessment and Reporting Toolkit
TALIS Teaching and Learning International Survey
TIMSS Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study
VET Vocational Education and Training
VRQA Victorian Registration and Qualification Authority
WA Western Australia
WAMSE The Western Australian Monitoring Standards in Education
OECD REVIEWS OF EVALUATION AND ASSESSMENT IN EDUCATION: AUSTRALIA © OECD 2011