Ask any school leader what devours their teachers' time, and curriculum planning will be near the top of the list. And for principals of small schools juggling multi-age classrooms, the challenge is steeper still.
Now, a new suite of resources has been unveiled to help lighten the load.
Developed by the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA), the Curriculum leadership resources offer practical tools and expert guidance to help school and curriculum leaders build teacher capability, strengthen collaboration, and drive effective curriculum implementation across their schools.
Shaped through extensive consultation with teachers, principals and education stakeholders nationwide – and road-tested in 34 schools across multiple jurisdictions – the resources span eight key aspects of curriculum planning, from sequencing learning and including all learners through to planning for multi-age classes.
The initiative forms part of the National Teacher Workforce Action Plan, which aims to boost teacher retention by cutting unnecessary workload.
The hidden load middle leaders are carrying
Tim Bullard, CEO of the Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL), was one of the key education partners involved in the resources’ development.
Bullard said teaching is a human endeavour, and it works best when teachers feel connected, trusted and supported to plan and learn together.
“Whilst more time cannot be manufactured it’s important that time for collaborative planning and assessment, is not treated as an ‘add on’,” Bullard told The Educator.
“Evidence and data help us see where the pressure points regarding workload, and use of teacher time, currently are, and schools, systems and sectors are responding with a range of initiatives that seek to address workload and administrative burden.”
Equally as important, however, is the availability of practical guidance and support that is easy to use and supports growth in teacher capability and confidence, Bullard noted.
Research has shown that middle leaders often end up carrying curriculum implementation on top of a full teaching load.
Bullard said ACARA’s resources give middle leaders practical tools, templates and guiding questions that make curriculum planning more manageable, especially when they are balancing leadership with a full teaching load.
“They help focus attention on the conversations and decisions that matter, and they create a clear structure for building teacher capability and sequencing learning,” he said.
“Principals play a crucial role in creating an environment where middle leaders can thrive. By protecting time, providing their backing, and establishing the trust and structures necessary for effective collaboration, principals create the foundation for successful initiatives.”
Bullard said the ripple effect of well-supported middle leaders reaches every classroom.
“When this support is in place, middle leaders are empowered to connect curriculum to practice, ultimately strengthening teaching and enhancing learning outcomes for children and young people.”
'Bringing the Australian Curriculum to life'
Palmer Primary School in regional South Australia has just 26 students split across two classrooms: a Junior Primary class spanning Reception to Year 2, and an Upper Primary class covering Years 3-6, with Year 3 students moving between the two depending on where they'll thrive. For the school's teachers, that means juggling up to four year levels of curriculum in a single room – a challenge that, in one teacher's words, once made planning "quite messy".
The school's teachers moved away from planning multiple versions of the same activity and instead, teachers use a "conceptual threads" approach, drawing on achievement standards and content descriptions to plan learning and assessment for all students within the class.
ACARA’s Chief Executive Officer Stephen Gniel said the advice and resources for planning in multi-age settings are intended to provide leaders with clarity on whole-school curriculum planning approaches, with the aim to support reducing the hidden workload for teachers.
"Feedback from our pilot schools and jurisdictional partners on the multi-age planning resources was positive including the advice, examples, and professional learning courses," Gniel told The Educator. "They could see how the advice could be applied in different contexts in both primary and secondary school settings."
Gniel pointed out that because multi-age class structures can vary from school to school and even from year to year within the same school, it is therefore important to have a clearly defined approach to curriculum planning that is developed collaboratively with teachers.
"This helps ensure there are no gaps or unnecessary repetition in student learning, while also giving teachers a clear plan which may support workload reduction," he said.
"The advice and resources in this aspect offer a range of approaches that school leaders can adapt to their own context. They support school and curriculum leaders to initiate and lead curriculum planning discussions with teachers and provide access to evidence and models to support informed decision-making."
The report card leaders shouldn't dread
The reflection tool essentially asks school leaders to audit their own weak spots and generates a report saying so, but a confronting result, said Gniel, is nothing to fear.
"Self-reflection is an important part of whole-school planning and the purpose of the reflection tool is to support school leaders to reflect on their existing practices," he said. "It helps school leaders identify their school’s strengths and prioritise areas for improvement."
Gniel added that it also serves as a starting point for narrowing their planning and goal-setting focus across the eight aspects of curriculum implementation rather than a final report on progress.
"This process also helps school leaders to be self-reflective by providing information and other resources from ACARA, AITSL, AERO and ESA that can inform future planning and support their work."