What you should know:

• In 2013-2014 Victorian curriculum (AusVELS) is comprised of the 4 Australian Curriculum (AC) subjects of English, Mathematics, The Humanities – History and Science, 12 remaining domains of VELS and 3 Cross Curriculum Priorities of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories and cultures, Asia and Australia’s engagement with Asia and Sustainability.

• Most Victorian schools should now be implementing the AC subjects of English, Maths, History and Science
• No new subjects will need to be implemented in 2014 because the VCAA wants schools to have access to documents for at least 12 months prior to implementation 
• Teachers in Victorian schools MUST go to the AusVELS – Home website for curriculum outlines and related information.
• There are 11 levels of assessment from FOUNDATION to 10. These include .5 increments where the student is working towards the level by the end of school year.
• It is expected that Victorian schools will be reporting to these from 2014, if they have not already done so.
• VELS dot continuum – progression (white dot —– black dot) cannot be used with AC subjects in the first year of reporting.
• All students should be given the opportunity to study all subjects although schools are able to make decisions on when and how long they will study them – in other words we can still offer semester units especially at Year 9 and 10 where other programs may be running and need allocation time. Reporting to these semester units has the same challenges as they did in VELS.
• Progression points are NOT a checklist but a guide.

• AusVELS Resources and Support 

  including audit and planning templates. 

• Reporting for AC Science and AC History does not happen till Year 3 although curriculum outlines are available from Foundation level.
• ALL teachers are encouraged to red the overview of related subjects rather than going straight to curriculum documents – things may have changed…

Information presented above is my summary from the VCAA online PD session – Overview. PowerPoint presentation available Introducing AusVELS

I would be interested in hearing your own school’s journey in planning and implementing AusVELS. Feel free to make comment below.

If you would like more information or perhaps to hold a professional learning session with your staff on AusVELS do not hesitate to contact me.