The Association of Heads of Independent Schools of Australia (AHISA) welcomes the opportunity to submit to the Review to Achieve Educational Excellence in Australian Schools (the Review).

AHISA frames its submission in two parts: Part A deals with concerns in relation to the Review Terms of Reference; Part B responds to questions in the Review Issues Paper. In addition to the key points and recommendations made in Parts A and B, which are set out below, AHISA makes two overarching recommendations:
1. That the Review Panel’s deliberations should acknowledge four key understandings:
    1. Recognition of teachers’ and school leaders’ professional expertise
    2. Recognition that most schools are already operating strategically within a continuous cycle of development or improvement
    3. Recognition of the value of school leaders’ autonomy in determining the best strategies at any particular point in time in a school’s cycle of development
    4. Recognition that NAPLAN and PISA tests are very narrow measures of the capacities of students and of what schools actually do.

2. That the Review Panel considers shaping criteria for the evaluation of any policy
measures it recommends in relation to school-based practice, including:
    • If regulated, would this policy support the evolution of Australian education to meet the needs of students in a rapidly changing global environment?
    • If regulated, would this policy support schools to be ‘agile’ organisations with innovative and entrepreneurial capacity, able to respond effectively to rapid social and technological change?
    • If regulated, would this policy support or enhance diversity in educational options for students and their families by supporting diverse educational philosophies and diverse pathways to student ‘success’?

 AHISA Submission Summary - full version