The third instalment of The Sydney Morning Herald Schools Summit will take place on 17 February 2021 live at the ICC and virtually via our online events and networking platform.
Following an unprecedented year of challenges and disruption in 2020, an open dialogue amongst the education sector’s stakeholders has never been more requisite as we enter the new school year.
Join us as we connect Australia’s most eminent educators, thought-leaders and policy-makers for meaningful and incisive conversations around lessons learnt, the most prevalent hurdles faced by teachers and students today, and the effective, evidence-based strategies that should be implemented at policy and ground-levels to improve student outcomes.
Book today and join the conversation.
We are running the VIC version of this event on 27 April 2021 in Melbourne. Click here to visit The Age Schools Summit website for further information
2021 Speakers
Andy Hargreaves
Director of Chenine (Change, Engagement and Innovation),
University of Ottawa, Canada
The Hon. Sarah Mitchell
Minister for Education and Early Childhood Learning, NSW
Tom Bennett
Behaviour Advisor to the UK Department of Education, and founder of researchED
Mark Scott
Secretary,
NSW Department of Education
Dr Geoff Newcombe AM
Chief Executive,
Association of Independent Schools of NSW
Dallas McInerney
CEO,
Catholic Schools NSW
Danielle Cronin
Director Education Policy,
Catholic Schools NSW
Emeritus Prof the Hon Geoff Gallop
Chair,
Valuing the Teaching Profession Inquiry
Georgina Harrisson
Group Deputy Secretary,
NSW Department of Education
David de Carvalho
CEO,
Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority
Julia Davison
CEO,
Goodstart Early Learning
Paul Martin
CEO,
NESA
Renee Cooper
Principal,
Nymboida Public School
Tim Bowden
Headmaster,
Trinity Grammar School
Dr Jen Petschler
Assistant Principal Pastoral Care and Wellbeing,
St Scholastica’s College, Glebe
The Hon. Adrian Piccoli
Director,
Gonski Institute for Education
Julie Sonnemann
School Education Fellow,
Grattan Institute
Prof Pasi Sahlberg
Deputy Director Research,
Gonski Institute for Education
Kristen Douglas
National Manager,
Headspace Schools
Cameron Paterson
Director of Learning and Teaching,
SHORE School
Alice Leung
Head Teacher,
Concord High School
Dr Pauline Ho
Associate Director,
Evidence for Learning
Professor Jim Tognolini
CEO,
Centre for Educational Measurement & Assessment
A/Prof Cathrine Neilsen-Hewett
Academic Director of the Early Years,
University of Wollongong
Matt Johnson
National President and CEO of ASEPA, State President SEPLA NSW and Principal Glenvale School
Mary Creenaune
Head Student Services,
Catholic Education Diocese of Parramatta
Murat Dizdar
Deputy Secretary, School Operations and Performance,
NSW Department of Education
Pam O’Dea
Principal,
St Phillip’s Christian College, Newcastle
Angelo Gavrielatos
President,
New South Wales Teachers Federation
Lisa Davies
Editor,
The Sydney Morning Herald
Jordan Baker
Education Editor,
The Sydney Morning Herald
Houda Kbbar
Head of Wellbeing,
Malek Fahd Islamic School
Agenda
17 February 2021
8:30
OPENING
Lisa Davies, Editor, The Sydney Morning Herald
8:40
Ministerial ADDRESS
The Hon Sarah Mitchell, Minister for Education and Early Childhood Learning
9:00
Q and A with the Minister
Facilitated by Lisa Davies, Editor, The Sydney Morning Herald
9:20
Panel discussion: Keeping calm and carrying on. How Schools in NSW coped and, in many cases, thrived in an unprecedented year
- How prepared were we and what were the major challenges we had to address?
- Have students lost a year of their academic life? Can they catch up?
- What price student and staff wellbeing during lockdown and disruption?
- What have we learnt and what are we doing differently?
- How can we better leverage technology to support our students?
- What does the future hold for NSW schools?
Mark Scott, Secretary, NSW Department of Education
Dr Geoff Newcombe AM, Chief Executive, Association of Independent Schools of NSW
Danielle Cronin, Director Education Policy, Catholic Schools NSW
9:50
Keynote Address: Implementing the NSW curriculum reform
Paul Martin, CEO, NESA
10:10
ACARA – a look ahead
- Australian Curriculum Review update
- Moving NAPLAN online
David de Carvalho, CEO, ACARA
10:30
The Great Debate –Desegregating education. Should the Government fully fund all schools?
- Will this achieve equity in education? Is this still the desire?
- International comparisons – Canada, Finland, Singapore
- Is there the political will and parental appetite to make this happen?
- Can we ever reach consensus in funding education?
Prof Adrian Piccoli, Director, Gonski Institute for Education
Dallas Mclnerney, CEO, Catholic Schools NSW
11:00
Morning break
11:30
Keynote International Address: Engagement is the new frontier of achievement
- Between a quarter to a half of kids are bored in school or feel life has no purpose. Why?
- Getting engagement is about more than beating back boredom, though
- We must ask how we – in schools, policy and universities – actively create disengagement
- If we are the problem, we can be the solution.
Andy Hargreaves, Director of Chenine (Change, Engagement and Innovation), University of Ottawa
12:00
Panel discussion: Is it time to double down on early childhood education?
- Is it time for universal, fully funded pre-school education?
- Understanding the long-term benefits of early childhood education
- Managing the transition to primary
Prof Pasi Sahlberg, Deputy Director Research, Gonski Institute for Education
Julia Davison, CEO, Goodstart Early Learning
A/Prof Cathrine Neilsen-Hewett, Academic Director of the Early Years, University of Wollongong
12:30
Lunch
13:30
Valuing Teachers: Key Findings from the independent inquiry into the teaching profession
Emeritus Prof the Hon Geoff Gallop, Chair, Valuing the Teaching Profession Inquiry
13:50
Panel Discussion – Addressing the pressures of the teaching profession in the 2020s
- Ensuring a support network for teachers
- Is teacher training supplying the skills needed to manage the modern classroom?
- Are teachers now under too much scrutiny?
- Is Quality Teaching working?
Angelo Gavrielatos, President, NSW Teachers Federation
Cameron Paterson, Director of Learning and Teaching, Shore School
Alice Leung, Head Teacher, Concord High School
14:20
Unravelling the tutoring package and how schools can make it work
- How the equity gap widened during COVID-19
- How small group learning can boost learning by five months in just a few weeks
- Ways to make small group tutoring work in your school
Julie Sonnemann, School Education Fellow, The Grattan Institute
14:40
Panel – Playing catch up. Addressing lost lessons, time-out and getting kids back on track
- Identifying children who have fallen behind this year
- Strategies for catching up such as the $370m NSW Tutoring package
- How regional NSW was impacted by floods, fire and pandemic in 2020
- Wellbeing issues from a year of disruption
Murat Dizdar, Deputy Secretary, School Operations and Performance, NSW Department of Education
Renee Cooper, Principal, Nymboida Public School
Pam O’Dea, Principal, St Phillip’s Christian College, Newcastle
15:10
Afternoon break
15:30
Panel Discussion on Student Wellbeing. Are the policy frameworks working?
- Empirical evidence and anecdotal perspectives on tackling wellbeing in schools
- Are teachers and schools equipped to deal with healthcare issues?
- Delivering successful learning while ensuring the safety and wellbeing of students
Dr Jen Petschler, Assistant Principal Pastoral Care and Wellbeing, St Scholastica’s College, Glebe
Kristen Douglas, National Manager, Headspace Schools
Houda Kbbar, Head of Wellbeing, Malek Fahd Islamic School
16:00
Panel Discussion – Measuring Non-Academic Attainment
- How do you gather evidence, report and measure for areas such as?
- Creativity
- Critical Thinking
- Collaboration
- Cultural Competence
- Equity
- Happiness
- Faith
- Wellbeing
- Why would you try and measure these attributes? To what end?
- Empowering teachers to use evidence effectively
- Ensuring meaningful data is collected and analysed
Prof Jim Tognolini, CEO, Centre for Educational Measurement & Assessment
Dr Pauline Ho, Associate Director, Evidence for Learning
Tim Bowden, Headmaster, Trinity Grammar School
16:30
Lifting student outcomes through effective Behavioural Management
Georgina Harrisson, Group Deputy Secretary, School Improvement and Education Reform, NSW Department of Education
16:50
Panel Discussion on Behavioural Support
- Exploring best practice classroom management
- The need for an evidence-based approach for behavioural management
- How do can we best measure classroom disruption?
Tom Bennett, Founder, researchED and Chair Behavioural Management Group, Dept Education, UK
Matt Johnson, National President and CEO of ASEPA; State President SEPLA NSW; Principal Glenvale School
Mary Creenaune, Head Student Services, Catholic Education Diocese of Parramatta
17:20
Networking Drinks
18:00
End of the 2021 SMH Schools Summit
Testimonials
Media
Blog
The structure of Australian schooling needs to change – Prof. Adrian Piccoli
Former NSW Education Minister and Director of the Gonski Institute for Education, Professor Adrian Piccoli, is challenging the status quo of Australia’s school system, in a bid to achieve greater equity for students.
Piccoli believes the existing structure, funding model, and underlying regulatory framework is doing a disservice to low socio-economic status (SES) students… Read more >>
Major curriculum overhaul looking likely
Professor Geoff Masters, the person behind a proposed curriculum overhaul for New South Wales has so far racked up “considerable support” from teachers for his suggested redesign, which is due for finalisation this year. Since the release of his interim report in October last year, Masters has received more than 700 submissions providing feedback on his recommended reforms…. Read more >>
Teachers need more training to help students with special educational needs
Special education’ is a broad term and requires an equally broad set of skills, providers and strategies – not a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach – says academic expert, Dr. Kathleen Tait. “Included within a typical education classroom one could find students with a range of intellectual, social and emotional difficulties; children who are gifted and talented; and/or children with learning difficulties… Read more >>
Normalising mental health protocols and intervention in Australian schools
When it comes to physical health, we’re not short of nationally-endorsed protocols that support our wellbeing. From hand-railings on public stairways, to mandatory vaccinations, to the highly-publicised “slip slop slap” sunscreen campaign. The same also applies in school settings. When a child is injured, they’ll receive first aid from an appointed, trained first aider. There will be rules in place to help avoid… Read more >>
Student Engagement & Technology in the Classroom: Igniting the Fire in Young Learners with Eddie Woo
Technology is rapidly transforming the way students learn and teachers teach, a study found that Australia is one of the highest users of technology in schools in the OECD – so how can technology benefit Australian students and what are the costs? What can it do and what can’t it do? Wootube is a prime… Read more >>
Student well-being at Wenona School
Adolescence is a difficult time for most people, but for a growing subset of young Australians, it is more than just an “uncomfortable phase”. Statistics show that one in five 13-18 years-olds will experience a severe mental health disorder; and more than half of people with a lifetime mental health diagnosis will encounter their first… Read more >>
Small group tutoring in NSW – why the need and how will it work?
Next year, students in New South Wales (NSW) will have access to free tutoring for the first time, thanks to a $337 million program as part of the state’s 2020-21 Budget. Under the scheme, an additional 5,500 staff will be employed to deliver small group teaching sessions to all eligible students… Read more >>
When & Where
17 February 2021
Live at the ICC and delivered virtually
ICC Sydney
14 Darling Dr
Sydney NSW 2000
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