Northern Territorry
Smarter Schools – Implementation plan

National Partnership for Improving Teacher Quality

National Partnership for Literacy and Numeracy

National Partnership for Low Socio-Economic Status School Communities

Contents
1.	INTRODUCTION
1.1	Low Socio-Economic Status School Communities National Partnership
1.2	Closing the Gap National Partnership (Schedule I Enhancing Literacy)4
1.3	Literacy and Numeracy National Partnership
1.4	Improving Teacher Quality National Partnership
2.	CROSS SECTOR INVOLVEMENT
3.	REFORM INITIATIVES AND STRATEGIES
3.1	Low Socio-Economic Status School Communities National Partnership
3.2	Closing the Gap National Partnership
3.3	Literacy and Numeracy National Partnership
3.4	Improving Teacher Quality National Partnership
4.	PERFORMANCE INDICATORS AND MEASURES
4.1	Low Socio-Economic Status School Communities National Partnership
4.2	Closing the Gap (Enhancing Education) National Partnership
4.3	Literacy and Numeracy National Partnership
4.4	Improving Teacher Quality National Partnership
5.	SCHOOL SELECTION
6.	SCHOOL LEVEL PLANS
7.	SUPPORT FOR SPECIFIC STUDENT COHORTS
8.	NATIONAL REFORMS

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The Smarter Schools National Partnership on Literacy and Numeracy, for Low SES School Communities and on Improving Teacher Quality is a joint initiative of the Australian Government and the Northern Territory Government, Catholic and Independent school sectors.

1.	INTRODUCTION

The Smarter Schools National Partnerships are a joint initiative between the Australian Government and the Northern Territory Department of Education and Training, Catholic and Independent schooling sectors.
This plan outlines the Northern Territory’s effort to deliver reform under the Smarter Schools National Partnerships for Improving Teacher Quality, Literacy and Numeracy, Low Socio-Economic Status School Communities and the relevant components of Closing the Gap (Schedule I Enhancing Education). It aims to deliver accelerated and sustainable achievement of improved educational outcomes for students in the Northern Territory, particularly Indigenous students, through the implementation of evidence-based initiatives that will target intensive effort into areas of greatest need.  Reforms will complement, intensify and value add to existing effort and ongoing research and evaluation will continue to build an evidence base that is relevant to the Northern Territory context that will influence educational service delivery.
School leaders, in collaboration with families and local communities, will be central to the design, planning and implementation of localised reform that builds an environment of high expectations and enhanced engagement with education.  School improvement planning processes will be the central determinant for activity at the local level and will inform the provision of regional/sectoral and systemic services.
1.1	Low Socio-Economic Status School Communities National Partnership
The Australian Government will contribute $70.125 million over seven years (2009 – 2015) to this National Partnership. The Northern Territory will match this funding. The Partnership will be rolled out in 113 Northern Territory schools from 2009. Of these, seven are Catholic schools and nine are Independent schools.  
The plan integrates six key reform areas aimed at improving student learning outcomes in participating schools. These reform areas are:
•	Incentives to attract high-performing principals and teachers;
•	Adoption of best-practice performance management and staffing arrangements that articulate a clear role for principals;
•	School operational arrangements which encourage innovation and flexibility;
•	Provision of innovative and tailored learning opportunities; 
•	Strengthened school accountability;
•	External partnerships with parents, other schools, businesses and communities and provision of access to extended services.
This plan provides an opportunity for schools to pilot new reforms in the way schooling is funded, structured and delivered in low socio-economic status school communities which, if shown to be successful, could be developed into recommendations for system wide transformational change. Many of these strategies will be part of formal evaluation which will inform future systemic application.   
1.2	Closing the Gap National Partnership (Schedule I Enhancing Literacy) 
The Australian Government will invest an additional $44.294 million over three years (July 2009-June 2012) to improve the quality of education for remote Indigenous students living in prescribed communities in the Northern Territory.  It aims to enhance the delivery of quality education services to Indigenous students and significantly improve teacher quality and Indigenous literacy and numeracy outcomes in participating schools.
76 schools – six of which are Catholic schools and three are Independent schools – will benefit from this funding. From 2010, schools will be provided support to regional/sectoral and system driven initiatives and will progressively commence implementing site-based reforms during 2010 and 2011, in line with their participation in the Low Socio-Economic Status School Communities National Partnership.
The schools involved are a sub-set of those involved in the Low Socio-Economic Status School Communities National Partnership.  Reform will supplement and enhance the effort generated through under the other Smarter Schools National Partnership Agreements.  Measures commenced under the Northern Territory Emergency Response, will be maintained, strengthened or modified based on the learning as to what works in different local contexts, and there will be a focus on ensuring a seamless transition to any new arrangements.
Effort under Closing the Gap will particularly focus on developing career pathways for Indigenous staff, increasing the number of Indigenous staff with education qualifications and providing support and programs to enable teachers and students in these remote school communities achieve improved outcomes in literacy and numeracy.
1.3	Literacy and Numeracy National Partnership
The Australian Government will contribute up to $14.888 million over four years (2009 – 2012) to this National Partnership to assist the Northern Territory accelerate improvement in literacy and numeracy.  This funding will be supplemented by co-investment by the Northern Territory.  The focus of this effort will be on supporting targeted schools to accelerate improvement using locally determined evidence-based strategies, and on providing systemic support to all schools to enhance the use of data and evidence-based practice to improve literacy and numeracy outcomes.  
The plan integrates three priority reform areas aimed at improving student learning outcomes in participating schools. These reform areas are:
•	Effective and evidence based teaching of literacy and numeracy;
•	Monitoring student and school literacy and numeracy performance to identify where support is needed; and
•	Strong school leadership and whole school engagement with literacy and numeracy. 
All schools involved in Smarter Schools National Partnerships will have a literacy and numeracy focus.  Specific effort under this National Partnership will involve the introduction of systemic and regional support and services to enhance the use of evidence-based practice, diagnostic systems and data-based teaching and learning. Nineteen targeted schools will also implement evidence-based strategies to accelerate improve student outcomes in the first year of this partnership with groups of schools in outer years to be identified based on their literacy and numeracy improvement needs.  
1.4	Improving Teacher Quality National Partnership
The Australian Government will contribute up to $5.422 million over five years (2009 – 2013) to this National Partnership to assist the Northern Territory deliver system-wide reforms targeting critical points in the teacher life-cycle to attract, train, place, develop and retain quality teachers and leaders in schools and classrooms. This funding will be supplemented by co-investment by the Northern Territory.
2.	CROSS SECTOR INVOLVEMENT
This plan has been developed through close collaboration between the Northern Territory’s government and non-government sectors.  The Non-Government Schools Ministerial Advisory Council (NGSMAC) has been appointed to provide strategic governance throughout the life of the Smarter Schools National Partnerships.  The NGSMAC provides representation from each of the non-government sector groups as well as the Department of Education and Training (DET).  
Whilst each sector will implement reforms aligned to the specific needs of their schools, there is general cross-sectoral agreement about the focus of reform and a number of initiatives in which all or multiple sectors will collectively participate.
The Northern Territory Catholic Education Office and the Association of Independent Schools Northern Territory will provide information and data to inform reporting to the Australian Government to generate annual reports and trigger release of payments.
3.	REFORM INITIATIVES AND STRATEGIES
The degree to which individual schools participate in these reforms is dependent on their degree of need and will vary from site to site. A starting point for school-initiated effort for all participating schools will be the school improvement plan that has been developed in consultation with their community and builds on identified local priorities, and where appropriate any supported review that has been undertaken at the site.  
3.1	Low Socio-Economic Status School Communities National Partnership
The funding under this National Partnership will be directed to support reform at the system, regional/sectoral and school levels. To enable the depth and breadth of reform to be achieved, schools have been arranged into four groups that will be provided resourcing and support to target their effort in order to meet the intended outcomes of this agreement and support the achievement of the objectives outlined in the National Education Agreement.
The first set of twenty-two schools will be involved in Remote Whole School Reform (RWSR).  At these sites, intensive resourcing and effort will ensure that schools will be supported, in partnership with the community to develop, trial and evaluate innovative solutions to address the range of complex and inter-related challenges that impact on the delivery of education in remote schools.  These schools align with those communities identified in the Northern Territory Government’s A Working Future initiative which incorporates the Remote Service Delivery National Partnership. The outcomes of this area of reform will be evaluated to inform further systemic improvement and will be shared cross-jurisdictionally, as appropriate.
Three sets of schools will participate in reforms targeting specific priority areas identified as: 
•	Engaging Remote Indigenous Students (ERIS)
Dedicated support for 51 very remote schools not participating in RWSR.
•	Engaging Urban Students (EUS) 
Wrap-around support for 16 schools with high proportions of students requiring additional support, including Indigenous students from town camp communities.
•	Supporting Indigenous Residential Students and Families (SIRSF) 
Support for remote Indigenous students attending schools in residential circumstances at seven schools.
The remaining seventeen eligible schools will have access to sectoral/regional and systemic initiatives as part of the Sustained Strategic Reform (SSR) to support the delivery of the priorities outlined in their school improvement plans.
Reforms by Output
The following list of strategies includes both systemic reforms and strategies that individual schools may pursue.  Not all of these reforms will be taken up by all sectors, or by all participating schools. 
In addition the Northern Territory Government will maintain Territory-wide data collection, analysis, monitoring and reporting for all improvement measures for this Agreement and ensure that funding continues to be realigned and directed toward successful initiatives that support the achievement of the outcomes required from the National Education Agreement. Additional targeted reforms against these outputs for Closing the Gap prescribed schools are outlined at 3.2 below. 
Incentives to attract high-performing principals and teachers
•	Trial site-specific incentives to reward achievement of exceptional results and encourage staff retention in remote school communities.
•	Introduce Annual School Improvement Awards to reward high achievement contributing to reform.
Adoption of best-practice performance management and staffing arrangements that articulate a clear role for principals
•	Introduce Business Support Consultants to support principals to:
•	effectively trial the management of devolved budget and recruitment responsibilities.  
•	provide professional support to principals to assist with developing management structures and processes to enable effective use of devolved responsibilities.  
•	Conduct research that assists to provide clarity about:
•	what a quality school in a very remote context looks like
•	what quality teaching looks like in very remote contexts (defining and measuring improvement and success)
•	the essential skill sets for successful school leadership and teaching in very remote school contexts. 
School operational arrangements which encourage innovation and flexibility
•	Trial innovative strategies, including blended delivery models to improve the quality of education in very remote contexts – particularly where there are teacher or housing shortages (these may include the trial of flexible school hours/terms, delivery of learning by community members or virtual delivery of training and professional learning, and includes flexible delivery of professional learning or training for educators).
•	On-site professional development and support in mentoring & coaching techniques (both within and beyond the classroom) will enhance teacher performance and build more effective teaching partnerships with para-professionals in the classroom.
•	Provide Residential Care Workers access to ongoing localised professional development to ensure they are equipped to support the changing needs of different students in their care and for them to undertake extension programs to further build capacity. 

Provision of innovative and tailored learning opportunities
•	Provide online access to virtual senior secondary and vocational courses will provide remote students access to specialised and other course offerings that would otherwise be not available.
•	Provide specialised support targeted to the needs of disadvantaged students with an emphasis on resilience building programs, youth role-models and student support coordination. 
•	Establish an accredited ESL course and professional network of ESL educators in which staff working with Indigenous ESL students will be encouraged to participate.
Strengthened school accountability
•	Support principals in remote schools to focus on instructional leadership in driving whole of school reform through:
•	access to extended professional support networks to enhance school improvement and planning processes and sharing of good practice and successful innovation 
•	access to critical friends to enhance school review and improvement planning.
External partnerships with parents, other schools, businesses and communities and provision of access to extended services
•	Implement innovative locally determined school-based strategies to improve Indigenous student attendance in very remote schools in line with priorities identified in school improvement planning processes. 
•	Implement site-specific attendance and engagement initiatives targeting the specific needs of disadvantaged students within urban and regional schools (priorities may include programs to assist managing the transition between schools as well as between home and school, development of flexible enrolment practices, personal learning plans, specialist transition units). 
•	Implement regional or sectoral attendance and engagement initiatives for targeted groups of students (priorities could include youth engagement strategies, retention programs, programs for youth at risk and young mums, out posted classes for mobile students). 
•	Provide wrap-around programs and trial locally developed solutions to support students and families to positively engage with schooling (may include parent programs, localised cross-agency community services planning, health programs). 
•	Residential schools will develop innovative ways to ensure quality and consistent communication with Indigenous students’ families and local communities and provide opportunities for them to participate in key decision making and governance.
•	Introduce a regional Indigenous education coordinator to support Indigenous staff and work with them to strengthen family, school and community partnerships and provide guidance to staff employed to support Indigenous students in the Darwin and Palmerston/Rural regions. 
•	Introduce a program to support ongoing contextualised local induction for staff in very remote sites to enhance cultural competency and engagement with the local community.  This will be in addition to and supplement systemic induction programs. 
•	Support schools to initiate targeted and innovative approaches to improving engagement of Indigenous families and communities in education (including formal governance, language and culture programs such as Digital Keeping Places) and establish schools as the education hub of the community.   
•	Residential Care Workers will participate in pre-selection screening, pre-service and in-service programs to enhance the effectiveness of support provided to Indigenous students living in residential facilities and their families.
3.2	Closing the Gap National Partnership
This National Partnership provides funding to maintain and strengthen measures commenced under the Northern Territory Emergency Response in prescribed communities in the Northern Territory.  It will enhance the delivery of quality education services to Indigenous students in remote school communities and focus on significant improvement in teacher quality and Indigenous literacy and numeracy outcomes.  It will assist to increase the capacity of the Northern Territory to deliver quality Indigenous education services and support the achievement of the objectives outlined in the National Indigenous Reform Agreement.   
Reforms by Output
The Closing the Gap National Partnership Agreement Schedule I (Enhancing Education) states that the Quality Teaching and Enhancing Literacy initiatives are bound by the conditions set out in the Smarter Schools National Partnership Agreements and associated Implementation Plan.  They will be delivered to only approved schools and those in prescribed areas, however there is likely to be broader benefit and learning for students across the Northern Territory education system as a result of these reforms.  
As such, activities have been arranged to support the delivery of relevant outputs across the other Smarter Schools National Partnership Agreements.  The following list of strategies includes both systemic reforms and strategies that individual schools may pursue.  Not all of these reforms will be taken up by all sectors, or by all participating schools. 
In addition the Northern Territory Government will maintain Territory-wide data collection, analysis, monitoring and reporting for all improvement measures for this Agreement and ensure that funding continues to be realigned and directed toward successful initiatives that support the achievement of the outcomes required from the National Education Agreement.

Strengthened School Accountability SES
•	An Intensive Improvement Team will provide strategic support for targeted government school leaders to plan and implement whole of school approaches to literacy and numeracy, behaviour management and student wellbeing. 
•	Support principals in remote schools to focus on instructional leadership in driving whole of school reform through providing access to critical friends to enhance school review and improvement planning.
External partnerships with parents, other schools, business and communities and provision of access to extended services SES
•	Trial inclusive models of leadership in very remote schools to assist principals better manage the diverse range of demands in remote contexts and engage with their local community.  This may include local community mentors, cultural advisors or co-principals.
•	Provide wrap-around programs and trial locally developed solutions to support students and families to positively engage with schooling (may include parent programs, localised cross-agency community services planning, health programs). 
•	Continue the Discourse and Discernment program in remote schools to improve the effectiveness of school organisation & educational outcomes, especially in the areas of literacy and numeracy and engage communities more effectively in the strategic directions of the school & its day to day life.
•	Provide regionally based Indigenous education coordinators to support Indigenous staff and work with them to strengthen family, school and community partnerships including building on Remote Learning Partnership Agreements.  They will also provide guidance to staff employed to support Indigenous students in regional and remote government schools.
•	Develop an Early Years integrated service delivery model to support remote schools to utilise AEDI information to improve services for students. 
•	Conduct formal evaluation of place-based approaches and very remote teacher recruitment and retention initiatives in partnership with Menzies School of Health Research to inform the future development of initiatives to support remote schools.  This research will be jointly funded with the Low Socio-Economic Status School Communities National Partnership.  
Provision of innovative and tailored learning opportunities SES
•	Provide opportunities for schools to deliver flexible pathways, including VET, for students in the middle years of schooling in remote schools.
•	Regional ESL coordinators will provide materials and professional support to assist with the delivery of effective teaching and learning programs in schools with high numbers of Indigenous ESL learners.  
•	Establish Territory-wide conductive hearing coordination to ensure schools have access to appropriate levels of professional development to support students.  
•	Pilot a leadership and pathways program for Indigenous senior years students with exemplary attendance to enable them to participate in an intensive residential program to fast-track personal learning plans.  This will identify career pathways and training options and will include virtual and blended ongoing support mechanisms.
School operational arrangements which encourage innovation and flexibility SES
•	Trial innovative strategies to improve the delivery of education in very remote contexts to support the delivery of priorities identified in school improvement planning processes.
Incentives to attract and retain high performing principals and teachers SES 
•	Introduce improved screening and induction programs to ensure suitable quality staff are selected and prepared to be deployed to remote schools.
Effective and evidence based teaching of literacy and numeracy L&N
•	Provide training in the facilitation of evidence-based approaches to literacy, numeracy and ESL to equip schools with dedicated, on-site expertise to support teacher professional development (known evidence-based approaches include QuickSmart and First Steps.  Additional programs will be identified once assessed favourably against the Evidence Based Framework).
•	Establish school-based part-time coaches to provide on-going whole-school and in class feedback and professional support to teachers in the delivery of selected evidence-based approaches to literacy, numeracy and ESL.  Coaches will enhance teacher performance through supporting documented robust self-enquiry into teaching practice linking national teacher standards and performance review processes.
•	Support schools to build the capability and capacity of the teaching and assistant teaching workforce through on-site delivery of accredited professional development in the explicit teaching of evidence-based approaches in literacy and ESL (these programs will be identified once assessed favourably against the Evidence-Based Practices Framework).
•	Establish a Remote Schools Specialist Support team to build the capacity schools in the area of ESL and literacy, special learning needs, health and well-being, numeracy, early years and secondary/VET/transitions.  On-site support will be delivered within the scope of each individual school’s improvement plan.

Strong school leadership and whole school engagement with literacy and numeracy L&N
•	Provide wrap-around programs and trial locally developed solutions to support students and families to positively engage with schooling (may include parent programs, localised cross-agency community services planning, health programs).
World leading PD and support empowering principals to better manage schools to achieve improved student results and to lead performance improvement at the local level TQ
•	Continue to support the Indigenous Education Leadership Institute’s Stronger, Smarter Leadership Program for staff.  The program focuses on the pursuit of improved educational outcomes for Indigenous students by challenging and supporting leadership at all levels through engagement with principals, teachers, community leaders and Government.
•	Provide access to coaching programs to support school leaders in schools associated with the effectively deliver quality education services in challenging very remote contexts. 
New pathways into teaching, Better pathways into teaching, Indigenous pathways into teaching  TQ
•	Identify and support Indigenous senior years students an interest in progressing a career in education to progress along their chosen pathway. 
•	Continue to support Indigenous professionals, para-professionals and other local community members, to complete educational qualifications though the provision of regional and site-based based Indigenous Training Coordinators. 
•	Continue to implement the ‘Growing Our Own’ project which is developing an authentic ‘two-way’ model of teacher preparation, learning and professional growth for Indigenous staff.
Improved performance management and continuous improvement in schools TQ
•	Professional standards and workplace-based development packages for Indigenous para-professionals will enhance the quality of the remote Indigenous education workforce in the Northern Territory.

3.3	Literacy and Numeracy National Partnership
This National Partnership supports reform to improve the literacy and numeracy outcomes for all students particularly those in most need.  It requires implementation of evidence-based literacy and numeracy strategies for targeted schools, school communities and students to inform a national understanding of and a shared accountability for student outcomes.  Effort under this partnership will support the achievement of the objectives outlined in the National Education Agreement.   These reforms are supplemented by additional effort in targeted schools associated with the Closing the Gap National Partnership (refer section 3.2), and by initiatives being implemented by the Northern Territory Government.
Reforms by Output
All schools involved in Smarter Schools National Partnerships will have a literacy and numeracy focus.  Specific effort under this National Partnership will involve the introduction of systemic and regional support and services to enhance the use of evidence-based practice, diagnostic systems and data-based teaching and learning. Nineteen targeted schools will also implement evidence-based strategies to accelerate improve student outcomes in the first year of this partnership with groups of schools in outer years to be identified based on their literacy and numeracy improvement needs.  
Effective and evidence based teaching of literacy and numeracy
•	Implement school and regionally determined evidence-based intervention and programs to support accelerated improvement in literacy and numeracy outcomes in targeted schools.
•	Develop an Evidence-Based Practices Framework that defines the critical features of effective literacy and numeracy programs. This framework will be used to indentify suitable literacy and numeracy programs, which will be further assessed against defined system scalability criteria before being resourced and made available to schools. 
Targeted reforms against this output for Closing the Gap prescribed schools are outlined at 3.2 above. 
Monitoring student and school literacy and numeracy performance to identify where support is needed 
•	Regionally-based Assessment for Learning coaches will provide mentoring and support for schools in the use of data to inform teaching and learning. 
•	Coordinate improved diagnostic and data systems to enhance the availability and use of data in schools.
Strong school leadership and whole school engagement with literacy and numeracy 
•	Literacy and numeracy leadership programs will build on outcomes of current Principals as Literacy Leaders (PALL) and Leading Aligned Numeracy Development (LAND) projects.  This initiative will be funded from Low Socio-Economic Status School Communities National Partnership.
Targeted reforms against this output for Closing the Gap prescribed schools are outlined at 3.2 above. 

3.4	Improving Teacher Quality National Partnership 
The Teacher Quality National Partnership is designed to improve teacher and school leader quality to sustain a quality teaching workforce. The following actions have been identified to contribute to the Northern Territory’s effort in this area to improve the quality of para-professionals, professionals and leaders in schools to be underpinned by robust and related performance and capability frameworks.  These reforms are supplemented by additional effort in targeted schools associated with the Closing the Gap National Partnership (refer section 3.2 above) and by initiatives being implemented by the Northern Territory Government.
Facilitation Reforms	Actions	
World leading PD and support empowering principals to better manage schools to achieve improved student results and to lead performance improvement at the local level 	•	Provide programs to build capacity of aspiring leaders to build system capability to provide effective leadership in complex school communities and hard to fill schools. These will be developed in association with institutions such as the Australian Council for Educational Leaders to ensure the delivery of leading edge programs that develop capacity to engage with communities (this initiative is funded from Low Socio-Economic Status School Communities National Partnership).	
New pathways into teaching 
Better pathways into teaching 
Indigenous pathways into teaching 	•	Pre-service practicum programs delivered in partnership with local and interstate tertiary providers will offer supported on-site internships in order to better prepare graduates to work in remote schools, and assist with retention of the remote workforce.  In addition to provider-funded placements, the Northern Territory will self-select, orientate and fund 20 high-performing under-graduates per annum to participate.
•	Established a scholarship program to attract high performing Northern Territory senior secondary students into teaching programs at Charles Darwin University.   	
New professional standards to underpin national reforms 	•	The Teacher Registration Board will ensure national pre-service teacher education course accreditation and registration standards are adopted and embedded across all sectors.	
Nationally agreed process for accrediting/certifying Accomplished and Leading Teachers
	•	The Northern Territory will adopt the national Accomplished and Leading Teacher certification process and 20 dedicated positions will be established in selected remote schools to attract high performing teachers to hard to staff schools and enhance the in-school support for early-career teachers and those new to remote contexts (this initiative is funded through the Low Socio- Economic Status School Communities National Partnership). 	
Joint engagement with higher education providers to improve teacher quality 
Establish quality placements for teacher education courses
Establish School Centres of Excellence	•	Two very remote Centres of Excellence will be established as hubs at which pre-service teachers as well as high potential teachers and leaders can experience on-site professional learning and the delivery of quality remote Indigenous education. The Northern Territory will ensure that Centres of Excellence are established in line with any nationally agreed guidelines (this initiative is being jointly funded through the Low Socio-Economic Status School Communities National Partnership).  	
Improved mobility of the Australian teaching workforce 
Improved quality and availability of teacher workforce data		•	The Northern Territory will continue to support the work of the relevant Teacher Quality Steering Committee sub-group and will ensure that available workforce data sets align with and contribute to the development of the nationally consistent approach.	
Improved performance management and continuous improvement in schools 	•	The Northern Territory Government’s complementary effort to improve workforce data collection and analysis, performance management systems, will complement  specific reforms aimed at supporting Indigenous staff in schools associated with the Closing the Gap National Partnership (refer 3.2 above).	

4.	
PERFORMANCE INDICATORS AND MEASURES 
The Northern Territory will aggregate performance against the following indicators to report progress against the Smarter Schools National Partnerships.   
Outcomes	Performance indicators	
All children are engaged in and benefiting from schooling.	The proportion of children enrolled in and attending school.	
Young people are meeting basic literacy and numeracy standards, and overall levels of literacy and numeracy achievement are improving.	Literacy and numeracy achievement of Year 3, 5, 7 and 9 students in national testing.	
Schooling promotes the social inclusion and reduces the education disadvantage of children, especially Indigenous children.	The proportion of Indigenous and low socio-economic status children enrolled in and attending school.
Literacy and numeracy achievement of Year 3, 5, 7 and 9 Indigenous and low socio-economic status students in national testing.
The proportion of the 19-year-old Indigenous and low socio-economic status population having attained at least Year 12 or equivalent or Australian Quality Framework (AQF) Certificate II.
The proportion of Indigenous students completing Year 10.	
Australian students excel by international standards.	The proportion of students in the bottom and top levels of performance in international testing (e.g. Program for International Student Assessment, Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study).	
Young people make a successful transition from school to work and further study.	The proportion of the 19-year-old population having attained at least a Year 12 or equivalent or AQF Certificate II.
The proportion of young people participating in post-school education or training six months after school.
The proportion of 18-24 year olds engaged in full-time employment, education or training at or above AQF Certificate III.	
4.1	Low Socio-Economic Status School Communities National Partnership
The following performance indicators will be used by sectors to report on progress and outcomes achieved by schools participating in the Low Socio-Economic Status School Communities National Partnership.  The scope of the reform delivered at each site will determine an individual school’s participation in this National Partnership and therefore the specific performance measures against which they will contribute.
Outcomes	Relevant NT Performance Measures	
All children are engaged in, and benefiting from, schooling NEA
Schooling promotes social inclusion and reduces the educational disadvantage of children, especially Indigenous children NEA	Reporting for ALL, Non-Indigenous and Indigenous students as appropriate for each of:
Average attendance rates – Baseline 2009
Proportion of students attending over 80% - Baseline 2008
Proportion of ‘at risk’ enrolments – Baseline 2009
Average enrolment – Baseline 2008
Apparent retention rates - Baseline 2008
Level of student, parent & community satisfaction – Baseline 2010
	
Young people are meeting basic literacy and numeracy standards, and overall levels of literacy and numeracy achievement are improving NEA
Halve the gap in reading, writing and numeracy achievement for Indigenous children within a decade NIRA	NAPLAN gain measures – for cohorts moving through year levels. Baseline years (a) 2008 and (b) 2009
Apply to year levels 3, 5, 7 & 9 as appropriate – and to all test domains :
-	Mean scale score – ALL students
-	Mean scale score – Indigenous students
-	Number and % of ALL students at or above National Minimum Standard
-	Number and % of Indigenous students at or above National Minimum Standard
-	Number and % of Non-Indigenous students above National Minimum Standard
-	Participation rates – ALL, Indigenous and Non-Indigenous students
Computer-based diagnostic assessment – annual measure – baseline 2011
Progress against  NT Curriculum Framework/ National achievement standards in Literacy and Numeracy – annual mid-year measure	
Young people make a successful transition from school to work and further study NEA
Halve the gap for Indigenous students in Year 12 attainment or equivalent rates by 2020 NIRA	Reporting for ALL, Non-Indigenous and Indigenous students as appropriate for each of:
Number and Proportion of 14-19 year olds participating in education until Year 12 or equivalent
Number and Proportion of NT Certificate of Education and Training and/or VET in Schools certificate completions 	

4.2	Closing the Gap (Enhancing Education) National Partnership
The initiatives and reforms supporting the 76 schools involved in this National Partnership will align with, supplement and enhance those undertaken in the Low Socio-Economic Status School Communities National Partnership.  As such performance for schools involved will be measured against the indicators outlined in 4.1 above, and will be reported as a separate sub-set of data.    
4.3	Literacy and Numeracy National Partnership
The following improvement measures will be used to generate reward payment under the Literacy and Numeracy National Partnership.  The targets set against these will determine the degree to which reward payments are received. 
Negotiated Improvement Measures and Targets
Measures
NAPLAN measures – for cohorts moving through year levels.  Baseline years (a) 2008 and (b) 2009
Apply to year levels 3, 5, 7 & 9 as appropriate and to all test domains 
•	Mean scale score – ALL students
•	Mean scale score – Indigenous students
•	Number and % of ALL students at or above National Minimum Standard
•	Number and % of Indigenous students at or above National Minimum Standard
•	Number and % of Non-Indigenous students above National Minimum Standard
•	Participation rates – ALL, Indigenous and Non-Indigenous students
Computer-based diagnostic assessment – annual measure – baseline 2011

4.4	Improving Teacher Quality National Partnership
The following milestones will generate reward payment under the Improving Teacher Quality National Partnership.   
Reward Reform 	Milestone	Ambition	
Improved pay dispersion to reward quality teaching	20 Accomplished and Leading Teacher positions established in remote schools	Establishment of these positions in remote schools will enhance the number of high-performing teachers in remote schools and will offer additional onsite support to early career teachers and teachers new to remote contexts.  The number of Teachers of Exemplary Practice in remote schools has historically been negligible	
Improved reward structures for teachers and leaders who work in disadvantaged Indigenous rural/remote and hard to staff schools	Pilot Industrial reforms will result in 
•	refined classification structure for principals  that provide flexibility for differential remuneration for remote and hard to fill schools 
•	job descriptions that clearly articulate the roles and responsibilities specific to remote teachers, including community engagement 
•	tax related incentives for remote staff, including contracts that enable payment for additional hours worked and improved performance 	These reforms will enable the complex and challenging roles of teachers and school leaders in remote contexts to be formally recognised.  The pilot test the potential for these reforms to attract and retain staff, impact on teacher performance  and lead to improved outcomes for students 	
Improved in-school support for teachers and leaders, particularly in disadvantaged Indigenous rural/remote and hard to staff schools	Inclusive leadership models established in 20 large very remote schools to provide support for school leaders and enhance community engagement with education	The piloting of creative approaches to leadership in remote schools will enable the testing of approaches to support principals effectively engage with parents, students and the community in schooling.  These models will be evaluated and inform the evidence-base from which further in-school support models will be created.  	
Continual improvement program for all teachers	Contextually relevant induction programs for remote staff established 
Screening program established to improve selection of remote staff 
Assistant Teacher Standards trialled, refined and aligned to national teacher standards	Improved screening and induction of teachers applying to work in remote schools will ensure the recruitment of appropriately qualified, quality teachers to work in these highly challenging schools, where teacher turnover is high.   Quality induction specific to the needs of remote teachers will assist ensure they are equipped with the necessary toolkit to operate effectively in remote education contexts. 

	
Indigenous teachers’ and school leaders’ engagement with community members	Increased number of local Indigenous community members participating in governance training 
Increased number of Indigenous employees with formal educational qualifications 	Developing innovative ways to engage Indigenous community members in education is essential to ensuring sustainable improvements in education outcomes, particularly in remote schools.  Building the capacity of the Indigenous workforce and engaging parents and significant community members in school governance are critical success factors.  	

5.	SCHOOL SELECTION
130 of the Northern Territory’s 187 schools are eligible for inclusion in the combined Smarter Schools reforms.  Schools were selected to participate based on the following:
National Partnership		Selection Basis	
Low Socio-Economic Status School Communities 	The Australian Bureau of Statistics Index of Relative Socio-economic Disadvantage (IRSED) identifies geographic areas that are relatively disadvantaged, based on a range of indicators relating to the economic and social resources of people and households within an area.  Schools were identified as relatively disadvantaged based on the IRSED score of the addresses of the students or the location of the school.  	
Closing the Gap	Schools in prescribed areas and those with large numbers of students living in prescribed areas as approved through business case proposals.
Closing the Gap funding must be targeted at school within prescribed remote communities as the first priority with exceptions considered on a case-by-case basis.	
Literacy and Numeracy	Schools where 
•	2008 NAPLAN results indicated room and capacity for improvement 
•	2005-2007 MAP results showed on upward trajectory
•	Improvement focused leadership
•	Test cohort above 10 per year level
•	Indigenous cohort more than 20%
•	Total school population more than 50 students	
6.	SCHOOL LEVEL PLANS
School improvement plans will be developed by principals in participating schools in consultation with their school community.  Review and planning processes will be supported by regional and sectoral personnel. They will explicitly identify the strategies to address improvement in literacy and numeracy as well as other identified priority areas such as attendance and community engagement.  
The plans will identify strategies being funded under the Smarter Schools National Partnerships as well as targets for improvement in their identified priority areas.  
School improvement plans will be published online via the Department of Education and Training website at http: www.det.nt.gov.au, as school-based activities under the Smarter Schools National Partnerships commence.  Published annual school reports will outline progress against targets and strategies referenced in the school improvement plan.  
7.	SUPPORT FOR SPECIFIC STUDENT COHORTS
Significant effort under the Smarter Schools National Partnerships will be targeted to improve the quality of education and support for remote Indigenous students.  Such effort in RWSR and ERIS schools will focus on site-based and regional/sectoral reforms such as 
•	trial of inclusive leadership models (cultural advisors, co-principal models, community mentors) to enhance school–community partnerships in education
•	trial of flexible and blended delivery of learning that suits the needs of individual communities operating in very remote contexts
•	innovative ways to improve student attendance and engagement 
•	pilot of localised incentives to attract and retain staff and reward performance 
•	student well-being programs and support that enable students and families positively engage in schooling and prepare to enter the workforce.
Indigenous students from very remote locations who attend residential schools will also be provided additional support through the development of programs that provide pre and in-service professional development to ensure Residential Care Workers are equipped to support the specific needs of this student cohort.  Innovative strategies to build partnerships with residential student’s families and community will provide increased opportunity for them to participate in their children’s learning.
Specific effort will also target improving the support provided to disadvantaged students in urban and regional locations – including but not limited to - mobile Indigenous students and those living in town camp communities – particularly through site-based student attendance and engagement strategies being implemented in EUS schools.  
All schools involved in the Smarter Schools National Partnerships will be will be required to place specific emphasis on closing the gap in educational outcomes for Indigenous students – particularly in literacy and numeracy and student attendance.  
8.	NATIONAL REFORMS
The Northern Territory is 
•	committed to implementing nationally agreed reforms to improve teacher quality.  Systemic, regional and school focused effort to improve the quality of para-professionals, professionals and leaders in schools will be underpinned by robust and related performance and capability frameworks.
•	committed to participating in the development and adoption of a range of reforms from the Improving Teacher Quality National Partnership. The Northern Territory will continue to support the work of the relevant Teacher Quality Steering Committee sub-group and will ensure that available workforce data sets align with and contribute to the development of the nationally consistent approach.
•	committed to forging new and strengthened partnerships with tertiary providers to attract and encourage new entrants into educational career pathways, improve pre-service support to ensure graduates are adequately prepared to work in remote contexts and maximise opportunities for local Indigenous people to access education career pathways. 
•	supportive of Teach for Australia and would welcome the opportunity to recruit graduates of the program into leadership positions in hard to staff schools and/or explore the development an accelerated preparation programs for very remote schools.
A range of complementary reform will contribute to enhancing the educational workforce at all career stages in areas such as: 
•	development of a Staff Portal to improve quality and availability of workforce data and assist to align individual teacher professional learning and performance plans with school and system priorities
•	piloting of industrial reforms that relate to refined classification structure for principals that provide flexibility for differential remuneration for remote and hard to fill schools, job descriptions that clearly articulate the roles and responsibilities specific to remote teachers and tax related incentives for remote staff.
•	The Working in Teaching Teams initiative will create stronger partnerships between teachers and Assistant Teachers through shared professional learning 
•	Development of a toolkit for school leaders will provide a guided approach to performance management differentiated by career stage.  This will assist in providing meaningful and more structured performance management and clarity of expectations of quality teacher performance.