Implementation

Jackson School is a collaborative learning community for all. We aim to develop independence through safety, respect and responsibility. We aspire to offer authentic educational experiences that develop futures, create opportunities and inspire potential; enabling our students to be valued and contributing members of the wider community. We share and celebrate our successes and achievements. 

Our core purpose is to provide an inclusive, rigorous learning environment that challenges and engages our whole learning community to achieve their full potential as life-long learners. The school provides a rich and deep curriculum with a strong focus on literacy and numeracy. In addition to the comprehensive classroom programs offered in literacy and numeracy, a two-year learning/inquiry cycle addresses the domains of Science and Humanities. Specialist teachers provide instruction in Physical Education, Design & Digital Technologies (STEM) and Visual and Performing Arts. Using ICT for digital learning is an integral part of 21st century learning for our students. An Independence Curriculum incorporates the General Capabilities of the Victorian Curriculum. Personal and Social Capability and Critical and Creative Thinking remain our core capabilities delivered through DE’s Rights, Resilience, and Respectful Relationships (RRRR). From Year 9 to 12 the focus of the curriculum is centred around the eight employability skills aligned to VPC Work Related Skills outcomes: Learning, Technology, Problem Solving, Planning and Organising, Initiative and Enterprise, Collaboration, Self-Awareness and Management and Communication. The employability skills remain a throughline of our learning program from Prep to Year 12.

The Achievement SIT is focused on the FISO improvement cycle for continuous improvement using a range of data and evidence to inform teacher practice and student achievement. Principal, Leading Teachers and Learning Specialists are supported by a team of Assistant Learning Specialists (PLT Leaders). There is a high level of professional learning at all levels and the promotion of collaboration to build collective efficacy within our professional learning teams (PLTs).

The school has developed a structured approach to curriculum planning that ensures a shared vision within the school on curriculum development, common documentation and common understanding of the whole-school curriculum. In developing its curriculum plan the school will provide a broad range of educational pathways to ensure improved student outcomes to vocational work placements and applied learning opportunities. The data analysed regularly by teachers in their curriculum planning includes year level assessments and tracking tools and an analysis of school performance data including student, staff and parent surveys. Curriculum plans and scope and sequence documents map out our curriculum structure. We will identify, track and cater for the different needs of particular contextual groups of learners (CGOLS) when developing and reviewing our curriculum. 

Victorian Curriculum (Prep to Year 10)

Teaching & Learning at Jackson School is proudly based on the Victorian Curriculum F-10 including A-D. The curriculum is the common set of knowledge and skills required by students for life-long learning, social development and active and informed citizenship. The Victorian Curriculum incorporates the Australian Curriculum and reflects Victorian priorities and standards, but differs in some important aspects, most notably the representation of the curriculum as a continuum of learning and the structural design. We pride ourselves on building a student-centred learning community which aims to develop students’ self-esteem, confidence and independence at every level. Students at Jackson School study a minimum requirement of Literacy, Numeracy, Inquiry Learning, eSMART, RRRR/SHV and PBIS weekly. Students also participate in our Specialist learning areas weekly: Physical Education, Visual & Media Art, STEM and Design Technology, Performing Arts and Library. Students also attend camps, incursions and excursions into the community to develop their personal learning and interpersonal skills in the real world. With teacher support and curriculum adaptations, students work towards participating collaboratively in group learning activities. 

Literacy consists of reading and viewing; writing and speaking and listening. We value the importance of developing good communication skills (both verbal and non-verbal) to build the foundations of reading and writing. Numeracy consists of number and algebra; measurement and geometry (space from 2025 in the Victorian Curriculum 2.0); and statistics and probability (from Level 3). We value the importance of developing visual imagery of number and how to apply these skills practically in the real world.  Our Inquiry Learning units are based on a two-year banded curriculum of subjects from the Victorian Curriculum including the general capabilities. Inquiry Learning provides a context for authentic, real-world teaching and learning.

In our Foundation Stage (Prep-2) Curriculum follows a child-centred play-based learning model with embedded English, Mathematics, Health and PE, The Arts and Personal Social Capability from the Victorian Curriculum. In Lower Primary (Years 3-4), Upper Primary (5-6) and Lower Secondary (Years 7-8) this supported learning environment is strongly focused on providing children with a strong foundation of essential literacy and numeracy skills. Students then onto more collaborative project-based learning in Upper Secondary (Years 9&10) focused around the World of Work program. In Senior Secondary (Year 11&12) we also offer two pathways, including: Victorian Pathways Certificate (VPC) at Foundation Level and ASDAN Towards Foundation. See further information below.

Further information on how our school implements the curriculum, including the learning areas provided at each year level/band of schooling, and the capabilities that are developed by students across these learning areas and the approximate time allocations for each learning area, is provided in our whole school, curriculum area, year level and unit / lesson curriculum plans.

Language and EAL provision

As a day special school, Jackson School is exempt under ETR Regulations 61 from teaching Language provision. However, Jackson School does deliver Auslan (taught through Key Word Sign) as a Language, considering many of our students having complex communication needs. This is support through our whole school communication board as an low-technology aided language display (ALD). Jackson School also has a high proportion of students with English as an Additional Language and speak Languages Other Than English (LOTE) at home. Student’s Individual Learning Plans (ILPs) goals are aligned to the EAL curriculum for new arrival students as required. These students are also assessed against the EAL Pathways Continuum and teaching staff make use of the Department’s EAL resources.

Travel Education

Our Travel Education program starts in Year 7 until our students become independent travellers to support with future career pathways. The program develops journey planning, getting about, behaving appropriately and staying safe. Ongoing assessments are focused around problem solving and worry registers, supported by excursion travel education checklists. 

Students will experience:

• Increased independence, confidence and improved self-esteem
• Increased engagement and improved education outcomes
• Increased opportunities for accessing further education, training and employment
• Increased access to health and other public services and facilities
• Increased opportunities to participate in social, community and leisure activities

Parents/Carers will experience:

• Reduced care responsibilities and tasks as their child’s independence increases
• Increased confidence in the future options for your child

School will experience:

• Motivated students who require less support
• Increased student engagement and improved educational outcomes

Career Education

At Jackson School, we use the careers curriculum framework to help develop a local, custom and high quality career development program.

There are six steps in a young person's acquisition of skills for career development. These form the structure of the framework.

Goals at each step are organised into three stages:

• Self development: young people understand themselves, build their experiences and achievements and develop their capabilities.
• Career exploration: young people locate, investigate and consider opportunities in learning and future work options.
• Career management: young people make and adjust career action plans and manage their life choices, changes and transitions.

Although young people complete all six steps each year, the career action plans focus on a different step each year. The six steps are:

• I Discover: young people discover their strengths and talents
• I Explore: young people explore the world of work and their place in it
• I Focus: young people focus on their values and interests
• I Plan: young people use decision-making skills to plan their learning and career programs
• I Decide: young people decide on their best options and opportunities
• I Apply: young people apply their skills and knowledge to their learning and career planning.

I discover and I explore: Year 7/8 begin their career education journey. They start their Career Action Planning (CAP) focused around their aspirations, likes, interests and strengths. This is recorded in their Jackson Learner Profile which aligned to the Disability Inclusion Profile). In Year 7/8 students complete a Career Exploration (in Term 4) about their potential future pathways. 

I focus and I plan: Year 9 student begin their career profiling through Morrisby, an online career discovery tool. See My Career Insights. In Year 10 students also receive an analysis of their Morrisby career assessment through one-on-one career counselling by an externally accredited career practitioner.

I decide and I apply: In Year 11/12 student update their Morrisby career profile. They also create and update an online career action plan through My Career Portfolio.

The World of Work (Year 9/10)

Enterprise: students work collaboratively in project-based teams each term (Service, Finance & Marketing, Production) to run the school cafe program focusing on employability skills. Students learn to run a business and begin to identify skills and interests for their future pathway. The World of Work program provided integrated English and Maths aligned to the Victorian Curriculum. Students also participate in the William Angliss short course in safe food handling.

See further information about Career Education and Work Education/Work Experience below.

Work Education & Work Experience

At Year 9/10 the work education curriculum focuses on health & safety, employability skills, and future careers. A Job Well Done influences our work education program and helps students with disabilities prepare for work experience.

Year 10 students participate in an internal work experience placements with our onsite Barista, inspired by two VET modules: prepare and serve espresso coffee and use hygienic practices for food safety. Students may also travel with their class and engage in industry investigations about work placements in the community.

Year 10 students undertake VET and SBAT visits as a familiarisation for their Year 11/12 course preferences.

Year 11/12 VPC and ASDAN students participate in Supported or Independent Work Experience.

Year 11/12 VPC students also undertake the Safe@Work general module. This general module identifies common hazards exist in many workplaces. It's important to learn about these so students can stay safe while at work, help understand health and safety hazards and laws and provide practical solutions to common health and safety problems.

All Year 12 students take part in post-school provider and industry visits to inform their post-school pathways.

VPC students take part in a range of supported and independent work experience, including: 

• Enable (IT Recycling)
• Dimmeys (Retail)
• Secondbite (Food Recovery)
• Brunskwick Industries / Mambourin / Brite Industries (Warehousing)
• Driver Education
• Jigsaw (Social Enterprise)
• Equine (Sports Management)
• Blackwood (Maintenance)

ASDAN - Towards Independence

ASDAN offers a range of internationally approved qualifications. At Jackson School we deliver the Towards Independence program in Years 9-12 (Age 14+). Towards Independence provides a framework of activities to develop and accredit personal, social, work-related and independent living skills. There are more than 70 modules, which can be used separately and accumulated to build a record of personal achievement. This has also included supported work experience programs, community access and travel education in the community.

Our staff members are trained to deliver the ASDAN Towards Independence program. Jackson School is a registered provider of ASDAN and we are externally moderated annually on the quality of delivery and assessment. 

Levels of support are used to show how the learner has achieved the activity. They show individual progression and differentiation between learners:

• Experience recorded
• Gestural help
• No help
• Physical help
• Sensory experience
• Spoken/signed help

Our core modules are:

• Starting Out (Mandatory Module)
• Literacy: Developing Communication Skills
• Developing Numeracy Skills
• Independent Living Skills
• Using Transport

Victorian Pathways Certificate (VPC)

In 2023 we transitioned from Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning (VCAL Foundation) to the Victorian Pathways Certificate (VPC) as part of the state-wide Senior Secondary Reform. 

The Victorian Pathways Certificate (VPC) which is an accredited foundation secondary qualification under the Education and Training Reform Act 2006 (Vic) and aligned to Level 1 in the Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF). The VPC curriculum provides learning based on applied learning principles and a practical pathway into further education,  training and employment to become contributing members of the wider community. 

The VPC is designed to engage students through applied learning and provides flexibility to meet an individual’s learning needs. The VPC aims to build the skills, knowledge, values and capabilities that enable students to make informed choices about pathways into further education, training and/or employment. Through participation in the VPC students will gain the necessary foundation skills to allow them to make a successful post-schooling transition. 

At Jackson School, VPC is delivered to Years 11/12 students over a two-year period through a project-based learning model to ensure authentic, real-world learning experiences aligned to the Principles of Allied Learning (Pillars). The coursework is designed and delivered at a more accessible level than the VCE and VCE Vocational Major. The VPC is delivered at student's own pace and our teachers  assess students progress through a range of classroom and offsite learning activities.

The minimum requirement for the VPC is satisfactory completion of 12 units, which must include at least two units of: 

• VPC Literacy 
• VPC Numeracy
• VPC Personal Development Skills
• VPC Work Related Skills

The remaining four units may include units of competency (UoC) from nationally recognised Vocational Education and Training (VET). 

Structured Workplace Learning (SWL)

Jackson School offers a wide range of Structured Workplace Learning including Vocational Education and Training (VET) courses through partial completion "Trade Taster" courses, Certificate I, Certificate II or sometimes Certificate III. Some student may also undertake School-Based Apprenticeships (SBAT), including through HeadStart. 

The VPC can include units of competency from nationally recognised VET qualifications. Training from a nationally recognised VET qualification may contribute towards the VPC through the following recognition arrangements: 

• enrolment in a VCAA-approved VET program or a School-based Apprenticeship or Traineeship (SBAT) 
• enrolment in any other nationally recognised qualification at Certificate I or above (block credit recognition) 
• successful completion of 90 nominal hours of units of competency from a nationally recognised VET qualification at Certificate I level or above provides one unit of credit towards the completion requirements of the VPC

In conjunction with registered training organisations (RTOs), students can work towards obtaining units of competency from the following qualifications: 

• Carpentry, Demolition and Automotive Trade Taster (AGA)
• Certificate II in Sport and Recreation 
• Certificate II in Cookery
• Certificate II Kitchen Operations 
• Certificate II in Food Processing
• Certificate II in Hospitality
• Certificate II in Construction 
• Certificate II in Plumbing
• Certificate II in Animation
• Certificate II in Animal Studies
• Certificate II in Automotive Vocational Preparation
• Certificate II in Automotive (Panel & Spray Painting)
• Certificate II in Automotive Maintenance
• Certificate II Salon Assistant
• Certificate II Horticulture
• Certificate III Horticulture
• Certificate III in Sport and Recreation 

Students may complete parts of VET courses through "Trade Tasters", also called micro-credentials. Micro-credentials in vocational education and training (VET) offer more flexible ways of learning. Micro-credentials support people to experience different industries and can be used as building blocks towards full qualifications. Not all course are offered each year.

To learn more about VET in the Victorian Pathways Certificate.