Making the Grade: Autonomy and Accountability in Victorian Schools Inquiry into School Devolution and Accountability Final Report July 2013 © State of Victoria 2013 This final report is copyright. No part may be reproduced by any process except in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright Act 1968 (Cth), without prior written permission from the Victorian Competition and Efficiency Commission. Cover images reproduced courtesy of the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development ISBN 978-1-922222-08-4 (print) ISBN 978-1-922222-09-1 (pdf) Disclaimer The views expressed herein are those of the Victorian Competition and Efficiency Commission and do not purport to represent the position of the Victorian Government. The content of this final report is provided for information purposes only. Neither the Victorian Competition and Efficiency Commission nor the Victorian Government accepts any liability to any person for the information (or the use of such information) which is provided in this final report or incorporated into it by reference. The information in this final report is provided on the basis that all persons having access to this final report undertake responsibility for assessing the relevance and accuracy of its content. Victorian Competition and Efficiency Commission GPO Box 4379 MELBOURNE VICTORIA 3001 AUSTRALIA Telephone: (03) 9092 5800 Facsimile: (03) 9092 5845 Website: www.vcec.vic.gov.au An appropriate citation for this publication is: Victorian Competition and Efficiency Commission 2013, Making the Grade: Autonomy and Accountability in Victorian Schools, Inquiry into School Devolution and Accountability, final report, July. About the Victorian Competition and Efficiency Commission The Victorian Competition and Efficiency Commission (VCEC), which is supported by a secretariat, provides the Victorian Government with independent advice on business regulation reform and opportunities for improving Victoria’s competitive position. VCEC has three core functions: • reviewing regulatory impact statements, measuring the administrative burden of regulation and business impact assessments of significant new legislation • undertaking inquiries referred to it by the Treasurer, and • operating Victoria’s Competitive Neutrality Unit. For more information on the Victorian Competition and Efficiency Commission, visit our website at: www.vcec.vic.gov.au Disclosure of interest The Commissioners have declared to the Victorian Government all personal interests that could have a bearing on current and future work. The Commissioners confirm their belief that they have no personal conflicts of interest in regard to this inquiry. Level 37, 2 Lonsdale Street 31 July 2013 Melbourne Vic 3000 GPO Box 4379 Melbourne Vic 3001 T (03) 9092 5800 F (03) 9092 5845 Hon. Michael O'Brien MP E [email protected] Treasurer www.vcec.vic.gov.au 1 Treasury Place MELBOURNE VIC 3002 Dear Treasurer VCEC Inquiry into School Devolution and Accountability In accordance with the terms of reference received by the Commission on 17 September 2012, we have pleasure in submitting the Commission’s final report Making the grade: autonomy and accountability in Victorian schools. Yours sincerely Dr Matthew Butlin Deborah Cope Bill Mountford Chair Commissioner Commissioner Terms of reference Inquiry into School Devolution and Accountability I, Kim Wells MP, Treasurer of Victoria, pursuant to section 4 of the State Owned Enterprises (State Body - Victorian Competition and Efficiency Commission) Order ('the Order') hereby direct the Victorian Competition and Efficiency Commission ('the Commission') to conduct an inquiry into School Devolution and Accountability. Background A key direction in schools over the past two decades has been increased devolution of decision­making to the school level. During the 1990s, for example, this policy provided Victorian government school principals with more scope to make educational, financial and management decisions. There may be more opportunities to empower school leaders and teachers, drawing on experience from other jurisdictions, to work with their communities and use local approaches to achieve better outcomes for students. When principals have greater flexibility to make decisions that affect their students, it becomes even more important to have the right mechanisms to hold principals accountable for how much and how fast their students learn, and to have the right governance and administration arrangements in place to support more autonomous schools. Scope of the inquiry The Commission is to inquire into and report on how much autonomy schools in Victoria have, and how this affects students, teachers and schools. The Commission is to identify whether there are areas and circumstances where more autonomy could improve how much and how fast students learn at school, or improve the efficiency of schools. In particular, the Commission is to: a) examine the current split of responsibilities in Victoria between the central education bureaucracy including its regional offices, and government schools across all areas, including governance, funding, infrastructure, workforce, operational model, curriculum and assessment; b) identify principles of good governance in a highly autonomous government school system, including the role and accountability of school councils; c) investigate and draw lessons from the experience of other systems that have significantly increased school autonomy, including the examples of WA independent public schools, UK academies and free schools and US charter schools; d) examine real­world examples of the effect on students and schools of greater autonomy (and limited autonomy), particularly for disadvantaged students; e) develop options for different levels of autonomy across schools in different circumstances if that is appropriate, including by identifying areas where schools could opt out of services provided centrally and use a budget to choose their own provider; f) identify the areas and circumstances where greater devolution to schools may have a positive impact and those in which the cost may outweigh any benefits; g) assess the costs and benefits of current legislation, regulation, guidelines, funding arrangements, common practices and other processes that may limit school, principal and teacher autonomy, including employment engagement and pay TERMS OF REFERENCE VII arrangements and any centralised administrative mechanisms, drawing on lessons from other jurisdictions; h) identify cultural and other factors which inhibit schools from maximising the potential benefits from existing levels of autonomy and devolution; i) examine the current arrangements for oversight of government schools, by assessing the clarity and effectiveness of existing governance structures within the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development including the Regional Directorate model; j) identify principles to guide school and principal accountability arrangements; k) develop options to improve the accountability regime in line with the principles in (b), including any additional public information that would enable greater accountability to parents and carers; l) identify the capabilities required of the central education bureaucracy, its regional offices, school councils and principals in a highly autonomous school system and gaps with current capabilities; m) examine the current arrangements for regulatory oversight of government schools by the Victorian Registration and Qualifications Authority and identify any changes that would be needed if schools were more autonomous; n) identify existing barriers to choice within the public school system for parents and children and identify complementary policies to school devolution which can promote greater choice; and o) examine any institutional, cultural or funding barriers to high­performing public schools expanding under the current system. Emphasis should be placed on clearly identifying specific, concrete actions which can be taken to improve school governance and performance. This should include options for immediate action as well as specific strategies for the medium term. Inquiry process In undertaking this inquiry, the Commission is to have regard to its objectives and operating principles as set out in section 3 of the Order. The Commission must also conduct the inquiry in accordance with section 4 of the Order. The Commission is to consult with the education sector, academic institutions, business and relevant Victorian, Commonwealth and other jurisdictions government departments and agencies. The Commission should draw on the knowledge and expertise of relevant Victorian Government departments and agencies, and may conduct special surveys or hold public hearings at its discretion. The Commission is expected to produce the following documents: • an issues paper at the beginning of the inquiry process; • a draft report containing analysis and initial findings for public comment; and • a final report after the receipt of public submissions to be provided to me as soon as possible, but not later than 9 months after receipt of these terms of reference. KIM WELLS MP Treasurer Received: 17 September 2012 VIII MAKING THE GRADE: AUTONOMY AND ACCOUNTABILITY IN VICTORIAN SCHOOLS Contents Terms of reference VII Contents IX Abbreviations XIII Glossary XV Key messages XIX Summary report XXI Recommendations LI 1 About the inquiry 1 1.1 The task 1 1.2 The Commission’s approach 2 1.2.1 Some overarching considerations 2 1.2.2 A targeted set of