Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Australian Baccalaureate
Processes for the award of certificates and modes of assessment e.g. examination,
moderated school-based assessment.
Reporting of achievement e.g. grades, scores and/or achievement bands.
Specification of standards in each jurisdiction and whether this information is
included on the certificate.
How Vocational Education and Training (VET) is incorporated as separate subjects or
integrated and how VET achievements are explained on the certificate.
While, this diversity has positive aspects it results in a lack of comparability of student
results and difficulties for students moving interstate or overseas.
Further, internationally, Australia’s senior secondary certification arrangements do not
have the recognition of, for example, the British ‘A’ levels, the French Baccalaureate,
the German and Finnish Arbitur, or the certificates of regional neighbours such as
China, Hong Kong, and Singapore.
The Gillard Labor Government is driving the delivery of a national education system,
through a National Curriculum and national teaching standards. A high quality national
senior qualification is the next logical phase of this reform.
It is envisaged that the Australian Baccalaureate will operate within and alongside
existing State and Territory certification and credentialing systems. It will not replace
them.
The Baccalaureate would be voluntary, with students electing to be certified for the
award, similar to the way students can currently elect to undertake the International
Baccalaureate.
The cost of this new policy will be fully offset over the forward estimates, consistent
with the Gillard Labor Government’s commitment to return the Budget to surplus in
three years.
Labor’s record
The Gillard Labor Government has taken unparalleled action to build a world class
education system, so every Australian child can reach their full potential.
This includes an unprecedented investment of $63.7 billion in Australian schools over
four years, almost double the amount provided by the former Liberal-National Coalition
Government.
We are delivering a national school curriculum to equip young Australians with the skills,
knowledge, and capabilities they need to effectively engage and prosper in society, and
thrive in the information-rich workplaces of the future.
We have established the MySchool website which provides nationally comparable data
on school performance for the first time ever – providing transparent information on
each school’s literacy and numeracy results. The MySchool website has had over three
million visits, and has created a new national conversation about school performance
and student outcomes.
We have laid the foundations for a world class education system and the Gillard Labor
Government is determined to continue driving improved student outcomes, so all
Australian children are equipped with the skills they need for a successful future.
AUTHORISED N.MARTIN for the ALP, 5/9 Sydney Ave. Barton ACT.