Audience
Department-wide
Purpose
This procedure outlines the obligation of departmental staff to comply with early childhood legislation (state and federal), regulations, frameworks and guidelines when delivering kindergarten in Queensland state schools.
Overview
This procedure supports the day-to-day operation of State Delivered Kindergarten (SDK) by outlining specific compliance obligations, role responsibilities and key controls from the Department of Education's (the department) policies and procedures, state and federal legislation, the National Quality Framework (NQF) and nationally required documents.
The department places the highest priority on ensuring the health, wellbeing and safety of kindergarten children and SDKs must comply with state and federal legislative obligations and requirements.
Schools delivering kindergarten must meet specific requirements as an early childhood education and care service, which include ratios of children to staff, space requisites, staff qualifications, documentation and record keeping, and staff roles and responsibilities.
Responsibilities
Regional Directors
- responsible for leadership and supervision of all schools delivering kindergarten in their region.
- ensure principals, school staff and regional support teams understand and comply with the legislative obligations and program requirements of SDK.
- act on behalf of the department as the approved provider for schools holding service approvals and operating under the National Law including appointing school-based positions under the National Law.
Assistant Regional Directors
- support Regional Directors to lead and oversee the delivery of SDK in their regions.
- ensure principals, school staff and regional support teams understand and comply with the legislative requirements and obligations for the delivery of SDK.
Early Childhood or Education Services Directors
- assist Senior Advisors SDK to support Regional Directors to lead and oversee all schools delivering kindergarten in their region.
- lead the provision of legislative, operational and curriculum, pedagogical learning support for schools delivering kindergarten.
- lead key communication for schools, regional teams and the Regional Director.
- liaise with Early Childhood Division (EC) and Heads of Department SDK to support the delivery of kindergarten in their region.
Regional Senior Advisors, SDK
- support Regional Directors to lead and oversee all schools delivering kindergarten in their region.
- provide legislative and operational support for schools delivering kindergarten and key communication for schools, regional teams and the Regional Director.
- liaise with Early Childhood Division (EC) and Heads of Department SDK to support the delivery of kindergarten in their region.
Heads of Department (HoD), SDK
- responsible for curriculum, pedagogical and differentiated learning support for school staff delivering SDK to enhance delivery and practices aligning to the Queensland kindergarten learning guideline (QKLG).
Principals
- make local decisions that support the leadership, supervision, teaching and learning in the SDK.
- consult with community and EC to determine delivery model including hours, days and setting.
- liaise with the Senior Advisor - SDK to report serious incidents or compliance issues.
Teachers
- lead the development and implementation of the kindergarten program and collaboratively support the cycle of curriculum planning to enhance practices in alignment with the QKLG.
- ensure the active supervision of kindergarten children at all times.
Process
Prior to commencement
Determine delivery model
- Based on estimated registration numbers, the principal determines the appropriate delivery model, noting that this may change due to fluctuating registrations throughout the year:
- 4 or fewer children: SDK is subject to the requirements of the ECS Act.
- 5 or more children: SDK is subject to the requirements of an approved service under the National Law.
- If the SDK is subject to the requirements of the National Law, the Senior Advisor SDK will:
- confirm whether an application for a service approval to operate is required.
- support the principal to prepare/update documentation to meet legislative requirements including the appointment of positions with responsibilities under the National Law.
Registration and attendance
- During Terms 3 and 4 of each year, principals can accept kindergarten registrations for the following year noting that:
- a child who is eligible for kindergarten registration may be registered at any time during the school year to accommodate changing family circumstances.
- it is a parent's decision whether to delay their child's entry to or exit from kindergarten. Delayed entry to Prep is an option for parents and may be considered in specific circumstances where it is in a child's best educational interests. An SDK may accept a child's registration for kindergarten, provided the child is not six years of age by 30 June in the year in which they participate in kindergarten (which is compulsory school age).
- To register a child, parents/carers need to provide a completed application to register a child in kindergarten and supporting documentation including:
- proof of date of birth. Documentary evidence of the child’s date of birth must be sighted prior to confirmation of registration. An alternative to a birth certificate may be considered as proof/evidence of a child’s birthdate where it is not possible to obtain a birth certificate.
- health and immunisation records. An Immunisation History Statement (IHS) should be provided for each child at the time of their application for registration, and remain updated as relevant. The immunisation status of the child should also be recorded and kept on file for registration of the child.
- a completed Authority to collect form to ensure that a child does not leave the premises except if the child is given into the care of a person authorised to do so.
- School staff responsible for processing registrations should note that administrative processes for kindergarten registration align with the processes for students enrolling in state schools, including proof of age requirements.
- Kindergarten children's attendance is recorded in OneSchool. Prior to the start of the school year, schools should contact OneSchool if timetables do not have the grade level 'OP' function which will enable roll classes to be added.
- Schools staff responsible for managing attendance should note that the Managing student absences and enforcing enrolment and attendance procedure does not apply to children registered to attend kindergarten as attendance is not compulsory.
Delivery
The department is committed to supporting schools to deliver quality kindergarten in a composite or non-composite setting that promotes equity and inclusion (for children of all abilities including children with disability). Opportunities for professional learning and access to an SDK QLearn eLearning platform are available to staff to build capability in kindergarten delivery.
Regional SDK teams provide operational and curriculum support and are the first point of contact for schools delivering kindergarten.
Teachers are supported by regional Senior Advisors SDK and HoD SDK to deliver the kindergarten program in accordance with:
- relevant legislative requirements, the (QKLG) and supported by Foundations for Success; and
- the associated nationally required documents available on SDK QLearn as per the State Delivered Kindergarten policy.
Teaching and learning
Teachers delivering kindergarten:
- utilise the QKLG, supported by Foundations for Success
- plan, assess and make judgements about children's learning and developmental progress aligned to the QKLG learning and development continua.
- monitor and document children's learning to inform decisions about planning, organising learning experiences, interacting with children and evaluating children's learning.
For SDKs approved under the National Law, access to a qualified early childhood teacher is required (for at least 20% of kindergarten program delivery time). Where an early childhood teacher is not engaged to deliver SDK at the school, this requirement is met by regular access to the regional HoD SDK.
Complying with relevant legislation
Principals must manage the additional requirements that result from the delivery of an SDK program in a state school. Support for schools to comply with relevant legislative and learning requirements is provided by regional SDK teams and EC. The principal is supported to:
- ensure that staff complete an SDK induction program to equip them with the knowledge to do their job effectively and to understand their roles and responsibilities in relation to the safety and wellbeing of children.
- ensure that staff working with kindergarten children receive regular updates and training on the SDK nationally required documents accessed on the SDK QLearn, in conjunction with departmental policies and procedures.
- ensure that all staff understand their role in actively supervising kindergarten children and consider the developmental needs of the kindergarten cohort (e.g. Individual toileting needs).
- ensure that school staff or people regularly visiting a school to perform work on the school premises while kindergarten children are being educated and cared for hold a current exemption or a valid blue card, strictly adhering to the department's Child and student protection policy.
- ensure that there are school staff with current first aid qualifications approved for an SDK on duty at all times (including excursions) and are immediately available in an emergency.
- report any closures of SDK or serious incidents to the regional SDK team who manage notifications to the Regulatory Authority and State Schools.
- ensure school premises and all equipment and furniture used in delivering kindergarten is safe, clean and in good repair including structures and measures specifically required for an SDK setting.
- ensure that staff and children are well practiced in the required procedures if an emergency occurs at the school. Rehearsals for various scenarios must be conducted for kindergarten children every three months and documented.
- monitor fluctuations in kindergarten registrations. If the change in numbers affects the delivery model, contact the regional Senior Advisor SDK.
Transition
All transitions are important in a child's life and supporting children and families to successfully transition to kindergarten and school helps foster their enthusiasm for lifelong learning. At the end of each year, the kindergarten teacher creates a summary of each child's learning within each of the five learning and development areas of the QKLG (transition statement) for every child completing their kindergarten year. This statement is provided to parents to support their child's transition to school.
Definitions
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Term
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Definition
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Active supervision
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Staff are alert and aware of risks and hazards and the potential for accidents and injury in the physical environment and are attuned to the needs of individual children.
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Approved provider
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A person/entity who holds a provider approval (National Law). A provider approval authorises a person to apply for one or more service approvals and is valid in all jurisdictions. The State of Queensland (Acting through the Department of Education) is the Approved Provider for SDK.
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Composite class setting
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Integrated delivery of a kindergarten program in a classroom where full‑time education is being delivered to school children.
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Delivery model
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Schools are approved to deliver kindergarten in accordance with the number of kindergarten children registered and the setting.
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Foundations for Success
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Aligned to the Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF), Foundations for Success supports the QKLG and is a practical guideline to extend and enrich learning for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in the kindergarten year.
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Kindergarten
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A part-time early childhood educational program for children in the year before Prep.
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Kindergarten child
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A child who will be 4 years old by 30 June in the year proposed for the child’s participation in SDK.
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Non-composite class setting
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Delivery of a kindergarten program in a purpose-built kindergarten building/classroom established to accommodate a straight kindergarten class.
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National Quality Framework
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National system for regulating early learning and school age care. The framework consists of the National Law, National Regulations, National Quality Standard, approved learning frameworks and assessment and rating conducted by the Regulatory Authority).
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National Quality Standard
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The NQS sets a national benchmark for the quality of education and care services and includes seven quality areas that are important to positive outcomes for children.
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Prescribed state school
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As per section 419A of the
Education (General Provisions) Act 2006 (Qld) (EGPA), a prescribed school is:
- a state school that immediately before the commencement of section 419A in 2009 was providing a program:
- focused on literacy and numeracy for preparing a child for education in the preparatory year; and
- approved by the Minister for the school; or
- a state school prescribed under a regulation.
The EGPA provides the Minister may approve a program focused on literacy and numeracy for preparing a child for education in the preparatory year, to be a kindergarten learning program for a prescribed state school. In order for a state school to commence delivery of a kindergarten learning program, it must be prescribed in a regulation.
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State Delivered Kindergarten (SDK)
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The program under which prescribed schools operate face-to-face kindergarten in either a composite or non-composite class setting.
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Legislation
Delegations/Authorisations
Other resources
Superseded versions
Previous seven years shown. Minor version updates not included.
1.0 Delivery of State Delivered Kindergarten