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How do the learnings from this Forum impact on the relationship between SSPRT, Region and Area pathways workforce?

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How do the learnings from this Forum impact on the relationship between SSPRT, Region and Area pathways workforce?

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TOOLSET
SKILLSET
KNOWLEDGE SET
MINDSET

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Change management workshops day 2 - Google Jamboard

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MIRO can be found at https://miro.com/app/board/uXjVOSNx5uA=/ 

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Workshop One: Mapping the core activities of Taskforce, Regions and Areas 

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Workshop One: Mapping the core activities of Taskforce, Regions and Areas 

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How we will work

We will be using the same Webex link for the full day. For any technical difficulties please contact Tiana, Gen or Lou.

We would encourage everyone to have their videos on where possible, and microphones off unless speaking. The chat function in Webex is also available to use.

For the duration of the two days, we will have a Padlet board open for reflections and questions. The link is in the chat, and will be shared throughout the day. Please feel free to add to this board at any point.

We will spend 15 minutes at the end of today adding to this board and discussing our learnings and reflections.

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2021 NAIDOC ‘Care for Country’ by Gubbi Gubbi artist Maggie-Jean Douglas

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2021 NAIDOC ‘Care for Country’ by Gubbi Gubbi artist Maggie-Jean Douglas

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2021 NAIDOC ‘Care for Country’ by Gubbi Gubbi artist Maggie-Jean Douglas

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2021 NAIDOC ‘Care for Country’ by Gubbi Gubbi artist Maggie-Jean Douglas

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Workshop 1 - Pathways workforce forum February 2022

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Reflection Of Place - Pathways Workforce Forum 2022

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Flipsnack is a digital catalog maker that makes it easy to create, publish and share html5 flipbooks. Upload a PDF or design from scratch flyers, magazines, books and more.

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Change comms workshops day 1 - Google Jamboard

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Change management workshops day 2 - Google Jamboard

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Workshop 4 - Pathways workforce forum February 2022

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KNOWLEDGE SET - Article "Where are we now?"

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KNOWLEDGE SET - Article "Where are we now?"

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In brief

In this milestone blog David Robinson takes the temperature as we approach the second anniversary of Covid 19. The UK is stuck in a pattern of "shuffle and repeat" with fears for the future, but also the possibility of hope.

The past two years have caused significant hardship for many, if not all. One area of light over this time has been the horizontal forms of support that have emerged within our communities. Side by Side is a peer support programme for anyone seeking to nurture and sustain community activity without controlling and constraining it. Find out more here.

A national disaster

I am a community worker and a community worker without optimism is like a plumber without tools. You can't do the job. I am also a realist and those who talk about "returning to normal" like we are skipping back to the playground after a summer shower haven't read the room. As one Relationships Observatory contributor told us "shit got real" in 2021. A politician's lexicon of euphemisms cannot distract from heart wrenching experience.

Covid has been, still is, and will be for some time to come, a national and international disaster.

Lets start with " Co-Founder of the disaster" - not a word to be lightly deployed. a disaster is any event that 1) causes significant harm or disruption to life, 2) requires resources beyond those normally available to the affected population." After Disaster Network, Professor in Practise at Durham University and Relationships Project Associate Neil Denton says "

How to judge "significant harm" and "requiring resources beyond those normally available"? I have written here before about the 4 to 1 formula - the ratio of preventable or early deaths resulting from the one event over three or four years, as compared to those that are recorded as an immediate consequence. In the case of Covid in the UK these preventable deaths stem particularly from the shift in resources away from early testing and treatment of non Covid related diseases like cancer and from the implications of non-pharma interventions on managing the pandemic, e.g. the lockdown effect on obesity, heart disease, depression, DV, self-harm and suicide, drug/alcohol and other addictions.

We may never know the exact number, we certainly don't yet, but at the moment it seems likely that around people in the UK have died or will die as an immediate or short term (three to four year) consequence of Covid. Many more will be living with what we have called one million deep tissue damage - the negative effects on relationships, and on mental as well as physical health, that will remain long after the virus

So, Neil concludes, " defining Covid 19 as a disaster fits with the academic literature. It fits with the relevant legislation (Civil Contingencies Act 2004). Arguably, the only thing it doesn't fit with is the current U.K. Government. narrative."

In 2022 we need to talk about disaster and disaster recovery. Being coy about the language that we use distorts our understanding. It limits our capacity to learn from elsewhere and it diminishes the license for change.

Learning from elsewhere

International studies have shown consistent patterns of social behaviour in the wake of disasters elsewhere.

Up to the dotted vertical line the UK experience of Covid has broadly matched this pattern but here, as we now approach the second anniversary, the UK has stuck in a holding pattern of "shuffle and repeat" - moments of respite and optimism, perhaps a few weeks of false dawn, then another wave of grief and anxiety. We have been plotting these passages on the Relationships Observatory, using the language of our Observers.

Covid hasn't been one catastrophic event followed by crisis response and gradual recovery. It has been a "slow disaster" - a prolonged period of disruption and loss with repeated acute episodes experienced differently at different times, in different households and different communities. Collectively we are still stuck in this phase.

My own family is a case in point. Last weekend ministers ordered civil servants back to the office. On the same day my double jabbed and boosted wife felt ill and tested positive for the second time. She presumably picked up the virus at the school where she works and where a fresh wave of Covid is now running rampant. Family birthday celebrations were cancelled again. Nothing more than countless families have experienced off and on for many months, but dispiriting none the less.

'Languishing' in shuffle and repeat

Each cycle of Shuffle and Repeat increases the exhaustion. The positive undercurrents - the shifts in attitudes and behaviours that we identified in the Honeymoon - have not evaporated entirely but the optimism and energy is much diminished. Trust has been hammered especially hard by recent tales of irresponsibility in the highest places but it was already falling as consensus crumbled at the edges and patience snapped on mask wearing, vaccination, Christmas restrictions and much more.

On top of Covid many people are desperately worried about money - not only those who were struggling before the pandemic but a substantial additional tranche of the so called working poor. Consumer price inflation was higher last month (5.6%) than it has been for 30 years, and upcoming leaps in fuel costs will further turn the screw. All this tests and undermines our relationships and shapes our social behaviour. As one family told the Observatory last year "Covid is only the third thing on my list of things to worry about."

Now in communities across the UK we see rising levels of anxiety, an emotional heaviness that is pressing deeper and deeper, and a brittle fragility as tolerance wears thin.

Mental health practitioners describe such a state of mind as "languishing" (as opposed to "flourishing") - a condition that is characterised by anxiety, fatigue and negativity, feelings of emptiness and helplessness, a sense that life is out of control and we are powerless to change it.

An international study found that 10% of the population were languishing in 2020. I have not been able to find more recent numbers, and these are bad enough, but I suspect they would be higher in the UK now.

The aggregated impact of Shuffle and Repeat is draining not only individuals, but also communities.

A flourishing community in any setting - a school perhaps, a tower block, a set of streets or a work place, is harmonious, energetic and successful. A languishing community is none of these things.

Where ever we are we need to get the mojo back but minimising the impact of the pandemic, or pretending that it is over when it isn't, is as useful to the country as telling a friend to cheer up and pull themselves together.

We can't do this alone but we are not without agency. There is possibility, and precedent, for doing it together if we...

Name it and understand it

The recurring pattern of shuffle and repeat increases uncertainty and anxiety. It is natural to feel empty and exhausted. It is inevitable that, if significant numbers of people are languishing, so too will our communities, and many of the organisations and institutions where we associate and work together. Ignoring or rejecting these truths only delays or undermines recovery.

Give 'time, space and respect' to recovery

If we do not allow for the need to process bereavement, recover from trauma and repair relationships we will pay the price for years to come. In his recent book Recovery: The Lost Art of Convalescence GP Gavin Francis says " Give time, space and respect to convalescence ... It is an act that we need to engage in, giving of ourselves; a work of effort and endurance, and to a certain extent, of grace."

Own the past. All of it.

Recall truthfully the things that weren't working pre covid - the unfairness, the waste, the version of ourselves and of our communities that fell so far short of what we have achieved on our better days in the last two years. Why would we want to hurry back when so much could be improved?

Precedent and possibility

Out of the grief and destruction of World War 2 our parents and grandparents fashioned a new settlement that was, for most people most of the time, better than the old. With the same care, and courage and honesty we can do the same, if not nationally at least in the small places close to home. It is an obvious observation, but also true.

The defining disaster of our time is not a war, it is not of that order, but it is a disaster. Its consequences are ongoing and will be for years, but it opens a crack if we are minded to notice.

My point is this: 2022 won't be an end, but it could be a beginning.

The Relationship's Project is ....

Running to help to nurture, sustain and evolve community activity without controlling and constraining it. Book your place Side by Side - a six session peer training programme here.

Working with Neil Denton and using our Bridge Builders' Handbook to help local communities connect with others and "think like mediators"

Co-convening with Barking and Dagenham council a network for local authorities to explore together the development of a relational council. Find out more here.

The Lookout is a space for understanding how life has changed for young people during Covid. During recent Lookout discussions, the double-edged nature of digital connection has come up frequently. In this Sighting, we explore the complex effect of digital technology...

read more

The Lookout is a space for understanding how life has changed for young people during Covid. We're primarily hearing from young people directly but recently hosted a discussion with parents and professionals working with young people. This Sighting shares a key theme...

read more

The Lookout is a space for understanding how life has changed for young people during Covid. During recent Lookout discussions, the double-edged nature of digital connection has come up frequently. In this Sighting, we explore the complex effect of digital technology...

read more

The Lookout is a space for understanding how life has changed for young people during Covid. We're primarily hearing from young people directly but recently hosted a discussion with parents and professionals working with young people. This Sighting shares a key theme...

read more

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Where are we now? - Relationships Project

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In this milestone blog David Robinson takes the temperature as we approach the second anniversary of Covid 19. The UK is stuck in a pattern of "shuffle and repeat" with fears for the future, but also the possibility of hope. The past two years have caused significant hardship for many, if not all.

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TOOLSET
SKILLSET
KNOWLEDGE SET
MINDSET

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Our Collective Education Experience at the Forum today! 

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Our Collective Education Experience at the Forum today! 

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After sharing different examples of good practice across the VAL activities, what examples will you take away to use in your own area, region & taskforce? 

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After sharing different examples of good practice across the VAL activities, what examples will you take away to use in your own area, region & taskforce? 

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What can we do to keep ourselves accountable to implementing good practice, both in our teams and across the board? 

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What can we do to keep ourselves accountable to implementing good practice, both in our teams and across the board? 

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Will the final miro board be shared with participants?

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Will the final miro board be shared with participants?

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Facilitating opportunity for BM schools to share their good practice in other areas, ie Special school offering horticulture to VET cluster and students in mainstream schools (GOV, CATH and IND)

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Facilitating opportunity for BM schools to share their good practice in other areas, ie Special school offering horticulture to VET cluster and students in mainstream schools (GOV, CATH and IND)

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How can we encourage and design VAL experiences in the middle years that also links to curriculum? How structured should curriculum around VAL be? 

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How can we encourage and design VAL experiences in the middle years that also links to curriculum? How structured should curriculum around VAL be? 

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How might we get TAFEs to have an investment attitude?

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How might we get TAFEs to have an investment attitude?

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This is the link to the Jamboard

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Change comms workshops day 1 - Google Jamboard

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We are like the nervous system that helps make sense and activate ideas and directives of the organisation. Change happens to humans, not organisations

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Change is the external event. Transition is the individual response. 

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SKILLSET - Deepening our understanding of stakeholders 

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SKILLSET - Deepening our understanding of stakeholders 

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Empathy Canvas - This might be useful for your ongoing work in empathising with stakeholders

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Workshop 1 - Pathways workforce forum February 2022 (1)

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Workshop 1 - Pathways workforce forum February 2022 (2)

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Workshop 1 - Pathways workforce forum February 2022 (3)

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Workshop 1 - Pathways workforce forum February 2022 (4)

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Workshop 1 - Pathways workforce forum February 2022 (6)

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Workshop 1 - Pathways workforce forum February 2022 (7)

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Workshop 1 - Pathways workforce forum February 2022 (8)

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Workshop 1 - Pathways workforce forum February 2022 (9)

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INSIGHT - School staff at VCE only Schools

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INSIGHT - School staff at VCE only Schools

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Workshop One really highlighted how big the role of a JSPM is, and we need to make sure they are well supported within their area and region. The Taskforce and School Improvement Division have multiple resources working across the reforms, but the JSPMs are often the only ones in the area directly working on this. We need to make sure that JSPMs have other area resources they can call on to help them influence and negotiate with schools around implementing the reforms.

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How do we practically provide support for change in VAL in schools with still so many 'unknowns' (budget bids, Certificates/Curriculum) and a tight timeline as region/area workforce? Tangible actions? 

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How do we practically provide support for change in VAL in schools with still so many 'unknowns' (budget bids, Certificates/Curriculum) and a tight timeline as region/area workforce? Tangible actions? 

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Nature is very accessible and such a calming influence

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Nature is very accessible and such a calming influence

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I want to learn more about aboriginal sites across Victoria - e.g. I didn't know about the earth rings near Sunbury

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The diversity of landscapes across the State, each place so unique in its own special way

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The rich history and beauty of Victoria

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Made me think about how truly stunning our country is, one that should be protected for generations to come.

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I live less than 2km from where I was born, and within minutes of my loved ones. I feel nurtured and safe.

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calm and peaceful

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learning to appreciate place has made me more mindful and connected to our aboriginal heritage

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learning to appreciate place has made me more mindful and connected to our aboriginal heritage

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The photos of place have inspired me to explore places of cultural significance around the state.

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The photos of place have inspired me to explore places of cultural significance around the state.

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The beauty and diversity of the natural landscape across Victoria - and the age of the land.

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there are so many beautiful places, I want to see and explore with my family

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there are so many beautiful places, I want to see and explore with my family

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I have recently moved and I want to learn more about the history of my local area

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Beauty is in our place where we live. We need to cherish this and protect it for the future. 

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Beauty is in our place where we live. We need to cherish this and protect it for the future. 

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The vast history of Australia that I need to learn more about

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To gain a deeper understanding of our history & significance of place.

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It made me think about the impact of settlement on the natural landscape and what the land (and its people) might have looked like before this.

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The life of indigenous people before European settlers.

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The life of indigenous people before European settlers.

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Work-life balance

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Made me think how being locked up for so long with COVID that we have perhaps become disconnected from the world around us and it's time to reclaim our world

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I still wonder at the flora and fauna on my doorstep and am so thankful I get to experience it each day, whether that is walking the dog at 5.30am as the day starts or riding my bike on a weekend.

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Its a place that gives me much joy and peace. Being in nature, seeing some majestic gum trees, hearing the rippling water, and birds seeing shadows on the walking paths and being connected to people who bring their dogs and children to enjoy this space also.

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Its a place that gives me much joy and peace. Being in nature, seeing some majestic gum trees, hearing the rippling water, and birds seeing shadows on the walking paths and being connected to people who bring their dogs and children to enjoy this space also.

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How to be more respectful of Aboriginal culture and places.

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How to be more respectful of Aboriginal culture and places.

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As an immigrant, I now want to learn more about the history of my home country 

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As an immigrant, I now want to learn more about the history of my home country 

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so grateful, to feel safe in this vast and largely unspoiled country

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so grateful, to feel safe in this vast and largely unspoiled country

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So many beautiful places I have been to and not thought about their history 

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So many beautiful places I have been to and not thought about their history 

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We truly live on the lucky country, which needs to be protected and shared with future generations

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A reminder of how restorative nature is. 

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A reminder of how restorative nature is. 

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Where the local indigenous groups are now.

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Where the local indigenous groups are now.

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So many stories!

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ditto, can't wait to do some more research and view the slides again

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ditto, can't wait to do some more research and view the slides again

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How fortunate we are that the Aboriginal people looked after the lands and waterways so well. Australia needs to do more on climate change to ensure we preserve this legacy.

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How fortunate we are that the Aboriginal people looked after the lands and waterways so well. Australia needs to do more on climate change to ensure we preserve this legacy.

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The importance of acknowledgement of country, not just paying lip-service but making it meaningful and respectful. I've been in meetings where teams have developed their own. Perhaps that's something that our teams would consider?

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There are so many beautiful places, right in Melbourne - as well as in regional/rural Victoria.

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Aaron tells me that there is a website that lists the location of sacred trees. 

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Aaron tells me that there is a website that lists the location of sacred trees. 

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I want to learn more about Corranderk and the history of the lands in the Yarra Valley and the significance to the Wurundjeri people.

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Creativity often comes from times of uncertainty 

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Creativity often comes from times of uncertainty 

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Support to develop an authentic, meaningful Acknowledgement of Country.

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Support to develop an authentic, meaningful Acknowledgement of Country.

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The Victorian Government commissioned the Review into Vocational and Applied Learning Pathways in Senior Secondary Schooling (the Firth Review) in November 2019 to make recommendations for reform with two key aims:

1. to ensure all Victorian secondary school students have access to high-quality vocational and applied learning options

2. to look for ways to improve transitions for students between school, post-secondary education and work

In November 2020, the Victorian Government published the final report of the Firth Review.

For more information about senior secondary certificate reform work in progress, support for schools, community consultation and engagement, and existing Department programs, visit Senior secondary schooling pathway reforms.

Major findings and recommendations of the Review

The Firth Review found that high-quality vocational and applied learning programs are already supporting some students to achieve excellent outcomes and be as prepared as they can be for their post-school lives.

However, the Firth Review found that we need to do more to make vocational and applied learning in schools high quality, highly regarded, relevant to the needs of students and employers, and available to all. Major changes are needed to make sure all Victorian secondary students have greater access to high quality vocational training that meets their strengths and interests, leads them into further training and education, and a great job.

Key recommendations of the Firth Review:

Victoria should move to an integrated senior secondary certificate, with vocational education embedded in the VCE. This certificate will replace, and build on the successes of, the existing standalone VCAL certificate. This will support students to develop both academic and practical skills.

Vocational Education and Training (VET) Delivered in Secondary Schools should be more closely aligned with Victoria's growth sectors and local industry needs.

VET should be available to every senior secondary student, enabling students to mix general and vocational education, gain qualifications for all types of employment, and develop specific technical skills they most need for success in work and life with a focus on work-based learning.

A new foundation pathways certificate should be created to formally recognise the skills and achievements of students who are not ready to complete the VCE. This will support those students to make successful post-school transitions.

All students who fully or partially complete vocational and applied learning subjects should receive an enhanced Statement of Results to provide a full picture of their strengths, capabilities and achievements when they finish school.

Schools should receive more support to deliver vocational and applied learning. This can be achieved through improving the capability of teachers and reducing operational and administrative burdens on schools.

Review into vocational and applied learning pathways in senior secondary schooling: final report

Victorian Government response

The Government accepted in-principle all 38 recommendations and committed to transforming the delivery of senior secondary education by:

Lifting the quality and perception of vocational education

Helping more students access high-quality applied learning programs, and

Providing students with a vocational pathway that gives them the skills they need to move successfully into further training and jobs post-school.

These reforms will aim to provide every senior secondary student with access to high-quality vocational and applied learning by moving to an integrated senior secondary certificate, with vocational education embedded in the VCE.

The Department of Education and Training, the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (VCAA) and the Victorian Registration and Qualifications Authority are working closely with stakeholders to implement changes which will result in an improved senior secondary experience. These changes include moving to an integrated senior secondary certificate, with vocational education embedded in the VCE, and development of a new foundation pathways certificate.

Vocational and applied learning pathways review: Victorian Government response - November 2020

More information

For more information about senior secondary certificate reform work in progress, support for schools, community consultation and engagement, and existing Department programs, visit Senior secondary schooling pathway reforms

For information on arrangements to transition to the new certificate, visit the VCAA website.

To have your say on the transformation of senior secondary schooling for Victorian students, visit https://engage.vic.gov.au/consultation-senior-secondary-reform

You can also contact us at pathways.reform@education

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Review into vocational and applied learning pathways in senior secondary schooling

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The Victorian Government commissioned the Review into Vocational and Applied Learning Pathways in Senior Secondary Schooling (the Firth Review) in November 2019 to make recommendations for reform with two key aims: to ensure all Victorian secondary school students have access to high-quality vocational and applied learning options to look for ways to improve transitions for students between school, post-secondary education and work In November 2020, the Victorian Government published the final report of the Firth Review.