Message from Chief Executive

Dear Colleague,

Welcome back to a new school year. Every year as Term 1 starts, I wonder about the successes we’ll see in our new cohort and I’m excited to hear of our students achieving their goals, whether they’re starting their SACE journey or about to finish it.

The SACE Board is committed to our ongoing relationship with schools to support you through another successful year. I look forward to working with you to encourage your students in their passions and guide them through their challenges. I am often reminded how privileged we are to have strong, committed, and adaptable school communities, and I’m thankful for the undeniable determination you’ll bring forward into 2023.

I’ve been following the discussions around the use of AI in workplaces, universities and schools. As technology evolves over time, so too should our development of curriculum and assessment. We have always adapted to the use of technological aids, and we will continue to partner with schools in supporting students to develop their awareness, knowledge and skills to use these technologies ethically and responsibly.

We understand that students will rightly explore using these tools as part of their studies. However, it’s important that we acknowledge that ChatGPT or any other AI tool should be referenced appropriately and not replace students’ own critical thinking and analysis. Rather than ban its use, our focus is to understand how to best use technology to support learning. We will explore how we might leverage technology as an enabler to assess new things in new ways and continue to develop a flexible curriculum that aims to prepare students for their future pathways.

As we strive to continually improve, I’m most excited by the innovation in SACE subjects. This semester will see a second round of pilot testing for both Exploring Identities and Futures (EIF) and Activating Identities and Futures (AIF). We had encouraging feedback from both students and teachers from our 2022 pilot, which we have taken on board for further testing this year. Over 90 schools across all sectors will be participating in these pilots in 2023.

Last year the SACE Board also ran a pilot for Recognition of Aboriginal Cultural Knowledge and Learning. It’s an exciting development for Aboriginal students and is the first time in Australia that community-led or self-directed cultural learning has been recognised formally as part of their secondary certificate. You can read more about this project below.

I want to take this opportunity to congratulate the 14,571 South Australian students who completed their SACE in 2022, each representing a personal learning journey and achievement of a critical milestone. Whilst we focus on the students’ successes it is in no small part because of your unwavering dedication to their education, and care for them as young people.

It was another outstanding year for schools and students in 2022 under incredibly challenging circumstances. I can’t wait to hear the amazing stories that 2023 will inevitably bring.

All the best for Term 1 and beyond.

Regards,

Michaela Bensley
Chief Executive
SACE Board of South Australia

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Revitalisation of the Research Project and Personal Learning Plan

As we begin the 2023 school year, we are excited to officially commence Pilot 2 for the revitalised compulsory subjects Personal Learning Plan, now Exploring Identities and Futures (EIF); and Research Project, now Activating Identities and Futures (AIF). 

The pilot will run during Semester 1 and will involve 40 schools who are continuing their involvement from 2022, as well as 54 additional schools joining this year, piloting one or both subjects. Our pilot community includes schools from metro and regional South Australia, the Northern Territory and all sectors: Government, Catholic and independent.

Pilot 2 will see us continue to work closely with schools to design, adapt, and test new curriculum, assessment, and pedagogical approaches to improve the learning experience for students.

During Semester 1, we will extend the testing and learning from the first pilot to specifically focus on:

• Pedagogical change required to successfully deliver the new subjects across a diversity of teachers
• Development and testing of professional learning to support the main pedagogical themes
• Involving school teaching and learning leaders in the implementation of professional learning for their school’s teachers
• Testing the role of school leadership in sponsoring and resourcing the new subjects
• Ensuring teacher practices support success for all students, including students who experience disadvantage.

So far, our Pilot 2 community has:

• Engaged in professional learning focusing on the four pedagogical themes central to the intent of EIF and AIF, with a deep dive into:
  • Agency (including co-agency in learning design) 
  • Natural evidence of learning 
  • Self-regulation (metacognition and self-efficacy)
  • Feedback
• Developed professional learning plans to test different ways to build teacher practice in their site context
• Engaged in initial meetings with cross-site communities of practice to workshop ideas, discuss their experiences, and adapt to the nuances of their specific context.

We will continue to provide updates about the EIF and AIF pilot but you can learn more by accessing the Innovating the SACE section of our website.

Please also see the professional learning for senior years teaching and learning leaders and educators the sections below.

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Exploring Identities and Futures (EIF) and Activating Identities and Futures (AIF) Professional Learning for Senior Years Teaching and Learning Leaders 

As the Revitalisation of the Research Project and Personal Learning Plan project steps closer towards future implementation, the SACE Board is providing early professional learning for senior years teaching and learning leaders (also known as Curriculum Directors, Assistant Principal Curriculum, Director of Teaching and Learning, etc.) on:

• The new EIF and AIF subjects and lessons learnt from the first pilot
• How student agency, natural evidence of learning, self-regulation (metacognition and self-efficacy) and feedback in EIF and AIF are supporting students to thrive
• How the SACE Board will support subject teachers towards future implementation.

Workshops will be 2.5 hours at different locations across the state during March and April. Please forward this event to your school’s senior years teaching and learning leader and encourage their attendance. Please note this workshop is not designed for subject teachers. 

• 21 March – Hallett Cove
• 21 March – Modbury
• 22 March – Adelaide City
• 28 March – Waikerie 
• 28 March – Port Augusta
• 28 March – Port Lincoln
• 28 March – Mount Gambier
• 17 April – West Lakes

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Professional Learning for all educators

Educators not involved in Capabilities and Learner Profile and Revitalisation of the Research Project and Personal Learning Plan pilots are seeking early professional learning prior to broad implementation.

The SACE Board is offering workshops to prime and connect the education community with topics that align to our strategic direction of supporting thriving learners. These also align with the teacher practices being developed in our pilot programs.

Last year the SACE offered a student agency workshop with Charles Leadbeater; this term Dr Helen Timperley (Emeritus Professor of Learning, Development, and Professional Practice at Auckland University) will be offering an Assessment for Learning Masterclass for SACE educators and leaders on Thursday 9 March 2-5 pm.

Helen’s masterclass will involve two sessions: Part One - Giving high quality feedback to students; and Part Two - How teachers can give each other feedback to make the most difference for students.

We will continue to communicate professional learning opportunities throughout the year. To learn more about our professional learning strategy to support thriving learners please visit the Innovating the SACE section of the website.

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Capabilities and Learner Profile project

During 2022, 23 SACE Change Network schools partnered with us to undertake a pilot to recognise students’ capabilities and to demonstrate this in a Learner Profile. The SACE Board’s ambition is to showcase a holistic view of student achievement that extends beyond a focus on grades and ranks. It will be important for students to continue to develop deep discipline knowledge; however, in an increasingly complex and uncertain future, education must also identify, value, and certify students’ development of capabilities.

Pilot 1 worked with teachers, school leaders, SATAC, TAFE, business, and industry to test how the education system could work together to recognise and celebrate a 360-degree view of student achievement. The project also looked to explore how the capability data could support students to make better decisions about their future pathways, and how universities and employers might use this data to better match students to their organisations.

There were over 200 pilot students who received capability assessment data in the form of a Learner Profile visualisation at the end of 2022. To support the confidence, consistency, and reliability of this data the pilot schools worked with the SACE Board through a series of quality assurance activities including: 

• Developing teacher assessment literacy
• Making assessments of capability evidence presented by students
• Benchmarking teachers’ assessment decisions to support making reliable judgements
• Supporting within-school and across-school consistency and comparability.

The project team has been working to capture emerging learning alongside the analysis and evaluation undertaken directly following the conclusion of the pilot. Learnings and insights will be shared with all schools via the Innovating the SACE section of the website and will inform further development and future pilot projects.

SACE Change Network schools that have expressed interest in participating in a 2023 pilot will be invited to an information session during Term 1, where they will be provided with the findings and recommendations of Pilot 1 and the terms of reference for participation in Pilot 2.

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Recognition of Aboriginal Cultural Knowledge and Learning

In September 2020, the SACE Board and the SACE Aboriginal Allyship made a significant commitment to ensure all Aboriginal students would be able to demonstrate and share their language and cultural learning skills, and for those skills to be valued and recognised in the SACE.

To support this commitment, the Recognition of Aboriginal Cultural Knowledge and Learning project commenced work to develop models for comparable recognition as part of the SACE completion requirements.

Late in 2022, the project team worked closely with a small group of SACE Change Network schools to run a small-scale pilot including:

• Community led learning - students have their cultural knowledge and learning verified by a local Aboriginal authority and recognised by the SACE in partnership with the school
• Self-directed cultural learning - students explore and develop their Aboriginal culture and identity and have this learning recognised as part of their SACE.

We are excited to announce that 20 Aboriginal students received recognition for their Aboriginal Cultural Knowledge and Learning at the end of last year. This is a significant milestone for the SACE Board and for education more broadly. The learnings from this project connect to the assessment of capabilities, and the EIF and AIF pilots through exploring the nature of evidence and the way we might partner with the broader community to verify and quality-assure student learning.

This was a small-scale pilot, and we are still working through the evaluation findings to determine the scope and scale of a second pilot. We would like to thank the Allyship for their leadership and the pilot schools and their Aboriginal communities for their trust and confidence in supporting us through this complex opportunity.

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SACE Exam Browser (SEB) for e-exams

The SACE Exam Browser (SEB) is a web browser environment necessary to carry out online exams securely. The software changes any computer/device into a secure workstation. It regulates access to resources like system functions, other websites and applications, and prevents unauthorised resources from being used during an exam.

The SACE Board undertakes a continuous program of improvement to SEB and provides the latest version for schools to implement each year. The 2023 version will be available later this year, and we will alert schools when the new version is ready for implementation.

During the 2022 examinations a technical issue allowed Grammarly to be accessed. Please note that the 2023 SEB upgrade will prevent Grammarly from being accessed during this year’s exams.

Further information about SEB is available on our website.

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Merit Ceremony

High-achieving students from the Class of 2022 were celebrated at the 35th Merit Ceremony held at Government House last week. The two-day ceremony across 8 and 9 February recognised the academic success of 1,034 students who collectively achieved 1,277 subject merits, as well as 36 Governor of SA Commendation winners, and the Tennyson Medal recipient.

William Sampson from Wudinna Area School took to the stage to respond on behalf of the Class of 2022.

“We have to be challenged to learn, and the SACE students I studied alongside this year should be incredibly proud of the way we embraced the adversity of 2022,” William said. “Smooth seas do not make skilled sailors, so overcoming the obstacles imposed by the year whilst achieving the SACE will see us incredibly well prepared to take on our futures.

“We are fortunate to study a SACE education that provides the flexibility for every student to experience personal and academic growth that supports their needs, interests, and goals to best prepare us for whatever lies beyond secondary education.”

Further information about the Merit Ceremony and videos of the presentations can be found on the SACE website.

Professional photography of the event can be accessed via the SA School Photography website.

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2023 SACE Art Show

The SACE Board is pleased to announce the 141 students who have been chosen to display their work at the 2023 SACE Art Show at Light Square Gallery. The artworks include paintings, drawings, sculptures, jewellery, costumes, and multimedia works that showcase some of the amazing students studying SACE Art and Design.

View the full list featured artworks.

School groups and the general public are invited to attend this year’s event during the times detailed below. 

Light Square Gallery, Adelaide College of the Arts
Tuesday 21 March - Friday 14 April 
Monday to Friday: 9 am – 4 pm 
Saturdays (excluding public holidays): 10 am – 3 pm 
Closed Easter Long Weekend 

School bookings are essential to maintain a COVID-safe environment within the gallery space. Works will also be available for viewing on the SACE website.

SACE Art Show Community Award
Visitors to the exhibition, and those who view the works online can vote for their favourite artwork as part of the SACE Art Show Community Awards. 

First Prize, Runner-up Prize, Teacher’s Prize, and Community Voter’s Prize winners will be announced at the VIP Closing Event on Friday 14 April and published on the SACE website.

For more information, please contact SACE.Events@sa.gov.au.

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Introducing askSACE

With some recent changes in the askSACE team, we thought we’d put some faces to the names. We are pleased to introduce Lisa, Ella, Amelia and Amelia (yes, that’s right, two Amelias just to keep it interesting!)

The askSACE team works in partnership with the Education Services, Business Operations, and SACE International teams to provide a single point of contact for all enquiries. 

We are keen to connect, seek feedback, and work closely with you to strengthen our partnership and support you so you can focus on your students.

You’ll hear from us again in the near future but please don’t hesitate to contact us directly. We’re here to help! 

L-R: Lisa, Amelia H, Amelia C, Ella

askSACE@sa.gov.au
+61 8 8115 4700
Monday to Friday, 8.30 am - 5 pm

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Getting Ready: Information for SACE Coordinators

We have updated our Getting Started pack for 2023 to assist you in managing the SACE within your school and navigate Term 1 with relevant information, checklists, and SACE management Q&As.

Key dates:

• 2023 SACE examinations – Monday 6 to Friday 17 November 
• Important SACE calendar dates for South Australia and Northern Territory can be found on our website
• Calendar dates for SACE International schools in the Southern Hemisphere are available on the SACE International website.

If you have any SACE management enquiries, please contact askSACE.

askSACE@sa.gov.au
+61 8 8115 4700
Monday to Friday, 8.30 am - 5 pm

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E-exams in 2023

There are no new subjects that are transitioning to an e-exam format in 2023. Please refer to the current list of subjects which do have an e-exam.

We will continue to provide support as you prepare for the delivery of e-exams.

In the meantime there are various resources including familiarisation activities and instructional videos on the SACE website to get you started.

SACE will continue to work in partnership with you to ensure that we are developing and delivering e-exams that provide better assessment for all students.

For support please contact askSACE:

askSACE@sa.gov.au
+61 8 8115 4700
Monday to Friday, 8.30 am - 5 pm

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Examination timetable for 2023

SACE examinations, both written and e-exams, will take place from Monday 6 to Friday 17 November 2023. The 2023 examination timetable is now available on our website.

We are yet to be advised regarding the dates for the Collaborative Curriculum and Assessment Framework for Languages (CCAFL) written examinations. We will provide updates on the SACE website once the dates and times have been confirmed. Oral examinations will be conducted online in 2023 in the same way as last year.

All past exams are now available on the SACE website under each subject webpage. 

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