Linkages Program

The linkages program promotes continuity of literacy and numeracy development in all key learning areas in Stages 3 and 4. It addresses issues raised in Australian research that indicate that students' learning plateaus or declines as early as Year 5 and that students' disengagement from learning can continue into secondary schooling.

Linkages acknowledges the need for:

• recognition of students' prior learning
• an understanding of the individual learning and developmental needs of adolescents
• an understanding of the K-12 learning continuum
• positive and equitable learning experiences for students in terms of curriculum, pedagogy, assessment and welfare.

Twenty five linkages consultants support district initiatives in 40 districts. These initiatives facilitate collaborative planning between secondary schools, their feeder primary schools, parents, caregivers and school communities. Initiatives investigate such issues as curriculum, assessment, effective pedagogy, student welfare and school organisation and structure. Districts have received substantial funding to support these initiatives.

The linkages consultants provide intensive support to executives and teachers in initiative schools to support them in addressing the linkages guidelines in their schools and classrooms, through a whole school approach. In addition, many districts have a linkages network that provides opportunities for all teachers in all schools to engage with linkages issues and to benefit from action research being undertaken in initiative schools. Currently, over 2000 teachers and executive in more than 600 primary, high and central schools in NSW are involved in linkages initiatives that are seeking to address issues of curriculum and assessment, effective pedagogy, student welfare and school organisation and structure in Years 5-8.

In addition, Linkages Support provides training in resources and initiatives to assist teachers to support students requiring additional assistance in literacy and numeracy so that they are able to access syllabus content and outcomes appropriate for their stage. Linkages Support provides training for teachers and district personnel in the implementation of such resources as the Guide for school literacy support teams, TAFE accredited Peer Tutor training and program, Teacher's Pet CD-ROM and Evaluating software and Internet sites. Linkages Support training encourages school teams to develop action plans for a whole school approach to the teaching of literacy and numeracy.

For more information about Linkages Support go to the Linkages Support section on the Linkages home page.

The Linkages Coordinator, Linkages Support and Numeracy Linkages officers all provide support to teachers, school executives and school communities in districts. This support takes the form of: 

• addressing combined primary and secondary principals' conferences
• addressing primary and secondary executive conferences
• presenting workshops at district and P&C linkages conferences for teachers and school communities
• providing training and development for groups of school and district personnel.

Districts will also be supported to implement linkages through the development of a policy statement on teaching students in Years 5-8, to be called Focus on linkages. The first draft is now ready for consultation.

The overall objective of the Linkages program is to support the successful transition of students from Stage 3 to Stage 4 through continuity of literacy and numeracy development in all subjects.

Linkages consultants will be trained to:

• provide strategic support to groups of primary and secondary schools
• develop and maintain high teacher, student and parent expectations within schools
• promote entitlement for all students to the curriculum.

School staffs will be trained and supported to:

• implement a whole school approach to literacy and numeracy
• understand the nature of adolescence as a discrete developmental period
• address the learning needs of adolescent students
• implement effective teaching practice to support students' learning develop relationships and negotiate goals with students in a way which helps them to achieve syllabus outcomes
• identify and support students who need additional assistance with literacy and numeracy
• support students who require literacy and numeracy extension
• plan, program and teach subject-specific literacy and numeracy explicitly and systematically
• make consistent judgements about students' achievement of syllabus outcomes to inform classroom programs and student transition
• plan and program cooperatively with primary and secondary colleagues to ensure continuity of learning for students in transition between Stage 3 and Stage 4.

Students will:

• achieve syllabus outcomes in all key learning areas
• maintain literacy and numeracy achievement in their transition from Stage 3 to Stage 4
• have greater access to TAFE accredited courses.

• A thorough knowledge of the Department's Linkages policy will be evident among primary and secondary principals, primary and secondary executive and teachers in Years 5-8.
• An improvement in students' achievement of both Stage 3 and Stage 4 syllabus outcomes will be evident in targeted schools during the strategic phase of the Linkages program.
• Student performance and achievement of Stage 3, Stage 4, Stage 5 and Stage 6 syllabus outcomes will be maintained beyond involvement in the Linkages program.
• An improvement in students' performance will be evident as measured by systems assessment programs such as BST, PWA, ELLA and SNAP.
• Schools will be implementing whole school literacy and numeracy plans, informed by both school curriculum assessment data and BST, PWA, ELLA and SNAP data.
• Clusters of secondary schools and their feeder primary schools will working together to develop strategies to support student transition and engagement in learning.
• the number of schools engaging in Linkages support programs will increase.