Public comment is being sought to have data on students with disability on the My School website. This follows a directive from education ministers and the Joint Working Group for Students with Disability, that the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority, (ACARA) the body responsible for the development of a national curriculum, examine the feasibility of publishing data on students with disability on the website. This would be in consultation with stakeholders, disability experts, schools and parent groups. My School provides profiles of every Australian school with data about students, NAPLAN performance, enrolment numbers, attendance rates and financial information.
However, Children and Young People with Disability Australia (CYPDA), the national peak body that represents children and young people with disability has some concerns about the proposed initiative.
It is being proposed that the data on students with disability would be taken from the Nationally Consistent Collection of Data on School Students with Disability (NCCD). The NCCD is collected annually and records what individual adjustments are being provided to students with disability.
ACARA is considering three options:
- Total number of students with disability in each school
- Level of adjustment provided to students according to disability type in each school
- Graphs showing level of adjustment provided according to disability type in each school
However, according to a statement from CYDA, providing information on the number of students identified by the school as having a disability, level of adjustment reportedly provided and disability ‘category’ in isolation does not inform whether a school is inclusive of students with disability or if the school adequately meets the needs of these students.
CYDA takes the view that the proposed initiative has no relevant role in informing the community about a school. It said the proposal has the potential to entrench the common barriers students with disability face in accessing education. The organisation is also concerned that the initiative does not offer adequate privacy protections to students but while it supports the strengthening of the collection, and use of data in relation to educational experiences of students with disability, it must be “meaningful”.
CYDA is providing a submission to ACARA that will include recommendations for data collection regarding students with disability.
To endorse this submission email: info@cda.org.au
A survey has also been developed for public comment with students, families and organisations invited to provide feedback by visiting: https://goo.gl/xfUtcB The survey closes on June 30, 2016.
For more information on the NCCD visit: https://goo.gl/Gz6cPM