Additional TRS days for SATE
Queensland Teachers' Journal, Vol 125 No 2, 20 March 2020, page no.10
More details have been released of the additional TRS allocation for teachers dealing with the transition to the new senior assessment and tertiary entrance (SATE) system.
The new certified agreement provides one TRS day for each teacher allocated in the Day 8 model for senior secondary, which the QTU negotiated during the EB process to help teachers deal with the added workload involved.
The department has confirmed that the current process for identifying senior secondary teachers remains unchanged (the allocation is based on the number of year 11 and 12 students only at the school, irrespective of whether those students are doing general, applied or VET subjects), with 3,500 senior secondary teachers currently affected. It has also confirmed that the allocation will be put into school bank accounts as TRS for senior secondary teachers.
The department has confirmed that it will communicate with schools about their allocation in term two, however will not be providing detailed advice or guidance on the use of the allocation as different schools will have different situations/requirements. The QTU had requested that the department inform those schools eligible for additional TRS what hours will be provided in semester two to support the SATE roll-out.
Schools will be able to use these hours in semester one, if this is deemed the best time to support the implementation of SATE in the school, confident that the hours will be reimbursed in semester two. They should keep track of the hours used in semester one, to enable a reconciliation to be made in semester two, once the appropriation has been received.
The use of the allocation will be at the school’s discretion – the school should determine the best way to use it to support senior secondary teachers in relation to the purpose it was allocated for (i.e. SATE implementation support).
The QTU advises schools to consult with its senior secondary teachers to identify their SATE priorities in terms of workload at the local level.