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Curriculum requirements

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Updated 12 Jun 2024

NESA has made minor changes to Rule 5.1.2 to improve the clarity of the timetabling requirements for schools.

These changes include deleting the phrase “not split over a number of years” from paragraph 9.g and 9.h. to more accurately reflect the timetabling options available to schools for Visual Arts and Music.

NESA has also provided contact information for schools enquiring about students who may not have met the mandatory curriculum requirements for Year 10.

View all changes

Sections 11 and 94 of the Education Act 1990 (NSW) set out the curriculum requirements and eligibility requirements for the award of the RoSA.

Sections 12, 95 and 95A of the Education Act 1990 (NSW) set out the curriculum requirements and eligibility requirements for the award of the HSC.

Meeting mandatory curriculum requirements

  1. NESA develops or endorses all courses that contribute towards the RoSA or HSC.
  2. NESA develops and makes available syllabuses across all years of schooling:
    1. Loading  (Early Stage 1 – Stage 5), and
    2. Loading  (Stage 6).
  3. NESA syllabuses indicate the number of hours of study that students typically need to achieve the outcomes of the course.
  4. Years 7–10 courses based on Life Skills outcomes and content and Stage 6 Life Skills courses provide a curriculum pathway to the RoSA and/or HSC for students with intellectual disability.
  5. Schools must:
    1. teach the current NSW syllabus for each course, and
    2. ensure that the outcomes of all the courses are programmed, and
    3. timetable each course for the indicative number of hours.

Categories

K–10Life SkillsRoSA

Meeting mandatory curriculum requirements for the RoSA

  1. The RoSA is available to eligible students who leave school before completing the HSC.
  2. For students to satisfactorily complete mandatory curriculum requirements to be eligible for the award of the RoSA, schools must provide courses of study for each student in each of the 8 key learning areas (KLAs) for secondary education: English, Mathematics, Science, HSIE, Technological and Applied Studies, Languages other than English, Creative Arts, and PDHPE.
  3. Schools must:
    1. provide courses of study for English, Mathematics, Science, HSIE and PDHPE in each year of Years 7 to 10, and
    2. teach each course of study in accordance with the current Loading , and
    3. ensure that the outcomes and content of all the courses are programmed, and
    4. timetable the mandatory curriculum for the indicative hours specified in the syllabus.

Online resources

Related ACE Rules

For further information

For general curriculum enquiries, please email curriculum@nesa.nsw.edu.au.

Categories

K–10Life SkillsRoSA

Meeting mandatory curriculum requirements for the RoSA by the end of Year 10

  1. To meet mandatory curriculum requirements for the RoSA by the end of Year 10, schools must timetable:
    1. 400 hours of English to be studied substantially throughout each of Years 7–10, and
    2. 400 hours of Mathematics to be studied substantially throughout each of Years 7–10, and
    3. 400 hours of Science to be studied substantially throughout each of Years 7–10, and
    4. 400 hours of HSIE:
      1. 100 hours of mandatory History throughout Years 7–8, and Years 9–10
      2. 100 hours of mandatory Geography throughout Years 7–8, and Years 9–10, and
    5. 300 hours of PDHPE to be studied substantially throughout each of Years 7–10, and
    6. 200 hours of Technology Mandatory in Years 7–8, and
    7. 100 hours of Visual Arts in Years 7–8 to be taught as coherent units of study, and
    8. 100 hours of Music in Years 7–8 to be taught as coherent units of study, and
    9. 100 hours of a Language other than English over one continuous 12-month period between Years 7–10, preferably in Year 7 or Year 8. Stage 4 outcomes and content must be covered1.
  2. Students must satisfactorily complete each of these mandatory curriculum courses to be eligible for the award of the RoSA.2
  3. Schools must:
    1. teach the current NSW Loading  for each course, and
    2. ensure that the outcomes and content of all the courses are programmed, and
    3. timetable each course for the indicative number of hours.

Languages

  1. Students may study more than one Aboriginal Language for the mandatory language study.
  2. Schools may deliver the mandatory language study over 2 years if the study is substantially in excess of 100 hours. Schools must apply to NESA by email at curriculum@nesa.nsw.edu.au to obtain approval for this flexible delivery model.
  3. Schools must be aware of eligibility criteria for Loading  courses.

Combining courses of study – integrated study

  1. Schools may combine courses of study to meet the mandatory curriculum requirements in Years 7–10 if:
    1. the outcomes and content of all the courses are programmed, and
    2. the indicative hours of each course are met.

Online resources

Related ACE Rules

For further information

For general curriculum enquiries, please email curriculum@nesa.nsw.edu.au.

Footnotes

  1. Students in Stage 4 may study a Languages course with an outside tutor to meet the mandatory curriculum requirements.

  2. For enquiries regarding students who have not met the mandatory curriculum requirements for Year 10 such as students transferring from interstate, please contact Manager, Liaison Unit on (02) 9367 8387 or by email at liaisonteam@nesa.nsw.edu.au.

Categories

K–10Life SkillsRoSAVET

Elective Years 7–10 curriculum

  1. NESA does not require schools to provide elective courses. Elective courses cannot replace mandatory curriculum.
  2. However, schools may choose to offer and/or deliver Years 7–10 elective courses1 which may be studied in any year.
  3. Elective courses in Years 9 and 10 contribute towards the RoSA if:
    1. the student is entered in the course in Loading , and
    2. the course is taught as specified in the Loading  or VET course description, and associated indicative-hour requirements, and
    3. the student has satisfactorily completed the course.
  4. Students may study History Elective and Geography Elective in addition to the mandatory History and Geography courses.
  5. Students must complete the mandatory Visual Arts and Music courses (Stage 4 outcomes and content) before starting Visual Arts or Visual Design 7–10 or Photographic and Digital Media 7–10 or Music elective courses.
  6. Elective courses are listed on the RoSA with a grade, with the exception of students undertaking Life Skills outcomes and VET BECs which are reported without a grade and with the annotation ‘Refer to Profile of Student Achievement’ and ‘Refer to Vocational documentation’ respectively.

Online resources

Related ACE Rules

For further information

For general curriculum enquiries, please email curriculum@nesa.nsw.edu.au.

Footnotes

  1. Electives may include additional syllabuses developed by NESA; VET BECs (as specified in the VET course description); or SDBEC for braille.

Categories

HSC (assessment)HSC credentialHSC (curriculum)Life SkillsPreliminaryVET

Meeting mandatory curriculum requirements for the HSC

  1. NESA has requirements for the award of the HSC.
  2. For students to meet HSC curriculum requirements, schools must:
    1. ensure students meet pattern of study requirements, and
    2. teach and assess each course of study in accordance with the current Loading  and/or Board Endorsed course, and
    3. ensure that the outcomes and content of all the courses are programmed, and
    4. timetable the indicative hours specified in the Loading  and/or Board Endorsed course.
  3. Students must satisfactorily complete these curriculum requirements to be eligible for the award of the HSC.

Online resources

Related ACE Rules

For further information

For general curriculum enquiries, please email curriculum@nesa.nsw.edu.au.

Board Endorsed course (BEC)

A course that caters to the learning needs of students in specific areas of need not served by Board Developed courses. Before they can be taught in NSW schools, they must be endorsed by NESA. These courses count towards the HSC but do not have an HSC exam and do not contribute towards the calculation of the ATAR. There are four types: Content Endorsed courses (CECs), School Developed Board Endorsed courses (SDBECs), University Developed Board Endorsed courses (UDBECs), and VET Board Endorsed courses (VET BECs).

elective courses

100 or 200-hour courses of study additional to the NESA mandatory curriculum, which can be studied through Years 7–10.

outside tutor

An individual who is not a member of the school’s teaching staff but is approved by a school to deliver a specified course of study that is part of the curriculum. They are not casual teachers or people who provide specialist expertise for part of a course under the supervision of a teacher.

Profile of Student Achievement

A cumulative record of the student’s achievement of Life Skills outcomes for any course satisfactorily completed in Stage 5, Year 11 or Year 12. It provides the details of the specific Life Skills syllabus outcomes achieved by students undertaking courses.

School Developed Board Endorsed course (SDBEC)

A course designed by school(s) and endorsed by NESA to meet curriculum needs of students that cannot be accommodated by Board Developed courses, or Content Endorsed courses (CECs), or Vocational Education and Training Board Endorsed courses (VET BECs). Once the course proposal is endorsed by NESA, SDBECs count as Board Endorsed unit credit for the HSC but do not contribute towards an ATAR.

VET Board Endorsed course (VET BEC)

A course endorsed by NESA that is based on an AQF VET qualification in industry areas not covered by Board Developed Framework courses. VET BECs count as Board Endorsed unit credit for the HSC but do not contribute towards an ATAR.