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The first Australian Curriculum was released in 2010 to improve the quality, equity and transparency of Australia’s education system. It represents an explicit statement of the priorities and aspirations we hold for our young people, and about what the Australian community values as the knowledge, understanding and skills that our young people should attain while at school.
The primary audience for the Australian Curriculum is teachers. The curriculum is written in plain and concise language using the vocabulary appropriate for professional practitioners of each learning area.
Read more about the Shape of the Australian Curriculum here.
The Australian Curriculum has 3 dimensions comprising 8 discipline-based learning areas; 7 general capabilities; and 3 cross-curriculum priorities. The learning areas (and the disciplines from which they are drawn) provide the foundation for essential learning in the Australian Curriculum. The general capabilities and cross-curriculum priorities provide opportunities to enrich the content of the learning areas, where most appropriate and authentic; they are not separate learning areas or subjects.
Read more about the structure of the Australian Curriculum here.
In 2015 all 8 learning areas were first revised as an outcome of the 2014 Australian Government Review of the Australian Curriculum and updated as Version 8.0.
In June 2020, Education Ministers tasked ACARA to undertake the first in a 6-yearly review cycle to improve the Australian Curriculum from Foundation to Year 10 by refining, realigning and decluttering the content of the curriculum. All 3 dimensions of the Australian Curriculum were reviewed by the end of 2021 and the next version of the Australian Curriculum (Version 9.0) was published on the new Australian Curriculum website in Term Two 2022.
Read more about the 2020-21 review here.
Implementation of the Australian Curriculum is the responsibility of states and territories who decide when their schools will implement the curriculum. Schools implement the Australian Curriculum according to jurisdictional and system policies and schedules, and develop programs that meet the educational needs of their students.
The curriculum comes alive in the hands of teachers who make expert decisions about how best to deliver the curriculum to meet the needs and interests of their students.
ACARA provides indicative time allocations for all subjects as a guide for schools and education authorities. Time allocations for delivery of subjects in schools are determined by relevant education authorities in each state or territory, or by an individual school.
The elaborations that appear under content descriptions are examples of how the content could be addressed and therefore do not have to be taught. They give guidance to teachers about age-appropriate contexts, activities, and tasks. Teachers can choose to base their teaching on one or more elaborations or plan their own activities. The elaborations have been written in consultation with teachers, critical friends, and reference groups.
Resources on the Version 9.0 website include: Downloads, including glossaries for:
Learning areas, General capabilities and Cross-curriculum priorities:
https://v9.australiancurriculum.edu.au/downloads
Work samples:
https://v9.australiancurriculum.edu.au/resources/work-samples
Curriculum connections: https://v9.australiancurriculum.edu.au/resources/curriculum-connections
Professional learning: https://v9.australiancurriculum.edu.au/resources/professional-learning