Manager Development Program Working Group, Department of Premier and Cabinet
The Manager Development Program Working Group is an initiative with strong WoG involvement and ownership across the Tasmanian State sector. The need for this program developed out of a concern regarding a lack of management capability across the Tasmanian State Service. The program has been developed to provide a set of common management skills across the service, leading to an upskilling of capability for the future. Previously this was often the subject of bespoke agency leadership/management programs. The modules developed in the program are of high quality and designed by 24 Organisational Design, Education, Learning and Training professionals across the State Service.
The take up has been very impressive. Currently 10 programs have commenced with 232 managers participating with a further 10 programs scheduled for 2019 to address the demand from 16 State Sector agencies. Feedback has been very positive and the Tasmanian Training Consortium has committed to deliver the program in the North and North West to encompass the entire State. A pricing model has been established which ensures sustainability through to 2020 as well as inbuilt comprehensive evaluation to be undertaken in 2019. Innovative learning materials are included in the program and this is an excellent example of a high level of collaboration and agreement across all agencies from a large and diverse working group.
The Orb, Aboriginal Education Services, Department of Education
The Aboriginal Education Services in the Department of Education has developed a multimedia platform, The Orb, which is a culturally safe resource voice that provides teachers with a bank of resources to assist the teaching of Tasmanian Aboriginal Histories and Culture.
In partnership with the Aboriginal community, enhanced resources have been developed and will continue to be developed to support teachers deliver the history and cultures component of the Australian curriculum with a focus on Tasmanian Aboriginal people. Tasmanian Aborigines are the primary voice in this resource, telling their stories and relating their cultural practices. It removes the concerns teachers have about representing the Aboriginal culture in an authentic and credible manner. It is an exemplar in terms of using a blended learning approach with speakers appearing in The Orb from multiple generations, families and communities. This is a very strong example of effective stakeholder engagement and will continue to grow as a resource as it is used in the curriculum. Significantly the Catholic Education sector has also expressed a strong interest in using this resource as part of their curriculum studies.