“ACPPA fought hard for a parent's right to choose Catholic education” 

Brad Gaynor, President of the Australian Catholic Primary Principals' Association (ACPPA), and Principal of Holy Spirit Nicholls shares his reflections on 2017 and thoughts on the year ahead.

I will remember this year for… the wonderful things happening in Catholic schools across Australia. I will also remember this year for the school funding debate and its impact on Catholic education. ACPPA is extremely proud of the way we worked closely with the NCEC, CaSPA and CSPA to advocate for Catholic education. We fought hard for a parent’s right to choose a Catholic school and to retain our low fee Catholic primary schools.

Our proudest achievement this year has been… continuing to grow and expand the ACPPA. In 2017 ACPPA employed an executive officer, Paul Colyer, to deepen and strengthen our role nationally and become a more dynamic and relevant association in the future. ACPPA is committed to our advocacy and representative work to influence the development and implementation of national education priorities and structures.

The biggest issue in the sector for 2018 will be… recommendations that will result from the Review to Achieve Educational Excellence in Australian Schools. ACPPA has been advocating the need for the resources necessary for every child to reach his or her potential. We believe it is important to have time to embed effective evidence-based practices, not constant new initiatives and ‘one off’ programs. Increased support to teach and develop the general capabilities aspects of the curriculum is also vital. The removal of student NAPLAN results from My School, and include only sample testing is also a key ACPPA message to the government.

This story appeared in the December 2017 edition of Australian Teacher Magazine.