Special Religious Education - Australia

Students in class

 

PROCESS FOR AUTHORIZATION OF SRE TEACHERS

Either a school or a member of the Church, who wishes to teach SRE in a school, contact the S&I Coordinator responsible for SRE by email:
sc-australia@churchofjesuschrist.org

The S&l Coordinator will send all relevant documentation to the potential teacher and guide them through the process of becoming a SRE teacher.

  1. The potential teacher obtains a volunteer WWCC.
  2. The Seminary and Institute (S&I) Coordinator fills out and signs the authorization letter.
  3. The potential teacher fills out and signs the declaration form.
  4. The potential teacher completes the NSW DET child protection training and prints certificate.
  5. The potential teacher reads and is familiar with the Code of Conduct and the Social Media policies
    Access the Code of Conduct policy by the following link: https://education.nsw.gov.au/policy-library/policies/pd-2004-0020
    Access the Social Media Policy by the following link: https://education.nsw.gov.au/policy-library/policies/pd-2011-0418
  6. The (S&I) Coordinator meets with the potential teacher and ensures they can access the curriculum and any training required.
  7. The (S&I) Coordinator holds meaningful conversations with SRE Teachers as needed and to fulfill the review process required by NSW DET.
  8. The potential teacher arranges to meet with the school and presents all documents to the school.

Induction Training includes the following:

  • DET Code of Conduct Training, including Social Media Policy
  • DET Child Protection Training
  • Knowledge of the authorised curriculum and the scope and sequence
  • Delivery of the curriculum with sensitivity and in an age-appropriate manner
  • The use of classroom technology such as interactive whiteboards and digital projectors
  • Understanding the SRE Teacher’s role as a mandatory reporter in NSW

ONGOING TRAINING, SELF-EVALUATION AND SUPPORT FOR SRE TEACHERS:

Ongoing training including child protection, mandatory reporting, and classroom management issues consist of:

  • Attending CES/S&I in person or virtual Teacher Training Meetings.
  • CES/S&I Personnel facilitate and may conduct any of the following: meaningful conversations, teacher surveys, peer feedback and sharing, classroom observation, CES/S&I feedback, and mentor support to teacher development.

REVIEW OF SRE TEACHING PROCESS:

To adhere to the annual assurance process CES/S&I personnel conduct reviews of SRE teaching and report efforts to address identified issues such as further training and mentor support to the Stake (Diocese) President.

CES/S&I then provide further training under the direction of the Stake (Diocese) President as identified.

CURRICULUM AND MATERIAL APPROVAL PROCESS:

The curriculum that will be used by SRE volunteer teachers is Come Follow Me for Primary available at churchofjesuschrist.org. All curriculum materials are developed by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints curriculum department and authorised by the Council of the Twelve Apostles. Curriculum materials are available to the public via churchofjesuschrist.org.

ACCESSIBILITY OF INFORMATION

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints has the following information publicly available on the official Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints website.

PROVIDING INFORMATION TO SCHOOLS

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints has the following process for notifying the school:

The SRE teacher will provide contact details of the responsible manager for authorising teacher(s), SRE curriculum and complaints. This information can be found in the Authorisation Letter. This form also contains the web link for the school to display SRE information on its website.

COMPLAINTS PROCESS

The DET or its employees, parents or any member of the public can file a complaint about SRE by emailing the responsible officer sc-australia@churchofjesuschrist.org.

Once a complaint is received the complainant will be contacted by the Responsible Officer or one of their representatives (Approx. time frame within 2 business days).