Report prepared for:
Catholic Education Office
(Diocese of Ballarat)
Centre for Health Research and Practice
University of Ballarat
Prepared by:
Associate Professor John McDonald
Telephone: (03) 5327 9818
Email:
Ms Alison Ollerenshaw
Telephone: (03) 5327 9629
Email:
Centre for Health Research and Practice
University of Ballarat
November 2005
CRICOS Provider Number 00103D
Contents
1. Acknowledgements……………………………………………………………… / 12. Executive Summary……………………………………………………………… / 2
3. Background and Overview…………………………………………………….. / 4
4. Aims and Methodology of the Review………………………………………... / 10
5. A Review of Best Practice and Current Initiatives………………………... / 11
Introduction………………………………………………………………………………… / 11
The role of schools in addressing the health, welfare and educational
needs of students…………………………………………………………………………. / 12
The characteristics of the current strategies and models to meet the health, welfare and educational needs of students……………………………………………. / 13
Evidence-based practice and best practice in schools……………………………….. / 17
A review of outsourcing as a model for the delivery of human services……………. / 20
Framework for Student Support Services….…………………………………………... / 23
6. Results……………………………………………………………………………. / 26
Expressed service needs………………………………………………………………… / 26
Key stakeholder consultation ……………...……………………………………………. / 40
Key themes:
Reported needs of students………………………………………………………………. 41
Reported needs of parents and families………………………………………………….. / 43
Stresses in schools and among school staff……………………………………………… / 44
Small, isolated rural communities………………………………………………………….. / 45
School-based structures and processes………………………………………………….. / 46
Models of service delivery………………………………………………………………….. / 49
Framework for Student Support Services………………………………………………… / 52
Student Services…………………………………………………………………………….. / 53
Referral, case allocation and data management systems………………………………. / 62
Inter-agency collaboration………………………………………………………………….. / 62
Outsourcing…………………………………………………………………………………... / 65
7. Conclusions and List of Recommendations……………………………….... / 66
8. References……………………………………………………………………….. / 73
9. Appendices………………………………………………………………………… / 76
Appendix A………………………………………………………………………………… / 76
Appendix B………………………………………………………………………………… / 77
Appendix C………………………………………………………………………………… / 79
Appendix D………………………………………………………………………………… / 80
Appendix E………………………………………………………………………………… / 83
Appendix F………………………………………………………………………………… / 85
Appendix G………………………………………………………………………………… / 86
Appendix H………………………………………………………………………………… / 87
1. Acknowledgements
The authors of this report would like to acknowledge the support and assistance received throughout this project from staff at the Catholic Education Office, Diocese of Ballarat (CEOB).
This project would not have been possible had it not been for key individuals who contributed their time and effort to this project. Particular thanks are extended to Vin Dillon, Head of Educational Services CEOB for his unwavering commitment, support and organisational skills throughout this project. Thanks are extended to all members of the reference group for their input and continued support and assistance with the project. Particular thanks also go to all CEOB Student Services staff for the opportunity they provided for open discussion and feedback at key points during the project. Special thanks are also extended to Cindy Brown for her assistance with the database.
Finally, we would like to acknowledge the assistance received from all interview and focus group participants for this review. The feedback received from participants has ensured that a thorough and informative review has been possible.
2. Executive Summary
The Centre for Health Research and Practice, University of Ballarat, was commissioned by the Catholic Education Office (Diocese of Ballarat) to review the current model of Student Services to meet the health, welfare and educational needs of primary and secondary school students across the Diocese. This review was largely instigated by a recommendation in the 2005 Action Plan to review Student Services programs in light of the welfare needs of students attending Catholic Schools in Victoria.
Conducted over a four month period in 2005 (July – November), the review (a) reviewed evidence from previously published reports, literature and research, (b) analysed the extant database of referrals to Student Services maintained by the Catholic Education Office (Diocese of Ballarat) and (c) consulted with key stakeholders from the Catholic Education Office (including Student Services staff, school principals, special needs coordinators, secondary welfare coordinators, personnel from the Catholic Education Office Melbourne) and other service agencies.
In summary, the key findings of this review are:
Across the Diocese of Ballarat, there has been an escalation in the number of students requiring services, and a marked rise in those who are presenting with complex and significant needs. These needs span across the health, welfare and educational domains.
Families, too, are under increasing pressure. Many more are looking to schools – particularly primary schools – for assistance.
The number of referrals to Student Services continues to rise. Caseloads are excessive, and staff are working inordinate hours to try to meet the demands across a vast territory.
School are reporting high levels of stress among staff as they struggle to cope with burgeoning demands.
There are some exemplary practices, programs and structures in place at individual schools. Student Services have been instrumental in helping to set these up.
However, these practices, programs and structures are not informed by a Diocesan-wide, systematic approach to meeting students’ needs, or a shared understanding of the respective roles of schools, Student Services, Centacare and other agencies.
Across the Diocese, the predominant response is reactive, interventionist, crisis-response driven and 1:1.
The current approach is not appropriate or sustainable. It does not produce the best outcomes for students.
Consequently, the key thrusts of the recommendations in this report are to:
Ø Adopt and appropriately resource an approach to meeting students’ needs that works across the four levels of activity described in the Framework for Student Support Services.
Ø Place a greater emphasis and shift of resources towards primary prevention and early intervention within a whole-school, holistic, inclusive approach to meeting students’ educational, health and welfare needs.
Ø Develop a shared understanding of the respective roles of Student Services and schools which further empowers and builds capacity within schools to address the needs of students.
Ø Articulate a vision for Catholic education in the Diocese, with particular reference to the mandate of schools in relation to student wellbeing and family welfare, and which includes a clear statement about the duty and limits of pastoral care.
Ø Allocate additional funding to, and build systems of support for, Special Needs Co-ordinators / Student Wellbeing Coordinators within schools or clusters of schools.
Ø Enhance the professional support for Student Services staff, introduce a cap on caseloads, and decentralise the referral and file management systems.
Ø Revise the functions and responsibilities of Student Services staff to decrease the time consumed with routine assessments and travel, and increase their capacity to work across the four levels of activity described in the Framework for Student Support Services.
Ø Designate an officer in Student Services to promote a student-centred approach to whole school well-being.
Ø Build collaborative and innovative models of school-based service delivery with Centacare and other health and welfare agencies, and invest in establishing cross-sectoral networks.
3. Background and Overview
Background to the Review
The Catholic Eduction Office (Diocese of Ballarat – to be henceforth referred to as CEOB) initiated this project in response to the Action Plan 2005 “Review of Student Services Programs, in light of the Catholic Education Commission of Victoria (CECV) 2004 report into The Welfare Needs of Victorian Catholic Schools.”
The CECV report (Cahill, Wyn & Smith, 2004) investigated the nature, extent and impact of student welfare issues by surveying principals and undertaking school ‘case studies.’ In summary, the report found that schools were responding to a vast array of welfare problems, with the most frequently cited issues (classified by the researchers as high in frequency and impact and low in resourcing) being:
§ Learning problems (particularly literacy and numeracy);
§ Student mental health issues;
§ Family problems (family break down and family mental health problems);
§ Social health (prevalence of unsociable classroom behaviours) and
§ Staff wellbeing (staff burnout).
Socio-economic disadvantage is a powerful explanatory factor: schools with a high proportion of families receiving the Education Maintenance Allowance were burdened with a higher level of impact on a range of health and welfare problems. Because student wellbeing and pastoral care are integral to the ethos and mission of Catholic schools, the report recommended that strategic responses should focus on:
· Collaborative, school-community partnerships and inter-sectoral approaches to the delivery of health and welfare services;
· Utilising best practice approaches to service delivery;
· Providing additional access to counsellors and psychologists, as well as enhancing teachers’ skills in student welfare;
· Adopting locality-specific measures such as community strengthening programs in disadvantaged areas; and,
· The need to reconceptualize funding models.
The frequency and complexity of these welfare problems for Victorian Catholic schools provides some of the background to this current review, and will provide some comparison of the changing welfare needs of primary and secondary students in the Diocese of Ballarat. This project will also review the health and (specialist) educational needs of students.
In response to the CECV report (2004) and the Action Plan 2005, a detailed review of the effectiveness of the current approaches to the provision of Student Services in the Diocese of Ballarat has been commissioned. This review comprises a search of the relevant literature, analysis of extant data, and comprehensive consultation with key stakeholders.
Overview of Student Support Services, Catholic Education Office (Diocese of Ballarat)
The Diocese of Ballarat
Located in regional Victoria, the CEOB covers a vast geographic area from the north west of Victoria through to the south western region. The map (see page 8) shows the Diocese of Ballarat. The CEOB has 65 schools under its jurisdiction. Of these, 54 are primary schools and 11 are secondary schools. A total of 15,806 students attend Catholic schools in the Ballarat Diocese. Of these, 8446 students attend primary schools and 7360 students attend secondary schools. Approximately half (n = 32) the schools in the CEOB have a student population of over 200, of which 10 (8 are secondary schools) have a population of over 500, and 21 schools (all primary schools) have a student population of less than 100 students.
In addition, an alternative program “Changing Places” has been established by the Central Region Catholic primary schools. It provides a program for primary school children experiencing difficulties in establishing appropriate and satisfying peer and adult relationships. The program is administered by a management committee comprising representatives from Catholic primary schools, the Catholic Education Office, Centacare, the Australian Catholic University and the Sisters of Mercy. The program operates from the Bungaree Parish Centre for groups of six to eight children, and runs for one day per week for ten weeks each school term. Changing Places draws heavily on the Confident Kids program from Vic Parenting.
The staffing structure of Student Services
The Educational Consultant is responsible for providing support for all school communities within the Diocese. These responsibilities include:
· Catholic identity
· Support for principals
· Provision of advice and service
· Co-ordination of the delivery of services.
The Diocese of Ballarat has been divided into five regions for the delivery of services to primary schools:
· River Region
· Central Region
· North Central Region
· Western Region
· Coastal Region.
These regions are presented in a map on page 9 and in the table in Appendix A. Student Support Services personnel are based at four locations across the CEOB; offices are located at Ballarat, Horsham, Red Cliffs and Warrnambool.
The positions and staffing complement of Student Services are:
· Psychologists (3 equivalent full-time)
· Speech pathologists (3 equivalent full-time)
· Special education advisors (3 equivalent full-time)
· Visiting teachers (hearing impaired, vision impaired, and physical/chronic health impaired each have part-time staffing to cover the whole Diocese)
· Youth services/student welfare officer (1 full-time for the whole Diocese)
· Indigenous education advisor (1 full-time for the whole Diocese).
The equivalent of one full-time psychologist, one full-time speech pathologist, and one full-time special education advisor are notionally allocated to each of the three former regions in the Diocese.
These Student Services staff also provide support to the eleven secondary schools. The speech pathology service is outsourced for St. Joseph’s in Mildura and St. Mary’s in Swan Hill.
All Student Services staff report to the Head of Educational Services.
The referral process for individual student needs
Requests for Student Services are made via a confidential student request form. Request forms are filled out by a member of the school staff, and co-signed by the parent/guardian, special needs co-ordinator and the principal. All referrals are then posted to the Warrnambool office. Staff at the Warrnambool office enter details of the referral on to the database. The referral, together with the student’s file, is then despatched to the appropriate Student Services staff member at the appropriate office. The student is added to the caseload of the Student Services staff member. When the staff member has completed his/her work, the case is “closed”, the student is taken off the caseload, and the file is returned to the Warrnambool office.
Other functions undertaken by Student Services
Student Services staff also undertake a range of other important roles including:
· Professional development for teachers, parents, special education co-ordinators, school support personnel
· Consultancy, support and advice to teachers, and welfare and special education co-ordinators
· Participation in the establishment and support of school student welfare / wellbeing team meetings
· Development and delivery of programs and policies (such as transition programs, behaviour and drug education)
· Agency liaison and networking (such as with School Focused Youth Service Co-ordinators and Primary Care Partnerships)
· Membership of reference groups and committees (such as the CAST program, Achieving Together, Strengthening Generations, Changing Places).
Building capacity in schools
The Catholic Education Commission Victoria (CECV), working collaboratively with the University of Melbourne, has sponsored over 500 teachers in leadership roles in Catholic primary and secondary schools to undertake the Graduate Diploma in Education (Student Welfare). This has been an important initiative in the Diocese of Ballarat, and has been keenly taken up by school staff. Freeman et al. (2003) conducted an evaluation of the impact of this course on teacher-participants and found that overall, participants were positive about the course. According to this research, course participants found the opportunity for valuable professional renewal and the initiatives included in the course (which could be used by teachers within their schools) to be highly satisfactory. However, teacher participants felt there was little opportunity to make differences in their school setting if they were not in leadership roles, and many felt they were not given sufficient opportunity to share their knowledge with other staff.