Each year, principals agree to comply with the rules and procedures of the QCE system for their students to become eligible to receive a SEP. They do this by completing the Senior schooling certification agreement in the Student Management application, following the instructions in the memo.
When a school is registering as an RTO, the principal — known as the CEO — is legally responsible and accountable for all of its operations and signs a statutory declaration to that effect. (See Section 5.4: VET roles and responsibilities, and and for the certification agreement, see the VET application in the QCAA Portal.)
While the principal may delegate some responsibilities to the principal’s delegate, external assessment (EA) coordinator and RTO governance, the principal must personally:
- accept (via the Student Management application), and ensure that the school complies with the requirements of, the Senior secondary certification agreement
- authorise the application for the Access Management Organisation Administrator role in the QCAA Portal
- approve applications from interested staff for QCAA assessor roles
- approve any subject offerings that are not a four-unit course delivered in the standard pattern, including Short Courses, General (Extension) subjects, flexible delivery offerings including compressed studies and alternative sequence and changing the sequence of assessment
- approve a change to the intended learning outcome from QCE to QCIA for a Year 12 student.
12.1.1 Communications
The QCAA provides schools with information that allows them to monitor their progress in fulfilling the terms of the Senior secondary certification agreement. Principals need to ensure their schools have efficient procedures for forwarding QCAA communications, and other information, to relevant staff in a timely manner. The QCAA communicates with schools through a variety of channels, including the QCAA website, QCAA Portal, emails, webinars and meetings.
QCAA publications on the QCAA website and QCAA Portal include memos, newsletters, papers, reports, notices, help guides, and curriculum and assessment resources. Memos are a key source of information about school responsibilities, key dates, and other critical information about curriculum, assessment and certification issues, so principals should encourage their staff to subscribe to QCAA memos.
When defined roles are delegated, principals are responsible for ensuring that delegates are aware of their responsibilities, and provided with all the information they need in these roles. Principals are also responsible for providing accurate data and results, at times and in ways specified by the QCAA. The key dates are published in the SEP calendar.
12.1.2 New schools
A new school is a school that is, for the first time, planning to have students with the QCE or QCIA as a learning outcome. Before the principal of a new school registers students, creates subject offerings, or enrols students in subjects, they contact the QCAA to ensure they are prepared to meet the requirements of the Senior secondary certification agreement. The QCAA provides the principal with support and administrative information, such as:
- an overview of QCAA processes and requirements, including relevant links and induction materials
- access to the QCAA Portal, including the Student Management application in the QCAA Portal
- access to QCAA communications.
The principal then works in partnership with the QCAA to implement policies and procedures in the early years of implementation.
12.1.3 Delegation of responsibilities
Each year, the principal nominates a second person to receive QCAA communications and fulfil the role of the principal’s delegate. The principal provides details to the QCAA — via the QCAA Portal — of the name, position and contact details of their nominated delegate, and updates these details as required.
The QCAA communicates with the principal and principal’s delegate about QCAA policy and procedures. Principals or principal’s delegates must be available to respond to QCAA communications about exiting senior secondary students until the date published in the SEP calendar.
The principal may delegate some duties of external assessment to one or more external assessment (EA) coordinators (see Section 10.1: External assessment roles and responsibilities). The principal maintains responsibility for external assessment. The EA coordinator and principal’s delegate may be the same person.
If delegating their governance responsibilities as the CEO of an RTO to an RTO manager, principals/CEOs ensure that staff are fully aware of their RTO-related roles and responsibilities. (see Section 5.4: VET roles and responsibilities).
