8.30 – 9.00am

Breakfast Session: Empowerment Begins with Inclusion

Travis Smith, K-12, Industry Executive, Microsoft

9.00 – 9.30am

Day Two Opening  

Welcome to Day Two  
Andrew Klein, Master of Ceremonies

Prayer

Spotlight Session: Accessibility and Technology

Troy Waller, Learning Delivery Specialist & Accessibility Lead for Microsoft Education Australia

9.20 - 10.05am

KEYNOTE ADDRESS

Friendships and a theology of disability

Jim Good, Father, Special Needs Educator, Co-Author of Sustaining Hope: Friendships and Intellectual Impairment

A cornerstone of Catholic education is that “all children by virtue of their dignity as human persons, have an inalienable right to education, adapted to their ability.” In Catholic communities, this cornerstone is underpinned on a daily basis by the names of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Our experience of the Trinity has the potential to be the very foundation of the way we ‘do-life’, as well as having the power to inform our teaching practise. As we are drawn further in to the Three-in-One we are inspired and empowered to thrive in communities where inclusive relationships that are loving, equitable, reciprocal and practical are the norm. And so we might in fact say, “all people by virtue of their dignity as human persons, have an inalienable right to friendship within community, regardless of their ability.” This presentation will make use of research amongst people with intellectual impairment and their families. This research reveals the voices of people with a strong desire for something that is often missing – a community of genuine friendships where their intrinsic equality and worth as individuals is validated. Due to a foundation in a relational Trinity, Catholic communities are ideally placed to help fill this void.

10.05 - 10.30am

Interactive Q & A Session 3

10.30 - 10.45am

Time for a break - Let’s get moving

10.45 - 10.50am

Student Showcase   

90 seconds with Microsoft                                                                                                

10.50 - 11.35am

Spotlight Session: Collaborative Planning for First Nations Children with a Disability

Sharon Cooke, CSNSW State Manager Policy and Programs - Aboriginal Education

Selina Walker, Chair, CCSP Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Committee,

CCSP Council Parent Representative

This spotlight session will lead participants through understanding trauma through the lens of intergenerational trauma and what this understanding brings in helping schools to build an authentic and trustful relationship with parent/carer/families. Through voices of experience, this session will show how this enables collaborative planning for better educational and life outcomes for First Nations children and young people with a disability.

11.35 - 11.50am

Interactive Q & A Session 4

11.50 - 12.00pm

Time for a break - Let’s get moving

12.00 - 12.05pm

Student Showcase   

90 seconds with Microsoft

12.05 - 12.20pm

Concurrent Session Five

Session 5a 

Positive Partnerships: Autism Supports and Resources for Students, Families and their Schools 

Trish Nicoll, Positive Partnerships

Join us to hear about how you can access our range of face-to-face, online and blended learning options in 2022. The Positive Partnerships session will explore the professional learning options available and prompt you to consider the benefits to students, staff and school communities.Learn how Positive Partnerships guides teachers and school staff to increase their understanding of autism and to plan for learner diversity using evidence informed strategies. Our resources and tools can be used to support collaborative planning processes and inform the development of reasonable adjustments to support students on the autism spectrum. 

Session 5b  

Building Positive Partnerships

Wayne Davie, Chair, Council of Catholic School Parents and
Cheryl Murphy, Deputy Chair, Council of Catholic School Parents

Parents play a critical role in their child’s learning and through this session we aim to highlight this role and the importance of developing strong and effective partnerships between schools and families.This session aims to build on the partnerships in catholic schools that are already in place and encourage the development of a closer and positive partnership between the school and family.  The common goal is to realise our aim of improving outcomes for all our children while will equip parents and schools, their families and communities to strengthen these partnerships to better focus on children’s learning and well-being.

Session 5c

Royal Far West Partnership with Catholic Education Wagga Wagga

Inclusion & Diverse Learning Team, Wagga Wagga Diocese

During 2017 discussion began with Royal Far West as to their ability to provide Occupational Therapy and Speech Pathology, and a few psychology places, to identified students across 26 primary schools in the Diocese using telehealth. In Term 1 2018 the RFW Telecare  program commenced with a trial in four schools. This expanded rapidly in Term 3 of that year to include all 26 primary schools. The focus at this time was on Kindergarten students and early intervention. It soon became apparent that students in other grades would also benefit from this program. This session will look at the challenges, solutions and benefits of a telehealth program to deliver success outcomes for students with disability in regional and remote schools.

12.20 - 12.25pm

Time for a break - Let’s get moving

12.25 - 12.40pm

Concurrent Session Six

Session 6a 

Positive Partnerships: Autism Supports and Resources for Culturally Diverse and Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Students, Families and their Schools 

Kim Healy and Adam Howie, Positive Partnerships.

Session 6b 

Partners in Communication: Building Capacity and Unlocking Communicative Potential for Students with Complex Communication

Lisa Boland and Pashenka Gribbin, Diverse Learning Team, Sydney Catholic Schools

Students with Complex Communication Needs (CCN) are a heterogeneous group, who for a range of reasons, experience difficulty communicating effectively using speech alone. Students with complex communication needs may make use of a variety of Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) modes in addition to, or instead of, the use of speech and often require extensive and highly individualized adjustments.The Complex Communication Needs Support Team (Sydney Catholic Schools, SCS) established in 2012, is a dedicated, specialist service comprising of 2 speech pathologists who work within the SCS diverse learning team to build teacher capacity in order to support students with CCN to communicate effectively, learn, and participate fully in their mainstream school settings. This presentation will explain how this service, unique to SCS, operates within the transdisciplinary SCS Diverse Learning team. Presenters will outline how they work with students, teachers and families within this model to achieve learning growth for students and professional growth for staff.

Session 6c

Post School Options Workplace Learning – A framework to engage vulnerable students to develop work readiness skills to inform future pathways

Janelle Christie and Andrew Hickey, Post School Options Team, Parramatta Diocese

The PSO team provides personalised intervention to develop transferable skill-based learning. This is offered to students from Years 9 to 12 and the learning context is determined by the needs of the student, their goals and their ability.This session will explore the access points, challenges and student outcomes regarding Post School Options for a cohort of students that consists of those who may have additional learning needs, including students with a moderate intellectual disability. 

12.40 - 1.00pm

Spotlight Session: Next Steps Reflection

Samantha Giles, CSNSW State Manager Policy and Programs -Disability

1.00 - 1.15pm

Interactive Q & A Session 5

Delegates will be required to meet in breakout groups to discuss a hot topic.

1.15 - 1:30pm

Closing Remarks and Summary

1.30pm

Conference Close & Lunch