Education Minister Grace Grace has confirmed revised lesson delivery will allow the full curriculum to be delivered to Queensland students over a condensed semester, meaning an extra week at the end of the school year will not be necessary.
“The common sense measure to delay to the start of the school year in response to the risks posed by the current Omicron wave of COVID-19 has been received positively by stakeholders and the community” Ms Grace said.
“It’s important student learning isn’t impacted, which is why we flagged an extra week of term.
“However, after some very helpful and productive meetings with unions and key stakeholders, I am satisfied the full curriculum can be delivered in the condensed semester.
“Revising lesson plans for curriculum delivery through Semester 1 will ensure continuity of learning for students and means an extra week of school originally proposed for the end of Term 4 is not required.
“Our Queensland teachers, principals, and school staff have risen magnificently to every challenge posed by the pandemic so far, and I know they will do so again in 2022.
Ms Grace said the revised dates for the start of the 2022 school year remained as announced last week.
“The formal start of the academic school year for kindergarten to Year 10 in Queensland will be delayed by two weeks from 24 January to 7 February,” she said.
“Year 11 and 12 students will undertake remote learning from Monday 31 January until the revised formal start of the school year on 7 February.
“All other students are welcome to use the excellent resources available on our learning@home site, while vulnerable children and those of essential workers will be supervised at school sites.
“These changes are to avoid full school attendance during the peak of the COVID-19 Omicron wave which is expected in late January/early February, and to allow more time for children to receive their COVID-19 vaccinations.”
