Welcome to a new academic year. By now our Early Childhood, Primary, and Secondary colleagues are well into the swing of things. Tertiary colleagues will soon welcome back their students, although many have also toiled away with summer session units, too. Wherever you find yourself, I hope the year has started smoothly for you and your community. Welcome, too, to our new members; we’re glad you’re here and look forward to connecting with you more directly in due course.
Before heading too far, though, spare a thought for colleagues in other places across the nation who face difficult starts to their year, either through flood, fire, or tragic loss. Each are reminders that educational communities, beyond any of the debates about phonics, direct instruction, ATARs or not, or how to engage with AI, are deeply human and relational with all the joys and challenges that brings.
What does 2025 hold for you? What are your priorities, and what makes them important? What new ideas, approaches, or resources are you grappling with? What will you continue to do, remembering that all that has passed is not to be discarded, and not everything that is new is necessarily beneficial? How are your colleagues doing?
Importantly, what do you need to focus on in your leadership? Where will you seek support? Who are the voices you listen to, who encourage you, who equip you, who challenge you, who inspire you? Be deliberate with your learning and growth this year.
This month will bring a highlight for ACEL NSW when we support our national office in welcoming Professor Andy Hargreaves to Sydney on February 21. His masterclasses are always memorable; I hope to see you there.
We will shortly open nominations for our ACEL NSW 2025 Branch Awards. Following an extensive review in 2024 of ACEL Awards by our National Board, it was agreed to have a common approach across all branches, including the time when nominations are sought. Further details will be made available soon.
This year’s National Conference will be hosted by our Branch. We look forward to welcoming colleagues from across the nation and beyond to Sydney in September. It would be great to have you join us for what will be a major professional and collegial event for 2025.
Finally, a priority for the Branch Executive this year is growing our collegial connections. Keep an eye on upcoming opportunities to get together with colleagues and learn from and with them. There’ll be opportunity to share wisdom, to strengthen connections, and to encourage one another in this wonderful work.
See you soon.
Paul Kidson
ACEL NSW Branch President