The Hon Kate Jones, Minister for Education, announced the creation of a new $8 million Collaboration and Innovation Fund (CIF) during the recent 2015 Principals’ Conference. The CIF is designed to provide state secondary schools with the opportunity to design creative, distinctive and collaborative programs that add further depth and quality to the education offered to students at their site and across other school sites.
Successful schools will receive up to $500,000 (non-recurrent) of additional funding to establish or scale up a unique local program. While standard accountability measures regarding expenditure of these funds will be in place, decisions about how the funds are used will be made by a local governance group.
In addition to the value added at a local level, funded programs are also intended to contribute to system-wide innovation, learning and improvement. Examples of projects that illustrate the intent of the CIF include:
· cross agency initiative with Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, James Cook University and state secondary schools providing diverse university level project based learning opportunities connected with tourism, cane growers and graziers.
· industry pathways from Year 7 e.g. mineral, petroleum and energy programs which directly link students with local industry.
· intensive program to develop elite sportspeople in non-metropolitan areas of the state. Sports may include more diverse choices such as triathlon, hockey or soccer.
· Languages Other than English e.g. establishing an Asian languages institute including students from local feeder primary schools.
· establish a Coding Academy – again drawing on students from local schools to take coding to a new level.
What are the key criteria?
· How the program will contribute to system-wide innovation, learning and improvement.
· Evidence of research informed elements relating to the design and purpose of the program.
· Alignment to State Schooling Strategy and DET Strategic Plan.
What are the funding conditions?
Schools will:
· deliver the identified project outcomes within agreed timelines
· comply with all data collection and reporting requirements including documenting of project outcomes and best practice models for sharing across the Queensland education system
· put into effect an Action Research Framework to contribute to the development of case studies for use in the State Schools Evidence Hub and/or promotional material on project achievements.
What are the reporting requirements?
· Schools are expected to submit an account of the project to the Evidence Hub by the conclusion of their project.
· Sample templates and modes of presentation for these case studies will be provided at a later date.
What are the timelines?
First round of funding:
· Applications open on Monday 30 March 2015.
· Applications close at 5pm on Friday 29 May 2015.
· Applicants will be advised of outcome in June 2015.
· All projects must commence by 1 July 2015.
A further round of funding may be announced for Semester 2, 2015.
Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
Is there a specific template for the application?
Yes. There is a CIF application form which you can access and download by clicking on ‘apply here’ on the right hand side of the CIF webpage.
What can the funds be used for?
It is intended that the proposed program/project will not only add value at a local level, but also contribute to system-wide innovation, learning and improvement. Schools are invited to apply if they believe their proposal will address the 3 key criterion listed on the application form and contribute to collaboration or innovation on a wider scale.
While standard accountability measures regarding expenditure of CIF funds will be in place, it is intended decisions regarding how funds are used in each school be guided by the local governance group responsible for oversight of the project. Ultimately, the school will be accountable to its community in regards to the expenditure of the funds.
When do schools need to spend their allocated funding by?
There is no exact date as to when allocated funds need to be acquitted by schools. However, decisions regarding how funds are used in each school will be guided by the local governance group responsible for oversight of the project.
As part of the CIF, schools will be asked to contribute to the development of case studies and submit an account of their project/program to the Evidence Hub by the conclusion of their project. It is expected that by the end of 2016, this valuable information will be housed in the Evidence Hub to help improve school learning, achievement and outcomes.
What support will I receive as a funding recipient?
Successful schools will be encouraged to participate in the highly successful Innovation Bootcamp, delivered by DET in partnership with expert convenors from AITSL and the UK Innovation Bootcamp. The Bootcamp will be delivered during Term 3, 2015 and will offer a rapid and valuable induction into innovation in education, with processes and methods that can be replicated in school communities. Over the course of the Bootcamp, participants will be immersed in driving innovation, strengthening professional networks and using innovation methodologies.
Why should I join the Mindhive Collaboration and Innovation Forum?
The Collaboration and Innovation Forum will allow school communities to source expert advice, constructive feedback and input from colleagues, academics and policy advisors on ideas they are developing for prototyping and implementation. There is the potential for ideas and projects to be broadened by the experience and support provided by the wide range of contributors.
How can I get involved in the Mindhive Collaboration and Innovation Forum?
All you need to do is to enter the Collaboration and Innovation Forum website and click on “Library” (one of the black tabs). From here you can upload a file – this can be a Word document where you have listed your ideas, issues and topics for discussion.
Once the CIF team receive this document, your information will be fed into a “Policy Proposal” section, which will invite everyone to discuss and comment on your ideas.
Enquiries and further information
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Applications are now open
Join MindHive to explore potential collaborations and innovations with universities, corporations, other government agencies and NGOs.
Connect with school communities, colleagues, academics and policy advisers to source expert advice, input and commentary on ideas for the design and implementation of innovations in teaching and learning through the Collaboration and Innovation Forum.
Questions may be directed to the Collaboration and Innovation Fund team.
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