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Vision for Instruction progress and impact
By Shauna-Maree Sykes, Chief of Education, Strategy and Performance, and Nicole Prismall, Manager, Education Strategy at Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools (MACS).
On 22 February 2024, MACS launched its Flourishing Learners position statement, Vision for Instruction, outlining a refreshed, system-wide approach to achieving teaching and learning excellence. One year later, the impact of this initiative is clear with significant progress made toward our fundamental goals of excellence and equity (MACS 2024a, p. 5).
Grounded in evidence-based research, Vision for Instruction provides explicit guidance for our 16,000 staff in the 293 MACS schools, that educate around 116,000 students. Improving teacher practice on a scale this size is not an easy task, but our ambition is to ensure that every student, in every classroom is supported and enabled to flourish and enrich the world (MACS 2023, p. 9).
As Dylan Wiliam aptly stated: ‘some teaching can be effective for some students, but the best teaching is effective for all students’ (cited in MACS 2024b). This sentiment continues to drive our efforts.
What have we achieved?
Leveraging insights from cognitive science and evidence-based teaching practices, Vision for Instruction has been embraced across MACS schools. We are alive to the momentum gaining in each community and school (Broadley 2024; Earp 2025; Schelle 2025).
The Vision for Instruction outlines MACS’ preferred pedagogical approach, emphasising a learning and teaching model that privileges teacher-guided lessons and deliberate sequencing of knowledge-rich curriculum. Over a very short period of time, our system has worked tirelessly to ensure that high-quality resources and professional learning is available to every school.
Our work is not yet done, but key milestones include:
- Resource development: Completion of over 4,000 F–9 Mathematics resources, and 2,000 resources for 3–6 English rolled out in 2024–2025.
- Professional learning: Over 1,700 leaders and teachers participated in the Teaching for Impact series, with over 200 literacy leaders trained through the Teach Well Master Class. Over 110 MACS teachers trained to become curriculum resource content creators.
- Instructional coaching: Over 860 teachers engaged in coaching cycles, which involved recording their own teaching practices with a focus on high-impact strategies. They then submitted self-reflections to coaches and received feedback on the specific areas of practice they had identified for improvement.
- Teacher engagement: Nearly 90% of MACS primary schools and over 50% of secondary schools are actively using curriculum resources aligned with the Vision for Instruction.
- Universal resources: More than 30 resources developed that aligned with Vision for Instruction, including modules, FAQs, knowledge packs, parent resources, as well as:
See an example of the resources and shared learning in this video featuring the implementation experience of Emmaus Catholic Primary School, Sydenham.
To ensure we are on track, MACS continues to monitor early adopter schools that began on their evidence-based journey long before the system caught up. Across our system, there are ‘lighthouse schools’ who have stayed the course of evidence-based improvement efforts, and they are now seeing the gains.
The impact has been evident at Bethany Catholic Primary School in Werribee North, where explicit instruction is proving to be a game-changer for its 570 students. Principal Joanne Webster noted that literacy and numeracy are skills that need to be taught step by step. The school uses an ‘I do, we do, you do’ approach. As a result, Bethany’s Year 3 NAPLAN results improved across all measures, with a 13.6% increase in numeracy proficiency and a 17.6% increase in reading proficiency (Schelle 2025).
Looking ahead
As we enter the second year of Vision for Instruction, MACS is committed to:
- expanding curriculum resources to include F–6 History and Humanities, Science and a full suite of English resources
- strengthening professional learning models to sustain and deepen the implementation of evidence-based practices
- delivering high-quality professional learning through our inaugural Flourishing Learners Conference, as well as through professional learning, networks and training across different learning areas
- mobilising an improved School Review and Improvement Planning process aligned with the Vision for Instruction
- launching the Vision for Engagement, a companion statement to the Vision of Instruction that explicitly articulates MACS’ commitment to high-quality, evidence-based approaches across the domains of inclusive learning, behaviour and wellbeing
- continuing partnerships with organisations that enable and support the development of high-quality curriculum resources and school-wide instructional coaching practices
- assessing the current state of assessments in MACS to determine and clarify an explicit system-wide approach to assessment
- maintaining and expanding the Flourishing Learners Principal and Reference Group (FLPRG) as the core advisory group driving the Flourishing Learners program and support for schools.
As the Vision for Instruction calls out through our system implementation enablers, ‘MACS office staff partner with teachers and school leaders to implement evidence-based practices in every school. This working relationship is enhanced by reciprocal learning, feedback and adaptation’ (MACS 2024a, p. 24).
In many respects, we know that our implementation efforts have really just begun, and improvement takes time but as one of our leaders said at the Vision for Instruction launch, it ‘... is an epic step in the right direction for the most important people in our system, our teachers and students’ (Chloe Painter, English Leader, St Robert’s School, Newtown cited in MACS 2024c).
Call to action
Join us at the inaugural MACS Flourishing Learners Conference, on 8 and 9 September at Marvel Stadium, Docklands, for a dynamic two-day conference designed to empower you to deliver equity and excellence in education across our schools. Renowned speakers include Professor Dylan Wiliam and Tom Sherrington. Learn more and register here.
The success of our Vision for Instruction depends on the engagement, leadership and tireless commitment of our schools and teachers. As we move forward, let us stay the course, deepen our efforts and ensure every student flourishes. Together, we can continue to shape lives in the light of Jesus Christ, ensuring equity and excellence in every classroom.
Stay tuned across 2025 and beyond for more stories from schools bringing the Vision for Instruction to life in their classrooms and communities.
References
Broadley, A 2024, ‘Leadership Q&A: Implementing evidence-based instruction’, Teacher, Australian Council for Educational Research, Camberwell, Victoria, accessed 24 February 2025 www.teachermagazine.com/au_en/articles/leadership-q-a-implementing-evidence-based-instruction.
Earp, J 2025, ‘Rolling out evidence-based instruction across the primary years’, Teacher, Australian Council for Educational Research, Camberwell, Victoria, accessed 24 February 2025 www.teachermagazine.com/au_en/articles/rolling-out-evidence-based-instruction-across-the-primary-years.
Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools (MACS) 2024a, Vision for Instruction, MACS, East Melbourne, accessed 24 February 2025 www.macs.vic.edu.au/MelbourneArchdioceseCatholicSchools/media/Documentation/Documents/Vision-For-Instruction-Position-Statement.pdf.
Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools (MACS) 2024b, Dylan Wiliam Vision for Instruction Endorsement, YouTube, accessed 24 February 2025 www.youtube.com/watch?v=GieWrkD7gLQ.
Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools (MACS) 2024c, ‘A new vision for instruction’, Teacher, Australian Council for Educational Research, Camberwell, Victoria, accessed 24 February 2025 www.teachermagazine.com/au_en/articles/a-new-vision-for-instruction.
Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools (MACS) 2023, MACS 2030: Forming Lives to Enrich the World, MACS, East Melbourne, accessed 24 February 2025 www.macs.vic.edu.au/MelbourneArchdioceseCatholicSchools/media/About-Us/Documentation/MACS-2030-Strategic-Plan.pdf.
Schelle, C 2025, ‘Catholic schools reap the benefits of “back to basics” overhaul’, The Age, 16 February 2025, accessed 24 February 2025 www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/catholic-schools-reap-the-benefits-of-back-to-basics-overhaul-20250204-p5l9d6.html.
Shauna-Maree Sykes and Nicole Prismall can be contacted on 9267 0228 or via flourishing@macs.vic.edu.au.
Image: St Teresa of Kolkata Catholic Primary School, Tarneit North