First Nations education
Prioritising self-determination, strengthening cultural safety and delivering on Statewide Treaty commitments are central to our strategy. Self-determination is a fundamental enabler to lift education and wellbeing outcomes for Victoria’s First Nations children and young people.
We want to amplify the voices of First Nations children, young people, families and communities. We want their voices to be heard at every level of decision making. This will help drive systemic change in early childhood and school education. It will also help create more connected, supportive and positive experiences and outcomes for First Nations people in Victoria.
This work continues through Marrung: Aboriginal Education Plan 2016–2026. Marrung is delivered in partnership with the Victorian Aboriginal Education Association Incorporated (VAEAI). VAEAI is the Victorian Government’s principal partner in First Nations education. This work will also be strengthened through the delivery of commitments under Statewide Treaty.
The principles of Marrung and the Dhelk Wukang: Aboriginal Inclusion Plan 2022–2026 provide a strong foundation for ongoing partnerships with First Nations communities. The evaluation of Marrung has also informed the co-design of a new First Nations education strategy with community.
We are committed to implementing the Victorian Government’s response to the recommendations of the Yoorrook Justice Commission. This work will be done in partnership with First Nations communities, organisations and relevant stakeholders.
We are supporting Victoria’s Closing the Gap Implementation Plan. It builds on successful approaches across health, education, employment and community wellbeing. It also has a strong emphasis on shared decision making and community-controlled solutions.
Reform directions are outlined in Strengthening Aboriginal Self-Determination in Education. These directions help position the education system to better support self-determination. They also elevate the voices of First Nations learners and their communities.
We continue to consult First Nations and education (including early childhood education) stakeholders. This consultation helped develop legislative amendments to strengthen First Nations recognition and embed self-determination principles in the Education and Training Reform Act 2006. They also aim to improve learning and wellbeing outcomes for First Nations people.
We are supporting the implementation of Victoria’s Statewide Treaty. A key priority is the ‘Inclusion of Truth-telling in the Victorian Curriculum’. It will ensure Victorian students can learn more about Victoria’s history, including from the perspectives of First Nations people.
Our ongoing reforms aim to improve learning and wellbeing outcomes for First Nations children and young people. They also support community-led initiatives and choice. As part of the Education State – Excellence in Every Classroom strategy, we are continuing to strengthen First Nations histories, cultures and perspectives in the Victorian Curriculum. We are engaging with First Nations people on the design of our schools and kindergartens to help make education settings culturally safe. We are also working with the First Nations community, including Traditional Owners, to make culture and Country visible in these settings.
In the early childhood education sector, we are prioritising more hours of 4-Year-Old Kinder for First Nations children. We are also continuing our partnership with VAEAI. This will help support culturally safe and responsive kindergartens that value and respect First Nations cultures, children and families.
Early childhood education reform
We are continuing to deliver the Best Start, Best Life reforms that are transforming early childhood education in Victoria.
Between 2025 and 2036, more hours of 4-Year-Old Kinder will be rolled out across the state in stages. Once fully implemented, this will give children across Victoria access to up to 30 hours a week of kindergarten in the year before school. Led by qualified teachers, more hours of 4-Year-Old Kinder provide greater opportunities to socialise and learn through play. The rollout prioritises children who will benefit the most from additional hours of kindergarten.
Four-Year-Old Kinder has been successfully launched in 18 regional local government areas (LGAs) and in 2026, became available statewide to First Nations children, children from a refugee or asylum seeker background and children who have had contact with Child Protection.
Free Kinder continues to be available for children enrolled in a kindergarten program, enabling greater participation for children from disadvantaged backgrounds.
More than 145,000 children benefited from this program in 2025, with a similar number expected to benefit in 2026. The rollout of the 3-Year-Old Kinder reform is also progressing successfully: 92% of services across the state now offer 15 hours per week, and more than 92% of all eligible children were enrolled in a program in 2025.
Victoria is also establishing Thriving Kids. This will support children aged 8 years and under with development delay or autism and their families. The department will lead the design and implementation of this new model of early intervention.
Fifty Victorian government-owned and operated Early Learning Victoria centres will be open by 2032 in areas of greatest need, co-located with schools or other services such as TAFEs, hospitals and major employers. Centres will include space for maternal and child health services, and where possible other services such as playgroups. Of the 50 centres, 18 have opened to date.
We will continue to deliver on the government’s commitment to provide 180 new government-owned kindergartens, on or near school sites. Forty-four of these new or expanded kindergartens will have opened by the end of 2026, with a further 32 to be delivered in 2027 and 2028. We will also continue to deliver kinders at non-government schools and support sector-delivered new and expanded early learning centres.
We have implemented recommendations from the 2025 Rapid Child Safety Review to strengthen safety standards in early childhood education and care services and keep Victorian children safe. The Victorian Early Childhood Regulatory Authority was established in 2026, creating a strengthened independent authority to regulate the system. The Victorian Early Childhood Regulatory Authority will also double the frequency of compliance checks, visiting providers at least once every 12 months to ensure they are delivering quality early childhood education and care services that the community can trust.
School reform
Our next phase of school reforms will focus on continuing to realise the Education State vision: to deliver excellence in every classroom in every corner of the state.
Over the past 10 years, the department has delivered major reforms that have enhanced the experiences and outcomes of schooling. Future effort will build on this progress to further improve student outcomes.
In 2026, Victoria achieved the best overall NAPLAN results in the country. Victoria has seen significant improvements in Year 5, 7 and 9 Numeracy scores since 2023. More Year 7 and 9 students reached the highest level in Numeracy as did Year 9 students in Writing. Despite these excellent overall results, there is still work to be done to improve outcomes for students facing disadvantage.
We will continue to focus on excellence in teaching and learning. This includes implementing the VTLM 2.0 in all government schools by 2028. Based on evidence about how students learn, VTLM 2.0 places explicit teaching at its core.
High-quality Victorian Lesson Plans, including Phonics Plus, and professional learning programs aligned to the VTLM 2.0, are helping teachers. They provide ready-to-use resources that reduce lesson preparation time. They also support implementation of the Victorian Curriculum 2.0. We will continue to support government schools to implement Victoria’s reading and mathematics positions. Building on the success of the Phonics Check, the Year 1 Numeracy Check pilot will inform statewide use in 2027. It will give teachers the data they need to identify students at risk of falling behind and intervene early.
Education State reforms also focus on helping every student to succeed. Generational reforms in student mental health and wellbeing, and disability inclusion have been rolled out in schools and will continue to be embedded over the coming years.
Supporting families with education costs and equal access to education is also a current focus.
We are continuing the significant senior secondary school pathway reforms. These reforms are building the aspirations and skills of young people in Victoria. They are also helping prepare students for post-school pathways into rewarding careers that will meet the needs of the modern economy. They have contributed to an increase in Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE) completion rates, including the VCE Vocational Major (VM). Completion rates increased from 91.7% in 2021 to 97.4% in 2025.
Supporting these senior secondary reforms, we will complete the construction of 6 new Tech Schools. This will give 62,000 more secondary students access to high-tech programs. These programs will inspire them to pursue careers and further education in science and technology-related industries.
Expanding, supporting and recognising our school workforce remains a priority. Investment in the school workforce has contributed to 14,000 more registered school teachers in Victoria in 2025 compared to 2020. Victoria’s government teaching service also grew by more than 1,300 full-time equivalent staff from June 2024 to June 2025. Since 2019, the Teacher Financial Incentives program has supported more than 890 teachers to relocate to hard-to-staff roles.
We are also building the capability of teachers. The Career Start induction program supports graduate teachers as they enter the profession. It provides professional learning, mentoring, time release and networking opportunities with peers.
We will continue to prioritise the wellbeing and safety of our workforce. We have already implemented several recommendations from the Independent Review into administrative and compliance activities in Victorian government schools to reduce teacher and school leader workload. We will continue to work closely with stakeholders to further reduce this workload, in line with the findings from the Review.
We are providing a high-quality, contemporary learning environment through the delivery of modern infrastructure. This includes building 126 new schools between 2017 and 2029, planning 3 more, and delivering more than 2,400 upgrade projects. We will also deliver high-quality digital foundations. These foundations will be cybersafe and enable schools and teachers to deliver a modern educational offering.
The Better and Fairer Schools Agreement (BFSA) Head Agreement was signed by the Victorian and Australian governments in 2025. It supports delivery of the Education State. The agreement secures 100% of the Schooling Resource Standard for Victorian government schools by 2034. It also sets out a suite of national reforms aimed at improving schooling outcomes for all Australian students.
The establishment of Thriving Kids will also support school students aged 8 years and under with development delay or autism and their families.
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