The University of Melbourne has conducted over 15 years of research and development into assessment and reporting methods to support and enhance the learning of students with additional needs. Following a foundational research partnership with the Victorian Department of Education to develop the SWANs assessment and reporting tools, further research was conducted to adapt and tailor the SWANs materials for other contexts.
ABLES
The University continued its partnership with the Victorian Department of Education to develop the Abilities Based Learning and Education Support (ABLES) program for use in Victorian schools. ABLES links the SWANs assessment and reporting of foundational skills to the most relevant learning domains in the Victorian school curriculum to help Victorian teachers seamlessly integrate assessment, reporting, and curriculum information into their planning.
Western Australia and South Australia have subsequently linked ABLES to their curricula. ABLES supports teachers to assess the learning readiness of students with disabilities and additional needs, provides reporting to support instructional planning, provides guidance and teaching strategies and supports teachers to monitor student progress over time. ABLES includes nine assessments across the following domains:
- English – Speaking and listening
- English – Reading and writing
- Personal and social capability
- Mathematics
- Movement and physical activity
- Critical and creative thinking
- Digital literacy
Early ABLES
Following the rollout of ABLES, the University and the Victorian Department collaborated to adapt ABLES to describe learning of children (aged from two to five years) with diagnosed disabilities or developmental delay in early childhood programs. The Early ABLES assessments align with the five Learning and Development Outcomes of the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework. The eight Early ABLES assessments are:
- Identity and Community – Social
- Wellbeing – Emotion
- Learning Dispositions
- Communication – Interactions
- Communication – Symbols and Text
- Learning and Communication – Numeracy
- Wellbeing – Movement
- Identity and Learning – Thinking Skills
Melbourne Metrics hosts and maintains the ABLES tools on its Ruby platform for a number of education systems across Australia, as well as the Early ABLES tools on Ruby for Victorian early childhood services.
The impact
The SWANs, ABLES and Early ABLES tools were the first of their kind and have shifted perceptions of learning to focus on what learners with additional needs and disabilities can do and what they need to progress, no matter their starting point or pace of learning. The tools provide an inclusive approach to the learning, assessment and reporting of foundational skills and complex competencies that are essential for all students to learn and thrive. Since 2011, more than 50 000 students in Australia have been assessed using either the SWANs or ABLES tools. Early ABLES has been used to support the learning of more than 7000 children aged between two and five years.
Get involved
A number of education systems across Australia offer access to ABLES so first check information in your jurisdiction.
- Victorian government schools can access ABLES via the Victorian Department’s website
- Victorian early childhood services can access Early ABLES via the Victorian Department’s website
- For further questions please get in touch via swans-ables-help@unimelb.edu.au