NSW Education Minister Adrian Piccoli announced the government has accepted all recommendations of an independent review into BOSTES, the body responsible for the school curriculum, the HSC, and teaching and regulatory standards in NSW schools.

Among the proposed changes will be a name change from BOSTES to the NSW Education Standards Authority, a reduction in board members from 23 to 14, and enhanced powers to lift school compliance and teacher quality with the ultimate aim of improving student results.

Mr Piccoli said the changes were about ensuring results improved for all students and would ensure the best possible results were achieved.

“The BOSTES plays an important role in education in NSW and these reforms will give it increased authority to support quality teaching in every classroom across every school and every sector,” Mr Piccoli said.

Teachers Federation Dubbo organiser Duncan McDonald said BOSTES had a world-class reputation for creating a quality curriculum and any changes should be properly discussed with educators, rather than rushed through.

“Teachers are the ones who implement the curriculum and are the experts of the syllabus so we think they should heavily involved in any decisions that will affect it,” Mr McDonald said.

“BOSTES is responsible for overseeing the curriculum, overseeing assessment and overseeing examination and it does it all very well.

“It has maintained a quality delivery of education and the concern would be that tampering with it could hurt that reputation.”

The new authority, which will form in 2017, will also have the power to perform random, risk-based school inspections and could shut down non-conforming schools.

Mr McDonald said unannounced inspections of schools could cause disruption to staff and students and have a counterproductive effect.

He also said it seemed unnecessary for BOSTES to undergo its third name and logo change in the past three years. 

BOSTES was formed in 2014 after a merger of the Board of Studies and the NSW Institute of Teachers.