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ANNUAL REPORT TO THE SCHOOL

COMMUNITY

St Thomas More Primary School Mt Eliza

2018

REGISTERED SCHOOL NUMBER: 1822

ST THOMAS MORE PRIMARY SCHOOL, MT. ELIZA

2018 ANNUAL REPORT TO THE SCHOOL COMMUNITY 1

Contents

Contact Details ....................................................................................................................................................... 2

Minimum Standards Attestation ............................................................................................................................ 2

Our School Vision ................................................................................................................................................... 3

School Overview .................................................................................................................................................... 4

Principal’s Report ................................................................................................................................................... 5

Education in Faith .................................................................................................................................................. 6

Learning & Teaching ............................................................................................................................................... 8

Student Wellbeing ............................................................................................................................................... 11

Child Safe Standards ............................................................................................................................................ 14

Leadership & Management .................................................................................................................................. 15

School Community ............................................................................................................................................... 18

Future Directions ................................................................................................................................................. 20

School Performance Data Summary ..................................................................................................................... 21



Contact Details

ADDRESS 313 Canadian Bay Road Mt. Eliza VIC 3930

PRINCIPAL Mrs. Pat McConvill

PARISH PRIEST Fr. Laurie Pearson

SCHOOL BOARD CHAIR Mr. Chris Young

TELEPHONE (03) 9787 7788

EMAIL [email protected]

WEBSITE www.stmmtlza.catholic.edu.au

E NUMBER E1321

Minimum Standards Attestation

I, Pat McConvill, attest that St Thomas More primary School is compliant with:

All of the requirements for the minimum standards and other requirements for the

registration of schools as specified in the Education and Training Reform Act 2006 (Vic)

and the Education and Training Reform Regulations 2017 (Vic), except where the school

has been granted an exemption from any of these requirements by the VRQA

Australian Government accountability requirements related to the 2018 school year under

the Australian Education Act 2013 (Cth) and the Australian Education Regulations 2013

(Cth)

20th May, 2019



Our School Vision

OUR VISION

St. Thomas More Primary School aspires to be a nurturing Catholic school that builds respectful

relationships based on Gospel values and is committed to excellence in education.

OUR MISSION

In our parish school community, we model the teachings of Christ through compassionate and

positive relationships. We provide a sense of belonging and develop brave learners, spiritually,

socially and academically.

OUR ASPIRATION

Passionate learners, acting justly within society.

OUR KEY VALUES

Respect

Value individuals and accept differences; listen to others; use positive language

Collaboration

Share ideas and responsibilities; co-operate and support one another

Innovation

Contemporary learning; risk taking; creative thinking; showing initiative

Integrity

Pride in self, learning and community; confidential; prompt; organised



School Overview

Established in 1981 with an enrolment of 126 students, St. Thomas More’s Mount Eliza, a co-educational

Catholic primary school, has grown to 338 students (204 families). There are 24 teaching and 13 non-

teaching staff. More than 94% of our children baptised Catholic, with others being Greek Orthodox,

Armenian Rite or Anglican.

There is a strong parish, school community feel with the church sitting adjacent to the school and the

community embracing the Parish Priest and staff's contribution.

The school's mission is to provide quality education, within a Catholic framework, in partnership with

parents and the wider community. The school aspires to develop passionate learners, acting justly

within society, and is successful in promoting Christian values, pastoral care and social justice. The

leadership team focuses on building a contemporary learning framework to optimize learning

opportunities and engagement for students.

The curriculum is rich, diverse and focused on developing the whole child - academically, spiritually and

socially. Specialist teachers cover Physical Education, Literacy Support, Reading Recovery, Music, Visual

Arts, Italian, Library and ICT. Students are encouraged to question, reflect, take risks, critique, analyse

and act. The school places a significant focus on the use of technology as learning tool. Interactive

whiteboards, digital cameras, Apple Macbooks, iPads, chrome books, a green room, technology room,

webcams and a number of computers are designated to classrooms.

The school is set within a beautiful bushland setting. A number of pods provide the junior, middle and

senior schools with a degree of independence while not being isolated from one another. The school has

a large oval, basketball and netball courts and adventure playgrounds. In addition to the bright and

attractive classrooms (two Preps, four Grade 1-2s, four Grade 3-4 and four Grade 5/6 classes), the

school has a technology room, a library, a multi-purpose area, a visual arts area and a music/LOTE

(Italian) room. A state of the art gymnasium is used by the school, parish and community groups.

In 2018, Woodland Early Learning Centre was established on the site. The ELC offers 4-year old sessions

for 15 hours per week and 6 hours weekly for 3-year olds. A strong connection is being built between

the ELC and the school.



Principal’s Report

In 2018, St Thomas More School was delighted to welcome the staff and students at Woodland Early

Learning Centre. The kinder is on site and quickly developed positive links with the school through

occasional activities and regular access to outdoor learning spaces. From small beginnings, the number

of students grew across the year and we look forward to strong learning and social links over the years

to come.

Led by Father Laurie, the school community continued to make the Catholic faith meaningful for

students in today’s world. We also pursued the goal of improved rates of learning growth in literacy and

numeracy through contemporary practices to ensure that student learning and assessment are

differentiated to meet individual needs. The wellbeing of our community is central to the school culture.

Each person – student, parent, staff member – is treated with respect and dignity.

The focus in learning and teaching, within the Visible Learning project, has been on feedback, both

giving and receiving. This was implemented across all levels of the school – teacher to teacher, teacher

to student, student to teacher, and student to student. We believe this has built teacher capacity in

their craft and led children to own their learning by knowing what the next stage of learning is.

The children were thrilled to have two new playgrounds in the latter part of the year. The area of the

original playground was cleared with new equipment for both junior and senior students, with rubber

matting underneath and new shade sails to protect during the summer months. Students had input into

the design process and the playgrounds are being very well used.

We continue to celebrate our connected community and focus on our journey in faith and in learning.

Mrs. Pat McConvill

Principal



Education in Faith

Goals & Intended Outcomes

Support students to form their Catholic identity, making sense of their world and their lives and responding in encounter with Catholic tradition, the school’s faith community and pedagogy.

That students will make stronger connections between the school’s Catholic culture and their own Catholic identity, their learning and their lives.

Achievements

In 2018, the goals and outcomes to improve the Catholic Identity of the school were addressed in a

variety of ways.

The school was successful in an application to Catholic Education Melbourne to be part of Partnering to

Learn: Collectives in Religious Education 2018 with St Macartan’s School, Mornington. The school focus

for the project is building on the Catholic Identity through the Pedagogy of Encounter - children living in

a pluralistic world with a foundation of Catholic Identity. This will develop staff confidence and capacity

through faith formation to build learning and understanding of content knowledge.

Staff engaged in a professional learning day on the Pedagogy of Encounter and implementing the new

Religious Education Framework. Both processes are now included in the integrated planning of inquiry

learning and religious education. This enables children to engage in meaningful learning and staff can

develop rich assessment tasks to assess the learning against specific religious outcomes. Another

component of building capacity was reviewing assessment in Religious Education using the new

Religious Education curriculum framework; success of this learning is evident as rich assessment tasks

with the planning documentation.

The biannual staff retreat days were held in third term. This staff retreat focused on wellbeing –

physically, emotionally and spiritually. The first day specifically looked at physical and emotional

wellbeing and resilience and was facilitated by Springfox, an organisation that specializes in this work.

The second day focused on spirituality, being led by John Stuart, a spiritual director. Feedback from staff

shows both days were very beneficial in their personal as well as professional lives.

As a Catholic school, the Sacraments are an important part of each child’s faith journey. Preparation for,

and reception of the Sacrament of Reconciliation and Eucharist for Year 3 students, and Confirmation

for Year 6 students was led by the school in partnership with the parents. Parents and child workshops

were held which have been beneficial in this process.

St. Thomas More School also continued throughout 2018 to develop social justice initiatives to follow

the Catholic Social Teachings and make a difference in the world by being champions of change. St.

Thomas More School community extended its support of St. Vincent de Paul Society by holding a school

sleep out as a fundraiser for St Vincent de Paul Society. Approximately 30 students and 10 parents

attended the night. Social justice activities link to our curriculum and are relevant to the context of the



students learning. These initiatives are co-lead by teaching staff and Year 6 leaders in the Education in

Faith and Community areas.

Much was achieved in 2018 in Education in Faith; our School Improvement Plan was fully implemented

with focus developments for the future. We will continue to refine our curriculum to make our Catholic

Identity a strong one, linked within context to community.

VALUE ADDED

A sense of social justice is strongly promoted through the school’s fund-raising and charitable works.

Sponsor child in the Philippines

Sister parish in East Timor / Rice Line

Caritas through Project Compassion in Lent and supporting the missions in October

St. Vincent de Paul Society, during the winter months and at Christmas time

Family Week fundraising and donations to Catholic Care

Vinnies School Sleepout



Learning & Teaching


Establishing a learning culture of engagement, of self-regulation, challenge and growth.

That rates of learning growth in literacy and numeracy will improve.

Achievements

The major focus for 2018 was involvement in the second year of the Visible Learning project to improve

the teaching craft. This project, based in the solid research evidence of Professor John Hattie, makes

learning clear to the learner which in turn improves learning outcomes. The staff and students are now

well-versed in learning intentions, success criteria and learning dispositions. In late 2017, criteria were

established for professional expectations of teachers at St Thomas More School. These became a focus

for professional development, as was providing improved feedback to colleagues and students.

Professional learning sessions focused on these topics, including classroom visits and teacher mentors.

Two representatives of Corwin, the company overseeing the project, visited the school reporting on 4

assessment areas – The Visible Learner, Know Thy Impact, Inspired and Passionate Teachers, and

Feedback. The school was affirmed for its successes in the past 12 months:

Eight dispositions, created collaboratively with all stakeholders last year, are being embedded in

classrooms, with teachers referring to them in lessons and through posters in classrooms.

Teacher practices to empower students to take greater ownership of their learning has grown over the

past 12 months.

A growing shared understanding of progress, in that teachers have a good knowledge of the growth they

were expecting in students, and that students “Know that progressing means to move towards…”

Collaborative process allows for differentiation to occur by sharing ideas and strategies to “Stretch

higher achievers and support low achievers.”

The school provides a secure and supportive multi-age teaching and learning environment and provides

intervention for students experiencing learning difficulties. NAPLAN data indicates a large number of

students achieving at the expected level and a significant percentage achieving levels at least one year

above in literacy and many students achieving at least one year above in numeracy.

NAPLAN data in Maths for 2018 shows the Year 3 average to be above the National mean. About 23 % of

Year 3 students are one or more years above expected outcomes, with 100% of Year 3 students meeting

the minimum standards.

In Year 5, 98% of students were at or above the minimum standard for numeracy. In comparison with

the National and the State mean, the school mean was above in 2018. More than 30% of Year 5

students in 2018 are above expected outcomes. Almost 74% of Year 5 student’s results showed that

they were at or above the expected level.



Seventy-eight percent of Year 5 students made medium to high growth in Numeracy when tracked from

Year 3 in 2016 to Year 5 in 2018.

Semester Two results in PAT-Maths, a standardised test applied to Years 1-6, recorded above expected

results for Foundation to 6 in 2018, with 91% performing at expected level or one year above.

Teachers were again provided with the opportunity to undertake professional learning in teaching

writing skills. In 2018 the focus continued on the craft of writing and on identifying students’ capabilities

in writing in order to assist students with further improvement as writers.

Analysis and moderation of Prep – 6 writing samples allowed teachers to find teaching points for all

children at the school. Mentor writers have visited our school to model and build our writing

community. The school has explored growing ways to provide authentic writing opportunities.

NAPLAN data for Year 3 in 2018 shows above average results in Writing compared to State and National

results. Results for Reading and Grammar and Punctuation were above the national mean. Over 38% of

Year 3 students in 2018 are one year or more above expected level in Reading and a similar number of

students are one year or more above in Writing and in Grammar and Punctuation. All Year 3 students

meet the minimum standards for all areas of Literacy.

Data for Year 5 in 2018 shows results to be above both the State and National mean in areas of Reading

and Writing. In Year 5, all students were at or above the minimum standard for reading and 94% were at

or above the minimum standard for writing. Over 38% of Year 5 students in 2018 are one year or more

above expected level in Reading and over 23% in Writing. Almost two thirds of all Year 5 students were a

year or more above in Spelling.

More than 70% of Year 5 students made medium to high growth in Reading when tracked from Year 3 in

2016 to Year 5 in 2018. In Writing, 70% of Year 5 students made medium to high growth when tracked

from Year 3 in 2016 to Year 5 in 2018. Seventy-five percent of Year 5 students made medium to high

growth in Spelling across the two-year span.

Semester Two results in PAT-Reading, a standardised test applied to Years 1-6, recorded above expected

results for Year 1-6 in 2018 with more than half the students being one year or more above expected

levels.

Literacy results in the junior school for 2018 are as follows:

100% of Preps reached the expected standard of level 5 or above, and 80% were at level 8 or

above.

100% of Year 1 children attained their expected standard of Level 15, with 97% of students

above Level 20.

At the end of Year 2, 97% of students had reached the benchmark level of 26 and 90% had

reached level 28.



Many extra-curricular activities are provided across the school. For example, grants provided through

the Australian Sports Commission enabled the children to experience extra sporting opportunities such

as golf and hockey. The Year 5/6 students are also involved in interschool sport and competitive sport.

The swimming program in 2018 was a great success and involved all students, with Foundation to Year 4

attending Somerville YMCA pool for a 5-day intensive and Year 5/6 students being involved in a day of

Beach safety, led by professional life savers.

Year 5/6s had a very successful camp experience at Sovereign Hill for 3 days / 2 nights, being able to ‘go

back in time’ in costume and in learning. Year 3/4 students travelled to Forest Edge CYC in Neerim East

for a one night / two day outdoor education experience.

A very important event each year is the Year 6 Production, with the 2018 performance of Ali Baba and

the Bongo Bandits being no exception.

Leadership recognises the need to continue building the contemporary classroom. This includes

procedures to enable teachers to share more of their classroom experiences and share information with

teachers at the next year level to ensure effective transition for every student. To promote greater

consistency in approach, teachers will attend to analysis of data and sharing strategies and tools for

ongoing assessment and reporting.

STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES

NAPLAN data during the period 2016-2018 shows that the Year 3 and 5 children are above the

national and the state mean in many areas.

At Year 3, the literacy results across 2016 - 2018 showed our mean to be at or above the National

mean in all areas of Literacy. The 2018 data shows that Reading has shown most growth with the

mean being above State and National results. The Numeracy results between 2016 and 2018 have

stayed level with the State mean. Results in 2016, 2017 and 2018 were above the National results.

At Year 5, the mean score for Reading is lower than 2017, sitting equal with the State mean and

above the National mean. The Spelling and Grammar and Punctuation mean scores have continued

to be above the National mean across 2016 – 2018. The 2018 Numeracy data shows a small

decrease, with the mean still above both the National and State mean for 2016 to 2018.

Tracking our cohort of children from Year 3, 2016 to Year 5, 2018 shows our Medium to High

growth to be above the average Medium to High growth in Reading and Grammar & Punctuation. In

Reading, over 75% of students showed Medium to High growth when tracked from Year 3 in 2016

to Year 5 in 2018. In Maths, almost 80% of Year 5 students made Medium to High growth over the

same period.



Student Wellbeing


Develop in students a strong sense of self in relation to others.

That students’ strong sense of self in relation to others will promote their emotional wellbeing and engagement in their learning.

Achievements

Student wellbeing is at the heart of every staff member's responsibility. The school has a genuine focus on whole-person wellbeing for its students. The focus of relationship building and strengthening social and emotional development adopts positive behaviour principles.

With the introduction of the Victorian Curriculum Capabilities, it was important to build teacher knowledge around these capabilities. An external facilitator was engaged to lead each teaching team in exploring and planning within units of learning. Teachers reported to parents against these capabilities.

The Nationally Consistent Collection of Data (NCCD) was aligned in 2018 to the school census figures which determine funding for, what in the past has been known as, Students with Disability. Teachers used the Disability Discrimination Act to decide on a student category and provided evidence that adjustments had been made over a 10-week period to enable the student to access the curriculum. At St Thomas More School, 50 students were listed ranging across the four levels of need – quality differentiated teaching practice, supplementary support, substantial support and extensive assistance. The Learning Diversity Leader was responsible for ensuring equitable access to the curriculum for these students.

In 2018, a new grief and loss program, A Changing Time, was offered for children who have experienced either a death in the family or a family separation / divorce. This program was specifically designed to meet the children’s needs and was offered over a 4-week period.

A range of activities was offered to children at lunchtime to promote friendships and social skills. The library, tech room and MakerSpace were open one day each week and there were also outside opportunities for gardening, skipping and ball games. This initiative was well received by the children and was targeted to, but not restricted to children experiencing friendship issues. The Friendship Circle program was also offered in some classes.

An important aspect of student wellbeing is ensuring a smooth transition for students at the beginning of the year. Class teachers shared information regarding social and emotional wellbeing, family situations and strategies used with students with behaviour or emotional issues. A Child Safety and Wellbeing Team, established to provide support for staff and students, met 3 times a term. Once issues are identified, a variety of strategies are offered to meet each individual case e.g. social skills groups, individual counselling. These interventions are monitored and evaluated by the team regularly.

Meditation and Yoga sessions were provided for students in Prep – Year 6. Each class had a weekly lesson where students learnt about relaxation and breathing techniques. The response from students and staff was very positive as the students felt more relaxed and could control their breathing and anxiety.



Teaching staff implemented some aspects of the Bounce Back Program which focuses on building resilience in young people. The core values and emotions were explored and selected as appropriate for specific learning units and as a class meeting focus.

The school has provided a safe environment for all students as well as providing avenues for connecting students with their school, staff and peers. This has been enhanced through unit meetings to address safety issues; whole class and whole school assemblies; student wellbeing leaders organising lunchtime games; buddy system, Yr. 5 students buddied with Prep students; individual outdoor play plans for students and cyber safety lessons in Technology classes.

VALUE ADDED

Class Meetings are held regularly to discuss any issues and celebrate good things happening around the school. The meetings help the students to problem solve in a safe environment.

Child Safety and Wellbeing Team meets regularly to discuss concerns for students inside and outside of the classroom.

Social skills sessions involve a small group of children and are facilitated by a member of the Wellbeing team.

Learning Support Officers create social stories for students experiencing issues inside the classrooms and outside in the playground.

Outreach program provides meals and support to families who are experiencing difficulties through sickness.

Meditation and yoga sessions were offered to promote wellness strategies for students. Student representative Council met regularly to discuss areas of student wellbeing; it comprised 2 students form each room and the Wellbeing leader. Regular notices were placed in the newsletter re wellbeing of students.

STUDENT SATISFACTION

Results from the student surveys showed that Student Motivation has increased over the two years, with 97% of the indicators favourable on average. Student morale has also increased with more than 86% scoring favourable indicators. From the student survey, Classroom Behaviour score decreased slightly for Year 5 students and stayed stable for Year 4s surveyed. It is interesting that staff score for student behavior is rated very positively for both in the classroom and across the school.



STUDENT ATTENDANCE

A description of how non-attendance is managed by the school.

Staff members are to bring to the attention of the Principal any student/s whose attendance is irregular, any students who do not provide written notes adequately explaining absences, or whose absences appear unwarranted.

The Principal will, after consulting with the teacher, attendance records and the student, decide upon a strategy to be employed. As absenteeism is often indicative of other problems including engagement and family issues, the support strategies employed by the Principal will be determined on a case-by-case basis. However, they may include:

Initial telephone contact with parents Counselling sessions for parents and/or students Home visits Formation of a support group including outside support agencies if appropriate

Ongoing absenteeism will be reported by the principal to the appropriate welfare and government

agencies.



Child Safe Standards

Goals and Intended Outcomes

To demonstrate the strong commitment of St. Thomas More Primary School to the care, safety and

wellbeing of all students at our school.

To ensure the ongoing implementation of the Child Safe Standards by all members of the school

community.

Achievements

Development and review of the following policies and procedures:

o Child Safety Policy

o Code of Conduct

o Volunteer Procedure and Volunteer Duty Statement

o Child Protection Reporting obligations

o Child Friendly Child Safe Policy embedded into everyday practice

Data Base of records related to Child Safety created and regularly checked to ensure compliance

All Staff, visitors, volunteers and contractors wear identification lanyards

Staff have participated in a variety of training initiatives - online mandatory reporting modules,

Protect – responding to suspected student sexual offending, and Risk Management – excursions

& camps

Parent forum held to consult re Standard 7, with a curriculum being developed.

Presentation of Code of Conduct at parent meetings and information through school

newsletters for Code of Conduct completion, need for WWCC and Volunteer Duty Statement

Child Safety and Wellbeing Team met three times each term

Updated handbooks, risk management forms to include child safety issues

Risk assessments reviewed regularly by staff and then presented to the Parish Education Board

Child Safety as an agenda item at staff meetings and PEB meetings

Child Safe Curriculum – intensive sessions for Years 5&6, and parent and child sessions offered

for Prep–2 and for Year 3/4 at evening sessions.



Leadership & Management


Develop a school-wide performance development culture committed to improving student learning and wellbeing. That staff are clearer about their roles and responsibilities and the expectations of them. That staff capacity to improve their professional practice is strengthened.

Achievements

Whilst a shared vision pervades the school, a focus in 2018 was developing and communicating a

common understanding of the roles and expectations of all staff, within a professional culture focused

on performance and development and ensuring subsidiarity and participation. With this focus, priority

was given to constructing a performance and development framework. This structure was based on

research and resources from other teaching organisations and adapted to meet the needs of the school.

The second component was met by ensuring all staff had clear role descriptions and knew each other’s

roles.

At the Parish Education Board level, it was agreed to ‘re-invigorate’ the Board with a focus on the roles

and responsibilities of the Board. An external facilitator led a meeting guiding the members through the

principles and structure of Boards with rigorous discussion on current practices.

The tenure for staff leadership positions finished at the end of 2018. In Term 3, the process commenced

to consider the school’s needs in this area and develop positions and role descriptions for the next four

years. Staff worked with a Catholic Education Melbourne consultant to explore the leadership options

best suited to the school. The final restructure maintained the importance of the Education in Faith and

Wellbeing Leaders and included new roles of Learning Leaders. Groups formation will be an important

aspect at the beginning of 2019.

At student leadership level, our Year 6 captains were involved in many activities. The leaders

participated in Principal for a Day, showing strong leadership skills across the day. They also represented

the school at the ANZAC Day and Remembrance Day services. The two school captains attended the

Primary Parliamentary Convention where the debate focused on the introduction of a sugar tax to

improve public health; it was a very positive learning day.

The school community was very excited at the beginning of the year with the opening of Woodland

Early Learning Centre on the school site. Although starting a few weeks late, the ELC commenced with a

small group of 4-year olds and a few more 3-year olds. The ELC worked closely with the school and was

invited to attend special functions, e.g. Book Week activities. Daniel Mulino MP, Member for Eastern

Victoria, together with Father Laurie officially opened Woodland ELC on 9th October. The numbers grew

across the year with the 3-year old group reaching capacity at 22 children.

Focused professional learning is a priority, to establish conditions for high quality teaching, effectively

manage change and strengthen the capacity and leadership of the school teams. Emphasis is placed on



learning together, effective and open communication between staff, teams and parents and the

organisation of structures that support teamwork.

The staff group continued professional learning through their involvement in the Visible Learning

project, with the focus on giving and receiving feedback. Staff participated in the annual training in their

legal obligations in OH&S by our service provider SafeSmart, in Mandatory Reporting, in anaphylaxis and

first aid training, in Disabilities Discrimination Act, and also in emergency services through the service

provider Dynamiq.

Individual staff were also involved in specific professional learning suited to their level of development,

e.g. individual networks, music and reporting.

EXPENDITURE AND TEACHER PARTICIPATION IN PROFESSIONAL LEARNING

DESCRIPTION OF PL UNDERTAKEN IN 2018

• Learning Support Officers – 2-day symposium

• Musical Futures

• Visible Learning Project

• Nationally Consistent Collection of Data

• NForma – Reporting program

• 2-day Religious Education retreat offered for all staff

• Anaphylaxis, First Aid, Mandatory Reporting

Individuals also attended professional learning to meet their individual goals, e.g.

network meetings for principal, religious education, learning diversity, deputy principal,

digital learning, learning & teaching, wellbeing.

NUMBER OF TEACHERS WHO PARTICIPATED IN PL in 2018 25

AVERAGE EXPENDITURE PER TEACHER FOR PL $ 3370



TEACHER SATISFACTION

The Organisational Climate in 2018 rated highly with strengths in Ownership and School Morale.

The Teaching Climate Index was again high with outstanding strengths in Respect for Students

and Teacher Confidence.

This data was supported when the Corwin team visited the school commenting that relational

trust amongst staff is high and teams provide support and team work is valued.

Staff ranked themselves in the middle 50% of Australian schools for Staff Wellbeing showing a lot

of energy and enthusiasm across the school as a whole, preferring to work in teams than alone.

The staff retention rate for 2018 was 100%.



School Community


Develop authentic learning partnerships with families and the community that improve outcomes for students.

That collaborative parent and community partnerships support student learning.

Achievements

Over the past few years, numbers of parents attending parent information sessions has declined, with

anecdotal evidence pointing to the busyness of life. In 2018, the school changed meetings to gain a

clearer understanding of how to facilitate communication between school and parent. The first evening

was the beginning fo year night when teachers from all classes were available to speak individually and

made ‘handouts’ available on how the classes operate.

A Community Conversation was held around Child Safety Standard 7, particularly sexuality education.

This conversation shared information with parents and enabled them to have input into how they wish

their child to participate in sexuality education. While the final decision rests with school leadership, it

was important to have parent input into this area of development.

Another important service for parents is before and after school care, externally managed by Camp

Australia. The contract with Camp Australia was renewed; before and after school care has been very

effective, although small in number.

The school consistently promotes a common purpose and shared understandings to focus on improving

parent connectedness to their child's learning. Strong parent school relationships underpin the many

and varied ways the school actively encourages parents to work in partnership with teachers to support

student learning and outcomes. Opportunities were provided for parents to be involved in the following

ways:

Parent helpers in the classroom and other school events

School expos for parent and community attendance

The importance of parents as their child’s primary educators in faith is recognised in the faith

partnerships developed in collaboration with parents and the parish in the students' Sacramental

journey. Parents were invited to be part of:

Sacramental workshops, with some parents leading the workshops

Social Justice initiatives

School Masses and assemblies

Parents are also involved in the school community with representation on the Parish Education Board –

4 parent members – and through social and fundraising events with the Parent Association. In this



respect, the parents are prime instigators in arranging social events to build community across the

parent body, and also to contribute to the running of the school through working bees and day-to-day

management of the canteen and uniform shop. Our Year 4 children provide and serve morning tea for

parishioners on a monthly basis. The wider community is involved in the school particularly through

guest speakers and users of the gym within their respective sporting clubs.

PARENT SATISFACTION

The committed parental involvement contributes to the valued spirit of community and encourages a

sense of belonging so that all members of the community feel welcomed, and can contribute to the

school’s effectiveness.

School Improvement Survey data shows that parents generally find teachers approachable. We pride

ourselves on our approachability, extending an open door policy.

More than 80% of indicators scored favourably for both Parent Partnerships and Parent Input. Parents

also show appreciation in their survey results for the preparation of their children to transition

between units and on to secondary school.

Parent survey results indicate high morale of teachers and see their children in strong connections to

their peers and with strong social skills.



Future Directions

BROAD GOALS KEY IMPROVEMENT STRATEGIES

Education in Faith

Supporting students to form their Catholic identity, making sense of their world and their lives and responding in encounter with Catholic tradition, the school’s faith community and pedagogy.

Provide professional learning to enable teachers to plan by backward design Teachers moderate rich assessment tasks

Learning and Teaching

Establishing a learning culture of engagement, of self-regulation, challenge and growth.

Team ownership of improvement strategies in the unit cohort Audit ongoing and formal assessment and data used to measure growth and achievement Effective planning for all students

Student Wellbeing

Developing in students a strong sense of self in relation to others.

Investigate how students feel at school through collecting and analysing data Develop and document a whole school behaviour action plan Revisit structure and purpose of class meetings

Leadership and Management

Developing a school-wide self-reflective culture committed to improving student learning and wellbeing.

Role clarity Leadership formation

School Community

Developing authentic learning partnerships with families and the community that improve outcomes for students.

Consistent approach to use of multimedia Showcase contemporary approaches to teaching and learning, to our parents and the wider community



School Performance Data Summary

PROPORTION OF STUDENTS MEETING THE MINIMUM STANDARDS

NAPLAN TESTS 2016

%

2017

%

2016 - 2017

Changes

%

2018

%

2017 - 2018

Changes

%

YR 03 Grammar & Punctuation 100.0 96.7 -3.3 100.0 3.3

YR 03 Numeracy 100.0 96.8 -3.2 100.0 3.2

YR 03 Reading 97.9 98.4 0.5 100.0 1.6

YR 03 Spelling 100.0 100.0 0.0 100.0 0.0

YR 03 Writing 100.0 100.0 0.0 100.0 0.0

YR 05 Grammar & Punctuation 97.7 100.0 2.3 100.0 0.0

YR 05 Numeracy 100.0 98.3 -1.7 97.8 -0.5

YR 05 Reading 100.0 100.0 0.0 100.0 0.0

YR 05 Spelling 97.7 100.0 2.3 97.9 -2.1

YR 05 Writing 100.0 98.4 -1.6 93.6 -4.8



AVERAGE STUDENT ATTENDANCE RATE BY YEAR LEVEL %

Y01 92.0

Y02 93.1

Y03 92.9

Y04 92.7

Y05 93.2

Y06 94.3

Overall average attendance 93.0

TEACHING STAFF ATTENDANCE RATE

Teaching Staff Attendance Rate 93.0%



STAFF RETENTION RATE

Staff Retention Rate 100.0%

TEACHER QUALIFICATIONS

Doctorate 0.0%

Masters 9.5%

Graduate 19.0%

Graduate Certificate 9.5%

Bachelor Degree 66.7%

Advanced Diploma 57.1%

No Qualifications Listed 0.0%

STAFF COMPOSITION

Principal Class (Headcount) 2

Teaching Staff (Headcount)

23

Teaching Staff (FTE)

18.4

Non-Teaching Staff (Headcount)

11

Non-Teaching Staff (FTE)

6.5

Indigenous Teaching Staff (Headcount)

0

NOTE: The School’s financial performance information has been provided to the Australian Charities and

Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC) and will be available for the community to access from their website

at www.acnc.gov.au

http://www.acnc.gov.au/

annual report primary template (2018) · assessment areas – the visible learner, know thy impact,...

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