Leader of Pedagogy & Literacy Coach

Pedagogy refers to the study of teaching approaches and how they affect learners. The core task of the Leader of Pedagogy is to develop the pedagogical approaches of our staff in order to improve student outcomes. 

This is achieved in a number of ways, for example, engaging in daily Learning Walks and Talks to observe student achievement gains against curriculum expectations. Leaders and staff use ‘The 5 Questions’ (developed by Sharratt and Fullan, 2012) to assist in knowing more about our learners, how they learn, and what further instruction and support they may need. The 5 Questions are:

1. What are you learning (not doing)?
2. How are you going?
3. How do you know?
4. How can you improve?
5. Where do you go for help? 

As students answer these questions they are engaging in their learning process and taking responsibility for their learning. Students who can answer these questions are more successful in their learning and become more independent. 

There is also a version of ‘The 5 Questions’ for parents:

1. What did you learn today?
2. How did you do?
3. What did you do if you didn’t understand?
4. How can you improve on your learning?
5. What are you most proud of? 

As our students first teachers, you play a critical role in improving  their learning outcomes. These 5 Questions create opportunities for informative conversations with your children. 

Improving writing in secondary schools has been a CSO objective since 2021. The collective work of the CSO, focuses on developing cultures where all teachers are teachers of literacy, and where literacy teaching and learning is embedded as an essential part of curriculum across all subjects. SMC Staff, across all key learning areas, have been focusing  on the explicit teaching of literacy skills within their lessons including sentence and paragraph structure. Students have the opportunity to work on fundamental skills, such as parts of speech, punctuation and reading comprehension skills, in explicit literacy classes that are timetabled in Years 7 & 8. These strategies are transferable to all areas of study. This means that students at SMC are always immersed in progressing their literacy skills, no matter what the subject. 

Reading at St Xavier’s

St Mary’s and St Xavier’s have started an early morning reading initiative to promote connections between the two schools and to build literacy skills. Every morning from 8 am - 8.25 am, St Mary’s students go across to St Xavier’s big shared space to read with their students, asking comprehension questions and discussing the story. This is a great opportunity for students who are interested in reading, childcare or are looking for leadership experience. 

Year 11 Work Placement 

This week Year 11VET students are on work placement in the Gunnedah community. Seven Primary industry students are working with local veterinary clinics, agronomists, stock and station agents and farming enterprises. Zara Bartlett is also completing her work placement for Business Services at Winanga-Li Aboriginal Child and Family Centre. Mr James and Mrs Isbester are grateful to our host employers and wish the students an enjoyable week in the real world!