Teaching & Learning
Behaviour and Learning
Last Friday, the STM Leadership and Teaching team had the pleasure of sitting in a room with 700 other MACS leaders and teachers as we collectively deepened our knowledge and understanding about the importance of behaviour and learning. The day was hosted by Knowledge Society and Classroom Mastery who are key supporters of the evidence-based school improvement project, MACS Flourishing Learners West, which we have been part of since last year.
We spent the day diving deeper into the research about behaviour and practised techniques, routines and scripts to help deliver our new behaviour curriculum. "A behaviour curriculum defines the expected behaviours in school, rather than only a list of prohibited behaviours. It is centred on what successful behaviour looks like and defines it clearly for all parties" (UK Department for Education Behaviour in Schools: Advice for Headteachers and school staff, 2022). In short, a behaviour curriculum ensures everything is aligned from our school culture (belief and values), expected behaviours (norms), routines, rules and consequences. Recent studies have found that "Australian schools are among the least orderly in the world" (McDonald 2023). Calm, orderly and consistent schools and classrooms provide a safe and predictable environment that increases the learning opportunities for all, allowing everyone to flourish.
On Monday, all classrooms will begin the initial implementation of our behaviour curriculum by introducing and establishing a Cue to Start routine. The purpose of a Cue to Start routine is to gain the attention of the whole class at the beginning of a lesson or when teachers need to give instruction. For students to be successful at school and learning, they need to be able to attend to and follow the instructions given by teachers. And trust me, teachers give a lot of instructions throughout the day!
A Cue to Start routine is a simple chant or phrase that a teacher will say to gain student attention. Students respond with an action or phrase and focus on the teacher. Many of our teachers already use these. However, we are aiming to improve the consistency of this routine and help our students understand the importance of this routine to maximise their learning time.
This routine is embedded in our school values;
Kindness - We treat others the way we would like to be treated.
We demonstrate kindness by listening when someone is speaking.
School Rule - Listen carefully when other people speak.
Fairness - Our school is a place where everyone can be their best.
We demonstrate fairness when we all have a voice and listen to and share ideas.
School Rule - Listen carefully when other people speak.
Justice - We do what is right by making good choices.
We demonstrate justice when we follow the school rules and instructions from all staff.
School Rule - Follow teachers' instructions.
Simple, easily understood routines make it easier for all students to participate in the culture of our school and enables them to have a sense of belonging, recognise their abilities and talents and grow in independence. We will continue to sequentially introduce, practise and embed our behaviour curriculum by explicitly teaching each value, expected behaviours, routines and rules within our classrooms.
We look forward to working with our families as we take this exciting direction, and will continue to share information and details with you via our newsletter. Please check-in with the Teaching & Learning tab next week for a detailed copy of the curriculum. If you would like to see a behaviour curriculum in action, please click on the School Advisory Council News tab in this week's newsletter, to view a video featuring Rosebud Secondary College who introduced a behaviour curriculum in 2022.
In partnership,
Danielle