Wantirna College Newsletter

Assistant Principals

Curriculum Day

As you know, our first day of term began with a Curriculum Day.  I know parents often wonder what it is that teachers do on a Curriculum Day and whether or not it is of any value.  Our Curriculum Day last week was one of our two key professional learning days.  

 

Each of the 16 members of the College Leadership Team ran a Professional Learning workshop related to developing teacher's knowledge and skill in relation to one of the key priorities of the Annual Implementation Plan.  Each workshop had a firm foundation in educational research and provided teachers with an opportunity to extend their knowledge and discuss new strategies with each other.  The workshops went for one hour each and every teacher undertook 3.   Workshops included:

  • Effective Research Skill across the Curriculum
  • Cooperative Learning Classrooms
  • Developing Student Agency
  • Effective Feedback Strategies
  • Understanding the 21st Century Learning Model
  • Trauma Informed Practice
  • Explicit Teaching
  • Formative Assessment Strategies
  • Numeracy across the Curriculum
  • Creating challenging learning tasks
  • Writing as a tool for learning
  • Direct Feedback
  • Visible thinking in the classroom
  • Developing High Expectations through curriculum
  • Empowering disengaged students
  • Flipped classrooms-Video Scribing
  • Teach Like a Champion

Following lunch, teachers worked in Learning Area teams to develop new curriculum, design new learning tasks or to undertake moderation of assessments.

 

We are very lucky to have such a talented Leadership Team as there are few schools that would be able to offer such a diverse and intellectual program in house.

 

On behalf of the Principal team special thanks to:  Ray Wang, Carrie Wallis, Kathleeen Timms, Geoff Shaw, Jacinta Gallagher, Katrina King, 

Katrina Katz, Nathan Rogers,

Peter Kos, Dave Black, Zoe Carolan and 

 Vicky Rumble.

Fibre Network Upgrade

Over the school holidays our IT team completed stage one of the fibre network upgrade.  This project has seen the replacement of the 20 year old fibre network, with new links between the Later Years Centre and Mason House and Mason House and Rees House. 

 

This was a major undertaking which involved the laying of heavy infrastructure in first term and  work to connect the systems in second term.  

 

We have moved from a 1G fibrelink to a 10G fibrelink which should allow us a significant improvement in capacity and more reliable performance.

 

Stage 2 of the upgrade is due to being in Term 4.

Curriculum Information Night and Subject Selection

AS you will read elsewhere in this newsletter the 2019 subject selection process has begun.  A key event in this process is the Curriculum Information Night on Tuesday July 31.   

 

This night will feature information sessions of 30 minutes for each year level where you can learn about the features of the curriculum at each year level. There will also be a market place in the Senior Centre and Byrne House.  Each Learning Area will have a stall with information about their subject offerings manned by teachers to respond to all your questions.  

 

For further details regarding the evening including times, please check the information provided on Compass.  We look forward to seeing you there.

 

Catherine Ford, Andrew Lewis, Shane Kruger

Assistant Principals