Learning and Teaching

Learning and Teaching

At Stella Maris, we aim to create conditions in which a high quality curriculum is enacted, expert teaching is developed and all students achieve targeted progress over time.

We have developed a set of design principles that are aligned to school vision and personalised learning. They drive the learning and teaching to deeply engage students in their learning.

Our Design Principles are:

Shared Leadership for Expert Teaching
Expert Teachers
Personalised Learning
Shared Understandings of what matters
Students at the Core
Community Engagement

Our curriculum, based on the Victorian Curriculum, is presented using an inquiring approach to learning. The focus is on informing our learners of the process that authentic learning requires, explicitly teaching them a range of strategies and presenting them with a variety of tools to assist in organising, analysing and reflecting on their learning. The skills of questioning and reflecting have a high profile as we encourage our learners to delve deeper into issues that motivate and engage them.

Learners are encouraged and supported to become self-managed and self-directed in their learning journey. They reflect upon experiences to set new goals and create customised learning pathways. Through a process of inquiry, they engage in their passions, and discover the amazing world around them. They seek to make a difference in the world with their new learning.

Curriculum Organisation

At Stella Maris, we believe in personalised learning for effective learning and teaching in the 21st Century. We believe that personalised learning is a highly structured and responsive approach to learning and teaching, where learners are encouraged to be active, curious, engaged and reflective participants. We believe Personalised Learning is focused around high quality Learning Intentions, Success Criteria and Feedback.

We deliver high quality curriculum based on the Victorian Curriculum. The curriculum is the common set of knowledge and skills required by students for life-long learning, social development and active and informed citizenship.

The Victorian Curriculum F–10 incorporates the Australian Curriculum and reflects Victorian priorities and standards. It is structured as a continuum across levels of learning achievement not years of schooling. This enables the development of targeted learning programs for all students, where the curriculum is used to plan in relation to the actual learning level of each student rather than their assumed level of learning based on age.

Learners are encouraged and supported to become self-managed and self-directed in their learning journey. They reflect upon experiences to set new goals and create customised learning pathways. Through process of inquiry, they engage in their passions and discover the amazing world around them. They seek to make a difference in the world with their new learning.

Extra Curricular Learning

Other agencies also provide extra curricular activities which are run outside of the school curriculum:

Keyboard/Guitar Lessons
Angela and Michelle accept enrolments into Individual or Group lessons for both Keyboard and Guitar before and during school.

Vocal Lessons
Simone accepts enrolments into Individual or Group lessons during school.

Drum Lessons are provided by Levi.
Enrolment forms are available from the Office.

Student Leadership

At Stella Maris we believe we will strengthen our school community through students who know how to live and lead in a community that values social justice, service and stewardship.

We believe our Student Leaders are capable of learning how to articulate and enact ‘regenerative’ thinking, initiatives and actions with connections to the Catholic Identity of Stella Maris through:

Social Justice
Using the principles underpinning Catholic Social Justice teaching, our Gospel Values and talents to make a difference to others

Service
Leading through a sense of service to other, caring and making a difference to our community, voluntarily giving up time to help

Stewardship
The responsible overseeing and protection of everything and everyone entrusted to our care and promoting a culture of Positive Psychology.

We believe social justice, service and stewardship can be best developed by students in their chosen leadership context. We believe leadership is about the benefit of other, “Whatever you are doing you are doing for the benefit of other."

Student Leaders will contribute and develop whole school actions in the following contexts:

Regeneration (includes Sustainability and Science Discovery)
Sport (includes Sport Discovery and Blue Earth)
Student Wellbeing (includes Peer Mentoring and Coaching)
Community Partnerships (includes Discovery&Encounter)
The Arts (includes Arts Discovery)
Communication (includes Students Voice ‘Stella Yearbook’)
Fire Carriers (promoting First Nations voice)

Assessment and Reporting

At Stella Maris the Assessment and Reporting process is a way of seeking, interpreting and reporting evidence for the use by our teachers, our learners and their parents. It aids in understanding where the learner is in their learning, where they need to go and how best to get there.

We encourage all students to become Thinking and Reflective learners in partnership with the teacher as assessment and reporting information is not only the property of teachers but is owned by all stakeholders, the learners, their parents and the teacher

Our Assessment and Reporting process means:

We have a schedule for assessment and reporting, including: informal discussion between parents and teacher or learner and teacher; Goal Setting/Get to know you interviews; Three Way Learning Conversations; Student Led Conferences; Semester One and Two written report; English and Math testing; Data analysis days; Naplan testing and analysis.
Students think and reflect about their learning as an inclusive part of everyday learning.
All students from Foundation to Year Six participate in conferencing about what they have learned and set new goals, encouraging them to think and reflect about "where they need to go and how to get there"
Student Lead Goal Setting Interview and Student Led Conference outlining their goals, strategies for achievement, work samples and reflection of their learning process.
Ownership of the content of interview is now spread between student, parents and teachers.
Teachers and students gather data with parents offering insight, advise and commenting on evidence collated on student progress.

Positive Approach to Student Management

Positive Approach to Managing Student Behaviours

Following our School Review in 2013, Stella Maris Staff focused on developing a consistency around our Positive Approach to Managing Student Behaviours. This included clarifying the following:

We have a School Vision:

"Creating a learning community, nurturing and integrating faith and life, in a spirit of openness"

We have Gospel Values that guide us in our big picture alignment to our Catholic Identity:

"Respect, Integrity, Independence, Creativity, Commitment, Cooperation, Empathy, Enthusiasm"

We have six very simple rules from Foundation to Year 6:

Follow instructions
Keep your hands, feet and objects to yourself
Speak appropriately
Listen to the speaker
Move safely
Take care of all property

As a whole staff team we have an overall student management plan with three elements:

Rules that student will follow at all times
Positive recognition that students will receive for following the rules
Consequences that result when students CHOOSE not to follow the rules

We use simple statements to unpack the behaviours associated with each. We have developed rich understandings about "Language of Choice" and practice using "Assertive statements".

Social Justice

Human Dignity

We are called to protect the dignity of every person. All people are created in the image and likeness of God.‘Every person has the right to life, to bodily integrity, and to the means which are necessary and suitable for the proper development of life; primarily food, clothing, shelter, rest, medical care, and the necessary social services.’( Pacem in Terris, (Peace on Earth), John XXXIII, 1963 ,n.9 )

Community and the Common Good

We are called to contribute to the good of the whole of society, the common good. How we organise our society, in economics and politics, in law and policy directly affects human dignity and the capacity of individuals to grow in society.

Solidarity

We are called to work globally for justice. We are one human family. Our responsibilities to each other cross national, racial, economic and ideological differences.

Rights and Responsibility

We are called to defend the rights of all people to participate in decisions that affect their lives. All people have a fundamental right to life, shelter, healthcare, education and employment.

Preferential Option for the Poor

We are called to look at decisions in terms of how they affect the poor. The moral test of a society is how it treats its most vulnerable members.

Stewardship of the Earth’s Resources

We are called to care for the goods of the earth as stewards and trustees, not only as consumers and users.

“God destined the earth and all it contains for all people and all nations so that all created things would be shared fairly by all humankind under the guidance of justice tempered by charity.” (Gaudium et Spes, Vatican Council II, 1965, n.69)