2017 ANNUAL REPORT TO THE SCHOOL
COMMUNITY
Sacred Heart Primary School, St Albans REGISTERED SCHOOL NUMBER: E1175
on
SACRED HEART PRIMARY SCHOOL ST ALBANS
2017 ANNUAL REPORT TO THE SCHOOL COMMUNITY 1
Contents
Contact Details ............................................................................................................................................ 2
Minimum Standards Attestation ................................................................................................................ 2
Our School Vision ....................................................................................................................................... 4
School Overview .......................................................................................................................................... 5
Principal’s Report ........................................................................................................................................ 8
Education in Faith ..................................................................................................................................... 13
Learning & Teaching ................................................................................................................................. 16
Student Wellbeing ..................................................................................................................................... 19
Child Safe Standards ................................................................................................................................ 22
Leadership & Management ....................................................................................................................... 23
School Community .................................................................................................................................... 28
Future Directions ....................................................................................................................................... 30
VRQA Compliance Data ............................................................................................................................ 31
SACRED HEART PRIMARY SCHOOL ST ALBANS
2017 ANNUAL REPORT TO THE SCHOOL COMMUNITY 2
Contact Details
ADDRESS Winifred Street St Albans 3021
PRINCIPAL Ms Dianne Blake
PARISH PRIEST Father John O’Reilly and Father Maurie Cooney
SCHOOL BOARD CHAIR Father John O’Reilly and Father Maurie Cooney
TELEPHONE (03) 9366 0022 / (03) 9366 0266
EMAIL [email protected]
WEBSITE www.shstalbans.catholic.edu.au
Minimum Standards Attestation
I, Dianne Blake, attest that Sacred Heart School St Albans 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 2007 (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 2017 school year under the
Australian Education Act 2013 (Cth) and the Australian Education Regulations 2013 (Cth)
19 April 2018
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Our Motto: Jesus, I Trust In You
Our Vision:
As The Catholic Community of Sacred Heart we pray, work and
share together, to develop the whole child for a life following
Jesus.
Our Mission:
We are called to be spirit filled servants, following Jesus, who was
the compassion of God.
Our Values: Jesus is our inspiration.
• Respect – We respect each person, as we believe all are
created in the image of God.
• Compassion – We seek to understand each family’s journey.
• Excellence – We strive for excellence in teaching and
learning.
• Relationships – We believe that through all our relationships,
we reflect Jesus, our role model.
• Community – We work in partnership with our whole
community, to foster a sense of welcome and belonging.
• Resilience – We strive to develop confidence, resilience and
forgiveness.
• Trust – We strive to develop the potential of each child,
because we treasure who we have been entrusted with.
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School Overview
Sacred Heart Catholic Primary School, St Albans with the motto ‘Jesus I Trust In You’ is
located in the north west of Melbourne, and belongs to the Sacred Heart/Emmaus
Parish, which includes two Churches and three Primary Schools. The spirituality of St
Mary of the Cross is a part of our school culture, and is reflected in all our relationships.
In 2017, Sacred Heart School was 63 years old, having been established in 1954 by the
Sisters of St Joseph with an enrolment of 195 pupils. In 2017 the school had an
enrolment of 283 pupils throughout 12 grades. The grade structures included: two Prep
classes, three Grade 1/2 classes, two Grade 3 classes, two Grade 4 classes, two Grade
5 classes and two Grade 6 classes.
All parents are invited to be involved in our Parish through Ministry – there are 25
different ministries for parents to choose from.
St Albans is a very multicultural suburb, and this diversity is valued and celebrated
through our relationships each day in our school.
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At Sacred Heart:
72% of families are eligible for Education Maintenance Allowance.
Families come from more than 18 different cultural backgrounds.
94% of our children or their parents were born in another country.
43% of the children at Sacred Heart were born overseas, with most of these
children coming from Iraq (28%), the Philippines (4%), Vietnam (2%), Egypt (2%),
Myanmar (1%), India (1%) and New Zealand (1%). Other children were born in
Jordan, Uganda, Japan, UAE, Canada, Croatia, Ireland, Greece, and Mexico.
33% of students at Sacred Heart are refugees, of which 28% are Refugees from
Iraq; the other 5% are refugees from Syria, Jordan, Egypt, India, and Myanmar.
14% of Refugee students from Iraq are New Arrivals who have arrived this year.
Developing positive relationships and creating a safe and calm environment is a
priority in our school. Religious Education is taught daily and permeates all that we
do. Developing students’ Literacy and Numeracy skills is also a key priority.
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Other curriculum features of our school include:
School Based Religious Education Program
A Reading Recovery Teacher
Two Number Intervention teachers
The LOTE being taught is Japanese
Five New Arrivals-Refugee Support Teachers
Three Learning Support Officers
Speech Pathologist
Technology Manager
Personalised Learning Plans
Inquiry Based Learning
Physical Education, Music, Visual Arts and Inter-School Sports
Written and oral reporting to parents each semester with interpreters
Positive Behaviour Management
After-School Child Care
A Maintenance Coordinator
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Principal’s Report
2017, has been truly a remarkable year. The construction of the new school which
began in June 2016 was completed towards the end of 2017. The old school was
vacated in December and was ready for demolition in January 2018. A new playground
was also established for the children in December.
I am truly grateful for the support received from: Fr John O’Reilly, Fr Maurie Cooney,
staff, students, parents, Catholic Education Melbourne and The Archdiocese,
throughout this challenging process.
The new school consists of 12 large classrooms with abundant natural light. The
classrooms are both connected, but with separate learning spaces. In addition to this,
there is a spacious new resource room and creative arts room. The main entrance to
our new office area will be in Theodore Street. The new school also has separate
offices for specialist intervention such as Reading Recovery, Number Intervention and
New Arrival Support.
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In 2017 Sacred Heart, enrolled 40 refugee students from Iraq and 4 refugees from
Burma and Vietnam. As a Parish, we welcome our Catholic refugee families, who have
been forced to leave their countries.
In summary, an entire new school was built, the old school was prepared for demolition,
whilst the everyday running of the existing school continued. Throughout this process,
our focus has always been on teaching, student wellbeing and learning. This is
evidenced through an external report that was conducted at Sacred Heart by ‘Corwin’.
This involved looking for evidence of learning, through speaking to teachers and
students, as well as looking at routines and practices within the school.
The report from Corwin highlights that at Sacred Heart:
Students, staff and parents have a shared vision of the desired characteristics of an
effective learner. These are explicitly taught in all key learning areas.
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Students, staff and parents have a shared vision of the desired characteristics of an
effective teacher
Feedback is collected weekly from students through surveys, classroom meetings,
and students’ reflections against success criteria
Feedback is given to staff through peer observations, use of feedback pro-formas,
and regularly from leadership team members
Students use Learning Intentions and Success Criteria, so that they are clear about
how to be successful, and what their next steps are
Learning is differentiated for students
Student data, and classroom observations, are used to guide teachers’ planning and
monitor student progress
Multiple assessment tools and resources are used, which enable teachers to collect
and use high quality data about individual student learning
Evidence of professional practices that focus on learning and progress include:
o The use of the Victorian Curriculum or English as an Alternative Language
Continuum as pathways for students
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o Differentiated teaching where student data has been embedded into daily teaching
practices
o The assessment of each student’s prior knowledge through the use of pre-tests in
all curriculum areas that are shared with students and used to set learning goals.
o The collection of ‘Fountas and Pinnell’ student comprehension levels in fiction and
non- fiction texts
o Learning progressions developed across curriculum areas
o Displays of learning progressions made visible to students
o Documentation of success criteria with the use of ‘I can’ statements in writing
genres,
o The use worked examples of different writing genres
o The use of effect size data, and the sharing of this data with students
An emphasis on the importance of monitoring student progress closely, is evident
across the school. Teachers use evidence of learning to plan for and adapt teaching
approaches and work closely with school leaders to analyse and interpret student
data.
It was also observed through our report that, there is high relational trust across the
school and there are a variety of ways of raising teacher capability, including:
o Regular dedicated scheduled professional learning for all staff
o Teachers collaboratively planning each week in team levels with support from
members of the Leadership Team
o Internal and external professional development throughout the year
o Regular classroom observations and feedback provided to teachers
o Opportunities for modelling and observing other colleagues teaching
This is evidence that despite our enormous building project, and enrolments throughout
the year, our focus was always on students’ learning and our teaching.
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Finally, our end of year Christmas Mass, is always a time for us to thank God for all that
we are, and all that we have been given. It is also a time when the individual gifts of
students are celebrated as they reflect and present to our community, their individual
journey at Sacred Heart. We are proud of all our students, and we are particularly proud
of the individual growth they show in all areas including: faith, relationships, confidence,
physical and academic abilities.
Our students are our greatest success. As I said to all families at our end of year Mass:
We come from many countries,
We speak many languages,
But we love each other
And grow in compassion,
As we are a part of a Catholic Community
Who are called to serve others.
“Love one another as I have loved you”
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Education in Faith
Goal:
To be a Catholic community that prays, works and shares together to develop
the whole child for a life following Jesus in the world today
Intended Outcome
That students develop a post-critical belief
Key Improvement Strategy
Engage in dialogue to support students to re-contextualise their faith
Achievements
To begin the year, a combined staff Mass (Sacred Heart, Emmaus and Cana), was
held at Emmaus Church with the theme: “Spirit Filled Service”
Staff professional development included:
o Weekly planning with a Religious Education Coordinator
o Attendance at Family Sacramental Weekends
o A ‘Mary MacKillop’ Committee of students was established to welcome newly
arrived students from Iraq, this included an orientation book and the distribution of
free fruit to all students each week
o Working with John Burland and Alyssa and Daniel Agius (Unlimited) to enhance
liturgy through music
Students engaged in daily prayer, and weekly through our celebration of the
Eucharist together
Parish parent meetings were held. At these meetings, each school’s story was
shared, and a staff member spoke about why they had chosen to teach in a Catholic
school. In response to these meetings many families increased their Thanksgiving
and contributed to the Parish Building Fund
A beginning of the year Mass was celebrated for all students and parents
Blessing masses for all year levels were held each month:
o 1st week of the month - Year 3 Reconciliation Blessing Mass
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o 2nd week of the month - Year 4 Eucharist Blessing Mass
o 3rd week of the month - Year 5 and 6 Confirmation Blessing Mass
o 4th week of the month - Year Prep, Year 1 and 2 Blessing Mass
Students attended the annual St Patrick’s Day Mass at St Patrick’s Cathedral
Eucharist Family Days - were held to prepare students and parents for First Holy
Communion
Reconciliation Family Days - were held to prepare students and parents for First
Reconciliation
Confirmation Family Days - were held to prepare students and parents for their
Confirmation
All families attended a ‘Family Chat’ at the presbytery, to reflect on their faith journey
and commitment to our community
Year 4 students celebrated the Sacrament of First Reconciliation in May
Year 4 students celebrated the Sacrament of First Holy Communion in June and July
Year 6 students celebrated the Sacrament of Confirmation in October
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All staff attended Sacramental Family days and the celebration of Sacraments
Sacred Heart Feast Day was celebrated on Friday 23rd June with Mass, a band and
an open morning where families were invited into classrooms
The Sacred Heart/Emmaus Parish Community came together to celebrate Mass on
Sunday 16th July to thank Fr O’Reilly for his 49 years of service to our Parish.
The Feast of St Mary of The Cross MacKillop was celebrated on 8th August, 2017.
We remember Mary’s words “Never see a need without doing something about it.”
The Grade 6 students visited The Mary MacKillop Heritage Centre to learn about the
life, work and charism of Mary MacKillop
Prep students visited our Parish schools - All Prep students from Sacred Heart
visited Emmaus and Cana
A Parish Federation day was held, where students participated in a sports day with
Cana and Emmaus students
Our students attended the annual Mission Mass at St Patrick’s Cathedral
The year was concluded with an end of year Christmas Mass, which also celebrated
our Grade 6 students’ achievements
VALUE ADDED
98% of students and families preparing for Sacraments attended Sacramental Family Days on
weekends
100% attendance at weekly Wednesday morning Masses by staff and students
97% of families attended Family Chats in the Presbytery with the Parish Priest or a member of
the Leadership team
The establishment of a weekly mass in our Parish in Arabic and Assyrian has supported the
Iraqi families to continue their strong faith in prayer and worship
The Iraqi and Burmese refugees’ strong commitment to their faith has added another
dimension to the school community’s Catholic Identity
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Learning & Teaching
Goal:
To provide learning opportunities and effective teaching practices to develop
and nurture the potential of each child.
Intended Outcomes
That the learning growth of all students in literacy and numeracy will improve.
Key Improvement Strategy
Ensure consistent use of data with teachers and in collaboration with students,
set achievable student learning goals.
Achievements
Staff were released for 3¼ hours each week. Planning protocols were agreed on by
all staff. Teachers planned with Coordinators in the areas of Maths, Literacy, Religion
and Inquiry Learning
The Victorian Curriculum and EAL Continuum were used for teaching, assessing and
reporting to parents
Staff agreed on a consistent work program structure, which included teaching
students to use Learning Intentions and Success Criteria
The Victorian Curriculum was written in ‘parent friendly’ language, and was used in
all reports to parents
Grade 5 and 6 students used e-portfolios to record evidence of their achievements to
inform parents
Prep- Grade 4 students used folders to gather evidence of their achievements
In Reading, Fountas and Pinnell testing texts were being used to track students’
comprehension levels in both fiction and factual texts
In writing, pre-assessments for each text type provided information on future
individual student goals. Post assessments then showed individual student growth.
Samples of writing for each year level, and each text type, using the Victorian
Curriculum, were developed with explicit success criteria
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In Maths, pre and post assessments were also used to group students for daily
teaching and to track student’s growth
Teachers calculated ‘effect’ sizes to show evidence of student growth
Teachers worked with a colleague using an ‘observation tool’ to provide each other
with feedback about teaching and learning.
Description of Observation Tool
Part 1
o Asking the teacher and other students questions
o Discussion about learning
o Voicing and demonstrating high expectations
o Supporting peers learning
o Seeking feedback from the teacher and other students
Part 2
o Collecting evidence of teacher’s interactions in 1 minute intervals
Part 3
o Collecting student feedback
CRC staff met with feeder primary school representatives, to calculate student
growth from Year 5 to Year 7. This was facilitated by Philip Holmes-Smith.
Effect size data was calculated for individual students, using PAT-Maths and PAT-
Reading for both individual students and grade cohorts of students. This shows the
impact of teaching on student learning.
Staff triangulated data using: PAT Reading and Maths Tests, Fountas and Pinnell
results, Pre and Post test data, NAPLAN and Essential Assessment data
Four staff attended a Visible Learning professional development day
The National Art Gallery, provided two days of professional learning for five art
teachers on: Indigenous art and Van Gough
All Grade 5 and 6 students visited the Australia Gallery
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All Grade 3, 4, 5 and 6 students visited the Van Gogh exhibition at the Art Gallery
A review of the one to one laptop program was conducted across the three schools
Student- Parent -Teacher conferences were held at the end of Terms 2 and 4
Three staff members participated in the TESMIC course facilitated by Margaret
Nutbean
STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES
Naplan data 2015-2017 shows:
Consistent results of 100% of students achieving the minimum standards in Year 3 Grammar and Punctuation
A 2.9% increase in the number of students achieving the minimum standards in Year 3 Numeracy 2016-2017
A 5.7% increase in the number of students achieving the minimum standards in Year 3 Reading 2016-2017
Consistent results of almost 100% of students achieving the minimum standards in Year 3 Spelling
Consistent results of 100% of students achieving the minimum standards in Year 3 Writing
A 6.7% increase in the number of students achieving the minimum standards in Year 5 Grammar and Punctuation 2016-2017
A 3.2% increase in the number of students achieving the minimum standards in Year 5 Numeracy 2016-2017
Consistent results of 100% of students achieving the minimum standards in Year 5 Reading
Consistent results of almost 100% of students achieving the minimum standards in Year 5 Spelling
Consistent results of 100% of students achieving the minimum standards in Year 5 Writing
At Sacred Heart other sources of data used to track students growth included:
PAT-Maths conducted yearly in November
PAT-Reading conducted yearly in November
Fountas and Pinnell Reading Comprehension conducted termly or as required
Small Group daily achievement of success criteria
Moderation of work samples
Pre and post assessments
Individual meetings with all students, parents and teachers twice a year, with interpreters
Personalised learning plans for students with additional needs
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Student Wellbeing
Goals
To enhance student wellbeing and strengthen positive relationships in light of
gospel values
Intended Outcomes
That students personal and social skills will continue to grow
Key Improvement Strategy
Explicit teaching and learning of personal and social skills
Achievements
Classroom meetings were held each week, for students to share successes and raise
any concerns
Staff completed the 20-hour online autism professional development course
The library was open during break one and two to provide an alternative quiet space
for students
Twenty different kindergartens were visited as part of the Prep Orientation Program.
In addition to this, Prep students for 2018 attended five orientation sessions at
Sacred Heart
Program support Group Meetings for students with disabilities were held each term
with parents to update Personalised Learning Programs
Three Learning Support Officers conducted the ERIK Reading program
E-smart accreditation was evaluated
Personal and Social Capabilities from the Victorian Curriculum were unpacked with
all staff
All staff completed the Online Mandatory Reporting Survey
All teachers, support staff, contractors and volunteers have been given the CECV
Commitment Statement to Child safety
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All staff and volunteers signed a Code of Conduct which lists acceptable and
unacceptable behaviours prior to working at Sacred Heart
All staff were given the Federation Child Safe Policy
A parent meeting was held in Assyrian to outline acceptable and unacceptable
behaviours as listed in the Child Safe Code of Conduct
All workers coming into Sacred Heart are expected to present their Working with
Children Check. All workers are supervised and sign the Child Safe Code of Conduct
which details acceptable and unacceptable behaviours
A Speech Pathologist worked each Friday with students requiring therapy
A ‘Back To Sacred Heart’ Year 6 - Year 7 Transition Morning was held to support
students in their transition to secondary school
CRC staff met with Grade 6 teachers to support students transition to Year 7
An Orientation Day was held in December, which gave students the opportunity to
meet their new teacher
Grade 6 students attended camp for three days at Mt Eliza
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Student non-attendance is followed up:
with a phone call to discuss why students are not at school
At the beginning of each year, at a parent meeting, all parents are reminded
that students need to be at school every day and trips overseas need to take
place during holidays
Parent meetings are held to discuss any regular absenteeism
DHS or Family First are involved as required
VALUE ADDED
After School Care offers the following activities:
Karate, Art Sculpting, Music, Cooking, Netball, Homework Club, Science and Basketball.
CEM Learning Consultant, Susan Ongarato, provided teachers and students with support in the areas
of Autism and Behaviour
Year 6 students rehearsed and performed a school production of, “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,”
in front of family and friends
STUDENT SATISFACTION
100% of students completed a fortnightly feedback form reflecting their wellbeing and learning
All teachers receive feedback daily about their teaching from the students in their classroom
Regular classroom meetings to celebrate successes and address challenges
School Leaders met regularly to celebrate successes and address concerns from students which
was then shared at Staff Meetings
Mary MacKillop Group met weekly to organise food packages for families in need
Mary MacKillop Group prepared breakfast for students one morning each week
Grade 5 students participated in Soccer Gala Days, Interschool Sport and School Sport Victoria
Athletics Events
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Child Safe Standards
Goals and Intended Outcomes
To ensure the safety of all students at Sacred Heart Parish Primary School
To work closely with teachers, learning support offices, administration staff,
technology manager and maintenance coordinator, to ensure that they know
and follow our Child Safe Policies including our Code of Conduct
To ensure all families know and follow our Child Safe Policies including our
Code of Conduct
To ensure all external people coming into our school know and follow our
Child Safe Policies including our Code of Conduct
Achievements
Writing
o Child Safe Policy
o Privacy Policy
o Code of Conduct
Discussing and explaining these to parents, teachers, learning support officers,
administration staff, technology manager and the maintenance coordinator
Ensuring that these policies are followed at all times
Employment of new staff includes the use of an explicit referee check proforma
Meetings with volunteers in English and other languages, to ensure they understand
and sign the Child Safe Code of Conduct: Acceptable and Unacceptable Behaviours
Keeping a record of Working With Children Checks for all volunteers, and ensuring
that they wear a name tag, indicating expiry dates
Children complete weekly surveys about how they are feeling at school
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These policies and practices are designed to ensure that we have an embedded culture
of child safety at Sacred Heart. They explicitly state acceptable and unacceptable
behaviours with children. They also detail processes for responding to and reporting
suspected child abuse.
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Leadership & Management
Goal
To further develop a powerful, professional learning culture
Intended Outcome
That staff feel empowered in their practice
Key Improvement Strategy
Ensure that staff participate in rigorous conversations at planning sessions to
make informed choices about individual student learning
Through performance development coaching, staff use data to reflect on
teaching and learning and set personal goals
Achievements
Professional development was provided for all staff on:
o Positive Behaviour Management
o Data Analysis with Philip Holmes-Smith
o Visible Learning- What makes an effective Catholic Teacher?
o The New Victorian Curriculum
o Autism
o Specialist staff attended a day at the Art Gallery.
o ACHPER provided professional development in the area of physical education
o Visible Learning
o Feedback
o Number Intervention
o “Berry Street” - Wellbeing Approach
o Child Safety: The Next Steps
o Reportable Conduct
o Online Mandatory reporting
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o Nationally Consistent Collection of Data
o Teaching Young Children English in Multi-Lingual Contexts
o National School Improvement Tool
Farewell to Fr O’Reilly after 49 years and welcome to Fr Maurie Cooney
The Corwin Visible Learning Team walked through all classrooms, and provided a
“Capability Assessment Report” on Sacred Heart. This report indicated that Sacred
Heart was performing very high in all areas:
o The Visible Learner
o Inspired and Passionate Teachers
o Know Thy Impact
o Effective Feedback
o Aspirations
o Strategic Tools and Actions
o Shared Understandings
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o Professional Practice
Graduate teachers participated in a mentoring program
Occupational Health and Safety issues were raised weekly at staff meetings
Two information meetings were held for prospective parents to Sacred Heart,
Emmaus or Cana. At these meetings the Parish philosophy of Praying, Working and
Sharing together was detailed. Enrolment Applications were then given to
prospective parents after masses in May
In 2017 the total number of refugee students at Sacred Heart was 92. Four New
Arrivals Teachers were employed to meet the needs of these students. Professional
development was provided to all staff to support these students’ learning
All staff completed Level 2 First Aid yearly update of CPR, Anaphylaxis, Asthma and
Defibrillator training in December
Fortnightly building meetings were attended by the principal, 2Construct, Henderson
and Lodge, and a representative from the Archdiocese
The new school due to be completed in June, was completed in December
A new adventure playground and a special rubber surface underneath was installed
in December 2017
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The school nurse conducted checks on all prep students and newly arrived students
to Australia
Centre of Catholic Teacher Formation: ACU, CEM and all Primary and Secondary
schools in our Federation, met regularly to discuss improvements to Pre-Service
Teacher Education at ACU. A student from ACU participated in an extended practical
program
EXPENDITURE AND TEACHER PARTICIPATION IN PROFESSIONAL LEARNING
DESCRIPTION OF PL UNDERTAKEN IN 2017
P-10 Student Performance Data and VCE Workshop
Professional Development for Physical Education
First Aid-EAM-Anaphylaxis
Consulting Specialist Teachers Observation, feedback and plan
TESOL-Semester 1-School 1/3 Portion - Language, Culture and Communication
The Arts – Professional Development New Arrivals Professional Development for 3 teachers
Collaborative Impact Program 2017
Naplan and PAT Consultation
Staff Professional Development – Understanding the Iraqi Refugee journey
NUMBER OF TEACHERS WHO PARTICIPATED IN PL 24
AVERAGE EXPENDITURE PER TEACHER FOR PL $3,831.80
TEACHER SATISFACTION
Annual Review Meetings for all staff with the Principal in Term 3
Individual meetings for all staff with the Principal each term
Scheduled observations and peer to peer feedback
Weekly staff meetings with agenda items included in minutes
End of year reflection, discussion and evaluation of strengths and challenges
Weekly planning with coordinators
The Corwin Report stated that there was a high relational trust across the school, and there are a variety of ways of raising teacher capability
Reflection on year’s work with Philip Holmes-Smith
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School Community
Goal
To engage parents as active partners in their children’s education
Intended Outcome
That parents understand the language of school and student learning
Key Improvement Strategy
Engage parents in all that we do as a school
Achievements
A Grade 6 production of ‘Charlie and The Chocolate Factory’ was enjoyed by all
students and parents
Four ‘Mercy Connect’ volunteers worked in classrooms one morning each week to
support students
Six Iraqi students gave a presentation to adult classroom helpers at Catholic
Education Melbourne, about their journey to Australia
Shadforth Financial Group visited their Grade 6 literacy buddies, whom they had
been in contact with through letter writing (Ardoch Foundation)
Grade 6 students visited the Shadforth Financial Group workplace
A Pre-Prep Parent Meeting was held in December
Students attended Interschool Sport, Regional Cross Country Championships,
Divisional Athletics and a Soccer Gala Day
Sacred Heart Feast Day was celebrated with Mass, a band and morning tea
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Students and staff raised $3,200 at the Mini-Fair
Book Week, “Escape to Anywhere” was celebrated by our whole school community
Parents were invited to attend a ‘Trivia Night’
A Parish Federation Sports Day was held
Parents, staff and students celebrated ‘Harmony Day’, through dressing up in
different cultural clothes and presenting performances about other countries
All parents were invited to attend a Cyber Safety parent meeting. This was
compulsory for all Grade 5 and 6 students.
A parent meeting was held in Assyrian for all newly arrived students from Iraq
detailing: School Rules, Ministry, Mass, Cybersafety and Sacramental expectations
Great support was given by our New Arrivals families in assisting the movement of
resources, furniture and supplies from the old school to the new
PARENT SATISFACTION
Semester 1 and 2 Report feedback forms from parents
Grade level meetings for parents was well attended
Prep Home Visits and Family Chats
Beginning of year small group parent meetings with Principal and Deputy Principal
Good attendance at Sacred Heart Feast Day, Harmony Day, Book Week and Working Bees
Opportunities for parents to view and engage in learning experiences, such as Inquiry Expos
In 2017 Father O’Reilly and the Parish community of Sacred Heart/Emmaus supported the Iraqi
families in establishing a weekly Mass in Arabic and Assyrian at Emmaus Church in Sydenham.
This has been welcomed by our Catholic Iraqi families and is incredibly well attended each week.
Interpreters in Arabic, Assyrian, Hakka, Vietnamese and Albanian were used at enrolments, parent-
teacher interviews, parent meetings and sacramental meetings. This communication enabled families
to feel connected and valued to our school and parish community.
SACRED HEART PRIMARY SCHOOL ST ALBANS
2017 ANNUAL REPORT TO THE SCHOOL COMMUNITY 30
Future Directions
In 2018, an external review will be conducted, through the use of the “National
School Improvement Tool”
Evidence of the school’s achievement will be gathered in the areas of:
1. An explicit improvement agenda
2. Analysis and discussion of data
3. A culture that promotes learning
4. Targeted use of resources
5. An expert teaching team
6. Systematic curriculum delivery
7. Differentiated teaching and learning
8. Effective pedagogical practices
9. School-community partnerships
The aim or purpose of the investigation:
To use the National School Improvement Tool, to reflect on teaching and learning at
Sacred Heart, with the aim of improving learning and wellbeing for all students.
The rationale for the selection of the focus area:
This tool has been chosen as it brings together findings from international research
into the practices of highly effective schools and school leaders. This tool will assist
our school to review and reflect on what has been achieved to improve the quality of
teaching and learning. It will also be a lens through which current practice and areas
for improvement will be discussed with students, parents and staff.
The scope of the area to be reviewed:
In addition to the nine areas listed above, Sacred Heart, as a Catholic Parish Primary
School, will also review the area of Religious Education and Catholic identity.
Timeframe of Specific Focus School Review:
Week 1 – Term 4 2018, ACER personnel will visit Sacred Heart, St Albans.
In Term 1, 2019, the results from the National School Improvement Tool will be used
to complete a School Improvement Plan and Annual Action Plan for 2019-2022
SACRED HEART PRIMARY SCHOOL ST ALBANS
2017 ANNUAL REPORT TO THE SCHOOL COMMUNITY 31
VRQA Compliance Data
SACRED HEART PRIMARY SCHOOL ST ALBANS
2017 ANNUAL REPORT TO THE SCHOOL COMMUNITY 32
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
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