School plan 2015 2017
School background 2015-2017 School vision statement School context School planning process The school has a strong commitment to academic and personal excellence in all spheres of school life. Our dedicated teachers maintain a relentless focus on quality teaching with an emphasis on strategies to address the needs of gifted and talented students. We strive to develop students who are innovative thinkers and confident, self motivated learners who possess strong ethical values. The school has active links with universities and its community. Our students thrive in an atmosphere which provides for co curricular learning experiences, sport, creative and performing arts, leadership roles and school community service. It is important that we offer extensive student leadership opportunities that contribute to a positive school ethos and a philosophy of social justice. The school values the positive contribution parents make in our success. Penrith High School is an academically selective high school in outer western Sydney with an enrolment of 945 students. 79% of students are from non English speaking backgrounds, including significant numbers from Asian backgrounds. Our Aboriginal students make up 0.5% of the student community and the school is committed to promoting its cultural and linguistic diversity. The school s parent community holds high expectations of academic success for our students. 98% of students progress to tertiary education through university. The remaining 2% continue with full time education through full time TAFE or part time TAFE and work. The school has large, well manicured grounds. All learning spaces have access to technology and all classrooms have interactive whiteboards or data projectors. In 2015 all students in the senior school (10 12) have individual laptops and students in the junior school bring a range of technology to school under the Bring Your Own Device Policy. Students can access the internet from any area across the school. This plan was developed by staff, students and parents and it is endorsed for implementation by the School Parents & Citizens body. During 2014, all sectors of the school community reviewed our existing programs to determine areas of strength and areas which need ongoing development. Together we explored a range of high leverage strategies based on research and school data that we thought would improve student outcomes in a transformational way. The selection of three areas in which to focus our energy and expertise involved parents, students and teachers in a series of forums, individual feedback and group sessions. We had very good support from our community and the process was seen as valuable. The implementation of the School Plan will be monitored by the P&C in its role as the school s self evaluation committee. The school s executive staff will have direct responsibility and accountability for the implementation of the annual whole school, faculty and team plans. Page 2
School strategic directions 2015-2017 STRATEGIC DIRECTION 1 Students will be engaged, curious learners who think critically and creatively to make a difference in their world STRATEGIC DIRECTION 2 Staff will lead learning through collaboration and innovative practice STRATEGIC DIRECTION 3 A connected school community that contributes positively to support student learning Purpose: To deliver a quality learning environment for gifted and talented students that inspires them to think deeply, logically and divergently in order to add value to their academic and social performance. Students will be supported to become skilful, resilient, empathetic, resourceful and passionate lifelong learners who can embrace and lead change. Purpose: To create a community of teachers who are dynamic facilitators of challenging learning experiences for gifted and talented students. Teachers are engaged in targeted, explicit curriculum innovation and quality teaching that inspires learning and increases student engagement. To ensure continued alignment and development of outstanding teaching practice and leadership capabilities in line with the Australian Standards for Teachers and Standards for Principals. Purpose: To create, enhance and maintain partnerships which are founded on meaningful participation in school programs, with a focus on the transition of students to tertiary learning. To enhance the quality, sustainability and equity of community partnerships to increase the breadth and depth of student learning experiences. To improve communication in our school community to facilitate quality educational experiences for our students and their families. Page 3
Strategic Direction 1: Students will be engaged, curious learners who think critically and creatively to make a difference in their world Purpose People Processes Products and Practices Quality Teaching and Learning To deliver a quality learning environment Students will develop lifelong skills, programs for gifted and talented students that effective learning habits and leadership Teachers implement Quality Teaching inspires them to think deeply, logically capabilities by engaging in quality and Learning programs using and divergently in order to add value to their academic and social performance. learning experiences provided by expert teaching and learning programs. qualitative and quantitative data to ensure effective delivery for gifted and talented students. Students will be supported to become skilful, resilient, empathetic, resourceful and passionate lifelong learners who can embrace and lead change. Improvement Measures 100% of subjects have Teaching and Learning programs based on the Quality Teaching Framework that effectively deliver an appropriate curriculum for gifted and talented students. 90% of students are actively engaged in their learning as measured by the Tell Them From Me survey and Quality Teaching Student Evaluation forms. 90% of students set, monitor, review and reflect on their learning goals throughout the year. Teachers will deliver engaging and cutting edge learning experiences that develop student leaders who are critical and creative thinkers in order to meet the needs of gifted and talented students. Parents will have increased opportunities to contribute their professional expertise to work in partnership with the school to fulfil student needs. Parents will also be able to give feedback on the quality of teaching and learning at the school. Community Partners support student learning through their contribution to academic networks, real world experiences for students and involvement in mutually beneficial initiatives. The P&C will provide support for parents on supporting the learning of their child. Student Engagement Teachers and community partners provide differentiated high quality curricular and extra-curricular learning and leadership opportunities. Developing a growth mindset Teachers develop, implement and evaluate a consistent, well structured, modelled program on the skills required to develop a growth mindset. Through coaching, each student develops the foundation for effective goal setting and self-management strategies. Evaluation Plan: Internal regular reporting against milestones using feedback from project teams, surveys, staff professional learning and P&C evaluations to: cyclically review and evaluate teaching and learning programs and practices then refine and adjust learning; evaluate student engagement in school learning experiences. External engage a Principal (School Leadership) to review the effectiveness of our strategies, their implementation and provide feedback on strengths and areas of improvement. Teaching and Learning Programs Product: All Faculty programs are based on the Quality Teaching Framework. They focus on significant learning experiences and develop higher order thinking for gifted and talented students. Practice: Students experience differentiated activities that cater for the varied learning styles of gifted and talented students, including challenges and problem solving that relates to the real world. Student Engagement in Learning Product: Structured curricular and extracurricular programs that foster leadership opportunities through challenging differentiated and multifaceted experiences. Practice: Students will develop leadership characteristics and abilities through dynamic and engaging practical experiences in and out of the classroom. Developing a Growth Mindset Product: Learning experiences that promote student involvement in personal goal setting, encourage self-direction and demonstrate measureable improvement. Practice: Staff explicitly teach students the value of goal setting, model how to do it well and provide support in assisting students to achieve their goals. Staff and students report on their leaning and leadership goals. Page 4
Strategic Direction 2: Staff will lead learning through collaboration and innovative practice Purpose People Processes Products and Practices To create a community of teachers who are dynamic facilitators of challenging learning experiences for gifted and talented students. Teachers are engaged in targeted, explicit curriculum innovation and quality teaching that inspires learning and increases student engagement. To ensure continued alignment and development of outstanding teaching practice and leadership capabilities in line with the Australian Standards for Teachers and Standards for Principals. Improvement Measures 90% of teachers can demonstrate how they use data and research to improve their teaching practice. 80% of teachers have collaborated with colleagues and/or students and/or parents in designing, implementing and evaluating innovative teaching and learning sequences. 100% of teachers understand the process for achieving higher levels of teacher accreditation linked to the Australian Teaching Standards and increased numbers of staff are seeking this accreditation. Students will learn how to contribute critical feedback to help their teachers continue to develop engaging and innovative curriculum which meets the needs of gifted and talented students. Teachers will provide systems that will support students in contributing to progressive feedback on practices within the classroom and across the school. Teachers use the Performance and Development Framework to formally identify their own professional learning needs as they analyse the learning needs of their students through their performance. Through their professional development plan, teachers learn skills which will allow them to be actively involved in collaborative processes designed to enhance teaching and learning practice. Parents have enhanced opportunities to give feedback on the quality of teaching and learning at the school. Community Partners with demonstrated expertise in gifted education, educational innovation and collaboration are accessed to support our school priorities. Interpret data and research Teachers interpret data, including NAPLAN, HSC and student surveys to identify strengths and areas for development in their practice. Teachers target professional learning to support identified areas. Collaborative and Innovative Practice Teachers lead and participate in ongoing professional dialogue, observation and evaluation to encourage reflection, ongoing improvement and celebrate success. Teachers are supported to use professional networks to seek out innovation in order to develop and refine their practice. Implement systems which provide opportunities and structures for student / teacher / community collaboration to inform and evaluate teaching practices. Students learn how to give effective feedback to teachers about their classroom experiences and learning needs. Evaluation Plan: Internal regular reporting against milestones using feedback from project teams, surveys, staff professional learning and P&C evaluations. External engage a Principal (School Leadership) to review the effectiveness of our strategies, their implementation and provide feedback on strengths and areas of improvement. Data driven improvements Product: Teaching and learning programs show adjustments in response to a range of data sets and research. Practice: Teachers use data and research to enhance students achievement through informed teaching and learning programs. Collaborative and Innovative Practice Product: Teachers collaboratively develop, implement, evaluate and refine innovative teaching and learning sequences. Practice: A culture of sharing and reflection builds the capabilities and experiences of all staff. Product: Teachers have professional development plans (PDP) that are linked to the Australian Teaching Standards. Teachers work on goals for improvement based on school priorities and a personal area for development. Product: Student focussed programs that incorporate a flexible curriculum where students have choice in what is being taught and how. Practice: Teachers involve students in program evaluation and planning using formal and informal methods. Page 5
Strategic Direction 3: A connected school community that contributes positively to support student learning Purpose People Processes Products and Practices Enhanced communication Investigate, implement, maintain and evaluate high leverage communication systems in the school. To create, enhance and maintain partnerships which are founded on meaningful participation in school programs, particularly in relation to the transition of students to tertiary learning. To enhance the quality, sustainability and equity of community partnerships to increase the breadth and depth of student learning experiences. To improve communication in our school community to facilitate quality educational experiences for our students and their families. Improvement Measures o 100% of students have their volunteering experiences recorded and then recognised through the school merit system, school report and BOSTES accreditation. o 100% of Year 10, 11 and 12 students have attended an enhanced school based university experience. o Students, parents and staff indicate improved school communication and publicity tools, measured by their participation in annual school based surveys and communication tool use. Staff: increase their understanding about the value of significant real world experiences for students and develop their capacity to work collaboratively to deliver these. Staff: promote and facilitate real world experiences for students with the school s wider academic, business and social community. Students: increase their understanding of the value of significant real world experiences and engage in programs to develop valuable community volunteering and tertiary skills and experiences whilst at school. Parents: engage with the school by effectively utilising school communication tools, providing feedback on school programs and participating where possible in the strategic direction of the school. Community partners: continue to seek and build on strategic partnerships to foster key programs that will provide educational expertise and leadership to students. Community engagement Establish a volunteering learning program to manage, monitor, evaluate and plan for the increased range of volunteering experiences in which students are engaged. Develop school and workforce protocols for student volunteers. Work with BOSTES in trialling and implementing student volunteer accreditation. Adjust school recognition systems to appropriately recognise a range of student volunteering experiences. Tertiary transition Maintain, expand and establish new university, business and nongovernment organisation (NGO) partnerships that provide students with tertiary education experiences whilst at school. Evaluation Plan: Internal regular reporting against milestones using feedback from project teams, surveys, staff professional learning and P&C evaluations. External engage a Principal (School Leadership) to review the effectiveness of our strategies, their implementation and provide feedback on strengths and areas of improvement. Enhanced communication Product: Enhanced communication tools (new and existing) increase student, parent and community engagement with the school. Practice: Students, parents and staff use a wide range of communication and publicity tools to improve our community s engagement in our school programs and initiatives. Community engagement Product: Partnerships with community organisations support enhanced social skills, empathy and real world experiences for students. Practice: Develop a program that recognises students who volunteer for community organisations and that is recognised through BOSTES certification. Tertiary transition Product: Purposeful educational partnerships with tertiary institutions, businesses and NGOs are developed and nurtured. Practice: Students and teachers develop meaningful relationships with universities, TAFE, businesses and NGOs which enhance student experience of the transition from high school into post school pathways. Page 6