Winners for Outstanding Achievement in the Whole School/Team of Teachers Category ($24,000 each)
On this page
- Albany Hills State School, QLD
- All Saints’ College, WA
- Bundamba State Secondary College, QLD
- Claremont College, TAS
- Kingscliff High School, NSW
- Middle Swan Primary School, WA
- Nambucca Heads High School, NSW
- Ocean Grove Primary School, VIC
- Rutherglen Primary School, VIC
- Scoresby Primary School, VIC
- Scottsdale Primary School, TAS
- Speers Point Public School, NSW
- St. John’s Lutheran Primary School, QLD
- St Mel’s Primary School, NSW
- Sunnybank State High School, QLD
- Woodridge State High School, QLD
Albany Hills State School, QLD
Innovation in Science, Mathematics and Technology
In 2002 Albany Hills State School students achieved outstanding performances in the Queensland Science Contest, the National Science Week essay competition and the Australasian Schools’ Science Competition.
These fine achievements were the result of an innovative, whole-school approach to science teaching and learning.
A survey in 1999 revealed that the vast majority of teachers had a strong interest in science, but felt that they needed to build on their own scientific knowledge to teach the subject effectively. A student science scan was also done to research students’ attitudes to science, their scientific interests, preferred learning styles and concept development.
The data gathered provided the basis for a new Community of Science Learning approach among staff, students and parents.
The school has succeeded in raising the profile of science, harnessing student curiosity through conducting exciting experiments with the visiting Scientist in Residence and encouraging participation in Science Competitions and the school’s Astronomy Club.
In addition, staff development has helped to raise the overall confidence of primary teachers and their effectiveness in enthusing students about science.
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All Saints’ College, WA
Safe School Environments
At All Saints’ College, students in the Junior School know that they are learning in a safe environment where bullying will not be tolerated.
Staff, students and school counsellors worked together to establish positive peer relations, a pastoral care program and identify All Saints as a caring, health promoting school. Research methods were also adopted to identify problems, monitor changes and generate effective communication among all members of the school community.
Bullying ‘hot-spots’ were identified in a bid to reduce the potential of bullying and a range of additional play time activities and anti-bullying posters are being used to highlight bullying behaviours and ways of dealing with this issue.
Overall there has been a genuine movement towards school improvement and reported cases of bullying have fallen.
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Bundamba State Secondary College, QLD
Literacy and Numeracy
Background, learning difficulties and disabilities are no longer barriers for students at this school with its new Literacy Enhancement Action Plan (LEAP) enabling them to leap from a culture of failure to a culture of learning.
Of its 679 students the school has 61 students with a Polynesian background, 58 Indigenous students, and 43 students with a disability. The school has to cater to a diverse range of cultural and learning needs.
LEAP was introduced because a large number of students were struggling with their English studies, with many performing at ‘Low Achievement’ levels or below.
By working with external agencies such as the University of Queensland, local primary feeder schools, and professional development providers like Edith Cowan University, the school gave its structure a directed focus on organization, curriculum and teaching practices.
Through a whole school effort, students’ results in reading and comprehension have significantly improved and positive relationships between staff and students have increased through LEAP.
The school is now looking to further develop LEAP in response to the changing needs of students and will focus on the development of staff expertise, a collaborative exchange of teaching expertise and the provision of additional resources.
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Claremont College, TAS
Values Education
Students at this school are encouraged to "have a go" through cooperative learning structures that have been built into classroom practices, and a multi-age grouping strategy.
Literacy and numeracy performances at the school were an area of major concern with results falling well below state norms and reinforcing self-doubt in students. To tackle this issue, the school took a whole-school approach and used the First Steps Literacy Program and Cooperative Reading Simple as ABC to increase literacy and the Getting it Right Strategy to enhance numeracy.
These initiatives were progressed through extensive collaboration, professional development for teachers, use of mentor teachers and accountability processes to gain teacher commitment.
A culture of support, exploration and collaboration has emerged as a result of this project and the learning needs of students are now being met. A number of state, interstate and international educators have visited the school to observe its literacy and numeracy programs in practice.
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Kingscliff High School, NSW
Innovation in Science, Mathematics and Technology
Kingscliff High School on the Far North Coast of New South Wales draws its 1300 students from a broad range of socio-economic backgrounds with many students from Indigenous and disadvantaged families.
Through a revision of its strategy for introducing Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), the school has helped staff and students to significantly improve their skills in this area. New hardware and software, staff professional development, a re-designed curriculum and teaching materials, and a school-wide commitment to integrating ICT into all classroom activities were important parts of the revised strategy.
Specialist ICT programs have been created, and ICT competencies are being widely used as learning tools in all courses. Teacher and student skills in ICT are now comparable with other leading schools. The school is now seeking ways to further integrate ICT into teaching and learning across the curriculum, with a strong focus on the learning needs of all students.
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Middle Swan Primary School, WA
Literacy and Numeracy
Students at this school are encouraged to "have a go" through cooperative learning structures that have been built into classroom practices, and a multi-age grouping strategy.
Literacy and numeracy performances at the school were an area of major concern with results falling well below state norms and reinforcing self-doubt in students. To tackle this issue, the school took a whole-school approach and used the First Steps Literacy Program and Cooperative Reading Simple as ABC to increase literacy and the Getting it Right Strategy to enhance numeracy.
These initiatives were progressed through extensive collaboration, professional development for teachers, use of mentor teachers and accountability processes to gain teacher commitment.
A culture of support, exploration and collaboration has emerged as a result of this project and the learning needs of students are now being met. A number of state, interstate and international educators have visited the school to observe its literacy and numeracy programs in practice.
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Nambucca Heads High School, NSW
Literacy and Numeracy
Parental involvement, a writing program for Indigenous students and the use of visual literacy to engage students played a pivotal role in the success of this school’s project.
Located on the Mid-North coast of New South Wales with many families from lower socio-economic circumstances, the school identified literacy and numeracy as areas where students required additional support.
By taking a whole-of-school approach to building literacy and numeracy into key learning areas and setting high expectations for students to aspire to, the school has succeeded in boosting retention rates for Indigenous students and improving student outcomes, with many achieving higher rates of academic success.
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Ocean Grove Primary School, VIC
Innovation in Science, Mathematics and Technology
The Science Fair, Education Week, Science Newsletters, Smog Busters, visiting scientists, excursions to the Marine Science Lab and Science Works were among the strategies used to give the school community a thirst for science.
By participating in the 2000 Science in Schools Research Project, Ocean Grove Primary School devised a whole-of-school science program to make science a school priority, linking it to student interests, teacher training, new curriculum resources and the wider school community.
Information, Communication and Technology (ICT) competencies were also integrated into the teaching and learning of science and mathematics with on-line collaborative mentoring in robotics seen as a major step forward in building technology into the science curriculum.
As a result of Ocean Grove Primary School’s innovations, student achievement in science was equal to, or exceeded state averages in November 2002.
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Rutherglen Primary School, VIC
Literacy and Numeracy
Rutherglen Primary School has developed a whole school plan that has made mathematics more meaningful and interesting, and encouraged a genuine desire to learn among students.
The need to improve student achievement in numeracy resulted in a whole-school plan which addresses the professional development needs of teachers; provides strategies to cater for different learning needs, abilities, interests; and includes regular moderation of assessment tasks by teachers.
An Early Years and Middle Years Numeracy Co-ordinator was appointed to support the delivery of the numeracy plan and an e-math program was introduced to challenge and interest the more talented students.
Parents report a significant change of approach to numeracy which has inspired their children to achieve at a higher level.
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Scoresby Primary School, VIC
School Leadership
Under the team approach to school leadership introduced in 2000, Scoresby Primary School has experienced significant improvements in student achievements and community confidence in the school.
The new approach was introduced by the Principal, who faced the challenge of transforming the school into a learning community in which students, teachers, parents and the wider school community worked cooperatively to build a strong teaching and learning environment.
A series of satisfaction surveys, together with other data, indicate that the school improvement plan has significantly improved staff morale, parent involvement, management practices, community partnerships and staff leadership skills, resulting in a reversal of the declining enrolment trend.
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Scottsdale Primary School, TAS
Literacy and Numeracy
A team of teachers at Scottsdale Primary School in north eastern Tasmania has achieved outstanding results in literacy with 26% of Grade 1 students increasing their reading age by two years during 1999-2000.
Reading Recovery and Parent Tutor programs reflect the school’s belief that success is for all. These programs, combined with the Bridges program - an initiative run by teacher assistants and parents to support the school’s literacy strategy – have helped teachers to strengthen student skills in this vital area.
Scottsdale Primary continues to be a leader in supporting the professional learning of teachers throughout the state, thereby improving literacy in other Tasmanian schools.
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Speers Point Public School, NSW
Safe School Environments
Speers Point Public School near Newcastle, NSW, is creating a safe school environment for its 180 students.
Students, parents and teachers were involved with reviewing the school’s Student Welfare and Discipline Policy and developing an Anti-Bullying Policy which has helped to boost staff morale, reduced the incidence of violence, led to greater participation in playground activities, and increased parent approval.
In addition to the new policies, the Student Welfare team researched records to identify problematic student behaviors and developed an incident checklist to monitor inappropriate behaviours.
To maintain the excellent progress the school has introduced a more responsive approach to managing inappropriate student behaviors; a social skills program; peacemaker awards for students, and reviewed playground usage to minimise the occurrence of bullying.
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St. John’s Lutheran Primary School, QLD
Innovation in Science, Mathematics and Technology
Students at this rural Bundaberg school are enjoying mathematics and achieving strong results as a result of new and improved teaching practices.
Until now the school utilised traditional teaching practices. Many of the students were receiving poor results in mathematics. By introducing an innovative plan to re-structure the classroom and initiating a school-wide change in teaching, the school has succeeded in addressing poor results for students in mathematics.
Students were given an active role in planning the work units and negotiating learning experiences, activities, tasks and assessment with the aim of making teaching practices more diverse and responsive to their individual needs.
Since the plan was implemented, students are achieving better results and showing a significant improvement in their attitude to the subject.
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St Mel’s Primary School, NSW
Values Education
Tackling sensitive and complex issues such as bullying and racism against a background of enormous cultural diversity was a major challenge for this school community.
What began as a move to encourage racial harmony in the school has delivered far-reaching benefits for the school – transforming it into a more peaceful and positive environment for students and staff.
Teacher conferences, Harmony Day celebrations and parent workshops form a large part of the school’s new program, which identified and developed strategies to promote harmony, collaboration and understanding within the school.
The school’s new Cultural Harmony Plan aims to raise student awareness of the positive effects of cultural diversity and the need to continue to say "no" to all forms of racism and bullying.
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Sunnybank State High School, QLD
School Leadership
Students at Sunnybank State High School are enjoying higher levels of achievement, have new-found enthusiasm for non-compulsory school activities, and are taking greater pride in being ‘Sunnybankers’ thanks to a more engaging school structure.
A city school with many students from non-English speaking backgrounds, Sunnybank State High School faced a number of challenges, such as how to raise achievement levels, tertiary entrance scores and participation rates in cross-curricular activities; how to improve attendance and student behaviour, and how to generally encourage and promote a more positive community spirit. Basic to these issues was the need to improve student engagement in learning.
With the help of staff, parents, the University of Queensland and Griffith University, and backed by the results of action research, the school has succeeded in introducing a new framework and curriculum, which reflect changes in the culture, leadership and structure of the organization. The change in school culture has also re-invigorated teachers, resulting in increased student and parent satisfaction levels.
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Woodridge State High School, QLD
Safe School Environments
Woodridge State High School has empowered its students to help stamp out bullying by giving them a lead role in tackling this issue.
Situated in an area of Brisbane with challenging youth unemployment levels and crime rates, the school is striving to create a safe school environment for its students. From investigating the attitudes to bullying of members of the school community and developing the school’s anti-bullying policy, to implementing training and monitoring progress, students have been actively involved at every stage.
School staff, students and the wider school community have come together to run an anti-bullying program which is resulting in improved student well-being, higher levels of parent satisfaction, and a decrease in the need to suspend students from school.
Apart from making the school a safer and more supportive environment, the anti–bullying project has encouraged the development of active young citizens who are capable of building and maintaining socially responsible relationships within the community.
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