2015 primary template v1 - skormond.catholic.edu.au · email [email protected] ......

ANNUAL REPORT TO THE SCHOOL

COMMUNITY

St Kevin’s Primary School 76 Glen Orme Ave, Ormond 3204

2019

REGISTERED SCHOOL NUMBER: 1212

2019 ANNUAL REPORT TO THE SCHOOL COMMUNITY 1

Contents

Contact Details ....................................................................................................................................................... 2

Minimum Standards Attestation ............................................................................................................................ 2

Our School Vision ................................................................................................................................................... 3

School Overview .................................................................................................................................................... 4

Principal’s Report ................................................................................................................................................... 5

School Education Board Report .............................................................................................................................. 6

Education in Faith .................................................................................................................................................. 7

Learning & Teaching ............................................................................................................................................... 8

Student Wellbeing ............................................................................................................................................... 10

Child Safe Standards ............................................................................................................................................ 12

Leadership & Management .................................................................................................................................. 14

School Community ............................................................................................................................................... 16

Future Directions ................................................................................................................................................. 18


Contact Details

ADDRESS 76 Glen Orme Ave, Ormond 3204

PRINCIPAL Mr Nigel Rodrigues

PARISH PRIEST Fr Leenus Neetany (Pro Temp)

TELEPHONE (03) 95781182

EMAIL [email protected]

WEBSITE www.skormond.catholic.edu.au

E NUMBER E1108

Minimum Standards Attestation

I Nigel Rodrigues attest that St Kevin’s School 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 2017 (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 2019 school year under

the Australian Education Act 2013 (Cth) and the Australian Education Regulations 2013

(Cth)

The Child Safe Standards prescribed in Ministerial Order No.870 – Child Safe Standards,

Managing Risk of Child Abuse in School.

16/03/2020


Our School Vision

To be a Catholic Community of learners who

inspire success, create possibilities

and value the dignity of all, through life-giving relationships.

‘That All May Have Life’

Jn: 10:10


School Overview

St Kevin's is a Catholic, co-educational primary school located in the suburb of Ormond. The school was first opened in 1924 and continues to uphold and value a strong connection with the local community and parish. All students are encouraged and challenged by an experienced and dedicated staff. Parent involvement and participation is highly valued through a strong partnership between home and school. We foster the spiritual, social, intellectual, physical and emotional development of our

students. The school facilities are modern and students incorporate the use of the latest technologies in their classroom learning. All tasks are characterised by Faith Based Inquiry Learning, which aims to assist students to develop the necessary skills to thrive and contribute in their global community.

St Kevin’s Parish Primary School, is an integral part of the wider Parish Community. We endeavour to offer small classes each year to give our children the best opportunity to achieve and maintain success.

We believe in the development of the whole child and acknowledge the role of parents as the primary educators of their children. We therefore encourage collaboration of parents and teachers in the development of each child. We support and scaffold every child in their learning journey and encourage them to always strive to achieve their personal best.

Our current school enrolment, whilst below our optimum numbers, creates a unique school environment for all our children and families. Learning takes place in 3 class groups with a Junior Class - Year Prep, One and Two, a Middle class - Year 3 and 4 and a Senior class with Year 5 and 6. This setting enables each of our children to enjoy a highly individualised education.

Co-operative learning tasks provide opportunities for our students to develop high level problem solving skills.


Principal’s Report

It is with great pleasure that I present our school’s annual report for 2019. The past year has

been a significant one in many ways for our whole school community as well as me personally.

Having assumed the position of principal at the beginning of the 2019 school year I was

immediately overwhelmed by the strength of the community and the commitment of each family

and the extremely dedicated staff. St Kevin’s has, for many years maintained an average

enrolment between 150 and 200 students which makes it an ideal choice for families seeking a

smaller school environment, where their children can be nurtured academically and emotionally

with greater opportunities for individual attention, leadership and responsibility. In 2019 the whole

school community worked tirelessly to ensure that the school maintained its excellent standards

in providing an engaging and comprehensive learning program for each of its students.

It is difficult to list the highlights of 2019, as rarely a week passed by without some form of school

gathering, celebration or special event. Each of these, illustrating the commitment of staff and

parents in providing a positive school environment for all our children. I must thank each and

every parent for the time and energy given on many occasions throughout the year. Special

thanks must go to the parent members of the Parish Education Board for their dedication to the

task of providing great knowledge, enthusiasm and advice to Fr Leenus and myself in the many

important organisational matters effecting our school.

Having completed the Catholic Education Melbourne four-yearly review in 2019 it is clear that the

school has many great strengths and a solid base on which to achieve continued improvement

over the next four-year cycle. Following the independent reviewers school report the staff have

worked hard to develop a School Improvement Plan which will provide direction to address areas

for improvement and further consolidate the effective practices already in place. From this review

we created our Vision Framework describing our strategic intent and goals for the next four years.

OUR STATEGIC INTENT

To consistently use our shared vision to design, enable and deliver high impact teaching

Our Goals

To provide a comprehensive, engaging and challenging learning program based on the Victorian Curriculum

To provide differentiated learning programs for our students to meet individual learning needs

To provide a safe and supportive learning environment which sustains the wellbeing of all and enables our students to have the opportunity to develop their social and emotional skills in a positive way

To provide a Faith based Inquiry program which enables opportunities for spiritual encounter and growth


School Education Board Report

The Parish Education Board of St Kevin’s Primary School met on 8 occasions during the 2019

calendar year to discuss key matters pertaining to the governance of the school and to provide

guidance and support for existing and future initiatives

Listed below, are some key themes and associated activities, although not an exhaustive list, that

the board contributed to during the 2019 school year. Some of the key activities/achievements

were mainly around an extensive marketing plan including

Revising collateral

Newspaper articles & Media exposure

Professional Photography, Banner ads etc

Connecting with local Kindergartens and running activities/programs to encourage

students into the school

Visits from Glen Eira council members such as Nick Staikos and Mayor James Hyams

We acknowledge that in 2020 the Board’s key objectives will be to retain the students that we

currently have and continue with the execution of the marketing plan.

We thank all involved in the school for their contribution in making St Kevin’s Primary School a

wonderfully strong community. Success will be defined further by a successful trajectory of

enrolments and the happiness and growth our children have by being part of St Kevin’s School.

It has been my pleasure to chair the Board this year and I express my sincere thanks to all board

members for their contributions during the year.

Tim Smith

Chairperson

Parish Education Board

St Kevin’s Primary School

Dominica Pearce

Secretary

Parish Education Board

St Kevin’s Primary School


Education in Faith

Goals & Intended Outcomes

GOAL: Strengthening the school as a community of faith that is a visible Catholic school environment encouraging critical thinkers who make links to Catholic identity in order to live faith-filled lives.

INTENDED OUTCOMES: · That student learning enables them to make stronger connections between their lives and

the living of faith.

Achievements

Religious Education is integral to all aspects of school life at St Kevin’s and our school’s Catholic

identity is enriched by the focus given to our Catholic beliefs and traditions. In 2019 many great

achievements were made enabling us to ensure that each member of the St Kevin’s community

was given opportunities to make connections with their faith and their lives. Through strategic

professional learning, our Faith Based Inquiry Model continued to develop, to ensure a Catholic

lens was used to plan learning and school celebrations throughout the year. It was pleasing to

witness great understanding and confidence in our children when questioned about their faith and

religious knowledge. St Kevin’s school continued a strong connection with the parish community

through our school masses and celebrations as well as our Sacramental Programs.

In 2019 a new model of student leadership was introduced to ensure all spheres of this leadership

incorporated a faith aspect, these were, Student Leader – Faith and the Arts, Faith and Learning,

Faith and Community, Faith and Physical Activity and Faith and the Environment.

VALUE ADDED

Sacramental Program & Whole School Family Faith Nights

RE news and parent information as a regular inclusion in weekly Newsletters

CEM facilitated Professional Learning for all staff in RE Planning for Faith Based Inquiry using the Pedagogy of Encounter

Staff Spiritual Development Day facilitated by Maria Ford

Community involvement in external events such as RSL Remembrance Day

Whole School and Class Masses/Liturgies for Religious celebrations including Holy Days involving parents and parishioners

Weekly Assemblies providing opportunity for reflection and prayer

Prayer integral to all meetings and school events

Carols Night and end of year celebrations


Learning & Teaching


GOAL: Provision of an engaging and challenging curriculum that enables all students to achieve success

INTENDED OUTCOMES: · That Literacy and Numeracy outcomes will improve That rates of learning growth will improve · That students will be empowered to take greater responsibility for their learning

Achievements

The strength of the learning programs implemented at St Kevin’s School lies in the commitment of staff towards ongoing professional development and their ability to work cohesively as a team, utilising the strengths of one another to plan for all student learning. In 2019 student data was effectively gathered through a systematic and timely assessment schedule. This data was used to gain a deeper knowledge of each child’s learning needs and appropriate learning paths. All learning was, of course, determined by the Victorian Curriculum and taught using a Faith Based Inquiry approach which demonstrated our commitment to the Catholic Ethos of our school.

Weekly professional learning meetings, focussing on individual areas of the curriculum, as well as varied off site professional development opportunities, were arranged to help improve the capacity of classroom teachers. Careful use of data such as NAPLAN, Literacy testing and Maths assessments enabled teachers to identify key areas for improvement. Through a School Wide Improvement Framework, strategies were put in place to ensure growth in areas targeted for improvement, specifically teaching with a focus on Grammar and Punctuation. In 2019 the school continued to use MAPPEN, our online Inquiry Based Learning Curriculum, to embed an engaging and comprehensive program to cover all areas of the Victorian Curriculum. 2019 NAPLAN data showed that students at St Kevin’s continue to show excellent

learning growth from Year 3 to Year 5 with 100% of students achieving well above state average. In 2019 St Kevin’s specialist learning program ensured that all students were given opportunities to develop learning skills in the areas of Visual Art, Sport and Physical Education as well as in LOTE-Italian. Specialist teachers worked in partnership with classroom teachers to ensure these areas were integrated in the weekly learning of our students.


STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES

PROPORTION OF STUDENTS MEETING THE MINIMUM STANDARDS

NAPLAN TESTS 2017

%

2018

%

2017 - 2018

Changes

%

2019

%

2018 - 2019

Changes

% YR 03 Grammar & Punctuation 100.0 100.0 0.0 100.0 0.0

YR 03 Numeracy 100.0 100.0 0.0 100.0 0.0

YR 03 Reading 100.0 100.0 0.0 100.0 0.0

YR 03 Spelling 100.0 100.0 0.0 100.0 0.0

YR 03 Writing 100.0 100.0 0.0 100.0 0.0

YR 05 Grammar & Punctuation 100.0 100.0 0.0 100.0 0.0

YR 05 Numeracy 95.0 100.0 5.0 100.0 0.0

YR 05 Reading 100.0 100.0 0.0 100.0 0.0

YR 05 Spelling 100.0 100.0 0.0 100.0 0.0

YR 05 Writing 100.0 100.0 0.0 100.0 0.0


Student Wellbeing


GOAL: Creating a holistic and co-ordinated approach to strengthening the social and emotional capability of students within a safe, stimulating and engaging environment.

INTENDED OUTCOMES: That students become more resilient That positive classroom behaviour is maintained That student safety is a priority

Achievements

Maintaining and improving Positive Student Wellbeing continued to be a central focus at St

Kevin’s in 2019. As part of the school’s four year review a spotlight was put on all policies and

procedures and staff worked extremely hard to ensure that these were all up to date,

collaboratively reviewed and visible to the entire school community. With the support of the Parish

Education Board, teaching staff, auxiliary staff and students, a number of areas were addressed

and improvements made to ensure the wellbeing and safety of each student remained a priority

in all aspects of school planning and activity.

As a smaller school many great opportunities arose throughout the year to establish programs

and activities focussed on student wellbeing. All classes worked together with teachers facilitating

lessons to improve all aspects of social and emotional learning. It was pleasing to see overall

student behaviour, both in class and at recess times, show much improvement throughout the

year. Students demonstrated great leadership across all levels of the school to address and

manage student safety, both physical and emotional.

VALUE ADDED

Weekly lessons focussed on Social and Emotional Learning

Berry Street Education Model incorporated into student learning

SRC meetings to enable student voice and ownership

Ongoing use of School Rules to ensure consistency and fair approach to student

behaviour issues

Weekly School Assemblies enabling Student leadership and recognition

Student Friendly Child Safety PROTECT Posters displayed throughout the school

Regular Wellbeing updates and news communicated in weekly newsletters

Whole school celebrations collaboratively planned to enable social interaction and

teamwork

Continued partnership with school based Psychologist to support families

Restorative practices incorporated into student behaviour management

Buddy Program implemented throughout the school

Opportunities for students to interact with outside organisations, e.g. Kinder visits

Specific focus on Resilience training through structured classroom lessons


STUDENT SATISFACTION

Each year students in Year 4 to Year 6 are surveyed across a number of areas to gain a picture

of the strengths and areas for improvement in relation to student satisfaction.

The results from student surveys in 2019 show that the vast majority of students feel a strong

connection with the school, are engaged in their learning, have positive relationships with their

teachers and describe the climate of the school in a positive way. In 2020, based on this data

the school will focus further on ‘Student Voice’ enabling students to have a greater input into

their learning.

STUDENT ATTENDANCE

Classroom teachers monitor attendance twice daily using an electronic roll to mark

absenteeism. When children are away follow up confirmation from parents is required in writing,

verbal or by phone from the parent giving a reason for the absence. This is recorded in the

attendance computer package used by the school and all absences are recorded each

semester on the student reports.

In 2019 St Kevin’s maintained an average of 93% attendance for all students which

demonstrates a very positive outcome in this area.

AVERAGE STUDENT ATTENDANCE RATE BY YEAR LEVEL %

Y01 96.1

Y02 93.6

Y03 94.1

Y04 95.3

Y05 91.3

Y06 91.5

Overall average attendance 93.6


Child Safe Standards

Goals and Intended Outcomes

St Kevin’s School aims to protect all children in our care from all forms of child abuse and to

ensure the wellbeing of each child in a safe and supportive environment.

To achieve this commitment to child safety the school implements processes and procedures

such as: reporting procedures (including leadership responsibilities), how to respond to an

allegation of child abuse, recruitment practices, and risk management strategies and procedures

which are developed and reviewed bi-annually. This commitment includes the cultural safety of

Aboriginal children and children from culturally and/or linguistically diverse backgrounds and

includes providing a safe environment for children with a disability.

To facilitate child safety our Child Safety Policy includes the expectations and requirements of

staff and volunteers to ensure the protection of children, and outlines the training and support

staff may require.

‘At St Kevin’s we hold the care, safety and wellbeing of children and young people as a central

and fundamental responsibility of our school. Our commitment is drawn from and inherent in the

teaching and mission of Jesus Christ, with love, justice and the sanctity of each human person at

the heart of the gospel.’

Achievements

As part of the school’s major review in 2019 all policies relating to Child Safety were

carefully reviewed and included input from all stakeholders to ensure each was up to date

and inclusive of all current requirements in this area.

All staff, including non-teaching staff, completed the mandatory reporting requirements as

part of their ongoing training in this area. Child Safety is a standing item on staff meeting

and Parish Board Agendas.

PROTECT Resources have been used to further develop staff knowledge and awareness

of Child Safety matters and PROTECT awareness posters are placed in all areas of the

school in both adult and child friendly versions.

The school’s Child Safety Policy was presented to student leaders for comment and input.

Following this, each class was given opportunity to discuss and contribute to the formation

of our school’s Child Friendly version of the Child Safety Policy. This policy will be revisited

each year as part of our ongoing commitment to Child Safe Practices.

Under the guidance of the school’s Learning Diversity Leader, policies and procedures

have been implemented to ensure that all children are able to participate and that diversity

of faith, culture, physicality and background do not restrict or exclude any students from

participation.

St Kevin’s Child Safety team incorporates all teaching staff lead by the principal (Wellbeing

Leader) to regularly discuss and review matters pertaining to child Safety


Updates and relevant information about child Safety are communicated to parents and the

school community via our school newsletter, the school website where all policies and

procedures are available

We take all reasonable steps to employ skilled people to work with children. We develop

selection criteria and advertisements which clearly demonstrate our commitment to child

safety and an awareness of our social and legislative responsibilities. Our organisation

understands that when recruiting staff and volunteers we have ethical as well as legislative

obligations. All necessary background checks are carried out to ensure the suitability of

potential employees/volunteers

We have risk management strategies in place to identify, assess and take steps to

minimise child abuse risks, which include risks posed by physical environments (for

example, any doors that can lock), and online environments (for example, no staff or

volunteer is to have contact with a child in organisations on social media unless prior

authorisation has been granted by the Principal due to the existence of special

circumstances and/or in the context of a legitimate purpose –(Cf. St Kevin’s Social Media

Policy).


Leadership & Management


GOAL: Strengthening the school's performance and development culture with a focus on improving teaching and learning.

INTENDED OUTCOMES: That the staff school climate will improve (empathy, clarity, engagement, learning)

Achievements

In 2019 the St Kevin’s Staff worked together to complete the whole school four year review, highlighting a very positive leadership and management climate. As a small staff, all members were able further develop their own leadership skills in specific learning areas. Weekly staff meetings were held with specific agendas to address school wide improvement. A number of school closure days were timetabled into the school calendar to enable the whole staff to work together in targeted areas including, Faith Education, Learning and Teaching, Community, Student Wellbeing, School Organisation and Management as well as Staff Personal Development. Individual Professional Learning opportunities were also made available for staff to address their own professional needs and goals. Annual Review Meetings were held to enable staff to highlight their achievements, areas for improvement and to receive feedback from school leadership. Leadership positions were enabled for some staff members to further develop their capacity as school leaders. Both time and physical resources were made available to ensure these individuals were able to successfully carry out their roles. School leaders were also released to attend system wide network days as well as individualised professional learning. Continued focus was given to a collaborative planning approach which enabled staff to further develop their team work, capacity and effectiveness. This was most evident in the many whole school events and celebrations held throughout the year which contributed to an extremely positive school climate.

EXPENDITURE AND TEACHER PARTICIPATION IN PROFESSIONAL LEARNING

DESCRIPTION OF PL UNDERTAKEN IN 2019

NCCD (Nationally consistent collection of Data) Learning PD

Staff Spiritual Development – Maria Ford

Gifted Learners PD - Dr Susan Nikakis

School Review PD – 4 Days

School Wide Improvement Framework - 4 network Days

RE Leader Network Days

New Principal’s and School Leadership Induction

MSL (Multi-Sensory Learning) Training 3 teachers

Words in Context Literacy Learning 3 days X 2 teachers

Admin Network PD

Certificate IV Training for LSO

Sport Teachers Network Days


NUMBER OF TEACHERS WHO PARTICIPATED IN PL in 2019 5

AVERAGE EXPENDITURE PER TEACHER FOR PL $1051

TEACHER SATISFACTION

TEACHING STAFF ATTENDANCE RATE

Teaching Staff Attendance Rate 85.2%

ALLSTAFF RETENTION RATE

Staff Retention Rate 58.8%

TEACHER QUALIFICATIONS

Doctorate 0.0%

Masters 20.0%

Graduate 20.0%

Graduate Certificate 20.0%

Bachelor Degree 80.0%

Advanced Diploma 20.0%

No Qualifications Listed 0.0%

STAFF COMPOSITION

Principal Class (Headcount) 1

Teaching Staff (Headcount)

12

Teaching Staff (FTE)

6.6

Non-Teaching Staff (Headcount)

3

Non-Teaching Staff (FTE)

1.5

Indigenous Teaching Staff (Headcount)

0 0


School Community


GOAL: Promoting and supporting families and the community as authentic partners in student learning.

INTENDED OUTCOMES:

That families will have a greater understanding of learning programs and their child's learning, through improved communication

That learning links between school, home and community, locally and globally, are strengthened

Achievements

St Kevin’s prides itself on maintaining a very positive and diverse school community where all

members have a great sense of belonging, and are known and respected. In 2019 we continued

to develop a strong connection and identity through a vast range of events, activities, programs

and accomplishments. Consistent and varied communication provided opportunity for all

members of the school community to be informed, share feedback and maintain their connection

with the school. Below is a list of many of these key achievements which enabled us to foster our

sense of community.

Regular whole school and individual class Newsletters

Open lines of communication between school and home via email, SMS, and phone

Daily face to face contact with classroom teachers, specialists and school leadership

Our Sacramental Program incorporating Family Faith Nights and whole school

celebrations

Whole School and Class masses regularly attended by family and parish members

Before and After School Care as well as school holiday programs to support working

parents

Regular meetings to inform parents about their child’s learning, including a whole school

learning expo

Specific Parent Support Group meetings to support parents with children who have

diverse learning needs

Engagement with the wider community such as senior student Kinder Program, visiting

and hosting Kindergarten students

School incursions and excursions supported by parents who were able to attend

Whole School Celebrations including our Movie Night, Disco, Bike-a-thon, Mother’s Day

and Father’s Day celebrations

Regular assemblies which were well attended by parents and other family members

showcasing student learning and achievement


PARENT SATISFACTION

Each year schools are asked to complete Parent, Student and Staff Surveys to obtain data related

to a number of aspects of school life. In 2019, for the first time, Catholic Education Melbourne

School Improvement Surveys (CEMSIS) were used. The 2019 parent satisfaction data gathered

from these surveys clearly shows a great majority of parents responding positively to questions

posed in relation to, Family Engagement, Barriers to Engagement, School Fit, School Climate,

Student Safety, Communication and Catholic Identity.

The highest score in this data was in the area of School Climate which was a very positive result

for us and one which I believe shows a great strength of the school. It was also pleasing to see a

very positive response in the area of Communication, an important aspect of any organisation

and a major factor in ensuring all members of our school community have a voice, feel a sense

of belonging and are able to maintain a great sense of connectedness to the school. Family

engagement will be an area for us to give greater focus in 2020 to address the need to plan for

those parents who may not be able to participate in some aspects of school life due to work

commitments.


Future Directions

Following the school’s review in 2019 a number of key recommendations from the school reviewer, Ms Noela Hyams, were made which will provide a roadmap for future directions in many areas of school improvement.

In summary these include, but are not limited to:

Developing a clearly defined vision for the future.

Collaboratively identifying core priorities of the School Improvement Plan and developing processes so that they are communicated, monitored and embedded in school life

Including achievable but also challenging targets for improvement in student outcomes in learning

Ensuring that school wide achievement and progress is monitored over time to identify trends and that targets and timelines are clear to all stakeholders

Achieving the highest standards possible based on reflective practice using data, research and evidence to ensure progress and growth in learning for every student.

Developing a range of data sets that will best inform the school about student outcomes in academic performance, behaviour and student wellbeing

Supporting teachers in using this data to plan in a way that ensures Curriculum delivery is flexible and responsive to individual student needs

Continuing to build a shared understanding of differentiation and ensuring that this is instrumental in teacher’s practice and planning

Further developing the instructional practice of staff by peer observation, coaching and feedback to develop a high impact school-wide teaching team.

Supporting staff to give and receive quality feedback and developing protocols for coaching conversations to ensure that they include both affirmations and suggestions to stimulate self-reflection

Ensuring that these practices are adequately supported and embedded in a systematic and consistent manner

Providing opportunities for professional reading and sharing of current research through staff meetings and conversations

NOTE: The School’s financial performance information has been provided to the Australian Charities and

Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC) and is available to access from their website at www.acnc.gov.au

http://www.acnc.gov.au/

2015 primary template v1 - skormond.catholic.edu.au · email [email protected] ......

Documents