Our Secondary School program is for students aged between 12 and 18.

Students partake in a range of academic programs and educational experiences.

Our Secondary School Curriculum is based on the Victorian Curriculum A-10 and the VCE program - Victorian Pathways Certificate (VPC). Each student is provided with an Individual Education Program. Each class has a Literacy block each day as well as one of Mathematics. Humanities, Science, Geography, History, Civics and Citizenship are incorporated into thematic units.  Regular excursions, using the school bus or public transport, enrich these themes.

As well, there are weekly sessions in Living Skills, Art, Physical Education, Health, Music, Drama, Library and Sport, with opportunities to access physio and speech therapy.  Seconday students sre also part of a weekly Electives program, which offers additional learning experiences in areas such as photography, drama, dance, science, social media and games.

Our secondary students are encouraged to reach their fullest potential, to become as independent as possible in a caring, supportive environment.   Students are prepared to promote to the next exciting educational level of  Post Compulsory education, which includes VCAL and pre-VCAL programs.

Four of the key learning areas in our Secondary School are:

English

The English program aims to develop the students’ ability to read, write, speak and listen.  Students are presented with opportunities to further develop speaking and listening skills that focus on the protocols of formal presentation skills, and the use of evidence to support an argument/debate and to differentiate between fact and opinion. The reading program focuses on introducing students to a range of texts including stories, poems, plays, novels, reference materials, advertising, magazines and newspapers. They complete reading and writing activities that focus on the generic structures of different types of texts, including multimodal and online texts. When reading, comprehension skills are further developed with a continuing focus on higher-order skills, including critical interpretations, identification of stereotypes, figurative and symbolic language. Students continue to develop individual reading behaviours to read, interpret and respond to a wide range of literary, everyday and media texts. The writing focus encourages the development of writing skills and the ability to present individual thoughts in a written form.

Mathematics

The mathematical areas of Number, Money and Time have been identified as the major areas of focus. When studying Number, students learn to identify order and model the counting of numbers up to 1000. They create number patterns mentally, by hand and with the use of calculators. Students may work with all of the four processes: addition, subtraction, multiplication and division, using numbers to 100 and beyond. When studying Money, students apply number skills to everyday contexts such as shopping. Students recognize the notes of our currency, make amounts of money to $100, and give appropriate change for amounts to $100. They begin to work with and create budgets. When studying Time, students interpret timetables and calendars in relation to familiar events. They read analogue and digital clocks to 5 minute intervals.

Abilities in a range of areas are also recognised and further developed to ensure all students are being extended in their learning, this may include higher level mathematics including algebra, geometry, statistics, probability and problem solving.

Interpersonal Development

Interpersonal Development involves supporting the student to initiate, maintain and manage positive social relationships with a range of people in a range of contexts. There is particular focus on developing the capacity to work cooperatively as part of a team as this is widely acknowledged as being a core requirement for success in the workplace and in the community. It is through the development of positive social relationships that individuals become linked to society, develop a sense of belonging and learn to live and work with others. The program is adapted to meet the requirements of individual students. In a highly interconnected and interdependent world students must learn to work with others by: building positive social relationships, working in teams and managing and resolving conflicts.

Personal Learning

Personal learning focuses on providing students with the knowledge, skills and behaviours to be successful, positive learners both at school and throughout their lives. Students need to understand what it means to learn, who they are as learners and how emotions affect learning. They also need to develop skills in planning, monitoring and revising their work, and reflecting on and modifying their learning practices. As students progress through school they will be encouraged and supported to take greater responsibility for their own learning, their participation in learning activities and the quality of their learning outcomes. They will begin to develop a sense of themselves as learners and build up the knowledge and skills to manage their own learning and emotions. As they do this, they move from being supported learners to independent learners.