Dear Staff, Students and Families,
Thank you for your ongoing support and encouragement as we have continued our Towards 2025 journey. With the support and inspiration of Bishop Anthony, we have continued to make great progress in Term 2 and I am delighted to share the great work that has been happening at Catholic Schools Broken Bay.
We acknowledge that many of our staff and families have continued to be affected by COVID and increasingly, influenza this term. Bishop Anthony and I are grateful to all our staff, who under such challenging circumstances, have remained committed to delivering authentic professional Catholic education, building our Catholic culture and supporting student learning so that every child entrusted to our care can be the best they can be.
This term we have focused on our Learning Improvement Program and great progress has been made across all 3 drivers. The table below summarises our progress so far.
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Learning Improvement Program |
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Driver 1 Strengthen a Catholic Culture that promotes Learning, relationships and human flourishing |
Driver 2 Ensure systematic delivery of curriculum to enable consistency of teaching and learning of the curriculum |
Driver 3 Build leader and teacher expertise across the system |
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New RE Curriculum K-2 based on “Educating in Christ” by Dr Gerard O’Shea 3-10 Adapted curriculum from Sydney Catholic Schools CSBB Catholic Charter An articulation of who we are, our way of being in the light of the Gospel within a complex and socially diverse society. Parent Engagement Coordinators |
CSBB Curriculum Planning and Assessment Guide CSBB best practice guide to assessment and the use of data to inform the teaching of the curriculum to meet each student’s needs New NESA K-2 Mathematics and English syllabus in 2023 This year is the familiarisation phase of the new English and mathematics syllabus in preparation for full implementation in 2023 Secondary Literacy Initiative Building teachers capacity to develop literacy across all subject areas. HSC Toward Excellence Program Working with Leaders to analyse student data. |
Collaborative Coaching Program Every full-time teacher is given additional time to work collaboratively, to plan curriculum delivery and to discuss pedagogical responses. Currently implemented in 18 primary schools. 1:1 Principal Coaching Supporting the professional growth and wellbeing of every Principal School Improvement Leadership Team Coaching – building the capacity of school Leadership Teams (Linda Bendikson) Professional Learning Implementing a best practice approach to professional learning |
In addition, we have been working on a few Special Projects
Review of Northern Beaches Schools – A strategic working party is reviewing current and emerging community needs, assessing how well these are currently met by Systemic Catholic Schools and developing future plans as well as opportunities for growth. CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION
Eileen O’Connor School – Developing plans for a new progressively designed school on the Central Coast which supports children with disability, their families and the broader community.
Pre-Service Teachers – Developing a suite of incentives for aspiring teachers at various levels of their study to attract the best undergraduate teachers to our Diocese. CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT MORE
Our term culminated on Friday 1 July with a system-wide staff development day where more than 2,500 of our staff gathered in person and via livestream across 45 sites to continue to take forward our Learning Improvement Program.
The day focused on 3 key elements
- Faith and Formation
- Learning Improvement
- Capability and Wellbeing of Staff
The context was set by a short video featuring one of our own students who outlined where we have been, where we are going and indeed, why we are all here. CLICK HERE TO WATCH
We were thrilled to have Mark McCrindle, one of Australia’s best-known social researchers and demographers, present to our staff for a second year running giving us insights into social trends that will impact the generations we are teaching. Mark’s presentation was followed by a visionary outline for Evangelisation by the Bishop for our Broken Bay Diocese. Sally Egan from the NCEC then conducted an engaging workshop where staff were able to identify evidence of improvement in student outcomes and develop a roadmap for the future. The day was concluded with a wellbeing session run by our internal head of Counselling, Melissa Feeney.
Staff were able to discuss the direction, ask questions, and reflect on what each session meant in their day-to-day work at their school or workplace.
Throughout the day, our staff were engaged by a series of video’s featuring our own staff and students discussing their own faith, learning, and wellbeing journey.
Our journey Towards 2025 is exciting and we look forward to a bright future.
Before I conclude this update, I want to restate the deep appreciation Bishop Anthony and I have for the work our staff do in supporting our students and families.
We acknowledge that industrial action has affected our staff and families this term. Bishop Anthony and I have started implementing improvements to salary and conditions and look forward to the Enterprise Agreement being resolved as soon as possible so that we can focus on what is important – our students and their learning.
We are deeply committed to enhancing the outcomes for all in our community, including staff, students and families.
Please enjoy a safe and restful term break. Take care.
Danny Casey
Director of Schools