Goulburn Valley Grammar School

One of the most important and unique qualities of Goulburn Valley Grammar School is the positive school culture. This culture is one where students feel comfortable to be themselves, where they feel safe and secure, valued and appreciated. It is a culture where there is a focus on and love of learning and where excellence is valued and nurtured. This positive culture has a number of important elements at its foundations. Our school motto “Semper Ulterius” - ‘Always further’ is an optimistic and challenging one. It suggests that there is always something more to know, to see, to experience; that there is always something more to stretch our minds, to fire our imagination, to touch our hearts, to give to others.

In the School’s 33rd year, we have seen many wonderful achievements by our students in all fields of endeavour. These accomplishments reflect the unique culture of the School, one where students aspire to do all things well, but where there is also genuine care and concern for the welfare of others. Student learning remains our core focus and much work has been undertaken to support this aim. The School has initiated many exciting projects which will support the long-term growth and evolution of the school.

Our students are fortunate to be served by a committed and professional team of teaching staff who see students at the centre of what they do. They are dedicated to our School focus on continuous improvement in the quality of teaching.

Teacher professional learning is a key basis for promoting improvement in student learning. Our participation in the University of Melbourne Network of Schools informed a number of actions including the introduction of teacher Professional Learning Teams for Year 7 English and Mathematics. We also identified a School improvement focus on Literacy, specifically writing. During the year we also introduced teacher classroom observation as a Professional Learning activity. By the end of the year over 30 staff had participated in the process and endorsed its value. This programme will continue in 2015.

Throughout 2014 the school continued to build our use of Technology as a powerful learning tool. The School moved a step closer to a full 1 to 1 device programme with Year 5 and 6 students sharing tablet devices and students in Years 7 to 11 provided with their own device. Extensive staff professional development continued throughout the year, demonstrating some of the potential learning enhancements that the technology enables. We also continued to expand our use of the school Learning Management System Moodle and the Parent Portal for reporting and communicating student-learning growth.

Throughout the year the School Board and Leadership team focussed on long term masterplanning of the School site. In addition, planning continued on specific projects within the masterplan including the Music redevelopment. The planning for the redevelopment of the Music precinct was completed with a budget of $3M. Architects Williams Boag completed the final design and the Board appointed a builder following a competitive tender process. Construction started in August and by November Stage 1 of the project was well under way. During the year the Board launched a Fundraising Appeal to support the realisation of the Music Redevelopment. This exciting project is one of the largest undertaken by the School community. We look forward to the completion of Stage 2 late in 2015.

The Class of 2014 have been resilient learners. Their cohort contained students who were able and motivated learners, as well as those who worked very hard to overcome significant personal challenges. One of the distinguishing qualities of the Class of 2014 is that, while they featured a diverse range of talents and abilities, they were a particularly supportive and cohesive year group. They have been a fine example of celebrating strength in personal differences.

The Class of 2104 were also significant contributors to the co-curricular programme. They made major contributions to Productions, Sporting teams and Musical concerts over the years. They led the School through positive examples whether in inspirational Prefect Speeches or in their day-to-day relationships. Through their commitment to serve others, they led the School in many exciting initiatives. Their Leavers Fund is commissioning a beautiful screen, designed by local Aboriginal artists, for the Copulos area. We thank the Class of 2014 for their wonderful legacy and wish them happiness and fulfilment knowing that they will make a great contribution to the quality of our society.

While we may be located in a regional setting, we look to National and State-wide benchmarks to measure student progress and achievement. In 2014 student achievement reflected the culture of learning and the quality of the learning partnership that exists between school and home. This report contains information on student achievement in a range of external assessments including NAPLAN, ICAS and VCE.