School culture

Improving students’ academic achievement goes hand-in-hand with supporting their health and wellbeing. In Episode 56 of our School Improvement podcast series, we’re focusing on grief and loss education. We’ll be hearing about an evidence-based program that’s helping a high school in regional New South Wales support its students with these issues.

School Assembly is the podcast series that explores what it takes to build a school from the ground up. In this episode we catch up with Notre Dame College Principal Dan McShea to talk about crafting the school vision, mission and motto.

From the uniform and building names to community consultation and learning, Aboriginal perspectives and culture is woven into the fabric of Googong Public School. Teacher speaks to principal Rebekah Lindsay, a 2024 NAIDOC Teacher of the Year Award winner, about their approach and the success it’s bringing.

In ‘The Connection Curriculum: Igniting Positive Change in Schools Through Sustainable Curriculum’ Matt Pitman explores the role of connection in fostering students’ academic achievement and wellbeing. This exclusive extract for Teacher readers focuses on one of 3 key landmarks – meaning.

Many of us clearly remember (fondly or not) our school sports days and the houses we were split into. But what do the names of those houses say about our ‘Australianness’ or the values we aspire to uphold? New research explores the names of school sports houses and how things have changed over time.

New research has emphasised the importance of adolescent school belonging as a long-term protective factor that can mitigate against later depression, anxiety, and stress. In this episode of The Research Files we speak to the lead author about the findings and the implications for schools.

School Assembly is the podcast that explores what it takes to build a new school from the ground up. With Bemin Secondary College due to open its doors for the first day of the 2024 school year, things are getting to the pointy end. In this episode, we talk to Principal Jo Camozzato about putting together the school mission, vision and values.

Highly effective schools apply their resources in a targeted manner to maximise outcomes for students. In Sydney, the Narrabeen Elanora Student and Teacher collaboration is comprised of 4 local schools and enables the sharing of facilities and resources. In this episode, we speak to 2 staff members about the collaboration.

Over the past 7 weeks, we have been sharing the stories of each of the winners of the Teacher Awards 2023. In the final article we speak to Debbie Watts and Bronwyn Cole from Broadwater Public School, whose entire school community was named winner of the Special Contribution Award for 2023.

In today’s article, we speak with the winner of the Teacher Awards’ Leadership Award for Driving School Improvement, Melissa Shepherd from Laura State School in far-north Queensland, about how she is committed to improving outcomes for all students.