Leader of Pedagogy

On the last day of Term 1, staff spent the day collaborating on the importance of Shared Beliefs and Understandings to bring about whole-school sustained school improvement. Highly effective schools are ones where every teacher believes that all students can achieve high standards given the right time and the right support. They are places where high expectations and early intervention are recognised as being essential to improving student achievement.

To support us in our work, our College is involved in a Learning Collaborative which is a 2-year growth, development and research partnership with Catholic Schools Lismore and Dr Lyn Sharratt. Dr Sharratt is a highly accomplished practitioner, researcher, author, and presenter. She holds a BA in Social Work from the University of Waterloo, a BEd from the University of Western Ontario, an MEd from the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, a Doctorate in Education from the University of Toronto, and Supervisory Officer qualifications from the Province of Ontario.

Dr Sharrat is an advisor for International School Leadership with the Ontario Principals’ Council; she consults internationally, working with system, school, and teacher leaders at all levels in Australia, Canada, Chile, Denmark, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Singapore, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States. She focuses her time and efforts on increasing each student’s growth and achievement by working alongside leaders and teachers to put FACES on their data, taking intentional action to make equity and excellence a reality for all students.

The focus of this Learning Collaborative will address literacy and specifically, writing at SJPC. As educators we have a moral imperative to improve the literacy levels of all students, and as a result the ability of students to think critically, apply new knowledge and skills, and communicate effectively.

Put simply, it’s about teachers putting FACES to our student data and working together to unpack the data & collaborate on intervention strategies to improve student achievement.

Through this work we aim for every teacher to see him/herself as a leader who is:

• consistent,
• persistent, and
• insistent

about high impact classroom practices.

At SJPC we recognise the need for staff to engage in ongoing opportunities for Professional Development in order for us to bring about effective whole-school improvement. As a College we continue to support staff develop their own understanding and skills around Literacy Instruction across ALL subject areas through staff meetings, workshops and coaching.