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Teaching Australia is responsible for the National Awards for Quality Schooling, which celebrate the achievements of Australian schools, teachers, principals and school support staff.
The Minister for Education, Science and Training, Julie Bishop, recently announced the winners of the 2006 National Awards for Quality Schooling at an award ceremony at Parliament House.
The winners
Congratulations to those Australian schools, principals, teachers and support staff who were formally recognised for their outstanding achievements
Early Childhood Australia would like to feature a selection of winners relating to early childhood – preschools and kindergartens, and the early years of primary education.
The complete list of winners is available on the National Awards for Quality Schooling website.
Congratulations!
Best National Achievement in School Improvement
Princes Hill Primary, Victoria
Engaging boys in learning through play and project work
Princes Hill Primary has succeeded in engaging young boys in their learning by introducing a child-centred approach that integrates play and project work into the curriculum in the first year of school. By focusing on the needs of individual children in the learning environment, this innovative approach to boys' education has made their transition from early childhood programmes to school much easier. This approach has proven to be immensely successful, resulting in boys being more eager to learn through play and ‘hands on' activities, better social skills through learning together in groups and a marked increase in literacy levels.
Outstanding National Achievement by a Teacher
Deborah Arthurs
Cardiff South Public School, New South Wales
Deborah Arthurs, a preschool teacher at Cardiff South Public School, has been notably successful in helping children with a wide range of abilities to settle into school life. Deborah engages and develops preschoolers through imaginative programmes designed around individual interests and needs and the close involvement of parents. Her approach is based on an appropriate balance between open-ended activities and explicit teaching, and between structure and creativity. Deborah has played an active role in the profession.
Highly Commended National Achievement in School Improvement
Avalon Public School, New South Wales
Kindergarten transition and orientation programme
Avalon Public School has successfully helped preschool children and parents adapt to primary school life through its kindergarten transition programme. This programme connects parents, teachers, preschool directors and day-care operators and provides children with a personalised and supportive introduction to primary school.
Highly Commended National Achievement by a Teacher
Anne-Marie Reeks
Monash Kindergarten, South Australia
Anne-Marie's innovative work explored the use of ICT as a learning tool in a kindergarten setting. Using the Kidipad Interactive Performance System, Anne-Marie developed exciting and engaging learning opportunities, many involving the local community. Children were able to extend a wide range of skills, including kinaesthetic, aural, musical and social skills, as well as cultural understandings using ICT.
Outstanding National Achievement in School Improvement
Brookvale Public School, New South Wales
Integrating ICT into the K-6 classroom
Brookvale Public School integrated ICT into the classroom to better cater for different learning styles and the varying needs of children. This has resulted in classrooms that are stimulating learning environments with enthusiastic students eager to explore the new opportunities provided by technology and to complete their class work. The change has also fostered children's social development as they have learnt to work together and share. Enrolments and parent involvement have both increased, and the school has developed an educationally enriching international profile through its award-winning website made ‘by kids for kids'.
Melrose Primary School, Victoria
Improving literacy in the early years
Melrose Primary School at Wodonga is driven by the mantra that all children can succeed if given enough time, support and encouragement. A comprehensive and strategic plan has enabled children to move along a developmental continuum of learning in literacy that scaffolds their progress from year to year. Where previously over 50% of students were at risk of reading failure and disengagement from school, all students now reach or surpass state benchmarks in reading, writing, speaking and listening by the end of Year 2.
Orange Preschool Kindergarten, New South Wales
Improving school preparedness through support to families
Orange Preschool Kindergarten has set out to tackle the barriers that restrict educational outcomes for disadvantaged children in the area, through better interaction between the preschool as an educational service, disadvantaged families and early intervention programmes such as Family Support, specialist speech and occupational therapy services, and auditory and sight screening. The preschool has improved access to screening and necessary services, achieved significant increases in the participation rate of ‘at risk' children in early childhood education, and supports children in other families through its parenting information sessions.
Sherwood State School, Queensland
Early years literacy enrichment
Dramatic improvements in reading and writing have been achieved by Sherwood State School through the implementation of an innovative literacy programme targeting the first three years of schooling. This initiative relies on teachers, teacher aides and the Learning Support Teacher working in collaboration to plan literacy activities suitable to the learning needs of each child. As a result of this initiative, students at Sherwood State School now perform consistently above state means in reading, spelling, writing and literacy overall, fewer students need learning support beyond Year 3 and nearly all students who require learning support are identified in the first three years of school.
Spensley Street Primary School, Victoria
Responding to the whole child
Spensley Street Primary School refreshed its approach to multi-age teaching to focus more effectively on the needs of the ‘whole child'. Important steps in achieving this goal were introducing more active play, project-based teaching and strategies responsive to children's developmental stages, encouraging higher levels of student reflection, initiative and responsibility, and greater parent involvement. This approach proved to be highly successful. Students are now more engaged in their learning while teachers are more aware of and responsive to children's development and individual needs.
Further information
More information on the National Awards for Quality Schooling is available on the Teaching Australia website.
Nominations for next year's awards will be invited in March or April 2006.
For more details, contact the Awards Project Coordinator on 1800 131 323 (freecall) or awards@austcolled.com.au
Read this past news item announcing the nominations for last year's National Awards for Quality Schooling.
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