Siena College

815 Riversdale Road, Camberwell VIC 3124

ENQUIRIES +61 3 9835 0200 siena.vic.edu.au reception@siena.vic.edu.au

PRIN CIPAL \ E LIZ AB E TH HANNEY

Siena College is a Catholic school in the Dominican tradition, offering young women an education which will inspire and challenge them to make intelligent and responsible use of their personal gifts and develop a lifelong love of learning.

Our students have a daily, lived experience of women as leaders at all levels, from a broad based Student Representative Council, to the women from past decades on whose shoulders we stand. Our patron, St Catherine of Siena, broke the bonds of what was expected of a woman in the 14th Century by speaking Truth. She challenged those in power and committed herself to a life of prayer and service of others.

Our Dominican tradition places emphasis on diversity and the unique gifts of every person. We are inspired by each other and find joy in our work, our learning and our community.

Our motto, Veritas, challenges us to search for Truth through prayer and contemplation, a commitment to study and a strong sense of justice and outreach to others. Siena College offers a richly stimulating and contemporary education that makes student learning exciting for young women. We encourage our students to engage in critical reflection on the world, we nurture their individual gifts and talents and build their self-esteem and sense of connectedness.

YEARS Years 7 – 12

DENOMINATION Catholic

GENDER Girls only

FEES Please refer to College website for 2020 fees

BOARDING \ No SCHOLARSHIPS \ Yes

ABOUT THE PRINCIPAL Elizabeth Hanney will commence as Principal of Siena College in 2020. Elizabeth brings a breadth of experience, knowledge and passion for engaging and empowering young women, and a strong commitment to the Dominican charism.

MATHEMATICS COMMUNITY SERVICE

Year 7-10 classes are ability grouped to better support student learning. There is an extension group at each year level. Technology is integral to learning in mathematics and students use graphics calculators and dynamic geometry software. Siena College’s Community Service Program seeks to assist students to develop empathy and understanding of the lives of others, and foster a willingness to help make a difference in our world. Students volunteer service out of College hours.

VISUAL ARTS MUSIC

Siena College has a long history of excellence in Visual Arts and Technology, with students’ work consistently selected for VCE Season of Excellence. Student work is showcased in the College’s purpose built Visual Arts and Technology Gallery. Siena College is known for an extensive and highly successful co-curricular music program. Specialist instrumental tuition is offered across 19 different instruments with performance opportunities in an array of ensembles, bands or choirs.

THE LEGACY ISSUE

Getting ‘real’ is becoming a proven way to educate young Victorians.

B Y M E G A N W H I T F I E L D

ADAPTING TO A CHANGING WORLD

From “Surviving the Apocalypse” to “Criminal Investigations”: Victorian school curriculums are adapting to a changing world by offering subjects focused on real-world applications and collaboration.

The key is in curating a learning environment that combines soft skills with external applications, according to Ivanhoe Girls’ Grammar principal Dr Deborah Priest. “There are two key focuses for us,” she says. “Firstly, developing our students’ character and wellbeing – placing [mental and physical health] on the same level as academics. And, secondly, the learning must be connected to a real-world context, with inter-faculty collaboration.”

Priest says this flexibility in thinking and emphasis on co-operation is vital in equipping students with skills that they can carry into life.

“Soft skills are best learnt in context,” Priest adds. “While traditional core subjects are still, and always will be, important … it’s also about looking at the ways we can develop skills for the future – from being collaborative and fluid, to existing in a virtual world.” Over a two-year period, the school has been developing a range of new subjects to best reflect a changing society and the modern workplace, including the year 8 subject “Lights, Camera, Action” which was launched in 2019. Exploring ethical questions about how people conduct themselves online, the subject addresses both the challenges and benefits of having an online profile and teaches hands-on skills for working in a virtual sphere.

It’s an approach being met with enthusiasm by students, with enrolments for a series of new year 9 electives (developed out of feedback from the girls) already completed.

“Our elective ‘Criminal Investigations’ already has three classes filled,” says Priest. “We’ll be using real-life equipment to simulate a crime scene investigation as closely as we can, conducting soil analysis, DNA sequencing … the girls are fascinated.” Also popular is “The Game of Life”, a practical subject addressing money

so years and building a new learning ecosystem.”

Known as “Polaris”, the system is focused on foundational literacies (including financial and digital literacy), capability skills focused on responding to complex challenges, and personal characteristics extending to mental and physical health.

management, how to apply for jobs, and planning for life after school.

“It’s about creating students that aren’t just tertiary-ready, but lifeready,” says Priest.

In Melbourne’s north, Marcellin College is also shaking up its curriculum, amounting to a kind of “renaissance in schooling”, according to deputy principal Adriano Di Prato. “We need to prepare students for their future, not how we work now,” he says. “We’re moving away from the standardised teaching of the last 50 or

The school is introducing Polaris in stages, with 2020 seeing the commencement of the depth (years 9 and 10) and pathway (years 11 and 12) phases. This will see the introduction of new electives and timetable structures designed to encourage students to take ownership of their learning plan while tapping into their individual passions and goals.

“The focus is on dynamic learning, with the opportunity for hyperspecialisation,” Di Prato says.

On top of VET and VCE offerings, niche subjects such as the sciencebased, religious education “Who is Jesus, really?” and “Surviving the Apocalypse” - a humanities subject exploring how to thrive in a postapocalyptic world, year 9 and 10 students will have five periods a fortnight to meet with mentors, careers advisers or school counsellors to develop methods of managing their extra-curricular activities and overall wellbeing.

“We’re trying to build an understanding that wellbeing and learning are interconnected,” says Di Prato. “It’s about comprehensive wellbeing … and catering for unique learning processes.”

“While traditional

core subjects are still,

and always will be,

important . . .

it’s also about

looking at the ways

we can develop skills

for the future.”

DR DEBORAH PRIEST