Ms Merran O’Connor Living our School Values

Name: Mrs Angela Klancic Title: Head of Mathematics Date: 3 March 2021 Strategic Intent: Academic Achievement

CHAMPION DISPOSITION IN OUR ST CATHERINE’S LEARNERS

Over 600 players with a range of experience and skills recently landed on our shores and battled it out for the ultimate prize – a Grand Slam title at the 2021 Australian Open. These athletes are classed as highly skilled, passionate, and tenacious professionals within their sport. They can all hit the ball with an elevated level of accuracy and precision. Which begs the question, what sets the good apart from the best? All players, no matter their rank, will say they all spend countless hours practising on court and are dedicated to their sport. Many will argue that the ‘best’ have something ‘special’ in their DNA. This certainly may be true, however, there appears to be more than DNA that sets the best apart from the rest. What makes Ash Barty and Serena Williams so dominant in the women’s draw? Why have the ‘Big Three’ in men’s tennis had such long and successful careers? To answer this, we must also consider what other dispositions the elite possess that develops them into champion players, enabling their performance to stand above the rest. What can we draw from these sportspeople to encourage and inspire in our learners? At St Catherine’s School, our teachers of Mathematics use several pedagogical approaches to enhance understanding, instil confidence and enable cognitive development in each of their students. Indeed, as a tennis player needs a reliable set of skills to be highly competitive on the tennis court, our students need to acquire a strong set of skills and techniques to solve a range of mathematical problems. However, this is only one of the elements that creates a functional mathematician. Students will be asked to tackle familiar mathematical problems, and other problems that will challenge, test, and demand higher-order thinking. Just like no two tennis matches are the same, no two questions in Mathematics are exactly alike. A tennis player relies on skill, strategy, and experience to respond to the opponent’s attack across the net. The elite tend to also have an incredible ability to think logically under pressure. Therefore, it is important that a tennis player, like a mathematician, adapts and applies skills to overcome the challenges that lie ahead. A student’s ability to dissect, draw out key information when reading questions, and then use a thinking routine or a strategy to attack a problem is essential. Tennis players at the highest level have excellent skills but they surround themselves with coaches, to mentor and guide them. This team will assess and review the player’s technical and tactical performance. Their learning journey never ends. Student performance is also assessed, they are encouraged to take advice and feedback from teachers, and their peers, to consolidate their understanding and improve their skills ready for the next challenge. This also encourages a student to contemplate, reflect and review different processes. It is this very practice that consolidates understanding. Just as a tennis player celebrates what they did well, they welcome the opportunity to learn from their mistakes. The challenge is to keep persevering even when things are not going to plan, and to try and find new ways of solving. Therefore, much like an elite tennis player, the role of our students is to continually develop themselves to operate at their highest level, achieved through continued effort, perseverance, resilience to perfect their craft under the guidance of their teachers.

Mrs Angela Klancic

Head of Mathematics