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Encouraging students to be courageous and take risks with their learning enables them to reach for the stars and develop life-long learning skills instead of avoiding mistakes and ‘playing it safe’.
Excellence generally means being outstanding or extremely good at something. Students who win the House Cross Country, or who achieve a high distinction in the Australian Maths Competition demonstrate excellence in one curriculum area.
However, excellence will look very different for each student as we value the individual strengths, talents, and growth they demonstrate. Often, the student who has demonstrated the greatest growth has not achieved the top mark on a test. Students who demonstrate exceptional teamwork, persistence, courage, or creativity may not ‘win’ an event or achieve a top mark.
So, while we are proud to celebrate our excellent Literacy and Numeracy results through NAPLAN each year, this assessment does not capture or measure students’ passion or persistence to solve a problem or whether they can work collaboratively on an extended class project or be a kind and supportive friend or classmate.
Cultivating important life-long skills such as persistence, determination, collaboration, problem-solving, curiosity and creativity that enable people to excel for the long term need to be valued in schools alongside focusing on the short-term successes of academic achievements (Zhao 2015).
Junior School has many opportunities to develop and demonstrate excellence in academic areas whilst also developing lifelong skills and capabilities. Recently, some Years 5-6 students were selected for their passion and strength in writing and speaking by participating in the Ignite House Debate.
Likewise, many students from Years 3 to 6 are selected each year to showcase their creativity and communication skills through the Public Speaking Festival.
Students also demonstrate excellence and pride in caring for the beautiful school grounds through the weekly ‘Emu Bob’ litter collection and recycling program. Many students volunteer to care for the environment through the Garden Club while others demonstrate compassion and citizenship as they plan and lead a social service event and others demonstrate exemplary kindness and friendship in the playground.
In assessing excellence, it is important to focus on the growth and achievement of each student. Encouraging students to be courageous and take risks with their learning enables them to reach for the stars and develop life-long learning skills instead of avoiding mistakes and ‘playing it safe’.
Our goal in Junior School is to provide all students with appropriate levels of challenge where they can ‘struggle’ with a problem and enjoy the satisfaction and sense of achievement of solving it.
Mrs Helen Moore
Director of Curriculum, Learning and Innovation – Junior School
Shifting the paradigm: assessing what matters. Zhao, Y. (2015). Australian Educational Leader, 37
