The important principles of teaching and learning are:
The Middle Years curriculum provides a rich, diverse and significant curriculum, with units in Religion, English, Humanities, Science, Mathematics, Physical Education and Health, Arts, Technology and LOTE (Chinese and French). Our Interdisciplinary focus in the Middle Years aims to encourage participation within a local, national and global context and extend the learning beyond the classroom.
The organisation of Years 7, 8 and 9 is managed through three "teams" named after the Founders of the original religious orders at Â鶹APP - Dominic, MacKillop and Rice. Students remain in these teams throughout their Middle Years and into their Senior Years at the College, establishing a familiar learning community.
At Â鶹APP we are inspired by our Catholic tradition and our vision is to be an excellent school. In Years 7 and 8 we provide the support required to make a successful transition from primary to secondary education. This is assisted through our team based approach to learning and strong Pastoral Care focus.
Middle Years Pastoral Care is structured around learning groups. Core subjects like English, Maths, Humanities, Science and RE provide a group of students who study together for a large part of the day in Years 7 to 9. Students have Homeroom each morning. The focus of these session is organisational skills and developing a sense of belonging and connectedness.
Year 9 combines academic work with other learning experiences.There are three specific activities designed to provide such experiences, the City Experiential Learning Program, and the School Experience Block.
Year 9 students spend ten days in the CBD where they develop practical research skills, an understanding of the workings of the city and skills around independence, teamwork and collaboration.
Students work on leadership and understanding the implications of risk taking in a program that is the culmination of independent learning in Year 9. This also includes driving skills and the survivor camp for every student.
Each Year 9 student spends a week working in Cafe N9ne at the College. The experience provides a range of specific literacy, numeracy and hospitality skills as well as soft skills such as collaboration and teamwork. Cafe N9ne is open to the public and parents are encouraged to visit.
The Senior Years (Years 10-12) at Â鶹APP is where students look to the future. Aquinas provides personal skills to deal with a world of work and change, preparing them to identify and strive for personal success. The focus of the Senior Years is to build upon the philosophy of the Middle Years and to continue to create independent, creative and deep learners. Aquinas provides a broad range of subject choices, with curriculum that is informed by current educational philosophies, grounded in experience and success, and encourages critical and independent thinking. Students can select courses by interest and ability from Year 10, can choose VCE or VCAL at Year 11, can accelerate in VCE subjects and can supplement their skills with VET subjects.
All teachers working with Senior Years students are deemed to be teachers of pastoral care. Each student is allocated a mentor teacher who is responsible for monitoring the student’s learning progress.
Students in the Senior Years are encouraged to be involved in the co curricular life of the College - through EISM and other sporting competitions; in performance through Choirs, Bands, Public Speaking, Plays and Musicals; through social justice and fundraising activities; in whole College events like assemblies and masses and through Camps and Retreats.
The VCE Vocational Major (VM) is a vocational and applied learning program within the VCE designed to be completed over a minimum of two years. The VCE VM will give students greater choice and flexibility to pursue their strengths and interests and develop the skills and capabilities needed to succeed in further education, work and life.
It prepares students to move into apprenticeships, traineeships, further education and training, university (via non-ATAR pathways) or directly into the workforce.
The purpose of the VCE VM is to provide students with the best opportunity to achieve their personal goals and aspirations in a rapidly changing world by:
In Year 11, structured workplace learning (SWL) accompanied by a VET course of choice helps students to develop potential career interests. In year 12, students can continue this exploration or choose to undertake a school based apprenticeship or traineeship (SBAT) in an industry of their choice.
Â鶹APP offers Vocational Education and Training (VET) Courses for senior students. VET in the VCE or VCE VM program combines general VCE or VCE VM studies with vocational training and experience in the workplace. Aquinas offers opportunities to study some VET subjects, both inside the timetable and on Wednesday afternoons, and at other schools as part of the Mullum Cluster. VET courses give students practical industry level experience in preparation for the world of work. They provide an opportunity to see what particular vocations are like within a school environment.
The following courses are available in-house. Many other courses can be studied by Aquinas students at nearby schools. There are specific course costs for different VET courses.
Education Support Services (ESS) are available to support students who have a disability that impacts their education. Students’ needs are considered and individuals are supported in a variety of ways to enable access to their learning on the same basis as their peers. ESS works with students, parents and teachers to make available appropriate individualised adjustments, which are regularly reviewed. Students are included in the Nationally Consistent Collection of Data (NCCD) for students with disabilities.
Â鶹APP began its partnership with in 1997. This Catholic Special School has its primary school base in Wantirna South and the other campuses are located at St John’s Regional College Dandenong, Marymede Catholic Secondary College, South Morang and Â鶹APP, Ringwood.
The students from St Mary's wear the Â鶹APP uniform and attend all of their classes at Aquinas. Students also work with specialist staff from St Mary’s skilled in working with hearing impaired students. The St Mary's community has been embraced at Â鶹APP and it is a partnership that has richly assisted the life of the Aquinas community.
The Aquinas Gifted Learning Enhancement (AGiLE) program identifies students who demonstrate giftedness, and subsequently navigate the curriculum earlier, faster and/or differently to their same aged peers. The program facilitates a community where academic excellence is both facilitated and revered. The program goes about assessing, addressing and monitoring the progress of gifted students across the curriculum at all year levels, as well as offering a range of extra-curricular activities that engage and challenge students in critical, abstract and lateral thinking.