A Wodonga school has won international recognition for an innovative program that ditches the timetables and allows students to follow their own passions.
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Catholic College Wodonga was selected by Cambridge University as one of the globe’s 800 most innovative schools.
Principal Darta Hovey said the college had not applied for the list and was still wondering how researchers in England came to learn about a school in regional Victoria.
“We’re in the dark, I think that’s the beauty of it, I don’t really know how we were found,” he said.
“It gives us confidence in the direction we’re taking based in a world education space – we’re not just pushing the boundary for the sake of it, we’re doing what we believe is right and that it’s been backed by a university with a strong arm in research is a confidence booster.”
The school was recognised for its innovative Horizon Program and the Early Mentor Program.
Mr Hovey said through the Horizon Program, students were taken away from the confines of timetabled classes, put on individual learning plans and were allowed to explore a key passion.
“We had a number of students in last year’s group looking into astro-physics and certainly asking questions I couldn’t answer so that idea of the ongoing project certainly allows them to explore the thing they’re very passionate about,” he said
Mr Hovey said the semester long project also included mentoring, group projects and a social justice element.
He said initially the program was flagged for high-achieving students who weren’t growing in a normal school structure, but had since expanded to allow entry to any selected student.
“A lot of our students have passions we’re just not aware of, it allows us then as educators to link into that and increase the opportunities of learning,” he said.
“Regionally home schooling numbers are going up throughout Australia, in our region as well, to a degree that tells us there is something within mainstream education that is not keeping children in our schools.
“So potentially this is another area where students can stay engaged and maybe have a breather of what is mainstream to them and then reengage six months later with an increase in passion, learning and understanding of themselves.”
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