About

School Philosophy

The philosophy of Avondale Primary School is based on the premise that every student can attain high levels of academic achievement and be a responsible community member.

We aspire for students:

• to have an enthusiasm for learning
• to develop a broad and strong base of knowledge and skills
• to think and act with competence, objectivity and creativity
• through their experience of living in a learning community, show respect and sensitivity to others
• to show a capacity to lead, to share and to co-operate with others
• to accept responsibility and discipline
• to find reward in participating, and doing your best.

School Values

The following are shared values as identified in parent, staff and student discussions in October 2005:

• Respect
• Cooperation
• Honesty
• Self-confidence
• Persistence
• Caring for others
• Integrity
• Helpfulness

Students and Curriculum

For a student, the curriculum is experienced primarily as activities. Avondale Primary strives to make learning activities, authentic, rich and supportive of higher order thinking.
Increasingly students are being included in the planning and evaluation of programs.
Increasingly students are given responsibility for achieving beyond expectations, as teachers become facilitators of learning through careful questioning and thoughtful guidance.

Student achievement is the primary motivation and measure of the school's success.
Success is more than academic achievement measured in a student's assessment results; it also includes student participation in a wide range of artistic, sporting, civic and cultural activities as well as the development of self-knowledge and the values identified above.

The school has achieved continual improvement in all AIM data over the last seven years.

This improvement is due to a focus upon student learning as the paramount concern in staff professional learning activities. Time is provided weekly for staff to share experiences, read research articles and discuss issues concerning student learning in relation to the behaviour and practices of teachers.

Avondale Primary implements the following VELS domains as explicit discipline based learning:

• The Arts
• English
• Humanities
• LOTE (Italian)
• Mathematics
• Physical Education
• Science
• Information and Communication Technologies

These domains are incorporated into learning activities:

• Health
• Personal Learning
• Interpersonal Development
• Civics and Citizenship
• Communication
• Design and Creativity
• Thinking and Reasoning
• E-learning

Avondale has worked closely with neighbouring kindergartens, primary and secondary schools to facilitate the inter-organisational transition of students as a positive and rewarding experience.

Staff and Professional Learning

In 2009 there are 18.1(EFT) teachers and 7 (EFT) educational support staff employed at this school. An emphasis is given to professional learning of all staff. The development of staff in improving their teaching effectiveness is a key strategy in improving learning outcomes for students. Opportunities to discuss practice and theory are provided daily both in class with coaches and at every staff meeting.

The school recognises that the most effective professional learning is classroom based, on-going and supported through sharing insights and experiences with colleagues. The school has allocated over $80,000 towards the employment of teacher-coaches and allocated a further $10,000 for other Professional Learning.

Curriculum planning and evaluation is carried out in teams. Consideration of students' views is an integral part of this process. The school has documented its philosophy, vision, beliefs, values, approach to teaching and learning and relationship with the wider community to guide program implementation.

School Organisation

Avondale Primary School has a current enrolment of 292 students. There are six junior grades and seven senior grades.

Each Department has two Professional Learning Teams based on VELS Levels. Specialist classes are provided in LOTE (Italian), Physical Education and Information Technology.

Facilities

Avondale has excellent facilities and resources. The two buildings are of light timber construction (LTC) structure and include a Library and Art/Craft facilities and Multipurpose Room that are also utilised by the community. The grounds comprise garden areas, passive areas, an oval and modern adventure playground equipment covered by shade sails. The former dental clinic is used for instrumental music tuition. The canteen conveniently located between the shelter sheds, is staffed by parent volunteers and only serves healthy foods approved by the Victorian Schools Canteen Association.

Avondale PS manages an excellent indoor stadium for Physical Education and sport sessions opposite the school. There is an agreement with Moonee valley City Council for the school to manage the Education Community Activity (ECA) Centre - a venue for the community use out of school hours. Avondale also houses the CASES Computer Training Centre for the Western Metropolitan Region and is the base school for Reading Recovery tutors and several curriculum consultants.

The local Kindergarten adjoins the school; a close relationship between both organisations provides for exemplary transition of students.

Acronyms Explained

The Department has a Web site that explains the various acronyms used in its publications. It can be accessed at: http://www.education.vic.gov.au/about/jargonbuster/

Acronyms used in the document are:
AIM - Achievement Improvement Monitor. These are annual assessments of students in Year 3, 5, 7 and 9. They are comprise a set of centrally assessed and locally assessed tasks.
VELS - Victorian Essential Learning Standards. A set of guidelines which outline the curriculum for students from Prep to Year 10. Schools use the Standards to plan their teaching and learning programs, including assessment and reporting of student progress.
LOTE - Language Other Than English
LTC - Light Timber Construction. This is the name applied to the building style in which Avondale Primary was built.
OTTE - Office of Training and Tertiary Education. This is the Victorian Government's section of TAFE
CASES - Computerised Administrative System Environment in Schools. The name given to the software that is used by the school's Administration staff.