Our teachers go above and beyond for the children in their care. Teaching is more than just their job, it is who they are, their passion and tool for growth. One of the ways St Monica’s promote a culture of excellence is through our Professional Learning Teams (PLTs). PLTs are based on the work of Professor Helen Timperley who created an inquiry model of teacher development.

Each year, the St Monica’s leadership team creates a focus for our PLTs based on our Strategic Plan refined by the Annual Improvement Targets. In 2020 our PLTs are directly linked to our three Strategic Goals; Achieve Growth in all Aspects of Learning, Improve Literacy and Numeracy Skills and Create Equitably Outcomes for Students.

During remote learning, each teacher created a specific goal based on one of the Strategic goals and created a mini action research plan. During Semester Two, the staff in teams of three focused on their remaining two goals, spending time mentoring and coaching one another to achieve these goals.

We asked our teaching staff about the impact the PLTs had on their students and teaching efforts. 

“Using Learning Intention and Success Criteria has seen students having a much clearer understanding of what they need to do and how they are going to get there, creating a positive impact on student engagement,” Ryan said. 

“I’ve seen a significant growth in students' confidence when using the strategies of Re-Reading and Decoding to become more confident readers through the use of Structured Texts,” Jacinda said. 

“Progress in selected girls’ numeracy skills and confidence. They have achieved better results and are engaging more in class,” Kathy said. 

Over the years, the results of our PLTs have been used to make informed decisions around programs that the school has used to improve student outcomes including SoundsWrite, Formative Assessment, Conceptual inquiry, effective Pedagogy and problem solving in Mathematics.