More than 100 middle leaders and Principals from Catholic schools across Diocese of Ballarat (DOBCEL) have today worked with world-renowned education scholar, Professor Andy Hargreaves.

More than 18,600 students and almost 3,000 teachers and staff will return to 52 Catholic primary schools and 11 secondary colleges across the Diocese of Ballarat next week – from Mildura in the north, to Portland in the south, and west to Edenhope and Nhill. ‘On behalf of Catholic education in the Diocese I extend a warm welcome to all students, staff, and families, particularly those joining a Catholic school community for the first time,’ Executive Director of Catholic Education, Tom Sexton said. ‘We look forward to an exciting and productive year ahead, where every student has opportunities to flourish fully in school communities that are caring, committed to excellence,…

The final leadership gathering in Horsham for 2024 included a farewell to Principals who are concluding their tenure or retiring from our DOBCEL schools.

Ten remote Catholic primary schools across the Diocese of Ballarat will benefit from additional support to implement a structured literacy approach in 2025 thanks to a $100k grant from the Bertalli Family Foundation.

Any student teachers enjoying the term break and thinking about where to begin their teaching career next year might want to take a look at the opportunities on offer in the Diocese of Ballarat. From the Murray river to the sea, a wide range of career and lifestyle opportunities are available across 63 primary and secondary school settings. Check out further information, and don’t miss the video where some of our recent graduate teachers identify COMMUNITY, OPPORTUNITIES, BELONGING, SUPPORT and GROWTH as key features of their experience joining a DOBCEL school community.

Around 30 beginning teachers from around the Diocese gathered today for the first of our early career teacher program days – a three-year integrated program designed to support early career teacher induction into the diocese and the teaching profession, within the context of Catholic education. In welcoming the early career teachers, Executive Director, Tom Sexton reminded them of their vital role and responsibility in the lives of their students. ‘You will have already experienced the joy of seeing children learning and growing in your classes but be assured your influence and impact will be lifelong and may not be realised until many years down the track.’ The early career teacher’s…

The Spirit of Catholic Education Award is aimed at continuing to recognise the outstanding service and leadership within Catholic education throughout our Diocesan school communities, and Catholic Education Office. It is with great pleasure that the nominees for the 2024 Spirit of Catholic Education Award are shared with our communities. Congratulations to the following nominees: Christina Sofis (Loreto College) – Fostering Inspiring Leadership Sharon Dwyer (OLHC Warrnambool) – Empowering all to Flourish Kevin Brodie (DOBCEL Ballarat Office) – Empowering all to Flourish Finance and Compliance Team (St Brigid’s College) – Enhancing Family Engagement, Governance and Stewardship Cynthia Maiden (St Joseph’s, Hopetoun) – Enhancing Family Engagement, Governance and Stewardship Olga Lyons (St Patrick’s, Port Fairy) – Fostering Inspiring Leadership…

Catholic schools in the Diocese of Ballarat are committed to delivering best practice approaches to supporting students with diverse requirements to fully flourish across their learning and wellbeing. Key among these commitments is having a dedicated leader responsible for learning diversity and inclusion in every school. These school leaders and DOBCEL Education Officers – Learning Diversity, come together in regional networks each term. The networks support collaboration and sharing of best practices and insights, through discussion of inclusive teaching strategies and resources, as well as empower leaders to enhance learning environments and address diverse requirements in schools effectively. The networks have now commenced their meetings across the diocese for 2024.…

NAPLAN tests start next week on 13 March and run until 25 March. An information guide for parents, families and carers of students participating in NAPLAN is now available and includes frequently asked questions. The guide, prepared by ACARA (Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority) is available here – https://bit.ly/3wpdI8w. NAPLAN assesses the literacy and numeracy skills that students are learning through the school curriculum. It is important to remember the main purpose of NAPLAN is to provide additional information for teachers, schools, and parents about how students are progressing, and to help identify areas for improvement.

One of the highlights of Catholic Education Week (29 April – 3 May) in the diocese is the presentation of the Spirit of Catholic Education Awards. These awards aim to recognise outstanding service and leadership within our Diocesan education community. All Catholic education communities are encouraged to nominate an individual or team who consistently performs in an exemplary way across any of the five categories: Building inclusive Catholic learning communities. Empowering all to flourish. Fostering inspiring leadership. Achieving best practice. Enhancing family engagement, governance, and stewardship. School communities are reminded that nominations will close on 1 March 2024. For more information, visit https://dobcel.catholic.edu.au/catholic-education-week/2024-spirit-of-catholic-education-leadership-awards/