Curriculum

​ Our Vision for Learning​


We believe that all learners should have the opportunity to succeed by engaging in flexible, inclusive challenging experiences which assist them in their journey of lifelong learning.

At St Bernard's School, we are guided by The Alice Springs (Mparntwe) Education Declaration on Educational Goals for Young Australians (2019) which sets out the national vision for education and the to improving educational outcomes.

The declaration notes two goals.

  1. ​​That Australian Education System promotes equity and excellence.  

  2. All young Australians become:

  • confident and creative individuals

  • successful lifelong learners

  • active and informed members of the community.





© BCE, St Bernard's School (2023)

Curriculum Overview P-6

At St Bernard's, the Australian Curriculum is the source of all curriculum planning, assessment and reporting. Learning Areas offered are from the Australian Curriculum, as well as the Religious Education Curriculum of the Brisbane Catholic Archdiocese.

The Australian Curriculum is designed to help all young Australians to become successful learners, confident and creative individuals, and active and informed citizens. Presented as a developmental sequence of learning from Foundation - Year 10, the Australian Curriculum describes to teachers, parents, students and others in the wider community what is to be taught and the quality of learning expected of young people as they progress through school – wherever they live in Australia and whichever school they attend.

The Learning areas offered at St Bernard's are:

  • Religious Education

  • English

  • Mathematics

  • Health and Physical Education (HPE)

  • Science

  • Humanities and Social Sciences – History and Geography

  • The Arts (consisting of Music, Dance, Visual Arts, Drama and Media)

  • Technologies (Digital Technology and Design & Technology)

  • Cultural Literacy and Languages, including L.O.T.E – Japanese

For more information about the Australian Curriculum, visit the  parent page on the Australian Curriculum website​







© BCE, St Bernard's School (2023)​​

​​Assessment​


As a community we are focussed on developing assessment capable learners who have the confidence and skills to demonstrate their knowledge, understanding and proficiencies across all learning areas and in real world situations, including assessment environments. Our aim is raising resilient and​ lifelong learners.

At St Bernard's we use the Australian Curriculum Achievement Standards for making assessment judgements Prep to Year 6. Three types of assessment practices (summative, formative and diagnostic) are implemented at specific times and for specific purposes at St Bernard's. These types of assessments can be defined as Assessment of Learning, Assessment for Learning and Assessment as Learning. Assessment practices help inform instructional decisions, promote student engagement and improve student learning.

Our teachers providing students with varied opportunities to demonstrate what they know and can do in relation to the identified success criteria across all learning areas. Staff use a variety of assessment techniques and sources to gather evidence about students' demonstration of learning. ​


Reporting 


'Reporting is a process, not simply a format for a report card.' (Brisbane Catholic Education: Assessment and Reporting Practices)

At St Bernard's we believe that reporting should focus on and about learning of the Australian Curriculum. Reporting should be regular and aimed at improved learning outcomes.

Reporting at St Bernard's is made up of several practices that we have negotiated with our community and are applied regularly and routinely in a cyclic manner. At St Bernard's we draw from a range of reporting practices, both formal and informal, to build home-school partnerships as we strive to improve student learning. Some of these are

  • Telephone calls

  • E-mails between home and school

  • Conferences/interviews

  • Celebration of Learning

  • Student Learning Portfolios

  • Student Reporting System 

St Bernard's School has clear processes to support twice yearly formal reporting to parents. SRS is used to provide formal reporting of achievement twice yearly to parents and carers. We provide

·         an opportunity for the child and parents to meet with the child's teacher at least twice a year  

·         a written report to parents at least twice yearly. These reports include each learning area or subject studied and assessment, using a five point scale, Well Above, Above, Expected, Below and Well Below, against achievement standards

·         (at a minimum), an offer of information on a child's achievement relative to the child's peer group (cohort data).  ​​