Independent Schools Guide 2022: St Catherine's champions the 'thinking classroom'

Some learning spaces at St Catherine’s have shed the traditional classroom layout in favour of something more sophisticated and effective.

During Year 9 humanities classes, as part of a program called “Her Signature Her Voice”, instead of sitting at standard desks, students sit around a large central table that lends itself more to open discussion, debate and the sharing of ideas.

“The girls might discuss a question like, ‘Can we stop biomes from being destroyed?’ They do some pre-reading on the subject and then have conversations around the table,” says the director of Teaching and Learning, Ceri Lloyd.

“The whole class is about encouraging student-led conversation based on what the students have read and viewed. The teacher then observes and guides but the class gives the girls agency and a voice.

“They have a big question dropped on them and the girls prepare and lead the conversation.”

The classroom layout and approach is based on a Harkness-inspired methodology developed by a group of private schools in the United States that is used in leading schools around the world, such as Eton College in Britain.

It promotes each student’s capacity to use questions and conversation to direct their own learning and cultivates a Thinking Classroom that fine-tunes communication and critical thinking skills.

The principal of St Catherine’s, Michelle Carroll, saw the Harkness methodology in action during a visit to Eton College and was so impressed that she decided to introduce it to areas of the Toorak school.

The Thinking Classroom approach permeates the early learning centre and junior school through to the senior school.

In Years 10 to 12, this takes the form of a “senior years learning model” that helps students prepare for the transition from classroom to tertiary and workplace settings. It relies on a series of different learning platforms including masterclass lectures, flexi-tutes and traditional classroom teaching.

“COVID-19 has led to some opportunities in education and during the pandemic we’ve seen the greatest and most rapid educational reform,” Lloyd says.

“During the pandemic, when girls were online, we surveyed them about their experiences online and they liked the independence and flexibility, so we developed our independent learning model for the senior years based on that feedback.”

The Thinking Classroom, the Harkness-inspired learning method and the senior years learning model are just some of the ways in which St Catherine’s is pushing the boundaries in teaching and learning.

Each facet of the school seeks to build learner competencies – including collaboration, reflection and self-efficacy – that St Catherine’s sees as critical to students thriving now and into the future.

The carefully planned strategies are working. Last year, St Catherine’s achieved a median ATAR of 92.1, and the 2021 VCE results place St Catherine’s as the top girls school in Victoria.

Lloyd says a combination of academic and student care contributes to these impressive results. “Our outstanding results are testament to the … intellectual curiosity embedded in a St Catherine’s education,” she says.

“Our targeted learning programs and the academic care provided by our teachers ensure every student finds connection to the knowledge around them.

“Our girls have a sense of perseverance about them and a deep gratitude for their education.”

Key details:

17 Heyington Place, Toorak, VIC 3142

ENQUIRIES:
(03) 9828 3032
admissions@stcatherines.net.au
stcatherines.net.au

YEARS: ELC (3YO & 4YO) to Year 12

DENOMINATION: Non-denominational

GENDER: Co-educational ELC, girls from Prep to Year 12

FEES: $24,220 (Prep) to $36,940 (Year 12)

BOARDING: Yes

SCHOLARSHIPS: Yes

ATAR: (Median for 2021): 92.1