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2016 Annual Report to the School Community

School Name: Bendigo Senior Secondary College

School Number: 7595

Mr Dale Pearce

Name of School Principal:

Mr Phil Peterson

School Council President:

1/5/17

Date of Endorsement:

Bendigo Senior Secondary College

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About Our School

School Context

Bendigo Senior Secondary College (BSSC) is a Year 11 and 12 school located in one of Victoria's strongest and fastest growing regional areas. With 1765 students,149 teaching staff (122.7 equivalent full-time), 10 Principal Class and 54 Education Support Staff (45.67 equivalent full-time), it is the largest provider of the Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE), Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning (VCAL) and Vocational Education and Training in the state. The college provides quality instruction and a range of programs which attract enrolments from students in government and non-government schools across a broad geographic area. The College has a close relationship with the four government Year 7-10 colleges in Bendigo, with whom it works closely in student transition. Underpinning the relationship with these schools is the belief that every child can achieve and has a right to high quality education that will provide them with the knowledge and skills necessary for success in life and work beyond school. The strength of the college is built upon the expertise and commitment of its staff. Teachers at BSSC play a leading role in state wide curriculum development, subject associations, VCAA assessment processes and in leading the learning of teachers across the state. The college provides a supported learning environment where sound work ethic, self-discipline and independent learning skills are fostered. Staff are committed to the academic progress and wellbeing of students, and all students are encouraged to interact closely with their teachers and seek help at any time. The College has a reputation for exemplary use of ICT and delivery of online learning. Students have high level access to ICT and the College operates a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) model where students provide their own laptop or other device. Across all learning areas there is an emphasis on the use of blended delivery, which allows students to access digital curriculum resources to support the classroom instruction provided by teachers. In several areas of the curriculum students may choose to vary the amount of face to face teaching time they receive through our self-directed options. An online portal is available which allows parents to monitor attendance, work completion and achievement in real time and to provide approval for absences. Teachers upload key assessment outcomes and comments in a progressive reporting model. Students can choose a pathway to meet their individual needs, whether that pathway is into university, some other form of further education, apprenticeship, trades or employment. Extensive careers and pathways advice is available to students and is complemented by the individual support provided through the college House structure in which each student is linked to an Advisor who monitors their progress. A wide range of VCE and VET studies are offered and an accelerated learning program operates in conjunction with the 7-10 colleges where students can undertake VCE studies whilst in Year 10. Year 11 students are encouraged to undertake a Unit 3/4 study in their first year at the College. Pathways in VCAL are offered at the Intermediate and Senior levels. The College is a Registered Training Organisation with many VET programs on its scope of registration. Strong relationships with other training providers in Bendigo and our Trade Training Centre provides our students with access to excellent vocational training facilities and opportunities. NETschool is a second campus of the College, providing curriculum access for 15 to 19 year-old students who have been outside mainstream schooling or training. NETschool provides both online and face to face delivery of VCE, VCAL and VET units from its central city location. A number of major building projects have taken place and students have access to a state-of-the-art Performing Arts centre and 1000-seat theatre, alongside new foods and cafe areas, a new Student Services Centre and a new library, VCAL centre and general classrooms is due for completion at the end of 2017. The College is proud of the work it does to promote inclusion. Intensive EAL support is provided to our refugee students and a homework club operates to serve students from several Bendigo schools. 5% of students were EAL students. The College has a small but highly valued indigenous student population. These students are assisted by mentors and a range of additional support services which are closely linked to families and community. 2% of students were Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islanders. BSSC is the first government school in the world to be accredited with the Council of International Schools and in 2011 gained reaccreditation. The international focus of the College is wide ranging and includes sister school relationships in Germany, Indonesia, France and China. Students can participate in regular curriculum-based trips to these countries, and to Italy and Greece. The College for many years has seen the presence of students from other countries, including many from China, who come to study as fee paying students or through exchange programs. These students are supported in homestay arrangements with local families which provide an in-depth cultural and language experience for everyone concerned. The College has a Confucius Classroom in partnership with the Chinese government agency Hanban. Through the Confucius Classroom Chinese language and cultural support is provided to 20 primary schools and 3 secondary schools in Bendigo and virtual classroom delivery is provided to a primary school in another region of the state. Through the Confucius Classroom we have also successfully engaged many community members.

Bendigo Senior Secondary College

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Framework for Improving Student Outcomes (FISO)

Consistent with our vision which is to empower learners for individual, community and global leadership and underpinned by the values of respect, optimism, learning and environment, our FISO initiatives focused on ‘Building practice excellence’ as part of ‘Excellence in teaching and learning’ priority and ‘Setting expectations and promoting inclusion’ as part of ‘Positive climate for learning’ priority. To continue to ‘build practice excellence’ the college invested in a Teaching and Learning Coach for our VCAL program to build understanding of applied learning and best practice in teaching and learning. In addition, our Performance and development process was refined in accordance with DET requirements to become more rigorous and accountable to support all teachers to continue to develop best practice pedagogy across VCE, VET and VCAL. In 2017 the college has further supported excellence in teaching and learning in VCAL through timetabling structures that support professional learning teams to collaborate and develop integrated units of work that contextualize the learning across all core VCAL subjects. Further to this, a pilot group is working on developing formative assessment rubrics that provide a clear framework for student learning progression. This work will be fully implemented in 2018. To build a ‘Positive climate for learning’ by ‘Setting expectations and promoting inclusion’, the college allocated significant resources to support the transition and inclusion of 1000 students from a range of schools within and outside of Bendigo. The needs of all students are supported through our Advisor program, House system, MIPs team and where needed, through our wellbeing team and NETschool program. In 2017, to further support a positive climate for learning, the college will implement a study centre for all year 11 students and use our revised Empowered Learner Indicators to inform us about student’s skills and attributes needed for success in the senior years of schooling. Professional development of staff and the trialing of some of the resources provided by the Safe School’s Coalition was undertaken with further work on this area of inclusion to be further developed in 2017, with a focus on Indigenous, LGBTIQ, International, Refugee and Special Learning Needs students. A wide range of co-curricular programs were implemented to encourage all students to feel connected to the college. A range of programs were also put in place to support our indigenous students, EAL students and our increasing number of Afghani new arrival students. This work will continue in 2017.

Achievement

As we are a Year 11 and 12 setting only, there are no NAPLAN results to report upon. Many students graduate from BSSC with excellent results and our staff work hard to help all students achieve above their potential. The percentage of students who successfully completed their VCE increased to 97% in 2016 from 95% in 2015. The mean study score for VCE and VET scored studies increased to 27 in 2016. This was similar to the median for all government schools. 84% of students who applied for University, received a first or second round offer. The VET units of competency completed increased to 81% in 2016 from 79% in 2015. The percentage of VCAL credits satisfactorily completed also increased to 81% in 2016 compared to 73% in 2015. A large majority of our Program for Students with Disabilities students successfully transition to work or further education. Those that have not found these places yet continued to be support by MIPs’.

Ensuring that the learning needs of all students are met and each student is supported to achieve their best in an environment that sets high expectations is an ongoing priority. In 2017 we will continue to:

Build teacher capacity and ensure consistency in practice by implementing:

our instructional framework with a focus around formative assessment and differentiation

a rigorous performance and development process

Build a study and achievement culture within the college though implementation of:

Supervised Study Centre for Year 11 students

Increasing the focus on productive use of private study time for Year 12 students

Revise and increase the Empowered Learning Indicator profile as an indicator of student success

Continue to support the development of a high quality VCAL program that provides an integrated curriculum across the core VCAL subjects.

Curriculum Framework implemented in 2016 (please mark the relevant box with an X by double clicking in the box)

BSSC is a Year 11 and 12 college and delivers VCE, VCAL and VET only.

Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework

AusVELS

Victorian Curriculum

A Combination of these

Bendigo Senior Secondary College

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Engagement

Student attendance rates at BSSC improved in 2016 and is well above the state average. The average student days absence of 14.7 is below the state average of 19.6. The attendance rate for Year 11 was 93% compared to 91% in 2015. Similarly, the attendance rate for Year 12 was 92% compared to 91% in 2015. Through our online Portal (Compass) we monitor student attendance for each period of the day which is available to parents in ‘real-time’. Advisors will follow up concerns with attendance early to address issues associated with students who start to record low attendance. The four-year average for attendance shows that our continued focus is bringing about an improvement. The employment of an Attendance Support Officer in 2016 provided invaluable support in following up of students with attendance issues. Attendance continues to be a large focus of our work and we emphasise ‘it’s not OK to be away’ and that attendance in class is strongly associated with success.

The percentage of students exiting to further studies and full-time employment is based on the 2015 school year and whilst it appears to be below the state average, BSSC data is compared with schools with Years 10-12 as opposed to Years 11 and 12 only.

Each year we enroll over 900 students and some of these students, particularly from Year 11, decide to undertake an

alternative pathway at the beginning of the year or soon after. Each student is followed up by the college and their

destinations are recorded. Year 11-12 retention was 75.6% in 2016. We continue to work closely with our Year 7-10 schools, students and families to encourage all students to continue their education. We have a comprehensive careers and pathways program which supports all students to access pathways information to enable them to make informed choices regarding their transition from secondary schooling. According to the data collected by our Managed Individual Pathways team (MIPs), 54% of our Year 12 students transitioned into further education or training, 28% transitioned to employment and 17% were looking for work. While the number of students seeking University places dropped the number of students who transitioned to FT or PT employment rose by almost the same amount. The percentage of students who were seeking work rose slightly. La Trobe University continued to be the most popular further education provider.

Our Indigenous and EAL students continue to be supported by a range of programs and EAL students from across Bendigo are supported by our Homework Centre. Our NETschool program is also successful in engaging learners with 88% retention rate for these students.

The college has a wide range of leadership and co-curricular programs designed to engage students, build connectedness and provide student voice. Some of these include Cultural Diversity Week, Open Mic sessions, Healthy Relationships day, Mental Health Week and Reconciliation Week.

In 2017 we will continue to build engagement by:

Improving pathways advice and support to students

Supporting students at risk of disengagement and early exit

Providing a range of co-curricular programs that actively engage students

Create opportunities within the school community for student voice

Engage with parents and carers as partners in the learning process

Wellbeing

Ensuring the wellbeing needs of our students remains a high priority and is essential for developing positive student/teacher relationships that enhance student learning. When compared to other secondary schools, our parent satisfaction levels are above state averages in many indicators which include behavior management, classroom behavior and student safety. This is also evident in our Student Attitudes to School Survey. Students at BSSC indicate they feel very safe at school. Improving student connectedness is a high priority at the college. Our House and Advisor systems have a student wellbeing focus and we also have a strong commitment to providing wellbeing support for all students, through referrals to our Student Wellbeing team, our Youth Health nurse, our GP and mental health nurse who visit the college each week, and through many community partnerships. The Horizon House breakfast van program provides students with a free healthy breakfast one morning a week. These supports all help ensure every student has ongoing access to the physical, social and emotional support they require. Through our online portal (Compass) we have been better able to monitor indicators of student wellbeing and intervene as appropriate. Our new Student Services Centre, has facilitated the co-location of House Leaders, Learning and Engagement Coordinators, Pathways staff, Work Placement and Wellbeing teams to provide greater accessibility for students and more integrated services for student engagement, wellbeing and pathways support. Our priorities for 2017 are to: Ensure there is a culture of inclusion in the college, with a particular focus on Indigenous, LGBTIQ, International, Refugee and Special Learning Needs students.

For more detailed information regarding our school please visit our website at [www.bssc.edu.au]

Bendigo Senior Secondary College

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Performance Summary

The Government School Performance Summary provides an overview of how this school is contributing to the objectives of the Education State and how it compares to other Victorian government schools.

All schools work in partnership with their school community to improve outcomes for children and young people. Sharing this information with parents and the wider school community will help to deliver community engagement in student learning in the school, which is a state-wide priority of the Framework for Improving Student Outcomes.

Accessible data tables are available for all schools separately – please refer to 'AR_Appendix_Data_Tables' which can be found on the School Performance Reporting website.

School Profile

Enrolment Profile A total of 1765 students were enrolled at this school in 2016, 952 female and 813 male. There were 5% of EAL (English as an Additional Language) students and 2% ATSI (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander) students.

Overall Socio-Economic Profile Based on the school's Student Family Occupation and Education index which takes into account parents' occupations and Education.

Parent Satisfaction Summary Average level of parent satisfaction with the school, as derived from the annual Parent Opinion survey. The score is reported

on a scale of 1 to 7, where 7 is the highest possible score.

School Staff Survey Measures the percent endorsement by staff on School Climate derived from the annual School Staff Survey. The percent endorsement indicates the percent of positive responses (agree or strongly agree) on School Climate from staff at the school. Data are suppressed for schools with fewer than three respondents to the survey for confidentiality reasons.

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Performance Summary

Achievement

Student Outcomes

School Comparison

Teacher judgment of student achievement Percentage of students in Years 7 to 10 working at or above age expected standards in:

English

Mathematics

For further details refer to How to read the Performance Summary.

No Data Available

No Data Available

No Data Available

No Data Available

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Performance Summary

Achievement

Student Outcomes

School Comparison

NAPLAN Year 7 The percentage of students in the top 3 bands of testing in NAPLAN at Year 7. Year 7 assessments are reported on a scale from Bands 4-9.

No Data Available

No Data Available

No Data Available

No Data Available

Being the first year of secondary school, Year 7 NAPLAN is not used for the School

Comparison.

NAPLAN Year 9 The percentage of students in the top 3 bands of testing in NAPLAN at Year 9. Year 9 assessments are reported on a scale from Bands 5-10.

No Data Available

No Data Available

No Data Available

No Data Available

Bendigo Senior Secondary College

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Performance Summary

Achievement

Student Outcomes

School Comparison

NAPLAN Learning Gain Year 5 - Year 7

Learning gain of students from Year 5 to Year 7 in the following domains; Reading, Numeracy, Writing, Spelling & Grammar and Punctuation. NAPLAN learning gain is determined by comparing a student's current year result to the results of all ‘similar’ Victorian students (i.e. students in all sectors in the same year level who had the same score two years prior). If the current year result is in the top 25%, their gain level is categorised as ‘High’, middle 50%, is ‘Medium’ and bottom 25%, is ‘Low’.

NAPLAN Learning Gain does not require a School Comparison.

NAPLAN Learning Gain Year 7 - Year 9

Learning gain of students from Year 7 to Year 9 in the following domains; Reading, Numeracy, Writing, Spelling & Grammar and Punctuation. NAPLAN learning gain is determined by comparing a student's current year result to the results of all ‘similar’ Victorian students (i.e. students in all sectors in the same year level who had the same score two years prior). If the current year result is in the top 25%, their gain level is categorised as ‘High’, middle 50%, is ‘Medium’ and bottom 25%, is ‘Low’.

NAPLAN Learning Gain does not require a School Comparison.

Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE) Mean study score from all VCE subjects undertaken by students at this school. This includes all Unit 3 and 4 studies (including those completed in Year 11) and any VCE VET studies awarded a study score. The maximum student study score is 50 and the state-wide mean (including government and non-government schools) is set at 30.

Students in 2016 who satisfactorily completed their VCE: 97% Year 12 students in 2016 undertaking at least one Vocational Education and Training (VET) unit of competence: 34% VET units of competence satisfactorily completed in 2016: 81% Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning (VCAL) credits satisfactorily completed in 2016: 81%

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Performance Summary

Engagement

Student Outcomes

School Comparison

Average Number of Student Absence Days Average days absent per full time equivalent (FTE) student per year. Common reasons for non-attendance include illness and extended family holidays. Absence from school can impact on students’ learning. A school comparison rating of ‘lower’ indicates that the absence rate in this school is greater than what we would estimate, given the background characteristics of their students. Average 2016 attendance rate by year level:

Low absences <------> high absences

Low absences <------> high absences

Yr7

Yr8

Yr9

Yr10

Yr11

Yr12

NA

NA

NA

97 %

93 %

92 %

Student Retention Percentage of Year 7 students who remain at the school through to Year 10.

No Data Available

No Data Available

No Data Available

No Data Available

Students exiting to further studies and full-time employment Percentage of students from Years 10 to 12 going on to further studies or full-time employment.

Note: This measure uses data from the previous year.

Bendigo Senior Secondary College

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Performance Summary

Wellbeing

Student Outcomes

School Comparison

Students Attitudes to School - Connectedness to School Measures the Connectedness to School factor derived from the Attitudes to School survey completed annually by Victorian government school students in Years 5 to 12. The school's average score is reported here on a scale of 1 to 5, where 5 is the highest possible score.

Students Attitudes to School - Student Perceptions of Safety Measures the Student Perceptions of Safety factor derived from the Attitudes to School survey completed annually by Victorian government school students in Years 5 to 12. The school's average score is reported here on a scale of 1 to 5, where 5 is the highest possible score.

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How to read the Performance Summary

What are student outcomes? Student outcomes show the achievements of students in this school in English and Mathematics. They also show results in national literacy and numeracy tests and, for secondary colleges, the Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE) examinations. They provide important information about student attendance and engagement at school. For secondary, P-12 and specialist schools, the Performance Summary also provides information about how many students at this school go on to further studies or full-time work after leaving school. You can see these results for the latest year, as well as the average of the last four years (where available).

What is a School Comparison?

The School comparison is a way of comparing school performance that takes into account the different student intake characteristics of each school. A School comparison takes into account the school’s academic intake, the socio-economic background of students, the number of Aboriginal students, the number of non-English speaking and refugee students, the number of students with a disability, and the size and location of the school. The School comparison measures show that most schools are doing well and are achieving results that are ‘similar’ to what we

would estimate given the background characteristics of their students. Some schools are doing exceptionally well with the students they have, and have ‘higher’ performance. Some schools have ‘lower’ performance after taking into account their

students’ characteristics – these schools will receive targeted support to ensure that there is improvement.

Looking at both the student outcomes and school comparisons provides important information about what a school is doing well and the areas that require further improvement. More information on school comparison performance measures can be found at: http://www.education.vic.gov.au/school/principals/manage ment/pages/performreports.aspx

What is the meaning of ‘Data not available’?

For some schools, there are too few students to provide data. For other schools, there are no students at some levels, so school comparisons are not possible. Newly opened schools have only the latest year of data and no averages from previous years. The Department also recognises the unique circumstances of Specialist, Select Entry, English Language and Community Schools where school comparisons are not appropriate.

What is this school doing to improve?

All schools have a plan to improve outcomes for their students. The ‘About Our School’ statement provides a summary of this school’s improvement plan.

The Performance Summary also allows you to compare student outcomes for students at this school with the outcomes of students in all other Victorian government schools.

Additionally, NAPLAN learning gain charts are provided for each of the NAPLAN domains. These compare a student's current year NAPLAN result to the results of all ‘similar’ Victorian students (i.e. students in all sectors in the same year level who had the same NAPLAN score two years prior). If the current year result is in the top 25% their gain level is categorised as ‘High’, the middle 50% is categorised as ‘Medium’ and the bottom 25% is categorised as ‘Low’.

What are the changes in student achievement? The Victorian Curriculum F–10 has been developed to ensure that curriculum content and achievement standards enable continuous learning for all students, including, students with disabilities. The objectives of the Victorian Curriculum are the same for all students. The curriculum offers flexibility for teachers to tailor their teaching in ways that provide rigorous, relevant and engaging learning and assessment opportunities for students with disabilities. The ‘Towards Foundation Level Victorian Curriculum’ is integrated directly into the curriculum and is referred to as ‘Levels A to D’.

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Financial Performance and Position

Financial performance and position commentary

[Please refer to pg. 13 of the 2016 Annual Report Guidelines for information on how to complete the ‘Financial Performance and Position Commentary’ section]

Financial Performance - Operating Statement Summary for the year ending 31 December, 2016

Financial Position as at 31 December, 2016

Revenue

Actual

Funds Available Actual

High Yield Investment Account $109,692

Official Account $12,071

Other Accounts (Term deposit, Library Fund and Building Fund)

$1,578,741

Total Funds Available $1,700,504

Student Resource Package

$14,478,245

Government Provided DET Grants $999,527

Funds Received Prior to 1/1/2016 $1,843,628

Government Grants Commonwealth $66,922

Government Grants State $136,763

Revenue Other $745,977

Locally Raised Funds $1,414,453

Total Operating Revenue

$19,685,515

Expenditure

Financial Commitments

Operating Reserve $13,551

Asset/Equipment Replacement < 12 months $23,150

Capital - Buildings/Grounds incl SMS<12 months

$36,067

Beneficiary/Memorial Accounts $180,476

Revenue Receipted in Advance $39,607

School Based Programs $766,923

DET Central Coordination $603,204

School/Network/Cluster Coordination $5,731

Provision Accounts $31,795

Total Financial Commitments $1,700,504

Student Resource Package

$16,052,465

Books & Publications $14,654

Communication Costs $113,631

Consumables $591,195

Miscellaneous Expense $1,665,956

Professional Development $114,085

Property and Equipment Services $997,100

Salaries & Allowances $199,759

Trading & Fundraising $97,441

Travel & Subsistence $106,376

Utilities $370,314

Total Operating Expenditure

$20,322,976

Net Operating Surplus/-Deficit

($637,461)

Asset Acquisitions

$1,084,244

Student Resource Package Expenditure figures are as of 06 March 2017 and are subject to change during the reconciliation process. Miscellaneous Expenses may include bank charges, health and personal development, administration charges, camp/excursion costs and taxation charges. Salaries and Allowances refers to school-level payroll.

The Financial Performance table depicts revenue receipted into the college during 2016, combined with funds previously received, against all expenditure incurred during 2016. The outcome depicts a net operating surplus of $53,129. The major expenditure component of the Asset Acquisitions involved the completion of the Student Services Building, at a cost of $985,179. The college has a resultant overall deficit of $1,031,115, which is being managed through prudent staffing decisions, and further financially supported by an increase of 91 student enrolments in 2017. The college has an operating reserve of $13,551 for contingency purposes. Major donors for the year were the Mason Family Trust $30,000, Sidney Myer fund $60,000 and the Taylor Family $29,000. All funds received from the Department, or raised by the school, have been expended, or committed to subsequent years, to support the achievement of educational outcomes and other operational needs of the school, consistent with Department policies, School Council approvals and the intent/purposes for which funding was provided or raised.