Teaching and Learning
Our academic program at Arndell aims to promote a culture of lifelong learning throughout our community.
Through clear leadership, outstanding staff and good resources, we aspire to be custodians of a positive and affirming culture in which confident and competent learners are nurtured to explore questions, seek answers and solve problems – as well as to care passionately about their neighbours, their community and their environment.
We provide a rigorous, well-balanced and comprehensive education that is both relevant and engaging for students who aim to take their place in a rapidly changing world.
Our curriculum meets the challenges of national benchmark testing and also performance by students in national competitions. Our students gain excellent Higher School Certificate results that give them a wide range of choice for their post-secondary educational pathways.
To view these results, please refer to the Annual Report.
Arndell is very interested in how students learn – we strive to bring the best out of each student. We try to make the teaching and learning relationship as effective as possible through:
- Maintaining teaching and learning as a key focus
- Differentiating the curriculum to meet a spectrum of student interests, abilities and preferred learning modes
- Providing students quality feedback
- Developing our teachers and leaders as classroom practitioners
- Coordinating the professional learning of our staff across the College
- Inducting new teachers to the College with this culture
- Ensuring the New South Wales Institute of Teachers accreditation of New Scheme teachers is followed
- Encouraging experienced teachers to seek higher Independent Schools Teacher Accreditation Authority accreditation
The Director of Teaching and Learning and the Director of Curriculum and Policy work closely in a variety of areas including parent information, developing teaching, learning and assessment strategies and preparing for Board of Studies inspections, as well as assisting teachers, Heads of Department and other members of the College Executive to achieve excellence in the performance of their various teaching and learning roles.
Gifted and Talented
Arndell Anglican College organises programs and activities to promote interest and excitement in learning for all students in the area of their talents especially through encouraging teachers to provide extension activities in classes and organising interest days, special excursions, co-curricular activities and special interest groups.
Arndell Anglican College provides services to students who have difficulty with one or more aspects of their learning. These include:
- Special provisions for examinations
- One to one tutorials for reading, writing and numeracy
- Small group learning to build social skills, discussion skills and refine assessment tasks
- In class help for students to enable them to learn in a class situation
- Assisting teaching staff to scaffold worksheets, assessment tasks and examinations to make tasks accessible to all students
- Running special programs for students who have significant delay in reading, writing and numeracy
- Organising and training peer tutors to assist other students in class and examinations
Organising ongoing professional development for staff to assist in the understanding of all students’ classroom needs