From the Head of Teaching and Learning

This week the campus has come back to life as staff and students have returned from the break. There has been energy around campus as we commence the semester, and it is my hope that we can sustain this enthusiasm and excitement as we progress through what will be a busy term.

As part of the staff professional learning at the commencement of this term, I shared the results of some assessments that we undertook as a school late in 2022.  We undertook this so that we could benchmark ourselves globally across several domains. The PISA Benchmarking for Schools enables schools to see how their students compare to like age peers within Australia and the OECD.  

The PISA-Based Test for Schools measures 15-year-old student’s knowledge and competencies in reading, mathematics and science and I will share some of this data with you in the coming weeks. It also measures their attitudes towards learning and school and the learning environments of the schools themselves. Importantly these assessments measure not just whether students can reproduce what they have learned, but how well they can extrapolate from what they know and apply their knowledge creatively in novel contexts.

One of the additional domains included in the testing is Global Competence. Globally competent individuals can examine local, global and intercultural issues, understand and appreciate different perspectives and world views, interact successfully and respectfully with others, and take responsible action toward sustainability and collective well-being. One of the goals of our strategic plan is to ensure that the MLC School Girl is encouraged to engage with her peers, teachers, and the local and international community to grapple with issues that affect her world, so the data from this section of the assessment is important and indeed heartening. On all measures our students reported more positive results than both their Australian and OECD counterparts. Our students report being respectful of people from different cultures and valuing being part of a multicultural community.  They are well informed about global issues and are willing to take action to help others. Their responses indicate an optimism for being able to have a positive impact on their own lives and the lives of others. Our girls truly are global citizens.

– Linda Emms
Head of Teaching and Learning

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