The Sharing Best Practice conference at Merici College in Canberra brought together educators from across the nation to network with the experts in evidence-based teaching practice. Keynote presenters, Professor Anne Castles and Dr Bartek Rajkowski were joined by leading researchers, practitioners and educators, to share key learnings and insightful recommendations in the practical application of evidence-based teaching.
Sharing Best Practice Conference Canberra Presenters
In a day filled with knowledge sharing, attendees were able to select from a number of specialised breakout sessions to fully immerse themselves in the practicalities of the pedagogy.
Catholic Education Canberra Goulburn were consistently featured across the day through Catalyst, in several sessions including
The Power of Words and How to Make them Stick with Zoe Cawdron, teacher at St Vincent’s Primary School, Aranda and Lauren Maher, teacher at Mother Teresa Primary School, Harrison.
Transforming Writing: Strategies for Success in K-3 with Lauren MacDonald, Literacy Coordinator at St Francis of Assisi Calwell
Pacing, Gestures, Whiteboards and Encouragement Chants… A Practical Guide to Student Engagement with Monique George and Lauren Jameson, teachers at St Thomas the Apostle, Kambah
The event was rounded off with a presentation from the Catalyst team, showcasing the Catalyst Program as CECG’s approach to improving student outcomes.
One participant from the day said “thank you everyone involved. It was the best PL I’ve done in 17 years of teaching”.
Principals and teachers throughout Catholic Education Canberra Goulburn are delighted in the 2023 NAPLAN results achieved, which are testament to high impact teaching practice implemented through
the Catalyst program, which was launched in October 2020.
Notably, Year 3 and 5 students at CECG schools as a whole outperformed the national averages in both Reading and Numeracy. These results show the Systems progress towards achieving one of the Catalyst approach’s bold goals of “every student a competent reader”.
Catholic Education Archdiocese of Canberra & Goulburn Director, Ross Fox, attributes the results to high quality classroom instruction. “If we get that right, 90 to 95 per cent of students should reliably progress. And for those students who may still need further help and support, the program places high priority on early intervention.”
Mr Fox said that the results were being quantified to provide an evidence base on the new approach, supporting research already undertaken by the Snow Foundation, early in 2023, which showed improvement in performance against expectations in reading.
Sts Peter and Paul Primary, Garran, has seen a significant improvement in their NAPLAN results, credited to the implementation of a Science of Learning based teaching approach. This year’s NAPLAN results have shown the efficacy of the explicit method, Principal Cameron Johns told the Canberra Times.
“The results are very pleasing and it’s certainly an indication of the great work that the system has put into schools,”
“I do think it’s evidence that it’s working,” he said.
Meanwhile, at St Vincent’s Primary School in Aranda, NAPLAN results across reading, writing, spelling, grammar and numeracy were higher than the ACT, NSW and national averages. In Year 3, 41 percent of students excelled in reading and 52 percent were rated as strong readers.
Acting principal Monique Egan reads with year 3/5 students, Mila, Liz, Ryan and Bjanuka at St Vincent’s Primary School in Canberra. Picture: Martin Ollman. Image credit: The Australian
In an interview with The Australian, Acting Principal, Monique Egan, said “We believe our strong performance is a result of the change in pedagogy we have undergone in recent years. We set very high expectations and we revisit the same idea over and over again and do multiple checks for understanding with students’ understanding every lesson.”
In addition, the explicit teaching methods have not just delivered higher academic standards, but also has led to happier and more engaged students, “and when you have more focused kids, you get more learning done.”
Ms Egan has a Masters in Cognitive Science and is delighted to see the ‘brain science’ underpinning the Catalyst framework delivering impact in the classroom.
St John Vianney’s Primary School in Waramanga was featured in an ABC news article celebrating the strong NAPLAN scores for Canberra Catholic Schools. Assistant Principal, Nina De Rosa, expressed her excitement at the “great difference” the Catalyst teaching approach has made, saying,
“I think our results still shine because our children are happy to learn and they’re achieving at their level”
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NAPLAN 2023 results proves science of reading, explicit teaching works, St Peter and Paul Primary School principal Cameron Johns says, The Canberra Times Read online (subscription required)
Sts Peter and Paul Primary, Garran, has seen a significant improvement in their NAPLAN results, credited to the implementation of a Science of Learning based teaching approach. This year’s NAPLAN results have shown the efficacy of the explicit method, Principal Cameron Johns said.
“The results are very pleasing and it’s certainly an indication of the great work that the system has put into schools,”
“I do think it’s evidence that it’s working,” he said.
Catholic Education Canberra Goulburn’s approach to teaching and learning has continued to draw national interest from across the Nation, with colleagues from Catholic Education Diocese of Cairns visiting some of our schools to see it in action.
Viewing teacher practice at Holy Family Primary School, Gowrie
Viewing teacher practice at St Gregory’s Primary School, Queanbeyan
The Catalyst team were delighted to host four system leaders from the Cairns Diocese as they sought to learn more about how High Impact Teaching Practice has been implemented across our schools.
Our colleagues from Cairns visited 4 schools observing HITP in action and speaking to teachers and school leaders about the positive impact at both school and classroom levels, as well as the improvement in student outcomes.
They also spent time with CECG Director Ross Fox and the Catalyst team to gain insights into the implementation approach from a system level.
Viewing teacher practice at St Vincent’s Primary School, Aranda
Meeting the team at Holy Family Primary School, Gowrie
Catholic Schools in Canberra have made marked improvement in the reading performance of its students according to the Equity Economics report, prepared for the ACT Alliance for Evidence-Based Education.
The analysis found Catholic schools lifted the performance of Year 3 students in NAPLAN reading over the past four years after adopting Catalyst in 2020.
Ross Fox, director at Catholic Education Archdiocese of Canberra and Goulburn, welcomed the report as an endorsement of the sector’s efforts to lift literacy outcomes.
“It’s great that the dedicated efforts of our teachers to improve learning for students is recognised in this way.
“We need more time to measure long-term outcomes, but we are seeing significant improvements in schools and classrooms and positive feedback from parents that we are on the right track and making good progress,” he said.
The Equity Economics report has urged others to adopt many of the changes made at Catholic schools under the Catalyst program.
‘Raising the grade: How schools in the ACT can lift literacy outcomes for students and the economy’ report cover page
Good Shepherd Primary School, Amaroo was delighted to host Senator Sarah Henderson, Shadow Federal Education Minister on her visit to understand how evidence-based teaching practice translates to the classroom.
Senator Henderson toured the school with the Principal David Austin, Education Lead Patrick Ellis, other leaders, teachers and Year 6 students to view the impact that the system project of Catalyst has had on teaching practice and student learning.
Senator Henderson observing teacher practice
Teachers across Kindergarten, Year 1, 4 and 5 demonstrated explicit teaching practice they had learnt through High Impact Teaching Practice professional learning. Senator Henderson also talked to students who shared their experiences with the changes in teaching practice and how it has impacted their learning.
The whole school was delighted to have the Senator visit and for her to see firsthand the positive impact Catalyst is having on teaching practice and student learning. Senator Henderson shared that Catholic Education Canberra-Goulburn is leading the nation in the evidence-based approach to teaching and she is very supportive of our continued effort and focus in this area.
Thank you to Principal David Austin and his staff for hosting the Senator on the very first day of school for the term.
Senator Henderson meeting students
Senator Henderson with Patrick Ellis, Education Lead, David Austin, Good Shepherd Primary School Principal and Jane Kilmartin, Consultant to CECG Director
Catholic Education Canberra Goulburn (CECG) Senior Officer, Teaching and Learning Literacy Jessica Colleu Terradas has published her report ‘To identify effective language and literacy screening and intervention practices for at-risk students’, through the Churchill Fellowship.
Developing the research paper involved observing global best practice in literacy instruction, including attending the Reading League Annual conference in Syracuse (New York) and the International Dyslexia Association Annual Conference in San Antonio (Texas).
The Churchill Fellowship enabled Jessica to explore language and literacy screening procedures and identify effective instructional practices. Her aim is to continue to promote effective classroom instruction, improve early identification of children with reading difficulties, and to provide advice about effective targeted intervention to help all readers reach their full potential.
The report referenced CECG’s Catalyst Program and how our teachers and Principals have reported students who experience explicit teaching practices achieve greater learning gains. Jessica decided to apply for a Churchill Fellowship in the hope it would help her lead the change she wants to see – where no child leaves school unable to read. Her aim is to disrupt the trajectory of at-risk adolescents ending in the juvenile justice system and to substantially reduce the number of students entering secondary school with low literacy.
Jessica’s goal with the Fellowship was to research and identify effective language and literacy screening and classroom reading intervention practices from schools around the world, for at-risk students so that these can be disseminated to teachers in primary and secondary schools and those in teacher training.
Finally, Jessica hopes that her report and findings will be used to make recommendations with the potential to shape the future of schooling in Australia, leading to more equitable outcomes for all.
Catholic Education Canberra Goulburn (CECG) has been recognised at a national level for its bold vision and achievements in reimagining their teaching and learning approach at a meeting of State and Federal Education Ministers. It has also been profiled by the media on a national scale which draws attention to challenges within the education system and the solution that CECG has been implementing over the past four years to transform lives through learning.
Federal Education Minister Jason Clare said the initiative was aimed at making teachers feel more confident when they start the job.
“A lot of teachers tell me they did not feel like they were prepared for the classroom when they finished university,” he said.
Ross Fox, Director of CECG, echoed the Minister, recognising that early career teachers were too often not equipped with the knowledge and skills they needed to be successful in the classroom.
“We realised that to achieve the learning and teaching that we wanted at Catholic Education Archdiocese of Canberra Goulburn, we had to start with the theory that our educators needed to know to be able to effectively teach students,” Ross said.
“We believe that the teacher is the most important learner in our system and the education of the teacher is essential to the quality of learning that we can provide. If we support the teacher as the most important learner, they will take care of the students,” he said.
CECG Director Ross Fox with students from St Mary Mackillop
CECG initiated Catalyst over two years ago, to ensure all teachers could confidently deliver evidence-based, high impact teaching practice in their classrooms through specifically designed professional learning opportunities.
“There is an international movement that recognises that too often teachers didn’t know what they needed to know about how brains learn.”
“Catalyst draws on thousands of years of knowledge and history and giving teachers the tangible skills to apply it in classrooms in a contemporary and exciting way, is where we are going to make a big difference across Canberra Goulburn and hopefully across Australia.”
Catalyst aligns to the recommended reforms by focusing on High Impact Teaching Practice (HITP), including
Breaking down what students need to learn and then demonstrating each step so that students understand what is expected of them – Explicit Instruction, Sequencing Concepts and Modelling (Rosenshine)
Assessing where students are in their learning and providing them with timely feedback to correct misunderstandings and build their knowledge – Check for Understanding, Daily Review (Rosenshine) and TAPPLE (DataWORKS)
Establishing safe, supportive, and engaging classroom environments, through Engagement Norms and explicitly teaching acceptable classroom behaviour
Catalyst has been featured in a three-part series on the popular Knowledge for Teachers podcast, hosted by Brendan Lee.
Brendan, an experienced school teacher who has developed a passion for the Science of Learning, shares his insights in his weekly podcasts. This podcast series on Catalyst provided insight into the practical elements of implementing an evidence-based teaching approach and how to embed the Science of Reading and Learning into any classroom.
Ross Fox, Director of the Catholic Education Archdiocese of Canberra Goulburn (CECG) was the first guest in the series. He spoke about the vision behind Catalyst and his personal Science of Learning journey, including the process that he and the CECG team have gone through to implement Catalyst across the 56 schools in the system.
Patrick Ellis, Education Lead for Catalyst was interviewed for the second episode in the series which focused on the implementation process, the challenges they faced, and what they learned.
In the third and final podcast, Brendan spoke to Johanna Wain (Principal), Jennifer Smith (Coordinator) and Rebecca Brady (Teacher) from St Bernard’s Primary School where Catalyst has been implemented throughout the school.
The podcast with St Bernard’s staff focused on how and why they started their Catalyst journey, navigated challenges along the way and key elements for any teacher or school who are looking at implementing a Science of Learning and Reading informed approach.
Catholic Education Canberra Goulburn (CECG) continues to make great strides in achieving the Catalyst vision and in recognising that the teacher is the most important learner. It has committed significant resources and expertise to produce an unprecedented suite of materials for teachers to leverage every day, to optimise their impact and save them time in class preparation.
By the end of 2023, teachers working in Kindergarten to Year 6 will be able to access a complete year’s worth of Mathematics curriculum resources. With 950 high quality teaching resources developed to date, in partnership with Shaping Minds and Ochre Education, a further 1,300 resources will be delivered by December.
CECG Director Ross Fox said developing these high quality, low variance resources and sharing them throughout every school in the Archdiocese would boost teacher efficiency and support.
“We’ve worked with partners to construct a curriculum that we are proud of, having both quality and quantity of resources, that are directly applicable to all K-6 Mathematics, for a full year of learning.”
“By provisioning these resources, teachers in our schools will spend less time planning and finding materials with more time doing what they do best – teaching children,” he said.
“This will also help us to ensure every student in every classroom is afforded excellent learning opportunities,” Ross said.
These materials are being incorporated as part of teacher professional learning through High Impact Teaching Practice to ensure staff are confident in implementing them in the classroom.
Usage and feedback of the resources have been overwhelmingly positive. Data to date has shown the resources, which are available through the Catalyst Resources Centre (staff only), have been accessed over 75,000 times. Equating to over 5,000 views per week, and over 1,000 per school day.
“I’m so impressed with the new resources and can’t thank you enough for making these for us. It will greatly reduce the amount of work we have to do in our spare time,” said Priscilla Caragh, Year 6 Teacher at Holy Family Primary School, Gowrie.
“It has significantly reduced teacher workload and is very affirming knowing that all staff are using quality EDI and Review lessons across our school and the system,” said Jessie White, Classroom Teacher at St Mary’s Primary School Moruya.
The suite’s 40-week plan includes
Scope and Sequence documents that plot Australian Curriculum / NSW Syllabus Outcomes into a lesson-by-lesson schedule that reflects spaced and interleaved practice
Curriculum Maps that show the topics for the year, suggested sequence for each topic and explicit guidance on how to implement each lesson in the sequence
Lesson resources for every lesson including Daily Review slides, Explicit Lesson slides, Independent Worksheets and Re-Teach materials
