At St. Julie’s Catholic High School, we believe that all students are entitled to an education that will enable them to develop to their full potential by finding appropriate challenges in their learning environment. All students have individual needs, which puts personalised learning at the heart of our teaching plans. We continue to be inspired by the beliefs and values of our patron saint, St Julie Billiart of Namur, who stated “Let them be taught what is necessary for life”. This statement is as relevant today as it was over 200 years ago when St Julie founded the Sisters of Notre Dame with an educational mission to provide young people with the skills necessary to contribute to society through a variety of means.
Our Notre Dame values of faith, truth, joy, love, justice and hope guide us in the development of the curriculum for our students. In doing this, we are mindful that:
• Our curriculum is designed to show faith in the capabilities of our students, regardless of their prior attainment, successes and failures, and concerns about their ability to achieve (where faith, prayer and reflection are visible in word and in action)
• A research-based approach reveals the truth that our students can succeed in all their endeavours and have a meaningful and purposeful life despite inequalities in society, which they learn to recognise to overcome (embracing the diversity of all God’s people)
• Students find the greatest joy in their learning when it is challenging, purposeful and recognises their autonomy as unique individuals with their own dreams and aspirations (discovering potential and sharing unique talents)
• Showing love of our students means committing to building a curriculum that equips them to overcome the social disadvantages inherent in our local context (taking good care of God’s world and all who inhabit it, especially the poor and disadvantaged)
• Within our local context, justice demands that we maximise the extent to which pupils can experience a depth of learning that truly equips them with the cultural capital needed to succeed in life, supplemented by a breadth of opportunities beyond the taught or examined curriculum (where fairness, care and compassion are central to life)
• Our curriculum design is reflective of our intimate knowledge of how best to instil in our students the clear sense of hope and direction that safeguards and nurtures their dreams and ambitions (which provides all with a safe and secure environment)