Strategic Plan 2021-2024

We want our education to evolve to become even more personalised. If a student can say, at the end of their time here at Mulgrave, that they had a unique experience, even though they are in the same class and studying the same unit of inquiry as their classmates, that is a success. They would recognise that their journey differed through how they learned, what they learned, and the support they received.

Wellbeing is also of fundamental importance, even more so than anything else. We want students increasingly, at an age appropriate level,  to have a deeper understanding of their own well being and the key elements of wellbeing and of course improved wellbeing. 

Students will also have improved skills in creativity, global citizenship, and entrepreneurship.

The changes and improvements we will make in students’ education are qualitative as well as quantitative. We will use a range of formal and informal assessment and evaluation measures, again at an age-appropriate level, to determine the extent that students are benefitting from the new initiatives and interventions. These will range from individual assessments to cohort measures as well as questionnaires and focus groups.

For example, we are looking at various tools and instruments to measure wellbeing that focus on checking in with students at various stages across the seven aspects of IPERMAH (click here to read more about this approach, based on theories of Positive Psychology). We will run some student questionnaires, starting with the area of ‘quality of relationships.’ This data collection will not be focussed on individuals, but instead rolled into collective, longitudinal data. We can use this to chart our own progress and also compare against international benchmarks.

Many of our teachers were very inspired by the changes in the world and education that were documented and highlighted throughout the research phase of our planning. Topics such as social justice and racism issues are informing curriculum development. One example is our new Grade 10 Global Citizenship course which aims to enable students to become familiar with, and reason about, key social justice, diversity, equity, and inclusion issues in a 20th and 21st century framework. (Read more on page 14 of Cypress magazine).

This plan is very much about continuous improvement. We’ve brought forward and incorporated things that we felt needed the most attention. So for example, environmental sustainability is obviously a key topic now and in the future, but what we do in this area at school is already quite robust. By focussing on key skills such as critical and creative thinking, students will be able to have a high impact in this and other areas. We felt that was a better approach than setting specific actions on this one topic.

Similarly, we also looked in-depth at AI and the impact of technology on education and careers. We’ve been guided by tech experts in our community who showed us that technology is not yet sophisticated enough to shift how we learn in schools. Diagnostic and assessment tools are in place and evolving, but applications are not quite there yet to improve learning. Throughout our discussions, we looked at the skills that cannot be done by AI - where our students will have continued opportunities in the future. Our programmes focus on communication, interpersonal skills, creative thinking, and problem solving - all aspects of humanity and growth that will not be replaced by technology.

There are many dimensions to this question, from curriculum to digital literacy.

Our approach to teaching and learning technology is very much in keeping with our broad, IB-based, liberal arts curriculum. It is important for students to have awareness and to understand the trajectory and potential of technology but not that all students become proficient or advanced coders, for example. Students should have exposure to technology at a young age and that’s why we are very excited by developments such as our new Junior School Maker Space so they can explore design and areas of tech such as robotics. But, education runs right from preschool through post-secondary and students have time to specialise later if they choose. Some students will gravitate towards high-level coding, robotics, and design tech, which we can support to a degree with our personalised approach to curriculum, as well as through clubs and electives. For those who do not, it is still critical that they understand the cross-disciplinary approach, develop computational thinking, as well as understand the potential and implications of technological advancement.

Digital literacy, which includes safety and safeguarding, is also a very important aspect of this topic. We have a progressive programme within the school, from Kindergarten up, that focusses on using technology safely. It’s taught in the context of other activities to ensure it’s embedded well and connections are made on an ongoing basis. We also need to balance technology use with wellbeing and the skills that underpin wellbeing. Face-to-face relationships are critically important and students (with the support of the school and their families) need to learn healthy boundaries with tech use.

And finally, we also need to look at opportunities for entrepreneurialism and positive gaming in this space. Students can learn a lot about creativity from games such as Minecraft, so we need to use this in a positive way. Students can also turn their ideas into opportunities with designated extra-curricular programming such as the YELL initiative and other electives where students can explore business and social entrepreneurship.

We have extensive programming in this regard throughout our grades. Here are a few examples:

In preschool, social-emotional learning is central as students learn to self-regulate, understand and express their emotions, and get along in groups. 

In the Junior School, students have weekly lessons on positive education and social-emotional learning with our JS Principal and Personal Counsellor. They have a specific curriculum that hones in on understanding the emotions of oneself and others as well as how to manage challenging emotions.

In the Upper School, students have Life Skills (Middle School) and Character Ed (Senior School) as specific classes. They cover age-appropriate topics around healthy relationships and self-care (sleep, diet, fitness, etc).

This one always comes up with students and families alike! Our campus planning surveys show there is an appetite, and our Board is looking into the possibility of a Wellness Centre with aquatic facilities. They are considering the value to both our educational provision, as well as to our community. There would obviously be curriculum enhancements in addition to opportunities that would enrich co-curricular activities, and the facility could be really positive for our local community, too. There are lots of considerations, which include both capital and operating costs, and we need to look at it within the context of the other construction projects that have taken place over the last few years.