A milestone year at Elsternwick

This year marked a significant event – 30 years at Wesley College Elsternwick. It’s an anniversary year in which progress and innovation have gone hand in hand with tradition and history. Jacinta Janssens reports on a year of continuity and change at the Elsternwick Campus.

‘Continuity gives us roots; change gives us branches, letting us stretch and grow and reach new heights.’ So said American educator, and later politician, Pauline Kezer. That’s certainly been the case at the Elsternwick Campus in a year in which we’ve seen much change and continuity.

Picture the scene back in 1989: a sunny February day on the Big Lawn when 400 students alongside staff, community members and special guests gathered together to celebrate and commemorate the official amalgamation of Cato College with Wesley College.

It felt like déjà vu this February, maybe as it was also a warm sunny day, when more than 400 students and staff again gathered – this time to form the number ‘30’ to commemorate our years as the Wesley College Elsternwick Campus. We gained a varied history, tradition and culture through our connection with Cato College and Methodist Ladies College, as well as connections with a broader community. Thirty years ago this year, great changes were afoot at 5 Gladstone Parade, Elsternwick!

Progress and innovation

After 153 years at Elsternwick, tradition and history play an important role in the life of our school. At the same time, we are progressive and innovative as we constantly reflect on best practice as we prepare our young people for the world of the future. We have undertaken many changes throughout 2019: a revised Shape of the Day was introduced to support teacher collaboration, ensure College alignment and to support balance, breadth and depth across our programs. The introduction of WiSE, our new learning management system, has kept members of our community well updated, providing information on student progress and achievement, communicating current learning and sharing updates on relevant events.

We have embedded ‘mindfulness’ across both Junior and Middle Schools as a fundamental part of our day-to-day life. The newly refurbished, modern and light Grove Block for our Middle School students has been greatly appreciated, with students and staff excited about their new teaching and learning space.

We are thrilled that our outside environment and Sports Hall are priorities for the next stages of development and change at Elsternwick.

Tradition and history

At the same time, and equally importantly, continuity has occurred through the ongoing development and progress of our International Baccalaureate programs, the Primary Years Program and Middle Years Program, and best practice teaching and learning through inquiry pedagogy, real-life contexts and rigorous assessment, as well as our emphasis on explicit action and service learning. The Early Childhood and Primary Enhanced Language Program in Chinese also continues to develop as our students have become more competent and skilled in the Chinese language. The continuity of Wesley is embedded in the history we celebrate, whether that be through our annual Founders’ Day or this year’s celebration of 30 years as a Wesley College campus.

The roots of Wesley College are strong, so our branches continue to grow. Change is inevitable and a natural part of our culture and while our continuity is evident though the traditions we reflect upon and celebrate each year, we strive to extend ourselves in a way that ensures all community members are challenged to achieve their potential.

Jacinta Janssens is Head of the Elsternwick Campus