Curriculum

​​​​​​In this section you will find information about our curriculum and iXL@ Yarrabilba Academy Programs.

Yarrabilba State Secondary College Junior Secondary Curriculum

• ​​Our vision at  Yarrabilba State Secondary College is that all students are understood, engaged, safe and supported, going on to live a life of choice, not a life of chance. 
  
• Our Core Programs, GEM and Discovery, aim to engage students in holistic education where they learn key knowledge and skills contained in the Australian Curriculum via interdisciplinary approaches and project-based learning, better equipping them with transferable skills for an uncertain future. 
  
• With this in mind, we have designed our Junior Secondary Curriculum to meet the needs of students journeying into a world that is rapidly changing and evolving.
• Both interdisciplinary programs prepare students with the general capabilities of the Australian Curriculum and the 21^st Century skills (Critical Thinking, Creative Thinking, Communication, Collaboration and Teamwork, Personal and Social Skills and ICT skills) necessary for success in their senior studies and beyond. ​
• These interdisciplinary courses meet the requirements of the Australian Curriculum.  Students will learn key knowledge and skills through real-life and project-based learning opportunities and teachers will assess evidence of student learning against the Achievement Standards for each year level.  ​
• The programs provide students opportunities to delve deeper into curriculum knowledge and concepts, allowing them to make connections across a broad range of key learning areas in meaningful ways, and have been designed with students' post-school futures in mind.​

​GEM

GEM (Global Studies, Enterprise and Media Arts) moves away from a traditional model of curriculum separation or silos and adopts an interdisciplinary approach to delivering the Australian Curriculum in a more meaningful way.

A key focus of GEM classes is to make explicit the links between the traditional subject disciplines of English, Humanities, Social Sciences and Media Arts, to connect in-school learning with real-life beyond the classroom and to develop the Australian Curriculum General Capabilities.  Student learning is assessed holistically through a folio collection of 'evidence of learning' against the AC Achievement Standards.  

To ensure that we provide a range and balance within teaching, learning and assessment, GEM provides opportunities for student choice in content, mode of learning, and assessment according to need. Students are invited to demonstrate their learning through common tasks as well as ways that best suit their individual strengths. Learning environments are flexible, innovative and inclusive ensuring all students are connected, valued and safe.

Years 7 and 8 engage in 4 interdisciplinary units of work, one each term. Year 9 students engage in 2 interdisciplinary units before choosing either a Global Studies Stream or an Enterprise Stream in Semester 2.​​

Discovery

Science and Mathematics are combined into one course called DISCOVERY which incorporates Digital Technologies and Sustainability.

Discovery provides students with opportunities to delve deeper into curriculum knowledge and concepts, enabling them to make connections across a range of key learning areas in meaningful ways. Through Discovery, students will develop a strong foundation of skills necessary to become life-long learners. Discovery expands students' curiosity and willingness to explore, ask questions and speculate about the changing world in which they live. Our holistic approach to curriculum enables students to develop 21^st Century skills critical to success beyond formal schooling. 

Students will learn key knowledge and skills through real-life and project-based learning opportunities. A range of techniques are used to ensure students have a deep understanding of Mathematics, Sciences and Technologies in real world integrated scenarios. A hands-on approach to learning, using concrete materials where appropriate, supports theoretical understanding and creates natural links between mathematics, science and technologies in real life. A strong emphasis on learning in and about the natural environment is supported by our College ethos around Ecology and Sustainability.

Students will complete evidence items ranging from written reports, scientific investigations, multi-modal presentations and quizzes to contribute to their assessment portfolios. Evidence of learning will include a range of task-types including some common pieces across cohorts and some that are student choice. Teachers will collect and assess evidence of student learning against the Achievement Standards of the Australian Curriculum. 

Real-world Connections

Our model of Junior Secondary Curriculum ensures that learning opportunities will develop a strong foundation of knowledge and skills for lifelong learning. With the support of community and industry partners, we will ensure our students are able to make real-world connections within our local and global communities. This holistic approach enables students to develop 21st century skills, which are critical to ensuring students go on to 'live a life of choice, not a life of chance.' 

If you have any questions regarding the courses, please contact Head of Departments Janelle Whatmore jwhat21@eq.edu.au or Chris Gauthier cgaut5@eq.edu.au

Innovation, Project-based Learning and Entrepreneurship

Project-based learning (PBL) is student-centred learning that involves a dynamic classroom approach in which students acquire a deeper knowledge through active exploration of real-world challenges and problems. Students learn about a topic by working for an extended period of time to investigate and respond to a complex question, challenge, or problem. It is a style of active learning and inquiry-based or discovery learning. PBL contrasts with paper-based, rote memorization, or teacher-led instruction that simply presents established facts or portrays a smooth path to knowledge by instead posing questions, problems or scenarios.

Project-based learning is NOT about students 'doing a project', either individually or in groups, that is handed in for marking at the end of a unit. Students may be assessed on knowledge and skills at any stage throughout the learning process.  Evidence of what students know, understand and can do is collected (in the form of a hard copy or digital portfolio) throughout the length of the project or term of work. It may be the case that students do not all 'do' the same assessment tasks to determine what they know, understand and can do. Students may demonstrate evidence of the Australian Curriculum achievement standards in different ways and be assessed against and reported on using an A-E scale. 

Ideally, students will have the opportunity to share or show-case their learning through a 'public' presentation at the end of the project/term/unit. That does not mean necessarily that the physical 'project' is completed at the end of a term or unit. The 'physical project' may be a much longer-term venture. Examples such as establishing permaculture gardens, sourcing and installing water tanks and pumps, composting processes, establishing worm farms, and design and construction of chicken 'tractors' may constitute a whole year or several years' worth of work (learning). The smaller components of this task such as knowledge, understanding and skill associated with design, prototype-testing, animal husbandry, water quality, soil testing, botanical knowledge, sustainable practices, costing, marketing, pitching, persuasion, and so on, may be the assessable components against Australian Curriculum achievement standards at appropriate stages of the larger project.

Please see our Junior Secondary  - Year 9 Subject Selection booklet (PDF, 1.6MB)​ (for grade 9 only). 

Year 7 and 8 Curriculum Overview

Junior Evidence of Learning Policy

This policy provides information and guidelines for teachers, students and parents/carers about how we assess student learning as part of our junior secondary model (Years 7 – 9) at Yarrabilba SSC.  The policy has been developed and informed by the Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Framework (CARF) from the Department of Education.

​In 2022, Year 10 students will be introduced to an assessment policy that will support them as they transition into the senior secondary learning years at Yarrabilba SSC.  This policy will align with the Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority (QCAA) syllabus documents and Australian Skills Quality Authority (ASQA) Vocational training packages.

See the Evidence of Learning Policy here​. 

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