Berkley Normal Middle School .::. Year 9

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Year 9

Three year 9 classes
Accelerate (Gifted and Talented)
Class sizes no more than 25

Our Year 9 programme offers high academic challenges

We provide a physically and emotionally safe learning environment.
Social experiences appropriate to this age group
We aim to build positive relationships between students teachers

"A physically and emotionally safe environment for students" ERO

Our Year 9 programme has the following features:

More active and relevant learning opportunities than other types of schools
Links between subjects more frequently made
Provide more opportunity for student feedback during curriculum planning
Extensive range of active learning and teaching strategies
Student diversity was considered in selection of learning and teaching strategies
Range of assessment activities and extent to which self-assessment was practiced is greater
Communication with families more regular and positive Highly nurturing and positive
Commonly held high expectations for every student regardless of academic ability

School Council
Berkley values the opinions of our students. In a community that is promoting self-direction it is important that our student body has a vehicle to express and develop ideas that influence the way both policy and learning opportunities are developed. The school council consists of 6 members from our year 9 group. These students were elected to their position at the beginning of this year. They are expected to meet with representatives of their team. These meetings provide the platform upon which students can bring forward ideas and concerns and debate them. Each councillor then will bring to the council meeting, items worthy of discussion in this forum. Councillors will place on the agenda items they wish to represent. All the necessary research/level of support/patterns of argument will be prepared in advance for the meetings. Meetings will be minuted and these in turn shared with respective team councils. Students ought to be able to see that their ideas are discussed in a full council setting. This structure will provide students with an effective model of governance. All students ought to feel that their ideas have an avenue for expression. Each councillor will be given training in how best to represent the views of others. Resolutions or courses of action will be recorded and communicated back via each councillor to team forums. Our school community will prosper with increased student input. This is a forum in which students can begin to see the relationship between rights and responsibilities.

Our school mission statement - we care; we share; we dare - will be the focus of our elective body.