Peel High School has been blazing a trail to the future of education for the past 18 months with an initiative which has now been recognised with a major award.
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On Tuesday night Principal Rod Jones accepted the Secretary's Award for an Outstanding School Initiative for the Schools of the Future 2.0 program being run across years seven and eight.
The program has seen the school step away from the traditional classroom scenario, instead utilising project-based learning, with three teachers working collaboratively in dynamic purpose-built spaces, and 60 students in each class.
Head teacher Helen Herdegen said the initiative has already seen drastic improvements in results and attendance in students, and also improvements in teaching collaboration, participation and techniques.
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The award is considered one of the top gongs of the NSW Minister's and Secretary's Awards for Excellence, and comes with strict eligibility criteria, with only 14 given out across the state.
"The program hasn't come without its challenges, but it has been very good for students, staff and results - teacher collaboration and student participation has been brilliant," Mrs Herdegen said.
"We have been given the flexibility to trial, and that has been incredible from a teaching perspective. We assess it, trial it, and assess it again - that flexibility has allowed us to achieve results."
In recent months Mr Jones has been contacted by schools and administrators from all over the state wanting to have a look at the program, and for him the award is further recognition that the school is on right path forward.
"It's really different - it's a different way to teach high school kids, and the perfect way to transition students from primary school into high school," he said.
"This award only looks like a piece of paper, but it is quite a big deal, and we are very proud of the program."
