Edward Dowlan, who now goes by Ted Bales, was imprisoned for nearly a decade in 1996 for offending against 11 students, and for six years in 2015 after he admitted the abuse of another 20 students.

On Thursday he pleaded guilty to more than 30 new charges related to the abuse of 19 boys between 1971 and 1988.

Prosecutor Brett Sonnet told Victoria's County Court that the offending occurred while Dowlan was aged between 21 and 38 and while he was working as a student.

All of his victims were under 16, some as young as eight.

The court heard some of the offending occurred in a classroom at Cathedral College in East Melbourne.

Other offences happened at Ballarat, Geelong, Anglesea and Warrnambool.

Two boys were abused on a school bus while others were preyed upon by their teacher in toilet blocks, change rooms and after being sent to Dowlan for misbehaving in class.

During a football match Dowlan touched one of the boys each time their team kicked a goal, and kissed him when the team won.

Dowlan's nose poked over the top of a blue surgical mask as he faced a pre-sentence hearing.

He answered "guilty" as details of each of the 33 charges were read to him, occasionally shaking his head after uttering the admission.

When asked his occupation, the 72-year-old responded "I'm in prison".

He left the Christian Brothers in 2008.

Dowlan's offending was known as early as 1974.

Cardinal George Pell has said a boy "mentioned it casually in conversation" to him, but did not ask him to do anything.

Australian Associated Press