New resources for Catholic schools arrived in the new year with more than $550,000 worth of new reading books and over $1 million worth of IT equipment delivered to the Catholic Schools Office (CSO) in Armidale.

The books will be used to teach reading in primary schools across the Diocese of Armidale, and the new IT equipment will ensure all students have access to the best devices for learning, Chris Smyth, Director of Catholic Schools (Diocese of Armidale) said.

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"The schools receiving these resources are educating students in many of the state's rural and regional communities which have been hardest hit over the last few years by drought, fires, mice plagues and the recent floods," Mr Smyth said.

"In our system of schools we explicitly and systematically teach phonics within a balanced approach to literacy which develops students' language and instills great reading habits.

"The recent purchase of reading material includes decodable texts to support the very early learning of reading; levelled readers which cover a broad range of highly-engaging fiction and non-fiction topics; and quality literature so that our students have access to the very best children's books currently available."

Mr Smyth said the system has also purchased about $75,000 worth of reading books related to mathematics topics to help students understand that literacy is vital to success in mathematics.

"Over the last few years, the Armidale system of Catholic schools has had a laser-like focus on boosting literacy and numeracy outcomes," he said.

"This success in reading can be attributed to the outstanding work of teachers focusing on using evidence-based strategies such as guided reading, explicit instruction, phonics and the ongoing commitment to ICT as part of how students learn every day."

The new ICT purchase includes replacement iPads for every student from Kindergarten to Year 2.

"This will allow peer collaboration and immediate feedback from teachers to improve learning in all of our early years classrooms everyday," Mr Smyth said.

"All teachers are supplied with a computer as a tool of trade from our smallest regional schools to our largest colleges. These computers will enable teaching staff to have safe and secure access to CSO systems and data whether working at our schools or remotely. "

The system will also benefit from the installation of Vivi screen sharing devices on large format screens in every classroom across the Diocese.

These Australian made devices are recognised as the best universal casting solution for education environments, allowing teachers to manage the sharing of student device screens on the classroom screen and displaying engaging educational content.

"Our students are completely familiar with technology to enhance their learning, and this is why against the odds, our students continue to make gains in their learning during the periods of remote learning imposed by COVID," Mr Smyth said.

"The new updated devices will allow us to continue to provide the best learning experience for all our students."

The CSO Diocese of Armidale administers 19 primary, two central and three secondary schools, and caters for the learning needs of almost 6000 students.

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