Educational Vision

Learning to know

Education has traditionally been about acquiring knowledge. It used to be enough to teach children how to read, to write and to understand arithmetic.
While our curriculum certainly starts with numeracy and literacy, it expands much further to include a rich and varied choice of subjects such as Philosophy, Media, Mandarin, Photography and the world of business, to name but a few.
Wesley also offers the International Baccalaureate Primary Years Programme at all campuses, a unique Year 9 term at Clunes, and an extensive choice of subjects within the VCE, VET and IBO Diploma Programme in the Senior Colleges.

Learning in the Early Years
Our Early Learning Centres (ELC) encourage children as young as three to develop a love of learning. The environment and programs in our ELCs are inspired by the Reggio Emilia philosophy and reflect the College commitment to the Primary Years Programme of the International Baccalaureate. Children explore the joys of learning by observing, listening and experimenting, and learn to make sense of the world by using imagination and reason.

Learning in the Primary Years
The development of creativity is valued equally with the pursuit of academic excellence in the primary years. Literacy and numeracy is the focus of learning, although students also engage in a range of science and humanities subjects to ensure the curriculum has breadth and depth. As students move into upper primary, the curriculum branches out into a wider range of subjects with a choice of languages offered, and laptops introduced to give students access to information and communication technology (ICT) literacies.

Learning in the Middle Years
Students begin to grow towards independence in the middle years, therefore, we encourage them to take control of their learning activities to create individually based outcomes. This is also a time of questioning and uncertainty so Wesley makes an active effort to ensure learning is meaningful and relevant. We offer a range of science and humanities subjects which include Environmental Science, and Religious Studies as well as an extensive Languages other than English program with a choice of European and Asian languages.

Learning in the Senior Years
The senior years are all about making choices and achieving results. We help students to choose career paths and life directions
for themselves. Our career counsellors and tertiary transition courses help them to make choices that will deliver the best results, not just in terms of ENTER scores and marks, but for their life direction and personal goals. Wesley offers VCE, VET and IBO and has an excellent record of achievements in all three.

Learning to do

"Tell people what to do and they forget; show them what to do and they remember; let them actually do it themselves and finally, they understand" - Confucius. This is why we encourage students to explore, experiment, discover, and most of all, to do so many different things at Wesley.

Arts
Wesley has long been renowned for the excellence of its performances and achievements in the Arts, especially in music, theatre and the visual arts. All students are encouraged to participate in our arts programs as we have found participation not only unveils talent, it also builds confidence in a creative, stimulating way.

Outdoor Education
Learning at Wesley is not restricted to the classroom. We provide extensive learning experiences-education in the outdoors-at our residential camps at Healesville, Paynesville and Portland. These diverse locations offer experiences in forest and foothills, inland and coastal waterways and rural hinterland environments.

Sport
Great emphasis is given to the value of sport at the College. All children are encouraged to take part in what is an integral part of a Wesley education, and a rich array of 19 Associated Public Schools (APS) sports is offered to accommodate everyone’s interests and talents.

Technology
From Prep to Year 12, great importance is placed at all levels on technology, including computers and multimedia. Information and communication technology is much more than a tool: it encourages new ways of thinking, interaction with new audiences and enables links with a global community.

Learning to live with

Wesley teaches more than literacy and numeracy. We teach students how to understand the world through cultural and international awareness. This encourages children to appreciate the wider world and understand their place in it. We also focus on belonging to communities and learning to live in a global community.

Coeducation
Living together harmoniously in society and learning from one another is more important now than ever before. This applies to learning from the other gender as much as learning from other cultures. Coeducation allows students to develop social skills and understanding of one another, which is critical in learning to live and to work together for a better world.

The Wesley Community
Wesley students are part of a wider family, which includes the Society for the Arts, the Wesley College Foundation, the Sapere Aude Society and the Old Wesley Collegians Association (OWCA). These connections can last a lifetime.

Learning to be

Wesley is not just a school. It is also a journey of self-discovery where over a period of 13 years students learn gradually about themselves.
The learning begins in our primary years where we encourage students to develop a sense of belonging, to learn who they are, and how they learn.
The journey continues in the junior years when students start to spread their wings mentally and physically. Teams of teachers work with groups of students to know them well and to explore methods of learning best suited to them. Time is also spent on "coping skills", where we teach students how to deal with the normal difficult situations and feelings experienced in everyday living.
The middle years is where students begin to grow towards independence and self-reliance. They need to feel that they are making their own choices so we encourage development of a wide range of skills that help them to do so.
The journey ends in the senior years where career counsellors help students to choose their career paths and life direction.

Clunes
In Year 9 students have the opportunity to spend a term at Wesley’s residential campus at Clunes. This is a time of searching for meaning and purpose, for discovering friendship, building resilience and growing wise. It is experiential learning at its best.

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