Elective Sessions

Room	Monday	Tuesday
	Danielle Strickland, Author/Speaker Infinitum Life Explore a way of life that puts Jesus at the center and offers a framework for holistic discipleship. Find out how this tool has been a game changer in real life and brings a deeper level of spiritual vitality. Be warned: It’s simple, but not easy.	Chris Rayner, Teacher Development and Innovation Coordinator, Christian Schools Tasmania A new day for initial teacher education: Teaching Hubs and formation for future Christian teachers' Beginning teachers have often experienced a difficult transition from their study at university to their role in the classroom. Much re-learning is involved for teachers starting with a genuinely Christian school when their teacher training has been undertaken with a secular institution. But this is a new day for initial teacher education! The Teaching Hub model supports the formation of future Christian educators by enabling them to be: (1) immersed in the classroom with a teacher mentor, (2) studying with a Christian tertiary provider, and (3) engaging regularly in the ‘third space’ to connect the theory and practice of teaching Christianly throughout their initial teacher education journey. In this session, we will explore the growing movement of Christian schools who are taking on the exciting challenge of raising the next generation of Christian teachers - and we consider what it might mean to join them.
	David Loewen, Society of Christian Schools in British Columbia Boards and School Leaders – Making it Work for the sake of your school What does effective board governance look like and what is the school leader’s role and responsibility in ensuring it takes place? Working with boards can be some of the most challenging or rewarding work for school leaders. This workshop will explore best practices in board governance, focusing on clarity regarding the role of the board (and the NOT role) and how boards can function effectively within that role. There will be a strong focus on the school leader’s role and responsibility in facilitating that effective board leadership.	Bonnie Evans & Jo Miller, Mount Evelyn Christian School Green Eggs & Ham – A fusion of wellbeing and learning support This workshop invites participants into the story of what happens when two teams (wellbeing and learning support) come together as one team. You will learn about the why, what, who, and how this story began, the adventures, changes required, and lessons learned (and are still learning!) You will have some fun, feel encouraged to plan your school’s own story, and take away some practical suggestions.
	Alice Mustin, NT Christian Schools A Roadmap for Teacher Growth in Formational Learning This workshop is aimed at leaders looking for practical insights into the process of supporting teacher growth and building formational learning in their schools. In this workshop, you can learn from NT Christian Schools’ process of implementing a teacher growth roadmap which supports teachers to: embed practices from TBD II , make learning visible in the classroom and, transform heads, hearts and hands through authentic formational learning experiences. The roadmap has been developed through innovation and collaboration across NT Christian Schools campuses.	Rachel Herweynen, Gäwa Christian School Yolŋu teaching & learning principles for your school (for Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Histories and Cultures Cross-curriculum Priority) Staff from Gäwa Christian School would like to share God’s gifts to Yolŋu by presenting teaching and learning principles inherent to Yolŋu culture. We hope that through this, Christian schools around Australia will gain more confidence when planning for the cross-curriculum priority of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Histories and Cultures. God’s gift to Yolŋu is not only in their knowledge, but in their ways of being. This session will go through: Yolŋu pattern of teaching and learning mal’thun-nhäma-ŋäma-djäma-märram (follow-watch-listen-work-take) Rrambaŋi marŋgikunhamirr (learning together) Wäŋaŋur ga marŋgithirr (learning on country)
	Ruth Watson, NT Christian Schools A new day in mathematics education What if the most basic reason to learn Maths is to worship God? What would this 'look like'? Mathematics is often viewed as religiously neutral, and we, as Christian teachers, often struggle to consider how to frame our subject and practices within a Biblical perspective. This presentation will seek to cover some very practical ideas (pedagogy and curriculum) that we can build into the rhythm of worshipful practice in the mathematics classroom.	Katrina McNab, Leighland Christian School Building a better future through playful learning
	Phil Beck, Keith Cameron, Edu Deo Berjalan Bersama: Teachers and leaders Walking Together in Indonesia Have you ever wanted to share with and learn from teachers and leaders in different parts of the world? Ever had a sense that there are other opportunities to share the gift of education that you have been entrusted with? CEN certainly has! In 2023 CEN established an exciting MOU with EduDeo, Canada, to actively participate in their “Walking Together” program, initially with partners in Indonesia. This exciting and well-developed program provides opportunity, resources and support for teachers and leaders from CEN to share with peers in different countries on short term teaching and learning visits, at the invitation of Christian school organisations in a number of countries. It may also open up other possibilities over time. Through participating in this program, you can help teachers have the right tools so they can make Christ the centre of their classrooms. For 2 years, CEN, EduDeo and the Reformasi schools in West Timor, Indonesia, have been sharing in the development of a Walking Together program in Indonesia and its time to share this more widely with you. Leaders of EduDeo and the Reformasi schools will be here to share their Walking Together experience with you, encouraging you to consider taking part in this important work. In this workshop you will find out more about the Walking Together program and how you or your school can become involved. What a great opportunity to grow as teachers and leaders and to share with people from very different contexts!	Darren Spyksma Oh Look, Another Shiny New... Practices that assist schools in using their mission to make decisions Using your school’s mission as the main filter, Darren will share practices that leadership and department level teams can use to help prioritize initiatives in a time when social media highlights many new ideas each day. Using his experience as an administrator and association leader, Darren will create a space for teams to use their guiding documents as tools to help discern priorities. It is easy to choose between a good idea and a bad idea. In this educational moment, it often feels like we are choosing between five GREAT ideas. By creating a decision making liturgy as a school, teams can hear through the noise to isolate the best decision.
	Sam Burrows, Director of Professional Learning, Christian Education National A Theological Critical Realism Using the work of neuroscientist Iain McGilchrist, and theologian T.F. Torrance, this session will sketch out some of the current discussions around what we can know, and how we might embrace a form of critical realism in light of Christ. It will be a conversation about joining the dots on knowledge, theology and the classroom.	Sam Burrows, Director of Professional Learning, Christian Education National A Theological Critical Realism Using the work of neuroscientist Iain McGilchrist, and theologian T.F. Torrance, this session will sketch out some of the current discussions around what we can know, and how we might embrace a form of critical realism in light of Christ. It will be a conversation about joining the dots on knowledge, theology and the classroom.
	Paul Matthews, MyTeacherAide AI - Hero or villain? How do we understand emerging technologies in light of Christ's lordship? Is it possible to use Artificial Intelligence in your teaching practice while maintaining integrity? In this workshop, AI Consultant Paul Matthews explores a practical theology of AI and shares resources that help teachers save time, foster creativity, and benefit their learners.	Paul Matthews, MyTeacherAide AI - Hero or villain? How do we understand emerging technologies in light of Christ's lordship? Is it possible to use Artificial Intelligence in your teaching practice while maintaining integrity? In this workshop, AI Consultant Paul Matthews explores a practical theology of AI and shares resources that help teachers save time, foster creativity, and benefit their learners.
	Vanessa Cheng, Executive Officer, Australian Association of Christian Schools Christian Schools are Different: Changing Hearts and Minds, One Story at a Time In our current political and cultural landscape it is vital that our approaches to advocacy also change with the times. Increasingly this must involve our Christian School teachers, parents and students. The My Christian School project is a collaboration between the three major Christian School associations and has demonstrated the power of sharing the positive stories of transformation in the lives of our students with politicians and the media. The highly successful Town Hall events “Faith in our Future” around the country demonstrated the power of sharing our good new stories. This workshop will explore opportunities for schools leaders and staff to engage more in the political space to support the future of Christian schools.	Dr John Collier, Headmaster, Shore School The Attrition From Christian Faith of Our Graduates While At University: Why does it happen, and what can be done about it? Academic literature, supported by empirical evidence indicates there is a huge drop out from Christian faith amongst those who begin university ostensibly as Christians. While this may be seen as a manifestation of the Parable of the Sower, it nonetheless represents an existential problem for the broader church in so far as much potential future membership and leadership within Christian circles has evaporated within a few short years. Questions arise as to whether the Christian community is sufficiently alert to the issue and is attempting possible mitigation strategies. Approaches to stemming the tide include avoiding cocooning young people in a Christian bubble without the skills to navigate the intellectual and ethical challenges of campus life, the importance of developing a strong Christian worldview underlaid by effective apologetics, the need for focussed mentoring supported by strong biblical teaching, and the critical nature of experiencing lived Christian community. Without such approaches, the church at large will probably continue to experience the corrosive impact of very extensive fall out from faith of young people in their late teens and early 20s.
	Fiona Partridge, Principal, National Institute for Christian Education Why continuing professional learning for Christian educators matters: How the National Institute can make a difference. Just what constitutes effective professional learning is a widely debated issue. For Christian schools, recent work clearly points to the need for educators to be supported by professional learning that enables them to grapple deeply with their own understanding of themselves as imago Dei, called to live in and out of God’s story. This understanding for Christian educators for themselves extends to how they view their students and other members of the school community—how they view and live out their relationship to God and his creation. Such an understanding has wide implications for practice, including how the curriculum is planned, how all pedagogy is structured, and the learning students undertake is directed. It shapes how all aspects of school culture is experienced. Research conducted by a National Institute student has also found that this impacts the faith formation of students. Furthermore, a recent doctoral study reported that professional learning from a biblical perspective that specifically supports the development of Christian educators is key in ensuring Christian schools, now beyond their pioneering stage of development, live out their understandings and vision statement, avoiding mission drift. This workshop will explore the various relevant research findings. National Institute faculty will share how the National Institute is supporting Christian educators—school leaders, classroom practitioners, and other school community members—in the task of Christian education and why your school needs to be engaged.	Roshan Allpress, Laidlaw College Institutions, Change and the Imperatives of the Gospel One of the features of evangelicalism as it grew in the eighteenth century was its relentless invention of new institutional and cultural forms to foster faithfulness. Institutions like Bible Societies, Missionary Societies, and Antislavery Societies were accompanied by personal devotional literature, new patterns of congregational discipleship, and many more innovations that fostered faithfulness in the Modern, urbanizing and globalizing world. In the twenty-first century it is these models that are changing rapidly – responding both to societal and cultural shifts, and to Gospel imperatives. This workshop presents a series of hypotheses about the kind of change that is being experienced by our churches, our schools, and the wider institutional ecosystem of Christianity in our region, and offers an invitation to engage in discussion with what that might mean for your context.
	Rebecca Hall, Principal, Tyndale Christian School Strengths-based Leadership A Strengths-based leadership approach focuses on how people naturally think, feel, and behave and develops a person’s natural talents to enhance their leadership. Workshop participants will explore strategies for leading with their strengths, learn to recognize and appreciate their unique talents and those of the people they lead, and discover strategies for leveraging their talents to lead more authentically and effectively.	Peter Bain, Business Manager, Plenty Valley Christian College Economic trends impacting the future of Australian Education In recent years western nations have grappled with how to reignite economies currently weighed down by costly demographic trends and climate change. With a focus on the role of Artificial Intelligence, Peter will present data showing how some countries are bucking the trends of anaemic growth through technology and how the education policy of governments and individual schools are key to Australia bequeathing a prosperous economy to the next generation.
	Simone Brown & Simon Lainson, Illawarra Christian School How to engage and motivate students for whom learning comes 'easy' Understanding the impact of pedagogy and educational structures on student outcomes is crucial. Hattie (2012) said, educators must "know thy impact". A teacher's ability to design learning for high-potential students will likely impact on students' feelings of self-efficacy, how engaged they are at school, and ultimately will impact their achievement and progress As Christian schools we aim to nurture students to be are curious, courageous and compassionate people who transform the communities in which they work and live. This session will explore the importance of student perception in the areas of choice, belonging and competence in their learning and the impact this has on their motivation, engagement and achievement.	Jo Beckingham, Rehoboth Christian College Rehoboth’s Trellis Staff: Galvanising your support staff for the benefit of your whole school community When is mobilizing your staff more about culture than sheer capacity? You are invited to join us on the still-unfolding journey of how Rehoboth Christian College transformed our ‘non-teaching’ staff group into 'Rehoboth’s Trellis Staff'. We'll share insights, explore guiding principles, and discuss tools like Patrick Lencioni’s ‘The 6 Types of Working Genius’ that have helped us along the way. This session is about storytelling, discussion, and remembering that Christian Education looks like people finding fulfilment in every role, all for the glory of God.
	Chris Prior, Senior Lecturer, National Institute for Christian Education Mind the gap! Conversations about worldview and leadership in Christian schooling In Christian schooling we often suggest our schools are Christ-centred and/or distinctive. Our school fosters a distinctively Christian education. Teachers teach Christianly. What about leadership? While all people can shape culture and practice it is leaders who have more in terms of obligation and opportunity to do so. Do we lead Christianly? In this elective you are invited into a conversation on school leadership and worldview, as we explore leadership practice that promotes a distinctively Christian education.	Dr Hugh Chilton, Head of ScotsX, Scots College What School Could Be: Lessons on innovation in human formation from designing a school-within-a-school Education should form human beings to know, love and do what is true, good and beautiful in the world. Unfortunately, the standard 'operating system' of school makes it very hard to do this well. What if we could redesign school to see young people better formed for flourishing in God's world? In this workshop, hear the story of designing ScotsX, an experimental 'school-within-a-school' learning laboratory at The Scots College, Sydney. This workshop is for school leaders and teachers wanting inspiration, evidence, and transferable lessons for leading innovation in their context.
	Nick Jensen – Director of Government Relations at Alphacrucis University College – Political Liaison with the Australian Christian Higher Education Alliance (ACHEA) Generative AI innovations – AI training simulation avatars and the changing nature of education Generative AI training simulations have only recently arrived on the educational market. They utilise highly interactive virtual avatars which are linked to a large-language model and create a natural and engaging conversation with an AI avatar that can be designed and programmed for any scenario input – usable through Virtual Reality headsets or any web-linked tablet/laptop device. This means that students can now access a virtual Einstein and ask for help with their science assignment, a virtual career counsellor on what they should do after school, or even a virtual King David about what it was like to defeat Goliath. However, does this kind of technology impact the nature of teaching? How can schools prioritise right relationships amidst such rapid advancement? And how can schools use Generative AI in a way that deepens wisdom and spreads God’s word? This session will showcase the technology for the first time globally, and explore the challenges and opportunities that it might bring.	Tim Argall, Executive Principal, Donvale Christian College Leading in Christian Schools in the “Now and Not Yet” – seeking glimpses of eternity in the complexity of today Never has leadership in schools been more complex. It’s nuanced, complicated, and contradictory – add government regulation and competitive forces and you have a recipe for despair. Leading in a Christian school – whatever the level of seniority – whether it be in curriculum, pastoral care or spiritual development – the challenge to be God’s salt and light within our school’s community and a witness beyond the school’s gates is greater than ever. How should we be living out our understanding of the biblical narrative of “creation, fall, redemption and renewal” in the messiness of the daily grind? This session will seek to reorient our thinking about the challenges we have as leaders, by considering what it can look like for us to seek shalom in our current circumstances, drawing on the examples of leaders throughout Scripture.