Education Commons^™

Service-Learning: More Than Just Volunteering, Shane D. Lavery, John Richards

Shane D Lavery

In this article, the authors recommend a social capital building program that benefits schools, students and the community. There is a growing trend within Catholic and independent schools in Western Australia to actively involve secondary students in service-learning. This paper presents an overview of service-learning and, by doing so, indicates why such involvement by students holds benefits for all involved.

Promoting Our Interior Life As Teachers, Shane D. Lavery, Peter Hay

Shane D Lavery

You cannot give what you have not got. This being the case, developing the spirituality of teachers to make them more effective role models for their students is crucial. This article outlines the steps on Catholic Australian school took to address this issue. The school sought to promote the interior life of teachers in two stages - an afternoon staff conference, followed by a staff development day three weeks later.

Student Leaders: So Many Reasons To Bother, Shane D. Lavery

Shane D Lavery

WHY bother with student leadership when the school day is so busy? Why bother when teachers already develop students academically, socially, vocationally, morally and physically? Why bother when staff interact with students on the sports field, in drama, liturgy, debating, the orchestra or the choral ensemble? Why bother when students can 'learn' leadership by simply watching and then sampling the extensive range of experiences offered in our technological, post-modern twenty-first century?

One reason (perhaps warning) derives from research in the United States which suggests that many high school students do not consider themselves as having leadership potential. Such studies indicate …