BCE Leuven Project
e-Update - Term 2, 2016
Welcome to Term Two
Welcome back to Term 2. We hope that you had great rest during the school holidays and that you enjoyed Easter with your family and friends.
In this edition of the Leuven Project E-Update we have a number of interesting items to share with you and your school communities:
2016 Leuven Project survey begins
The BCE Strengthening Catholic Identity Position Statement
- Relationships and Sexuality Education
- 2016 Master Class Series
- New resources to support Catholic school identity
For further information about these key initiatives please read on in this newsletter.
If you would like more information on any of these areas please contact The Professional Learning, Formation and Leadership Team on 3033 7620 or FormationLeadership@bne.catholic.edu.au .
2016 BCE Leuven Project Survey Period
The beginning of Term 2 marks the start of the online survey period for our 14 schools engaged in the BCE Leuven Project for 2016. Over the next 3 weeks the staff, students and families of these schools will complete the online survey. This data will then be used to compile individual school reports to assist the schools to understand how their Catholic identity is expressed in word and in action in their community and to guide them as they plan for the future development of their schools Catholic identity. The survey period will finish on May 4th.
All 2016 schools have received their access codes and instructions to assist with the completion of the surveys. We wish the 2016 schools all the best as they collect this valuable and useful data.
For any enquiries regarding the survey process please contact Simon Mahaffy on 3033 7378 or smahaffy@bne.catholic.edu.au. Click here for a link to BCE Leuven Project site which has copies of the various instruction sheets.
Strengthening Catholic Identity Position Statement
At the Leadership Forum in February, the Strengthening Catholic Identity Position Statement was launched to all schools and BCEO. This position statement clearly articulates BCE's position regarding Catholic identity as well as outlines our future directions in this area. This statement is strongly underpinned by the Leuven Project theology but is designed so that all schools can continue to nurture and grow the Catholic identity of their communities in an authentic and contemporary way.
To read the position statement please click on the link below.
STRENGTHENING CATHOLIC IDENTITY POSITION STATEMENT
One of the key elements of this statement is the Strengthening Catholic Identity Model. This model identifies the four key priority areas that were originally named in the 2015 Shape Paper. These are: Mission, Formation, Learning and Teaching and Culture. This reaffirms BCE's position that Catholic identity is about the encounter between faith, life and culture and that all are invited into this encounter.
UNPACKING THE POSITION STATEMENT
To assist your school community to unpack and make meaning of the Strengthening Catholic Identity Position Statement you may like to engage in this simple activity with the school leadership team, staff, P &F or with the school board.
Please click on the link below to access the activity.
POSITION STATEMENT PROCESSING ACTIVITY
If you would like to talk to someone about the Position Statement please contact the Professional Learning, Formation and Leadership Team on 3033 7620.
Leading Relationships and Sexuality Education Communication #1
The focus of the recent principals' Leadership Forum was ‘Strengthening Catholic Identity – Embedding A Catholic Perspective in the Curriculum’, which was framed within the wider system priority of strengthening Catholic Identity. Dr David Kirchhoffer (ACU) explored the question “What is a Catholic Perspective?” Participants re-engaged with some of the data from the BCE RSE System Report. Principals were provided with a copy of the following recent publications:
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Strengthening Catholic Identity: BCE Position Statement and,
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Shape Paper: A Catholic Perspective on Relationships and Sexuality Education.
Also featuring as part of the forum was the Relationships and Sexuality film produced by ResourceLink and a live demo of Brisbane Catholic Education’s Australian Curriculum and the Catholic Perspective online platform. The film created by ResourceLink for the Principals’ Forum is available via the RES Portal.
In Week One and Two of this term various workshops were hosted to introduce school and office personnel to the Catholic Perspective on Relationships and Sexuality Education Shape Paper. This was a wonderful opportunity explore the Shape Paper and to begin to discuss next steps.
Schools that are exploring ways to embed a Catholic perspective in curriculum areas other than R.E. would find the work being done in Relationship and Sexuality of great interest. For further information about this work please contact Kerry Bird or Monique Brennan.
Catholic Identity Masterclass Series
In 2016 we are pleased to host a Masterclass series focusing on Catholic school identity. Three internationally renowned speakers will be travelling to Brisbane to share their wisdom and insight on Catholic Education and identity. All of the Masterclasses will be held at the O’Shea Centre, Wilston and more detailed information will be sent out leading up to each Masterclass. Please mark these dates in your diaries and we look forward to seeing you at these special events.
Enrolment for the MasterClasses is via iLearn.
Stephen Bevans Friday April 29
A Roman Catholic priest in the society of the Divine Word, Stephen is a Professor of Mission and Culture at the Catholic Theological Union, Chicago. Stephen Bevans specialises in Mission Theology and what is meant by mission in a contemporary, recontextualised Church.
Thomas Groome Thursday 12 May (for school staff) & Friday 13 May (BCEO staff)
A Professor of Theology and Religious Education at Boston College, Thomas Groome has published numerous works in the areas of history, theory and practice of Religious Education and practical theology. His work on “What makes a school Catholic?” is well known and he has written widely in this area.
Trevor Cooling Monday 25 July (for school staff) & Tuesday 26 July (BCEO staff)
A Professor of Christian Education at Canterbury Christ Church University in the United Kingdom, Trevor Cooling has a particular interest in Christian pedagogy, in particular:
(a) the place of distinctively Christian education in a religiously diverse context
(b) the development of a distinctively Christian approach to teaching and learning.
Year of Mercy Resources
Doors to Mercy is a new prayer resource that has been developed collaboratively by the Religious Education Services Team and the Professional Learning, Formation and Leadership Team to be used in school and office communities in the Year of Mercy. This resource explores mercy through a number of different 'doors' and I recommend this resource to you and your community.
Many thanks go to James Robinson who coordinated this project and to the Communications and Marketing team for their design work. Copies of this prayer booklet will be distributed to schools and offices early in Term 2.
A digital version of this resource is also available on the Formation and Leadership Portal Site. Please click on the link below to access this resource.
DOORS TO MERCY Digital Resource
Catholic Identity Resources
CATHOLIC IDENTITY WEBSITE
The Catholic identity portal site is designed to support schools who are engaging in the BCE Leuven Project. This website is housed as part of the Professional Learning, Formation and Leadership team site and can also be accessed by clicking on the 'Strengthen Catholic Identity' link on K-Web or via the link below.
On this website there are two main sections:
1) Strengthen Catholic Identity Strategy
This site will have information regarding the BCE position paper and implementation strategy. This will be updated as the strategy progresses.
2) The BCE Leuven Project
This site will house resources that will be useful to school who are engaging directly with the Leuven research. This includes resources about the project process, how to complete the surveys and how to unpack the data. There is also a resource section that contains videos, fact sheets, articles, Power Points and other key documents that will be useful to schools.
Please find a link to this site below.
3) Resource Link
Resource Link has begun to curate resources that they have which will support schools engaging in the area of Catholic identity. You will be able to search for these resources by entering the key words 'Catholic identity' or for more specific resources you can search under the four priority areas:
- Catholic Identity and Mission
- Catholic Identity and Formation
- Catholic Identity and Learning and Teaching
- Catholic Identity and Culture
Click here to access the Resource Link collection.
PROFESSIONAL READING
Earlier this year the TABLET journal published a short article by Didier Pollefeyt on the Leuven Project and the theology underpinning it. This is a short read and gives a succinct summary of the Leuven research. Click on the link below to view the TABLET website.
Leuven Project in South Australia
Helpful Resources
STRENGTHEN CATHOLIC IDENTITY SHAPE PAPER
An updated version of the BCE Shape Paper for the Strengthening Catholic Identity Strategy is now available for download. This document outlines the purpose, vision and scope of this key BCE strategy. Please click HERE to download a copy from K-Web.
THE LEUVEN SCALES FOR DUMMIES
These documents have been written by the Catholic University of Leuven to help explain the PCB Scale, Melbourne Scale and Victoria Scale. Please click HERE to access the articles.
VIDEOS OF PROFESSOR POLLEFEYT'S VISIT TO BRISBANE IN 2014
These video excerpts were taken at the 2014 Leadership Conference, where Professor Pollefeyt was the key note speaker. This series of videos give an overview of the Leuven Project and explore the PCB, Melbourne and Victoria Scales. Please click on the link below to access the videos.
LINKS TO PREVIOUS ISSUES
For access to the previous issues of the BCE Leuven Project e-Update please click on the links below.
2016
Term 1, 2016 https://www.smore.com/seg3s
2015
Term 1, 2015 https://www.smore.com/qgzfv
Term 2, 2015 https://www.smore.com/v8nrp
Term 3, 2015 https://www.smore.com/fhtxe
Term 4, 2015 https://www.smore.com/3evyk
Want to Talk to Someone about the BCE Leuven Project?
Email: FormationLeadership@bne.catholic.edu.au
Website: www.bne.catholic.edu.au
Location: 243 Gladstone Road, Dutton Park, Queensland, Australia
Phone: (07) 3033 7620
If you have any queries or questions about the BCE Leuven Project please direct them to Simon Mahaffy or contact the team on 3033 7620