Paul Staniscia | Deputy Head of Primary
Southern Cross Grammar

Paul is Deputy Head of Primary at Southern Cross Grammar in Melbourne, Australia. He has worked in many school settings as Acting Principal, Deputy Principal, various Curriculum and Pedagogy Leadership roles and eLearning Leader. While completing his Masters in Educational Leadership he developed effective practices and uses them to support his school community. Paul shares his passion for mathematics as a consultant for the Mathematical Association of Victoria (MAV) and has written articles for MAV’s Prime Number journal. Paul’s leadership capacity was acknowledged by the Australian Council for Educational Leaders (ACEL) as a recipient of the 2019 New Voice in School Leadership Scholarship. He continues to work with ACEL, as one of their Editorial Board Members, reviewing and publishing articles on effective teaching and learning and leadership. He works closely with future teachers as sessional academics at Australian Catholic University and builds their capacity in contemporary teaching and learning.

Appearances:

Pre-conference Workshops @ 10:00

[M8] 7 Nov (AM) - Student-driven inquiry learning

Student voice and agency are developed through the routines we have in our classrooms. That voice and agency are enhanced by the culture created in these classrooms. So what are the routines that everyone is aware of in our classrooms and what culture have we created to ensure students feel safe and invited? Through this workshop, participants will explore the skills and dispositions needed to be an effective learner and the strategies and tools teachers can use to unpack them with their students. They will engage in routines that not only gain student voice but also allow for students to take ownership of their own learning and assessment. Participants will identify how they can create a culture of learning that builds teacher clarity and an inquiry approach that shifts the ownership of learning from the teacher to the student. This collection of resources and ideas, or ‘toolkit,’ will allow participants to explore ways they can develop thinking in their classrooms and schools. This toolkit can be unpacked in a classroom, within a year level or at a whole school level, as a way to not only engage in thinking but ways we can encourage students to be the drivers of their own inquiry.

Paul Staniscia, Deputy Head of Primary, Southern Cross Grammar