School Profile
A statement of the College’s vision and its core values can be found in the Principal’s page and in the School Strategic Plan. You will see links to these pages under the Administration tab on the Home Page
Croydon Secondary College is a single campus coeducational state school with an enrolment of 560 in 2010. The College was established in 1958. We celebrated our fiftieth anniversary on October 17, 2008.
Cooperative and progressive education Throughout its history, the College has provided comprehensive education for students in the local area. Now in the modern educational environment, it is a confident partner in several significant coalitions of schools.
- the Maroondah Education Coalition
- The Yarra Valley elearning Community
- the Eastland cluster of schools for Vocational Education and Training.
The Maroondah Education Coalition is made up of Ringwood Secondary College, Parkwood Secondary College, Norwood Secondary College, Maroondah Secondary College, Croydon Secondary College, Croydon Community School and Heathmont Secondary College. The schools work together to enrich the curriculum of each school and provide opportunities beyond the scope of any one school. In particular, the schools are undertaking the Maroondah Regeneration Project. This is an ambitious project in which we are proposing to government an $85 million plan to rebuild schools in the City of Maroondah. Details about our continuing work appear elsewhere on this website. You may also follow the link to the website of the Maroondah Education Coalition at http://www.mec.vic.edu.au.
The Yarra Valley eLearning Community was originally funded through Phase 1 of the Leading Schools Fund. Its members are Croydon Secondary College, Healesville Secondary College, Lilydale Heights College, Lilydale High School, Mooroolbark College, Pembroke Secondary College and Upper Yarra Secondary College. As a result of its involvement, Croydon Secondary College has outstanding ICT facilities.
The Eastland Cluster for Vocational Education and Training is an organisation of schools in the Maroondah network. It includes several private schools. As a result of our participation, Croydon students have access to fourteen Vocational Education and Training courses offered throughout the cluster, one of which is provided at Croydon.
ICT facilities
The College’s participation in the Yarra Valley eLearning Community has resulted in the development of extensive Information and Communication Technology infrastructure in the school. The Federal Government’s Netbook program has been introduced and by 2012 we will have every student with their own Netbook computer. In practical terms, we have a 1:1 computer to student ratio. Any class, teacher or student who wants to access a computer can do so at all times throughout the day.
Timetable Structure
The school day is organised around four 73 minute lessons and a twelve minute home group assembly. Sessions 1 and 2 are held before morning recess. Session 3 is held between Recess and Lunch. Session 4 is held after lunch. We strongly believe that this arrangement improves our productivity and is more conducive to creative and positive classrooms.
Sub-school structure
The College is organised around two sub-schools: the Senior Sub-school and the Junior Sub-school. The Senior Sub-school is made up of students in Years 7 – 9. The Senior Sub-school is made up of students in Years 10 – 12. Each Sub-school is managed by a team of sub-school leaders. They take collective responsibility for the wellbeing and the academic progress of each of their students. Sub-school teachers meet each week to collaborate on curriculum preparation and to share assessment and to give each other professional feedback.
Home groups meet daily. They are organised in houses: Emerald, Sapphire, Ruby and Gold. Each home group, (Emerald 1, Emerald 2, Emerald 3 etc) has approximately 18 students with three or four students from each level. This way, younger students get to know older students and there is a natural venue for peer mentoring and for sharing older students’ expertise in managing class work and completing homework.
