The text below has not been approved
At Marist College Ashgrove we are dedicated to the provision of a boys’ only education and have developed and embedded an approach that focuses with intention on boys’ learning in all facets of learning and character development.
At Marist we have tailored our teaching and learning to engage boys and allow them to be supported in how they grow, develop and learn. We encourage our boys to explore their own values, find out who they are and who they want to become; how to form and maintain relationships; how to be resilient, courageous and most of all, explore their full potential.
We believe there are five fundamental reasons why choosing a boys’ only school makes sense (drawn from the International Boys’ School Coalition).
1. We understand boys and celebrate everything it means to be a boy.
Our teachers encourage their students to grow and mature at their own developmental pace, using strategies that address learning styles specific to boys. We understand the developmental stages of boys strive to support each boy’s needs and aspirations whether they are in Primary School, adolescence or preparing to leave the College. We acknowledge that boys are physically active, competitive, and apt to take risks, characteristics that are channelled into their learning. We stimulate our boys with a mix of academics, arts, music and sport to continuously engage his mind and body. We offer an education tailored to boys.
2. Our foundation is to prepare a boy for being a good person
In addition to pursuing high academic achievement, our College promotes well-being, resilience and empathy and to see that each student achieves his potential. But none is more important than the essential goal of building good character and helping each boy make responsible choices and live an honourable life.
At Marist we do this through teaching our faith, role modelling our values, through justice and service learning and through demonstration of our motto each and every day. Boys learn that there are clear expectations to do what is right. They also learn that there are many routes to becoming a good man.
3. We know boys develop and learn in different ways.
Through research we know boys are more spatial, visual and have a natural affinity for play and subjects like abstract mathematics. They learn more easily through actions rather that words. Our teachers introduce more kinesthetic and sensory experiences into their curriculum, engaging boys more fully in their learning. They also use humour and engage with boys in ways that boys enjoy. And they build relationships with their students.
As specialists in boys’ education, our teachers take into consideration the interests and talents unique to boys when they prepare each lesson. Because they know boys often prefer to work cooperatively, we use teams effectively in project-based assignments. A memorable element (game, activity or role play) can often make a lesson more interesting and enjoyable. Boys often need to know why something is important in order for it to be significant for them. They tend to thrive on purposeful work that is meaningful to them.
4. We help our boys discover their full potential
Without the social pressures of a co-ed environment, students at Marist can explore the full range of their personalities and potential. They discover they have many roles to play as a scholar, athlete, artist, musician, and friend. By encouraging subjects like English, languages, music, drama and the visual arts, we assist our boys to find their innate creativity and imagination, while developing their communication skills and pursuing other strengths and interests.
Young men, who may not step up in the presence of girls, take on leadership roles at all-boys schools, often heading community service programs or serving as mentors to younger students. They also develop emotional intelligence and have the capacity to understand empathy and compassion.
5. We foster a sense of belonging, brotherhood and lifelong connections
Working together in the classroom, on the playing field, or in the performance hall, our boys are united by a special bond of brotherhood. Boys will develop friendships for life from their time at Marist.
Boys thrive in an educational environment where they first establish positive, trusting relationships with teachers. In this reciprocity of relationships, where teachers are forthright and caring, boys drop their guard and give of themselves. This relationship-based education model not only enhances the learning process, it also contributes to a boy’s growing sense of belonging to his class, his team, and his school. With teachers, coaches, and counsellors by their sides each day, our boys find important role models. Female staff also play a key role in fostering positive, respectful attitudes toward women. These relationships also promote empathy, courage, and resilience.
This connection of brotherhood extends to our Old Boys — alumni who stand ready to positively support our current students and their fellow Old Boys.
