• LEARNING

    Bethlehem College Curriculum

Bethlehem College is renowned for excellence, expertise, enthusiasm and energy for the education of girls in Years 7 – 12

Learning Overview

At Bethlehem College we foster confident and independent young women of faith, who are creative and collaborative thinkers, sharing a love of learning and striving for excellence. They are courageous in mind and deed and are global citizens with a genuine concern for others.

The Bethlehem College learning culture is one committed to life-long learning. We provide contemporary educational programs which meet the needs of the individual learner within a safe and supportive learning environment. We infuse a sense of the sacred throughout the curriculum. We have high expectations where all learners are challenged and supported to perform to their full potential. As members of Bethlehem College we commit ourselves to developing our students’ faith and love of learning.

Curriculum and Subjects

Years 7 & 8

Students study:

Religious Education, English, Mathematics, Science, PD/H/PE, Music, Geography, History, Visual Arts and Technology.

Year 7 students also study Learn to Learn (a transition initiative in literacy, numeracy and ‘Habits of Mind’).

Year 8 students have the choice of studying either Italian or Japanese

Years 9 & 10

Students study the core subjects of:  Religious Education, English, Mathematics, Science, PD/H/PE, Music, Australian Geography/ Australian History.

Students also choose TWO of the following electives:

  • Music
  • Drama
  • Dance
  • Visual Arts
  • IST (Information Services Technology)
  • Commerce
  • Food Technology
  • Textiles Technology
  • Elective Geography
  • Elective History
  • Italian
  • Japanese
  • PASS (Physical Activity and Sport Studies)

Years 11 & 12

NESA (the New South Wales Educational Standards Authority) offers courses to meet the needs and interests of an increasingly diverse range of students. At Bethlehem College, courses on offer enable students to achieve their Higher School Certificate in an academic range of courses, a vocational range of courses or a combination of both.  Courses offered vary from year to year based on student need.

Year 11 students are required to study at least 12 units (from the subject list below) for the Preliminary HSC course.

Year 12 students are required to study at least 10 units for the award of the HSC. Included in this must be 2 units of English and at least 1 unit of Religious Education:

  • Ancient History
  • Biology
  • Business Studies
  • Chemistry
  • Community and Family Studies
  • Dance
  • Drama
  • Economics
  • English (all levels)
  • Food Technology
  • Geography
  • History Extension
  • Information Processes and Technology
  • Italian (Beginners and Continuers)
  • Japanese (Beginners and Continuers)
  • Legal Studies
  • Mathematics (all levels)
  • Modern History
  • Music 1
  • Personal Development, Health and Physical Education
  • Photography
  • Physics
  • Religion, Catholic Studies
  • Senior Science
  • Society and Culture
  • Textiles and Design
  • Visual Arts

Vocational Education Courses

Bethlehem College students may choose to study VET Framework courses externally delivered at TAFE or Southern Cross Vocational College Burwood. The following VET courses are offered at school:

  • Business Services
  • Hospitality
  • Retail

Gifted Education

Bethlehem College encourages young women to explore their individual gifts and talents by offering a variety of initiatives to support and provide opportunities to develop into committed, independent learners.

Whilst all classes at Bethlehem acknowledge the individual needs of each student and differentiate the curriculum appropriately, the extension stream provides gifted and highly capable students with further opportunities to access higher order thinking and develop a deeper understanding of complex course outcomes and/or extra-curricula content.

Acceleration is also offered to targeted students in whole cohort structure or for individual courses. Currently there are accelerants in Science and Mathematics.

Other opportunities for enrichment at Bethlehem College include:

  • Year 9 iSTEM class
  • Scientists in Schools project in association with CSIRO
  • Year 8 Musical, Choir and Band
  • Representative Sport
  • Public Speaking and Debating
  • Mock Trial

At Bethlehem we use an array of data including Year 7 Ability Testing, NAPLAN, teacher identification checklists, pre-testing, and work samples to help us identify students’ gifts and talents. We are committed to the ongoing professional learning of staff in gifted education, to provide authentic differentiation ensuring meaningful and purposeful learning for all students.

Learning Support

The College’s Learning Support team ensures that we meet our obligations under the Disability Standards for Education 2005.  At Bethlehem, all students with additional learning needs are supported in being able to participate in their learning on the same basis as their peers through learning support programs that include both in class and withdrawal models.

Disability Provisions

Disability Provisions are applied for on behalf of students in Year 12 to NESA (NSW Educational Standards Authority) for their HSC examinations and subject to NESA approval, are offered to eligible students in all school assessments. Students must be able to verify a learning or medical disability to qualify for application to NESA.

Peer Reading Program

A Peer Reading Program is implemented for targeted Years 7 & 8 students identified through assessment data (NAPLAN, Allwell Testing, School based screening tests) as requiring support with reading comprehension. This intervention program is a targeted program based on intensive skills development  and practice.

Learning Support Teachers oversee the program and monitor the progress of students as they work with specifically trained Year 10 Volunteer Student Tutors  for three half hour sessions per week.

Homework Club

Homework Club is offered by the Learning Support Team to students each Wednesday afternoon and is designed to support students requiring additional assistance with completing homework and assessment tasks. Homework Club is held in the Library from 3.30-4.30pm with students receiving 1:1 assistance or in small groups of students.

Bethlehem College Curriculum

English is an Additional Language / Dialect (EAL/D)

The College is able to provide direct support to students requiring language support for whom English is an additional language or dialect. This support is available both in class and on a withdrawal basis as per the student’s needs.