Liverpool Boys High named Secondary School of the Year
Liverpool Boys High has outshone schools from across Australia to be named Secondary School of the Year in the government category. See what’s behind the school’s success.
From its close community ties to its project-based learning approach allowing students to pursue their passions, Liverpool Boys High School has been recognised as a trailblazer in education.
The school was last week named Secondary School of the Year — Government at the 2019 Australian Education Awards.
Principal Michael Saxon said it was a recognition of the hard work by staff over the past six years, with the school implementing a number of innovations to enrich student learning.
They include the introduction of project-based learning in 2014 for students in Years 7-10, aimed at increasing student engagement by equipping them with the skills to solve real-world problems.
The school also established its Big Picture Academy program to allow students to develop their own learning paths and undertake work in the real world.
From next year, new Year 7 students at Liverpool Boys will be the first to experience a new system in which traditional year groups no longer apply.
Mr Saxon said the award was a morale boost and motivation for the school to continue innovating and improving, with parents “over the moon” about the result.
“We were really proud to get to the finalist list. We knew we were innovative. We knew we were doing some pretty different things and to get to the finalist list wasn’t a huge surprise, but to then win it was,” he said.
“We didn’t realise that what we were doing was actually at the head of the pack. We were really pleasantly surprised, obviously overjoyed, to get the recognition.”
Mr Saxon said it had been a “long journey” to get to this point, but the school’s plans for innovation didn’t stop there.
“Really, what we’re believing in is that education should be a personalised journey so that every student can succeed — that every student gets to make choices based on what their interests and passions are, that they’re guided and mentored to do that so they come out with a set of skills that makes them successful in the next step of their journey.”
Liverpool Mayor Wendy Waller congratulated the school with a certificate of recognition to mark the achievement.
“It’s such a thrill to see a local school being recognised for its innovation and excellence at a national level,” she said.
“We know education is critical to the growth of Liverpool as Sydney’s third CBD — and Liverpool Boys High School is really blazing a trail to the future.”
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