The timetable shake-up which could bring flexi-hours to schools across Victoria

Early finishes, “flexible” hours and art after lunch, these are the changes some high schools are implementing in the new year to revolutionise the future of learning.

Sacred Heart College and St Joseph’s College in Geelong are some school’s implementing flexible learning next year.

High school as most know it is getting a shake-up, with early finishes, more time for self-directed learning and consolidation days coming to timetables across Victorian secondary institutions in the new year.

While four-day teaching weeks aren’t on the cards for the state just yet, the standard seven-hour school day will look a bit different as parts of the education sector move away from traditional learning.

Leading the charge is all-boys school St Joseph’s College in Geelong and its sister school, Sacred Heart College, which are introducing asynchronous learning to help ease the transition from high school into the real world.

St Joseph’s principal Tony Paatsch told the Herald Sun the school’s new timetable – which will be trialled for a week from November 30 before being rolled out next year – will help students develop their capacity for self-directed learning.

“We know that is what’s required of young people once they’ve left school, and we’re trying to encourage that here,” he said.

Changes coming to the Edmund Rice Education Australia school include periods varying between 40 and 90 minutes in length depending on the subject, core subjects scheduled for the morning periods and homeroom at different times during the week.

There will also be additional changes for senior students, with year 12 pupils given early finishes on Monday and Wednesday afternoons due to VET subjects, work placement or part time jobs, and consolidation classes on Wednesdays where no new content will be taught to students.

St Joseph's College Geelong is one school implementing flexible learning next year.

Meanwhile at all-girls school Sacred Heart College Geelong, the school week will be broken up into 30, 60 and 90-minute lessons with wellbeing sessions scattered throughout.

“A major aim of the new timetable structure is to build student autonomy and therefore on

Wednesday morning all students will engage in 30-minute lessons before lunch and 90 minutes of flexible learning after lunch,” principal Anna Negro said.

“These sessions are designed to gradually build the capacity for self-directed learning at years seven to nine and to increase the self-directed learning time at years 10, 11 and 12 to support independent skill development.”

Similar to St Joseph’s College, Sacred Heart College students will be encouraged to participate in self-directed learning on Wednesdays, with the way this is done varying across the year levels.

“The Wednesday lessons are designed for independent learning, not teacher direction of new concepts,” Ms Negro said.

“These lessons can be a consolidation of learning or flipped learning in preparation for end of week lessons.”

The changes coming to the schoolyards were determined by the Time In Modern Education (TIME) project, which the two school’s established nearly four years ago. Clinical psychologists, universities, the Future Schools Alliance and a number of interstate schools were also involved in the project.

“We would hope that by the time we have our students graduating, they have the capacity to function really well as independent learners which is what’s required in a tertiary learning environment and is also what’s required if they go to the workplace or TAFE,” Mr Paatsch said.

The St Joseph’s principal added news of the changes came as a bit of a shock to some teachers, students and parents, however after some consultation opportunities, most appeared on board.

“We think we’ve got a timetable that’s a significant step forward for all of our students, and I think parents recognise that,” he said.

The only real concern Mr Paatsch said staff were “scratching their heads over” was a slight reduction in the amount of time students and teachers were allocated for lunch.

“We wonder whether that will reduce students’ socialising,” he said. “We will certainly review as we go along and if there’s anything that needs tweaking, then we’re in a position to tweak it.

“I could not see us reverting back to the timetable that we’ve probably had in place unchanged for the last 30 to 40 years.”

Students will attend consolidation classes and have early finishes as part of the flexible learning timetable.

Across the state, other high schools – both public and private – have introduced early finishes one day a week or fortnight for studying, work or extra-curricular purposes and longer periods to help with teacher shortages.

For example, in the state’s northwest, Catholic Regional College North Keilor (CRCNK) is considering a minor change to the school timetable which would mean students finish up an hour early one day a fortnight.

“The proposal would allow students some flexibility to follow up on project work, catch up on unfinished tasks, personal appointments and so on,” CRCNK principal Tullio Zavattiero said.

“It would also provide a block of time for staff to engage in strategic and targeted professional learning and collaboration.

“A decision on the change will be made soon as we firm up our timetable for 2024.”

However, despite the Queensland government announcing all public primary and secondary school students will have the option to participate in flexible study options in the new year, with the possibility of a four-day school week, Victorian students shouldn’t hold their breath for similar privileges.

“The Department of Education is not considering a four-day school week,” a spokesman for the department said.