The Courier Mail this week rated the School of Total Education in Warwick at number three in the State over the past five years, based on OP results in the 1-15 band.
“It is nice to get the recognition that Total Education works academically for our students on a consistent basis. We have known it for a long time, but it’s something of a well kept secret, not intentionally but probably because people think it’s too good to be true,” said principal Shane Power.
“Interestingly, we are not like most other schools in the CM article,” Mr Power said.
“We don’t have the high fees and we don’t academically hot house. Our students are just ordinary kids who are relaxed and enjoy learning. The great academic results are a by-product and not what we focus on,” he said.
So what is the secret of Total Education? According to Mr Power, the key is the focus on the children’s character development.
“We teach values by modelling them. We choose our teachers first and foremost because they are good people and then train them in the values of Total Education.
“They are mentors and role models and the children look up to them. Our teachers really care,” he said.
One of those values is co-operation rather than competition. One feels a friendly and warm atmosphere immediately on entering the school.
In all areas the children are taught to cooperate rather than to try and outdo their fellows. In games, while the competition might be fierce and there may be winners, they are not put on a pedestal and glorified at the expense of everyone else.
“By aiming at excellence, we find the children do far better than if pitted against each other. They develop healthier attitudes and are much more composed when faced with exams and assignments,” Mr Power said.
“Over time, they come to a deeper understanding of themselves and find their own motivation.”
The school runs a weekly parenting program to support parents in their parental roles. It also helps bring the parents and the school to a consistent approach with the children.
The parents are a welcome part in the school’s fabric, another factor which takes away the tension often found in schools today.
The school is a living community, a focal point for everyone involved.
“People have tried to categorise us over the years as a ‘this’ school or a ‘that’ school, you know, for arty children or for gifted children. But the reality is we are for all children. Total education brings out the best in everyone” Mr Power said.
“We have been very fortunate to have been given this gift of the school by its founder Vijayadev Yogendra.
“Mainstream education is based on a post war model of creating spare parts for industry,” he claims.
“We need a broader approach if our society is to progress beyond the narrow confines of material success,” Mr Power said.
