In Religious Education we aim to create a school community, which is clearly based on the values of Jesus. In the Brigidine Tradition, we offer educational experiences that develop students spiritual journey along with creativity, initiative and a love for learning. An important part of Religious Education is our invitation to ‘come and see’ an education offered in the Catholic tradition, however with an appreciation of other faiths and cultures.

The Religious Education curriculum offers students, irrespective of their understanding or belief, the potential to be engaged in meaningful ways in learning about faith and spirituality. Values, scripture, prayer and liturgy permeate the life of the school. We aim to develop young people who understand and appreciate religious values, who are positive about life, who have a sense of their own worth and of their contribution to the world. At the core of the Religious Education curriculum at Killester College is the priority to ensure students are making real-world connections and realising how faith can be put into practice; to become the eyes, ears, and hands of Jesus Christ.

The Arts provide the means for every student to learn. They provide opportunities for creativity and self-expression in a range of methods. They exercise and develop higher order thinking skills necessary for 21st Century learning. Through creative, critical and reflective thinking students analyse, synthesise, evaluate, and problem solve.In addition, they must be able to communicate effectively, collaborate with people different from themselves, exercise initiative, self-direction and independence.The Arts contributes to the development of confident and creative individuals.

At Killester, the Arts include the Performing Arts of Drama, Dance, Media and Music and the Visual Arts including Art, Photography and Film, Drawing & Sculpture, Painting and Printmaking and Visual Communication and  Design. The Arts are compulsory for all students from Year 7 to 9.

A range of electives in the Arts is offered in Year 10:

Performing Arts

Drama – Global Theatre, Psycho Drama, Drama – Festival Performance, Music – Songwriting, Music Performance and Multi media – film making, digital animation

Visual Arts

Photography and Film, Drawing & Sculpture, Painting and Printmaking, Visual Communication and  Design A – Architectural Drawing and Visual Communication and  Design B – Graphic Design

Art, Drama, Music, Media and Visual Communication Design are offered for VCE.

Music at Killester

Every student at Killester has the opportunity to learn a musical instrument for 6 months through the classroom music program in either Year 7 or Year 8. Students can choose flute, clarinet, saxophone, trumpet, euphonium, trombone or percussion. Each student is provided with an instrument and extra teachers are employed so that learning is maximised in small instrumental groups. Students learn to read music, play by ear and compose pieces, as well as covering theory and aural skills. At the end of each semester these new musicians perform for parents and friends, giving them the chance to show off their skills.   

Instrumental music lessons at Killester

Killester offers private instrumental music lessons in the following instruments: flute, clarinet, saxophone, trumpet, trombone, euphonium, voice, piano, guitar, bass guitar, drums, violin, viola, cello. Students can learn individually or with a partner. Music enrolment forms are available at the office or can be downloaded here. 

Ensemble Program

Killester offers a number of co-curricular music ensembles for students to participate in, including Concert Bands, Choirs, Soul Band, Rock Bands, String Ensemble and our Bollywood Fusion dance troupe.

Please view a video made in lockdown by our brass students.

The study of English helps create ‘confident communicators, imaginative thinkers and informed citizens.’ Students learn to listen, read, view, speak, write, create and reflect on spoken, written and multimodal texts.

The English curriculum ensures that students appreciate and use the English language in all its variations and develop an understanding of its power to evoke feelings, convey information, form ideas, facilitate interaction with others, entertain and persuade. Students develop their knowledge of the English language and how it works.

The English curriculum offers students opportunities to engage critically and imaginatively with literature ‘to expand the scope of their experience.’ Students interpret, appreciate and evaluate literary texts.

Students at Killester study English from Years 7 to 12. At Years 11 and 12 students can also study Literature.

The importance of being physically active is well documented and through our Physical Education program we aim to promote life long activity habits in our students.

Involvement in Physical activity benefits students physically, mentally, socially and emotionally.

Physical Education classes aim to increase students overall health by strengthening bones and muscles, increasing cardiovascular function and overall fitness levels.

Students learn skills in various sports and activities through a variety of drills and game play activities. It is through this activity that we aim for students to increase their own health, self esteem, relationships and to develop student’s skills in decision making, positive risk taking and to promote active lifestyles.

As part of Physical Education classes we offer theory lessons to teach students many topics on health, safety, mental health, anatomy, first aid and much more.

Physical Education is compulsory at Killester from Year 7-10 and students may also select electives at Year 9 in Dance styles, Outdoor Education, Sport and Recreation and Personal Development.

We offer VCE Physical Education and Health and Human Development at Year 11 and 12 and also Certificate 3 in Sport and Recreation.

Humanities help us understand others and fosters social justice and equality. It teaches students to deal critically and logically with subjective, complex, imperfect information about the world around them. Humanities students build skills in writing, critical reading and creativity.

The study of Humanities develops informed and critical citizens who are able to make sense of the world they live in, and the world of the future.

At Killester College, Humanities is a compulsory study for all students from Years 7 to 10. Students study history from the time of earliest human communities to the making of the modern world. Geography, Economics and Business and Civics and Citizenship are integral parts of Humanities and taught as stand alone units or integrated into History topics.

At VCE level Humanities offers options including History, Legal Studies, Economics, Accounting, Business Management and Global Politics.

‘The study of Languages offers students many significant benefits and contributes towards the overall education of the individual. Not only does it contribute towards developing communication, literacy and problem solving skills, it also develops general knowledge and intercultural understanding.The study of Languages provides for a more outward facing, socially cohesive, interconnected and culturally aware global citizen and equips them for a wide range of careers.

The study of Languages is compulsory in Years 7, 8, and 9, and in Years 10, 11 and 12 it is studied as an elective. At Year 7, the students study one semester of each language and then choose their preferred language to continue into Years 8 and 9.  At Year 10 students are able to continue to study their chosen Language from Years 8 & 9 into VCE level.

Killester has always been committed to the quality teaching of Indonesian and Italian through its sequenced Languages Curriculum, has included cultural activities for each year level and has always employed teachers with a Language Methodology.  We have a designated Languages area with two classrooms and two break out rooms for student activities. 

‘The limits of my language means the limits of my world’

Ludwig Wittgenstein

‘Why do we teach Mathematics in school? What do we want students to learn?’

The most common responses to these questions are

• for its own sake because it is a beautiful and amazing human accomplishment
• to be prepared for university and future careers, especially in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields
• to develop conceptual understanding and problem solving
• to engage in reasoning and argumentation
• to develop rational and logical thought (which is required in many areas of life)
• to practise high levels of cognition which is beneficial to an individual in many ways

It is also important that students see the role of mathematics in their daily lives, their community practices, and their cultural backgrounds.

At Killester College, students study a common core of Mathematics from Year 7 through to Year 9. In Year 10 the students select a maths subject, which will best prepare them for VCE Mathematics and their future pathways. The Year 10 students can choose to do core, Advanced (10A) or Foundation Units 1/2 Mathematics.

All of the VCE Mathematics subjects are offered in Units 1–4: General Mathematics, Further Mathematics, Mathematical Methods and Specialist Mathematics.

Science forms the basis of the world around us. The rapid changes in our world are mainly due to the progress of science. Science is a global human endeavour that encompasses a body of knowledge and a process of discovery. Through studying science, students gain the knowledge and skills in finding answers to how things work. They have the advantage in adapting to the changes around us. Students become better informed citizens and develop the confidence in applying their knowledge to make this world a better place for the future generations to come.

At Killester, Science is a compulsory subject for all students from Year 7–10. Beyond Year 10, the College offers options in VCE sciences: Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Psychology and VET Certificate III Laboratory Skills to accommodate students’ interests in science.

Technology has an important role in our rapidly changing world and is entwined in almost every part of our lives. It impacts our current and future generations and their environments.

Through learning about technology, students develop knowledge and an understanding about how technology has developed over time, and how it is important for our personal health, wellbeing, recreation, and everyday world of home, work and enterprise and our environment.

Technology classes:

• Prepare students for the real world environment and their future careers where technology will be used
• Allow for a diversity in learning styles
• Support critical and creative thinking and problem solving
• Include student interaction & collaboration, are fun and interactive
• Allow students to take control over their learning and decision making

The Technology structure has two focus areas:

• Digital Technologies in which students use computational thinking and information systems to define, design and implement digital solutions.
• Design and Technologies in which students use design thinking and technologies to generate and produce solutions for authentic needs.

This study is organised into three related strands:

1. Technologies and Society, where students examine social, ethical, economic and sustainability factors in the development of the various technologies.
2. Technologies Contexts  (Food Specialisations, Food and Fibre production and Materials and Technologies specialisations)  
3. Creating Designed Solutions.

The design process starts with a design brief whilst using appropriate technical terms and technologies. Students investigate and generate ideas, develop and test their plans, ideas and processes, manage their resources, produce a product using their skills and a range of tools and materials and equipment, then evaluate their design ideas, processes and solutions.

At Killester we offer the following Technology subjects:

• DESIGN AND MATERIALS (Years 7–10)
• FOOD TECHNOLOGY (Years 7–10)
• VET HOSPITALITY
• TEXTILES AND FASHION  (Years 7–10)
• VET APPLIED FASHION AND TECHNOLOGY
• DIGITAL TECHNOLOGIES (Years 7–10)
• VCE ALLIED COMPUTING (Year 11)
• VCE DATA ANALYTICS  (Year 12)