School Profile


Cockatoo Primary School is located on the edge of the Dandenong Ranges, forty-six kilometres from Melbourne. The school draws its students from an extensive area, the immediate township of Cockatoo, the wider rural fringe areas and neighbouring communities. The community of Cockatoo is tight knit and the school has a high profile within the Cockatoo township.

 

The school is organised into teaching teams that reflect the Australian curriculum levels. A broad-based curriculum provides students with the opportunity to explore and develop their potential. High standards are expected and achievement is acknowledged and celebrated. Fostering students’ self-esteem remains a priority.

 

At Cockatoo Primary School our purpose is:

 

1.  To provide a safe, friendly and caring environment that enhances learning, personal growth and wellbeing so that students are equipped with the necessary skills and knowledge to become responsible members of our community and the global society

 

2.  To create a stimulating and supportive environment for all staff

 

3.  To develop a partnership between staff, parents and the community to achieve common goals for student success

 

Cockatoo Primary School aims to develop in each child an ability to maximise their potential and develop respect for themselves, others and the environment. The ethos of this school is one of a sense of community where the welfare of students and staff is paramount. Great emphasis is placed on caring for our students, staff and parents by:

  • Providing an environment that is safe and secure
  • Fostering a climate of mutual respect and cooperation
  • Providing clearly defined behavioural expectations and procedures
  • Fostering strong links within the school and the wider community
  • Extending students to reach their individual potential by encouraging, recognising and rewarding achievement and effort
  • Acknowledging the vital role that parents play in the education of their children and working in partnership with them to assist children in maximising their potential.

 

Students are expected to display a commitment to:

  • Personal improvement of skills and knowledge
  • Development of self-discipline
  • Completion of set class work and homework
  • Pride in the quality of their work
  • Co-operation, courtesy, respect and acceptance of themselves and others
  • Respecting their own property and that of others

 

Cockatoo Primary School is committed to consultation, collaborative discussion and decision-making and whole-school planning. The school regards itself as an integral part of the community and works in active partnership with parents to nurture the academic and personal development of the children in a happy, secure and stimulating environment.

 

Parent involvement in the school extends from a very active and supportive School Council and PFA to direct participation in learning programs. The school actively promotes and values strong home-school partnerships. The school community promotes a positive system of values within a climate which is accepting of change and responsive to new and emerging learning needs. The dedication of staff members, their commitment to teamwork and their support for each other ensures that this atmosphere is sustained. The school runs an Out of School Hours Program.

 

Cockatoo Primary School has been very active in striving for aboriginal reconciliation. The school boasts an aboriginal garden at the entrance to the administration building. All plants in the garden are edible and are representative of the vegetation used to sustain the Koori inhabitants of our immediate area in years past.

 

Every year some of our grade five students have the opportunity to visit Arnhem Land and experience the culture prevalent in the small aboriginal community of Ramingining. For the first time, a group of aboriginal students and tribal elders visited our school during 1998. The cultural exchange program has now run for twenty one years.

 

The school has established a sister school relationship with Yu Feng Experimental Primary School in Kunshan, China. This has seen the students of the grade five and six areas visit our school for the first time in 2013 and has provided the school with a wealth of educational experience beyond the normal curriculum. A reciprocal visit is planned for 2015.

 

 

 

 

 

School Profile