Albany school's unique service

It has flown slightly under the radar, but one Albany school is offering a unique education service to the whole of WA.

The Australian Christian College Southlands, formerly Southlands Christian College, may only have 70 students attending classes, but it has a whopping 600 students across the State as part of its distance education program.

Principal John Matthews said since the ACC took over the school two years ago it had undergone a transformation.

“We took over the site and got distance education happening,” he said.

“That was step one, but step two now is with the resources coming through we’ve refreshed the staff, gutted the classrooms and totally refurbished them.

“We also had a curriculum that was something out of the USA, so we’ve changed the curriculum and now it’s very much a digital online platform.”

Mr Matthews said a key teaching technology was the use of podcasting.

“Because our staff have to operate in a distance education format, there is real use, daily, of digital technology,” he said.

“It’s not an add-on, it’s the vehicle through which one communicates and does one’s work.”

Mr Matthews said he looked forward to the roll-out of the National Broadband Network, which he said would make a huge difference to the school’s digital programs.

keir.tunbridge@albanyadvertiser.com