what makes a catholic school distinctive

In Christian schools, everything is Christ-centered with prayers and religious practices being part of the educational process. Our Promise: Together with you, we teach every student who embarks on this sacred journey how to wield their intelligence, compassion, and spiritual conviction throughout the rest of their lives to make their home, community, and world a better place. You want what’s best for your child, whether that means their education, faith, or health. Catholic school teachers, our most treasured resources, realize how demanding but also how privileged is their call to explicitly teach and tirelessly model, for their students and each other, what it means to live the Gospel of Jesus Christ. “(This means) that nothing is contrary to the faith, to the way that staff and students and parents treat each other,” she said, adding that school administrators and teachers must set an example by their own faith. In our care, they receive a strong spiritual foundation and an education that guides them for the rest of their lives. Catholic schools seek to provide not only a high-quality academic and vocational education giving due emphasis to the fundamental literacy and numeracy skills required for both learning and life, but also a faith and values based holistic education for all their students. “Teaching children to see the world through the eyes of Jesus Christ is our mission,” she said. We attend Stations of the Cross … and read the Scripture of the day during Lent and Advent. Jesus Christ is the reason Catholic Schools exists. This faith-filled environment instills high degrees of self-confidence, self-respect, and self-discipline among students. Vatican II's "Declaration on Christian Education" was clear that parents "must be recognized as the primary and principal educators" of their children. The spiritual mission of Jesus Christ is the reason Catholic Schools exists. 5. Our school is a community of learning with a distinctive educational philosophy which is based on the Gospels which permeate all its activities. What sets an institution of Christian learning apart from its peers, making it more than just a private school named after a saint, with a priest on staff? Our students discover their greatest potential is not reflected simply by high test scores, but at the intersection of their God-given gifts, the desire to learn, and service to others. Instead, Cepelka believes the secret to authentic Catholic education consists of four essential parts, and she relies on her staff and the principals of the 99 elementary schools and 14 high schools in the archdiocese to ensure that each day, all four standards are met. Bryk, Lee, and Holland's study of Catholic high schools. 3. Visible evidence of faith fills the Catholic school environment. “What sets the Catholic school apart in that regard is people don’t just do good things – collect trash or feed the poor, which are great corporal works of mercy – but they really are brought into reflection about those actions to see how they are part of Catholic social teaching,” she said. This means that in addition to providing rigorous academic curricula, Catholic schools actively work with students to build their moral development and shape them into good citizens. “Most teachers graduate from their teacher education programs not having (had) any lessons in how to form Catholic children entrusted to them in their classrooms in their faith. A Catholic education is seen as more than just an accumulation of scholarly achievements; rather, it is the formation that each student merits as a child of God, made in his image and likeness. CBA is accountable to the Diocese of Trenton for the authentic way it educates students in the Catholic faith, but otherwise, its governance allows a unique educational vision to find expression. Students at All Saints, Kenosha, submit their prayer intentions on a daily basis, said Lichter. Know teaching, learning, and best practices. The distinctive nature of Catholic schools is evident in relation to •Employment –Governors (Academy Committee) appoint and employ all school staff. ACRE measures students’ knowledge about their faith and offers opportunities for students to answer questions related to religious beliefs, practices, and perceptions. For Mark Ruedinger, principal at Christ Child Academy, Sheboygan, it is important the culture of Catholicism be manifested in physical symbols his students will recognize. We are called to this great responsibility. The structures will be located “right at the heart of the school,” said principal Dan Quesnell. As the superintendent of Catholic schools for the Archdiocese of Milwaukee since 2010, it’s not surprising Kathleen Cepelka is passionate about the answer to that question. Service learning opportunities are part of the curriculum of several Catholic Schools. We teach them through the Catholic faith that all they do in life is greater with love. “We pause when an ambulance goes by and say mini-prayers. Distinctive Nature of a Catholic School The School owes its existence and special character to the fact that it was established by the Church to nurture Christ’s kingdom in its children and through the nature of its teaching in all subjects, to bring them to a deeper knowledge of and belief in God and a … Catholic schools are also active, collegial members of national and regional associations and have the liberty and wisdom to avoid faddish trends while focusing on core skills, content-rich curricula, and measurable student achievement. “I like to say that the Catholic school really should be a microcosm of the Kingdom of God,” she said. “The school hands on the legacy of Catholicism to its students and is faithful to the message of Jesus Christ as it is handed down by the Catholic Church.”. Reprinted with permission. What do we mean by the Catholic school curriculum, how is it distinctive and how does it reflect the overall Ensuring the distinctive Catholic character of the school . There is no one element to Catholic education, she said, that makes it truly “Catholic.” A crucifix on the wall and a passively taught religion class is not enough. “The first responsibility of the Catholic school teacher or leader is to live the faith him or herself … (students’) understanding of the faith is rooted in the culture of the school, which makes this real for them.”. Our Position: Catholic School students learn that God is present and active in … For the past four years, the archdiocese has also utilized Cardinal Stritch University’s “Sustaining the Mission” program, a “systematic and highly quality-controlled program of theological formation for all Catholic school teachers and principals,” said Cepelka. “Obviously, it will be a spiritual space in which we can worship, but also a symbol and a reminder of why we’re there each day,” he said. So academic standards are important as part of a rounded education. Also know what good governance and family engagement look like. 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