Australian Democratic Principles Statement

At St Mary MacKillop College we are thankful that we are able to prosper under the principles and practices of a democratic nation and the policy frameworks of both its Federal and State Governments.

We acknowledge that we have the freedom to pursue our religious beliefs and to follow a religious worldwide view that is founded upon those beliefs.

We honour and commit to the fundamental freedoms of speech and association for all Australians so long as those freedoms are not used to subvert the rule of law.

We accept the right of our elected Government and their officers to prescribe certain conditions pertaining to the programs and teaching practices of schools, provided those conditions do not diminish or remove our right to teach in a manner consistent with our declared religious beliefs around which our College operates.

We acknowledge that all persons are entitled to be treated equally before the law and, as far as it lies within our capacity to do so, we will endeavour to treat the members of our community with equity and fairness.

We are committed to living in peace with our fellow Australians irrespective of differences in faith, race or culture.  We are committed to the social value of respect for all persons.

The ‘Education and Reform Act 2006’ requires all education providers to operate in a manner consistent with this set of Australian democratic principles.

In accordance with the Act we will deliver our programs and teaching in a manner that supports and promotes the principles and practice of Australian democracy. This includes a commitment to:

• Elected government
• The rule of law
• Equal rights for all before the law
• Freedom of religion
• Freedom of speech and association
• The values of openness and tolerance

The following processes and resources assist our school to support and promote the principles and practice of Australian democracy in our programs and teaching:

1. School review and principal review processes require our school to present a published vision and mission statement based on the mission or purpose of a Catholic school. By the very nature of Catholic schools, which seek to develop the whole person and to assist students to become active members of the Catholic Church and contributors to the common good of society, these statements acknowledge Australian democratic values.

2. Our school displays a poster of democratic values as required by the Australian Government within the school.

3. The Civics and Citizenship domain of the Victorian Curriculum, which are required to be taught in all Catholic schools, provide students with knowledge, skills and opportunities to understand and practise what it means to be a citizen in a democracy. All students are required to work through the two dimensions of the Civics and Citizen domain:

1. Civic knowledge and understanding
2. Community engagement

Communication Statement

In order to ensure that all members of the school community have access to all relevant school documentation and Democratic Principles, a hard copy of these documents is available on request at the College front office.  In addition, there are a number of relevant policies on our College website.  The Democratic Principles are available in the College Office, in addition to these; selected school documentation is published in the College newsletter.  Staff can access documentation through SIMON on the College intranet.