The magnitude of the need for schools to have a Character Education curriculum was highlighted by the impact of the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic. Daily, the media reported situations where people’s character was called into play.

Perseverance and courage were seen in the many people that became unemployed, demonstrations of generosity and kindness in supporting people who were suffering most, such as the elderly, were frequent, scientists exhibited problem-solving skills to develop a vaccine and people became creative to ensure life continued as close to normal as possible with the restrictions in place.

Fortunately, our students were in a good position to deal with the world turmoil last year because Aquinas College has had a specific Character Education program in place since 2018, with it advancing across the school over the last three years. 2020 was the third year of implementation and saw each Veritas class in Year 7 and 8 gain a second lesson a week which allowed students to delve deeper into understanding what character is, how it is built, how it is tarnished and why it is important people have good character. The Junior school also introduced specific character education lessons for all year groups.

In 2021 the College will continue the promotion of Character Education by introducing a second lesson to each Year 9 Veritas class, thus providing greater opportunity for boys to engage in more Rites of Passage activities for the Odyssey Program. Visually stimulating signage that articulates the importance of people having good character has been arranged to be placed throughout the school and will provide students and visitors with a daily reminder that Aquinas is a school for building character in boys.

Middle School Program T1 2021

Year 7

Year 7 boys have been busy learning about the history of Aquinas and what it means to be an Aquinian. They have also learnt about the legacy of an Aquinas education through researching a selection of successful alumni - businessman Michael Chaney, Olympian and Kookaburras captain Aran Zalewski, politician and former state treasurer Ben Wyatt and Paralympian Brad Ness for example.

For the task, boys had to research the personal and career information, analyse this and justify five character traits these individuals have in order to become successful people. The boys were surprised when they saw the list of names, not realising these men were Aquinians.

Year 8

With a year of Middle School under their belt, the Year 8 boys started the term by reflecting on their time in Year 7 and setting goals for this year. With almost every boy setting an academic goal, it was an opportune time to have a good solid block of Study Skills. The boys looked at what made up a good home study environment and self-assessed their current situation. They learnt about the need to become better organised and improve their time management with the ever-increasing workload that occurs as they move up through school.

After looking at the organisational aspects of study skills, the boys moved onto the scholastic aspects of becoming better students. Boys learnt how to improve their retention of information by using schema - such as mind maps, brainstorming and KWL charts to assist them in making links between past knowledge and present content being taught. They also looked at active reading skills with the SQ3R method - how to take effective notes whilst in class and reading.

Year 9

The Year 9 boys commenced the term with an introduction to the concept of the Odyssey Program being a Rite of Passage for boys transitioning into young men. The beginning of a rite of passage requires candidates to understand and realise where they are currently in their life, so the first few lessons revolved around boys investigating their self-identity, family and personal culture.

Man Box

Halfway through the term disturbing media reports emerged highlighting the sexual assault of teenage girls and women by students and alumni of single-sex boys’ schools. This was timely as the boys commenced lessons around the concept of the ‘Man Box’. The ‘Man Box’ is the set of beliefs within and across society, that stereotype masculinity and place pressure on men to act and behave a certain way, for example: to be tough, not to show any emotions, be the breadwinner, always be in control, use violence to solve problems and have many sexual partners.

By using the research from the Men’s Project, the boys explored how society has placed young men into the ‘Man Box’ and learnt about the impact and harm the pressure to conform to society’s stereotypical ideals of masculinity has on males and their relationships.

Research has found that if we can educate boys to recognise and understand the implications of the ‘Man Box’ we can go a long way in improving their physical and mental health, plus their ability to build healthy relationships with women. Sadly, evidence shows that it is men whose behaviour mirrors the principles of the ‘Man Box’ who are at higher risk of poor health and harmful behaviours such as violence and sexual harassment. During the lessons, teachers promoted positive strategies boys can adopt to step outside the ‘Man Box’. They also encouraged boys to model the character traits of courage, empathy and kindness to allow them to truly be themselves with increased self-confidence and self-esteem.

By looking at the ‘Man Box’ first, it easily allowed the boys to grasp the lessons around respectful relationships with females looking at - “What constitutes sexual harassment?” and “The impact objectification of women has on both males and females.” These lessons will lead into the Term 2 unit – “Human Sexuality within a Catholic Ethos”, which covers topics such as sexual intimacy and the risks associated with it, the context of healthy relationships, and consent and pregnancy.