Student Voice and Agency
At Glen Waverley Secondary College, our vision is:
to grow respectful, responsible, resilient global citizens
who value diversity and lifelong learning .
To achieve this vision, we believe that it is imperative for our students to develop a strong sense of voice and agency in their schooling years over their own learning.
At GWSC, we interpret student voice and student agency to mean the following:
What does this look like in GWSC?
At GWSC, the influence of Student Voice & Agency extends beyond extracurricular activities and the individual into our learning environments.
We encourage our students to:
Take ownership over their own learning
We believe that learning is not passive, but rather, an active process that requires commitment and initiative. At GWSC, we believe that students have the best chance at lifelong success when they themselves drive their own learning.
To do this, students need to regularly engage in self-reflection to better understand their strengths and areas of improvements. They also need to advocate for themselves by engaging meaningfully in class.
GWSC has developed the Learner Model (see below) to help students understand how to best exhibit agency in their learning.- Partner with teachers
We believe that the classroom space is a collaborative learning environment. Students have much to offer in their personal perspectives, and our GWSC teachers want students to contribute their opinions and feedback to better improve teaching and learning. 
Advocate for their peers
All students, whether holding a formal leadership position or not, are advocates of their peers. At GWSC, we want our students to stand up for their peers by engaging meaningfully in class and speaking up confidently for those who may need a bit more support.
Student Voice & Agency Advocates (SVAA)
Within GWSC, the Student Voice and Agency Advocates (SVAA) team focuses on amplifying the voices of students in their classrooms.
As part of SVAA, students have the opportunity to advocate for both themselves and their peers, so that their voices and opinions are heard and acted upon by their teachers. SVAA members also have the opportunity to deliver training sessions on student voice and agency to both their peers and teachers.
SVAA Representatives teaching 2024 Form Captains
about the new GWSC Learner Model
(L-R Austin Su, Shahani Gowritharan, Elisha Nguyen, Serena Phoen)
The GWSC Learner Model
One of the great successes of SVAA was the development of the whole-school policy, the GWSC Learner Model (link here ).
The GWSC Learner Model aims to complement the GWSC Instructional Model . Where the latter explains what teachers should be doing as best teaching practice, the former is interested in what students should do as best learning practice.
The Learner Model seeks to make successful learning clear and visible to students as it presents attributes of high achieving behaviour within the classroom. Students are encouraged to reflect regularly on the attributes presented in the model, and consider how they can better improve their learning practice so that they have the best opportunity at success within GWSC.
The GWSC Learner Model was uniquely developed and implemented by GWSC SVAA representatives for GWSC students over the course of 12 months from Sept 2023 to 2024. Students conceptualised and illustrated the poster, and taught other students so that they could then teach their respective classes about this important school resource. We are very proud of what SVAA has achieved through the Learner Model and are thankful for their commitment to Student Voice and Agency within our college.
