At PLC we develop Inspiring Women

Our four key pillars form the foundation of the unique programmes designed to suit the differing needs of girls as they journey through our School.

PERSONALISATIONWe personalise the learning for each girl, as we understand each of us needs different conditions to reach our potential. We help our girls find their strengths and passions, be they academic, sporting or cultural and support them with our individualised pastoral care and wellbeing programmes.

LEADERSHIPAs an organisation we are leaders; we also teach our girls how to be leaders by developing themselves and their leadership potential.

COURAGEBeing successful requires courage and we promote this through our ‘have a go attitude’, which is central to life at PLC.

COMMUNITYOur community provides our girls with a place of belonging, where each girl is valued for her unique contribution. Our PLC family supports each other but also teaches the importance of ‘being of service’ to humanity at a local, national and international level.

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Personalised learningPLC consistently enjoys outstanding academic results which reflect the hard work of our girls and the committed staff who support them each day.

Excellence underpins everything we do and our outstanding reputation for academia flows from high-end results that students achieve in WACE and IB Diploma each year.

EARLY LEARNING CENTREOur specialised staff have developed programmes for our youngest students that invite curiosity, wonder, imagination and, most importantly, a love of learning.

ME@PLCMy Education@ PLC supports girls’ progression through the School and assists them to take ownership of their education as they Discover, Develop, Define and Distinguish who they are and who they’d like to be.

Discover ME Junior School Pre-kindergarten – Year 6Holistic, personalised teaching techniques form the foundation of inquiry learning in the PLC Junior School.

Our students discover their personal talents, passions and character with the assistance of specialists along with their classroom teacher.

Develop ME Years 7 – 8 In the Develop ME programme we focus on building core skills and understandings to create a strong foundation, enabling the girls to mature and move confidently into the Define ME programme in Years 9 - 10.

We understand the importance of developing friendships and ensuring our girls feel a strong sense of belonging within our Senior School and design our programmes to support this.

Define MEYears 9 – 10During these years of significant intellectual, emotional and social development, PLC girls define their individual strengths and aspirations in an environment focused on both wellbeing and academic achievement. With strong skills and understandings from the Develop ME programme, the focus shifts to applying skills and academic achievement.

Distinguish MEYears 11 – 12Choice is fundamental to what we offer at PLC. We are the only girls’ school in WA to offer multiple programmes in Year 11 and 12; the Western Australian Certificate of Education and the International Baccalaureate Diploma programme.

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International BaccalaureateOriginating in Geneva in 1968, the International Baccalaureate (IB) Organisation is committed to educational excellence and a desire to create a better and more peaceful world through intercultural understanding.

The IB framework is built around harnessing a child’s natural curiosity. Through inquiry based learning students discover the why, how and what of the world around them.

PLC is the only all-girls’ school in WA to offer the IB model. The Primary Years Programme (PYP) is taught in the Junior School from Year 1 to 6, while the School offers the IB Diploma as an option to WACE and VET for students in Years 11 and 12.

PRIMARY YEARS PROGRAMME (PYP) PYP develops the whole child as an inquirer, both in the classroom and the world outside.

It provides an educational framework that develops an understanding of concepts, skills and knowledge and develops positive and responsible attitudes that lead to action.

IB DIPLOMAThe final two years of high school are a launching pad for success at university and beyond. The IB Diploma is widely considered an excellent pathway for future success. It is designed as an integrated whole, where subjects across a range of disciplines work together to ensure students develop their creativity, critical thinking skills and global awareness as well as being active members of their communities.

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PLC LighthousePLC Perth is the first Western Australian school to deliver a dedicated health and wellbeing programme in a purpose-built facility – the PLC Lighthouse.

At PLC we aim to:• Prevent mental illness.• Promote mental health.• Support student learning.

Research shows that school-based social and emotional learning is associated with improved social and emotional skills, behaviour and academic achievement (Durlak, Weissberg, Dymnicki, Taylor, & Schellinger, 2011).

A recent study of 287 Australian schools found that the highest academic scores occurred when mental health promotion was included in a school’s priorities (Allen, Kern, Vella-Brodrick, & Waters, 2017).

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At PLC, our wellbeing approach includes:• A comprehensive, developmentally

appropriate PK-12 wellbeing curriculum.

• Integration of wellbeing within teacher methods and practice.

The PLC Lighthouse supports students to practise the skills of wellbeing and to help them build community wellbeing.

The Lighthouse provides contemporary and flexible spaces to support the School’s wellbeing programme. These include:• Meditation room• Recharge room• Expressive arts room• Workshop spaces

• Movement room• Circuit room• Cardio room• Food and Nutrition area• Consultation rooms for allied health

professionals including physiotherapist, occupational therapist, speech therapist and school psychologists.

• Lighthouse Café• Lighthouse Beginners for

0-5 year-olds.

Before and after school fitness and group classes are also provided in the Lighthouse.

Approaching wellbeing in schools isn’t a competing agenda, but rather, supports the infrastructure to enable students to function at their best and flourish.

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Learning journey At PLC we aim to ignite our girls’ curiosity where she will discover her unique passions and strengths across a broad curriculum.

ACADEMIC EXCELLENCEPLC consistently enjoys outstanding academic results which reflect the hard work of our girls and the committed staff who support them each day.

MUSIC AND THE ARTSAll PLC girls have the opportunity to step into a world of visual, performance and digital arts and develop their confidence in creative self-expression.

TOURS AND OUTDOOR EDUCATIONWe deliver one of the most comprehensive Outdoor Education and Tours programmes on offer for girls in Australia.

SPORTPLC has a tradition of exceptional participation with an unwavering commitment to compete as a member of the Independent Girls’ Schools’ Sports Association (IGSSA) for both Junior and Senior School students.

We operate as a Pre-K to Year 12 co-curricular sports programme with the aim to provide a cohesive, personalised and streamlined approach to skill development, fitness and competitive aspirations.

TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATIONOur School was the first in Western Australia and one of the first schools nationally to implement a laptop programme for students in 1994. PLC has been recognised for its innovations in Information Learning Technologies, being named an Apple Distinguished School and Cisco Exemplar School.

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Boarding at PLCBeing a boarder is an amazing and exciting journey. Boarding is a special way in which to experience life at a school.

At PLC, the boarders are very important members of the School community and are involved in all that the School has to offer, as well as a wide array of activities organised by the boarding community.

Coming to PLC as a boarder is an exciting, yet daunting, prospect. To help ease this transition, the School has developed “About Being Connected @ PLC” or ABC@PLC for short. The programme is all about connections with each other, connections with school personnel and connections with and through technology.

Our Best Buddy programme is designed to give new boarders a helping hand throughout their transition into boarding. Structured and supervised homework and study sessions on weekdays, overseen by dedicated Boarding House Learning Co-Ordinators, will help your daughter form life-long learning habits.

Our PLC boarders come from many parts of Western Australia, Australia and overseas. The girls bring a wealth of cultural and family backgrounds to our community and we value and celebrate these individual differences.

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Parents as partnersPLC is proud of its connection with a large number of support groups who foster friendships and communication as well as support PLC with important events and activities.

PLC PARENTSPLC Parents is a sub-committee of the PLC Council and is the school body which represents the interests of parents and promotes the School’s ethos of providing a supportive environment for students, parents and the wider community.

PLC Parents fosters friendships within the School community and fundraises for initiatives that support the educational, spiritual, physical and social development of students and the School.

The group also supports the numerous volunteers who take on roles within the School community which promote PLC, such as Year Representatives, New Parent Liaisons and positions responsible for organising fundraising activities, social gatherings and Year group events like the Year 12 Ball.

OLD COLLEGIANS’ ASSOCIATIONOne of the strengths of PLC is the sense of community felt by students past and present, and the lifelong friendships forged at school.

The PLC Old Collegians’ Association Inc (OCA), founded in April 1920, connects, promotes and celebrates our past students. PLC ‘Old Girls’ stay involved in school life, reconnecting at reunions, and networking and engaging at special school events.

PLC FOUNDATIONIt is the Foundation’s task to ensure there will always be a generation at PLC today, who benefit from the foresight of and generosity of generations past.

This can occur either through scholarships to those whose family circumstance would otherwise not allow them to become a PLC Girl, or through the funding of capital projects like the existing Swim and Recreation Centre, Science, Art and Technology facilities or the new Senior School building.

All gifts to the Foundation, whether they be donations made during a lifetime or those given through a bequest, support our mission to provide a centre of academic excellence for the education of tomorrow’s leaders.

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