Diocese of Ballarat Catholic Education Limited (DOBCEL)

Witnessing to Faith in Catholic Schools and Parishes

Catholic dialogue schools in the Diocese of Ballarat seek to foster communities inspired by the Gospel and the mission of the Church. Schools express their Catholic identity by grounding all that they do in the mission of the Church, inspired by the Gospel and the presence of the Risen Lord. This is made visible through key moments in school life such as liturgical celebrations, feast days, graduations and community gatherings, where faith is celebrated and shared. Each school also draws on their unique charism and traditions, helping to shape a strong sense of identity and purpose within each community.

Particularity of the Catholic Faith tradition is expressed through the relationships, routines, experiences and celebrations that shape the everyday and ordinary to extraordinary occurrences in school life. “The Catholic dialogue school becomes the tangible witness” (Lieven Boeve, 2026) to the Church’s long-standing service to foster the intellectual, spiritual, ethical and relational development of each student creating environments where dialogue, reflection and encounter are central. Students are encouraged to develop spiritual awareness through moments of stillness, prayer and reflection, and to connect their learning with their own life experiences and cultural backgrounds. DOBCEL’s commitment to the Catholic dialogue school, enables the witness to faith to become personally meaningful and integrated into how young people understand themselves and the world around them.

Students also witness the vision and mission of their school that connects implicitly to the life of Christ by means of putting Gospel values into action. Schools promote the particularity of the Catholic Christian tradition through a strong sense of social responsibility, encouraging students to respond to the needs of others, particularly those who are poor or marginalised. Through social justice initiatives, community engagement and a focus on care for creation, students are invited to contribute to a more just and compassionate world. In partnership with families and the wider Church, Catholic schools in Ballarat aim to form young people who may not only understand their faith, spirituality and worldview but identify with it through their service, respect and a commitment to the common good.

In alignment with the Ballarat Diocese’s commitment to Laudato Si’ and integral ecology, Catholic Education Ballarat integrates the Caritas Earthcare Laudato Si’ Action Plan framework across each of its schools. This systemic approach strengthens ethical procurement and social justice initiatives by bridging environmental stewardship with human dignity. By embedding these practices into daily school life, responsible governance is ensured and an authentic response to the Modern Slavery Statement preparations across the entire Diocese.

In Catholic dialogue schools across the Ballarat diocese, classroom prayer is approached as both an authentic expression of the Catholic tradition while engaging in the context and lived experience of staff and students. An invitation to participate in prayer is extended to all staff and students, regardless of their personal beliefs. Prayer is presented in ways that are respectful, accessible, and sensitive to a plural context, recognising that many students may not identify with a particular faith. The Catholic Tradition invites students into the rich experience of classroom prayer which includes moments of stillness, gratitude, compassion, and wonder. Content of classroom prayer draws on Scripture, tradition, and the lived experience of participants. This approach values the richness of diversity within the classroom, encouraging students to engage at their own level—whether through faith, personal reflection, or shared meaning making—so that prayer becomes an opportunity for all, enabling connection, respect, and the fostering of a hopeful and reflective school community. In this setting, the Catholic tradition speaks articulately and can lead staff and students through classroom prayer to greater connection with self, others, all creation, and the openness to the presence of God.

Religious Education Curriculum

In the Diocese of Ballarat, the Religious Education curriculum is guided by the Awakenings framework and is centred on the dignity of each learner as a unique person in relationship with others, the world and God. Grounded in Scripture and the Tradition of the Catholic Church, the curriculum supports students to explore the tenets of faith in ways that are meaningful within contemporary life. It aligns with the Victorian Curriculum Foundation–10 and is designed to develop students’ knowledge, skills and dispositions, while also nurturing their spiritual and moral growth.

Religious Education in the Ballarat Dioceses reflects high-quality teaching and learning practices. Learning experiences are carefully co-designed based on student agency, engagement, progress and achievement and are shaped through dialogue, shared and personal reflection. A multi-correlational approach to organising and accessing content from the Awakenings Curriculum in light of the signs of the times, encourages students to connect their own experiences with the reality of the wider world in dialogue with the Catholic story and vision through religious texts, traditions and concepts. The methodologies of an adaptation of “Shared Christian Praxis” and “Pedagogy of Encounter” are utilised to enable students to be curious, to reimagine, to think and interpret critically and creatively and with increasing depth. In line with the Enhancing Catholic School Identity project (ECSI), the hope is that students will engage with religious tenets post-critically where Spiritual Capabilities assist students and teachers to engage with the other to be both mutually enriched. The dispositions of hospitality and vulnerability are bedrocks in the process of recontextualization where making the thinking visible moves the head, heart and hands.

The curriculum recognises that students come from diverse faith backgrounds and worldviews and supports differentiated learning, enabling each student to engage at their own level of understanding to foster an openness to belief. Importantly, Religious Education in Ballarat is part of a broader, lifelong process of faith and identity formation. It is supported through strong partnerships between home, school, parish and the wider Church community. Schools seek to make the religious dimension visible across all areas of learning and to integrate intellectual, spiritual, ethical and relational development. Through this approach, students are encouraged to grow as reflective learners, develop moral character, and consider how connection with one’s spirituality calls them to contribute to a more just and compassionate society.

Approach to the Sacraments

Preparation for the sacraments in the Diocese of Ballarat is ideally parent lead and parish-based, with Catholic schools supporting families in the preparation process. Children usually celebrate the sacraments of Reconciliation, Confirmation and Eucharist during their primary school years.

Parishes support families through sacramental preparation programs that include learning sessions, prayer and participation in parish liturgies. This approach helps children understand the meaning of the sacraments and their importance in the life of the Catholic community. Units of work designed within the Awakenings curriculum endeavour to align with anticipated year level students are in at the time of preparation and reception of sacraments.