Fitzroy high school is located in the heart of Melbourne in the town of Fitzroy. It is a large school spatially, however only has 600 students from grades 7 to 12. It is a city high school with lots of energetic and enthusiastic students and friendly staff. The school is three floors with spacious classrooms, a home economics room, a wood working room, several art rooms, a drama room, two music rooms, a library, a computer lab and a large gym. The outdoor space is used very efficiently with a caged field, and the cantina (cafeteria). Because of the ozone hole, and Melbourne’s super sunny days, the outdoor space is very sun safe, and students are encouraged to be sun smart. Being sun smart is a part of students’ daily routine and taken seriously by the staff.
Fitzroy High School
Similar to Canadian high schools, the teachers teach several different classes, however they are not stationed in one classroom. All of the teachers have their own office and that is where students know to find their teachers. In fact there are four Canadian teachers on staff. Students call their teachers by their first name. The first name bases creates a sense of closeness between the teachers and students. The teachers partake in lunch hour and recess supervision, one day a week, and volunteer to run the extra curricular activities of the school. In addition, the blocks, or as they call them, sessions, are an hour and a half long. The students have a 30-minute recess and a 45-minute lunch. The school day starts at 8:45am and continues until 3:00pm. There are no dismissal bells; the only bells are in the morning indicating school has begun, and after lunch and recess indicating that the breaks are over.
Fitzroy High School
At Fitzroy both the students and staff work hard on building a positive and proactive school community. This is done through positive interactions, encouragements, and engagements with the students. The staff also has weekly gatherings during recess to have a get together as an entire staff and enjoy a cup of tea and some snacks provided by different individuals each week. This creates a sense of community within the staff, and as a new addition to the staff, I felt very welcomed.