Agenda

 

 

Day One: Monday 13^th October 2025

 

9:00        Opening remarks from the Chair

 

9:05        Welcome to Country

 

9:10        Welcoming Remarks
Tony George, Headmaster, The King’s School

 

The Role of Character in Education

 

9:20        International Keynote: To Fulfil Our Human Promise – The Aristotelian Picture of Character Education

• The intellectual and civic aspects of character education
• The formative effect schools have on those who inhabit them
• How practical wisdom is the fundamental character virtue in schools
• The quality of knowing what to want and what not to want when the demands of two virtues collide
• Overcoming the ever-increasing anxiety in education aligned to student success

Professor James Arthur, Jubilee Centre for Character and Virtues, University of Birmingham UK; Harvard Flourishing Program, Harvard University USA

 

10:00     Panel Discussion: What role does character play in school leadership?

• What are the character traits needed to be successful school leaders?
• How have these attributes changed over your career?
• What are the keys values that you look for in your leadership teams?
• How important is the role of the Principal in setting a values-based education?

Tony George, Headmaster, The King’s School
Dr Julie McGonigle, Head, St Andrew’s Cathedral School
Prof Leanne Holt, Deputy Vice Chancellor Indigenous, UNSW

 

Successfully Implementing Character Education

 

10:30     Case study: Establishing a character education practice

• Key factors influencing the decision to appoint a Leader of Character Education. What problems were we trying to solve?
• Key challenges in establishing the practice. How supportive and responsive were management, teachers, parents and students?
• Things we have learnt in setting up the practice. What would we do differently?
• Is it working? Analysing the data of the story so far
• What will the program look like in 5, 10 years’ time?

Marie-Anne Maakrun, Leader of Character Education, Marist Catholic College Penshurst

 

10:50    Case study: Implementing a values-based approach to shaping character education

• Articulating character virtues to enhance and retain Frensham Schools’ culture
• Maintaining the language of character to develop the moral practice of doing what is good and right
• Seamlessly integrating an explicit learning course into the P-12 experience
• How character education develops a sense of belonging and impacts wellbeing

Lucy Dalleywater, Director of Activities, Frensham Schools

 

11:10     Morning tea

 

11:40     Breakout Session One

 

12:20     Breakout Session Two

 

1:00       Lunch

 

Making Character Education work

 

2:00        Effectively measuring character in schools

• Why should we be trying to measure character?
• How to measure character development
• Steps in developing a measurement rubric
• How to determine if classroom and extra curricula activities have had an impact on character

Prof Jim Tognolini, Centre for Educational Measurement and Assessment (CEMA), The University of Sydney

 

2:50        Panel Discussion: Is character education working? Where is the evidence?

• The well-rounded child. A baseless claim or backed by evidence?
• What do we think is working in character education?
• What should character education look like in 10 years’ time?
• Challenges measuring and recording growth and the evolution of character education

Aaron McDonald, Principal, Youth off the Streets
Adam Larby, Head of School, Tudor House

 

3:30        Afternoon tea

 

4:00        Panel Discussion: Flourishing and Character – what’s the connection?

• Is there, and should there be, a difference in the way character education is delivered for girls?
• How do girls best respond to character and flourishing education?
• Can boys flourish?
• How do co-ed schools differentiate character and flourishing education?

Dr Greg Elliott, Executive General Manager Quality and Performance, Catholic Schools Parramatta
Dr Kate Hadwen, Principal, Pymble Ladies’ College
Angela O’Dwyer, Principal, Loreto Mandeville Hall Toorak
Andrew Perks, Deputy Principal¸ Bacchus Marsh Grammar School

 

4:30        International Address: Putting character at the heart of responsible leadership

• Inspiring a new generation of leaders to develop the moral and intellectual qualities to think with clarity, embrace diversity, navigate ambiguity, and persevere in the face of complex challenges
• The character qualities most important for responsible leadership
• Key findings from the pioneering work of the Oxford Character Project

Dr Katy Granville-Chapman, Associate Fellow, The Oxford Character Project, UK

 

5:00        Closing remarks and Networking Drinks

 

6:00        Official Summit Dinner

 

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Day Two: Tuesday 14^th October 2025

 

9:10        Opening remarks from the Chair

 

9:20        International Keynote: Character Education and Flourishing in schools: Key Underpinnings and Practices

• The formative effect schools have on those who inhabit them
• Introducing some of the core philosophical foundations of character education and virtue development
• The building blocks of character – the caught, taught, sought’ approach
• Understanding the components of virtue
• How the framework can be and has been implemented within schools
• The importance of staff as character educators, role models and core pedagogies of character education

Professor Andrew Peterson, Jubilee Centre for Character and Virtues, University of Birmingham UK

 

10:00     Keynote Address: How Artificial General Intelligence will revolutionise the education experience and the implications this will have on character development

• The impact AI will have in education in and out of the classroom
• How can AI be used to enhance character education?
• Moving beyond the 4Cs to the 4Es – ethics, enterprise, empathy, engagement
• How will the role of educators evolve?

Prof Matt Bower, Professor of Learning Technologies, Macquarie University

 

10:40    Panel Discussion: To what extent should character development form part of the Australian curriculum?

• Developing personal and social capability
• Understanding ethical concepts and issues
• Reasoning in decision-making
• Exploring values, rights and responsibilities

Executive Director Curriculum, Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority
Dr Edward Simons, Executive Director, Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools
Adele Ramsay, Principal, Tara Anglican School for Girls
Amy Gill, Deputy Principal Impact and Innovation, Youth off the Streets

 

11:10     Morning tea

 

11:40     Breakout Session Three

 

12:20     Breakout Session Four

 

1:00        Lunch

 

Character in the World and The Future of Work

 

2:00        The significance of character in the Australian Defence Force

• The role of character in Australian Defence Force Recruitment
• How character underpins the key values and behaviours of Defence
• How character enables effective decision-making in high pressure environments

RADM Letitia van Stralen AM, CSC, RAN, Head of Military Personnel – Defence People Group, Department of Defence

 

2:30       The significance of character and culture in creating long-term success

• Building a values-driven organization: How the Penrith Panthers established clear team values and ensured they were embraced at every level of the organization
• Overcoming adversity through character development: Real examples of how character strength helped the Panthers navigate challenges and setbacks on their championship journey
• Creating a culture of accountability: Specific strategies used to develop player ownership and mutual responsibility within the team environment
• Measuring the intangibles: How the Panthers leadership team identifies, develops, and evaluates character traits and cultural fit beyond physical talent and statistics

Matthew Cameron, Chief Executive Officer- Rugby League, The Penrith Panthers

 

3:00        Panel Discussion: Will character be more important than skills and knowledge for the workforce of the future?

• In a world where AI will dominate the future workforce will character emerge as a key attribute to success?
• What are the character traits future employers will look for? Are we seeing these in graduates and school-leavers today?
• To what extent does character play in recruitment today? Do you expect this to evolve?
• What plans and programs do your organisations have in place to develop character in employees?

 

3:30        End of the 2025 Australian Character Education Summit    

 

Breakout Sessions

Delegates will have the opportunity to attend 4 breakout sessions from the following list:

 

A- Standing Sacred: Building Strength and Character through the Circle of Courage

This workshop explores how the Circle of Courage framework, as embraced by The Youth Off The Streets Model of Education, offers a culturally grounded, strength-based approach to character development in at-risk youth. Rooted in Indigenous epistemologies and supported by contemporary youth development theory, the Circle of Courage identifies four universal growth needs—Belonging, Mastery, Independence, and Generosity—as essential to the physical, spiritual, social, and cognitive well-being of all young people.

By explicitly teaching these values, educators can create learning environments that honour young people as sacred—capable of growth, deserving of dignity, and recognised as active participants in their own development. Through the lens of conscious pedagogy, this work becomes intentional: designing experiences, language, rituals, and routines that awaken character. In this way, the classroom becomes a relational, restorative, and responsive space for healing and growth.

 As Father Chris Riley affirms, “This is the most powerful framework that I worked within.” This workshop demonstrates how the Circle of Courage can be a transformative tool for educators committed to nurturing strength, dignity, and belonging in every young person.

Aaron McDonald, Principal, Youth off the Streets
Amy Gill, Deputy Principal Impact and Innovation, Youth off the Streets

 

B – The Barker College Experience of Developing a Character Education Framework – Wise Heads, Loving Hearts and Useful Hands

This workshop explores Barker College’s journey in developing a whole-school character education framework, shaped by the guiding principles of “Wise Heads, Loving Hearts and Useful Hands.” The framework seeks to cultivate intellectual discernment and curiosity (Wise Heads), foster compassion and moral integrity (Loving Hearts), and encourage purposeful action and service (Useful Hands). The workshop will explore the philosophical and pedagogical foundations underpinning the model, outline the collaborative design and ongoing implementation process, and share strategies for embedding the framework. Practical insights and examples will be provided to support educators in shaping similar approaches within their own school communities.

Peter Gibson, Head of Character Education, Barker College

 

C – The Value of Charism, Story, and Forming Values and Character: Links to Good Psychology

Charism, story, and the formation of values are deeply interwoven elements of personal development, identity, and psychological well-being. Charism, underpins the history and nature of a variety of schools, especially those in the Catholic Faith tradition.  School’s charism allow for stories to be deeply used to underpin the value proposition of vocational institutions and moreover the character education of students.  Charism and story play a key role in how individuals connect with others and place and can shape the authentic expression to foster engagement.

Charism is schools assist educators to better assist young people make meaning out of experience, cope with challenges, and find direction, forming values for life. When people frame their lives with coherent, positive narratives, they are more likely to show psychological resilience, purpose, and emotional stability.  In this sense school’s have an opportunity to link charism to story, spirituality and good psychology.  Given the formation of values is closely tied to both charism and story, this session uses the example of the Jesuit lens and the story of St Ignatius to demonstrate these links to values, character and good psychology.

Michael Ilott, Director of Senior School, and Fr Chris Middleton, Rector, Xavier College

 

D- Character & The Idealised Student

We communicate the kind of people we want our students to be and become in lots of different ways, but a powerful (and often overlooked one) is the “idealised student” in our schools. This session will explore the different means by which schools communicate their idealised students, implicitly and explicitly, and importantly the implications that has for character education.

Fiona Isaacs, Chaplain, Director of Christian Faith and Values, Tara Anglican School for Girls

 

E – Character Leading Character

In this workshop we will explore what it means to be a ‘virtuous leader’ and why this matters in schools, particularly those committed to character formation. We will unpack the shape and impact of such leadership, as well as the differing models of Authentic Leadership, Transformational Leadership and Servant Leadership. We will also share some of our early reflections and observations on leading this work at Scotch College.

David Brown, Dean of Students, Scotch College Melbourne
Dr Caitlin Munday, Head of People, Research and Professional Growth, Scotch College

 

F – The Parent Code

Are you finding it increasingly challenging to connect with parents as students progress through their education?

Navigating the social, emotional, and academic needs of children in an increasingly complex world is demanding. It is particularly demanding for parents as many feel ill-equipped to support their child. The Parent Code offers an opportunity to share experiences and learn from collective wisdom, and to explore how strong teacher-parent relationships can enrich students’ lives. The Parent Code provides a framework for key stakeholders – parents and educators – to collaborate and ensure the best possible outcomes for every child. Parents leave the seminars feeling positive that they are more equipped to assist their child academically, socially and emotionally. Teachers leave the seminars feeling both empowered and supported.

In this workshop, you will:

• Learn how The Parent Code framework can systematically improve communication and collaboration between home and school.
• Discover how the Parent Code seminar structure fosters open dialogue and builds trust between parents and educators.
• Outline content from different seminars that address the evolving challenges faced by students at different developmental stages.
• Examine more closely the structure of one seminar to unpack the nature and depth of content and the role different teachers play.

Suzanne Kerr, Director of Wellbeing, Queenwood 

 

G – Character in Action: Evidence Based Character Development in the Outdoors

In this session, the evidence base for effective character development in the outdoors will be explored. This will draw upon Dr Mansfield’s doctoral research as well as his own experience leading character development programs. The intention of this session is to affirm and challenge our practice, in order to provide the best, evidence-based character development opportunities for the young people we work with.

Dr Andrew Mansfield, Deputy Head Operations, SHORE

 

H – Character Everywhere: The Transformative Role of Visual Arts Education

This workshop explores the role of Visual Arts education in fostering character, identity, and its connection to human flourishing. Framed within a time of significant curriculum reform, this session will examine how a rigorous, intellectually rich Visual Arts curriculum cultivates resilience, empathy, belonging, and intellectual autonomy. Through a range of artmaking activities, the workshop will highlight how Visual Arts education provides a powerful space for young people to grapple with complexity, shape their unique perspectives, and flourish as thoughtful, courageous individuals, nurturing not only creativity and courage, but also the wisdom to navigate an increasingly complex world.

Melanie Taylor, Director, The King’s School Institute

 

I – Living with Honour: Making Character Visible in a Christ-Centred School Culture

This workshop explores how a deliberate focus on character—rooted in a Christian worldview and grounded in the virtue of honour—can shape a thriving school culture. It will be a transparent look at the good, the bad, and the challenges from the first foray into such an explicit character infusion in a school.

 Steven Owen, Deputy Principal – Head of Senior School, Oran Park Anglican College

 

J – Successfully Developing Moral Character in Sport

This session will explore the caught, taught and sought framework of character development:

• Caught: How coaches and peers act as moral exemplars in sport, on and off the field
• Taught: Strategies for explicitly teaching virtues and ethical reasoning during practice and competition.
• Sought: How to engage young athletes and coaches in self-reflection and practices of personal responsibility

By integrating Neo-Aristotelian ideals into coaching practice, the research demonstrates how moral character can be intentionally developed alongside technical and tactical sporting skills. Findings are drawn from qualitative and quantitative data collected from students, coaches, parents, teachers and school leaders, providing evidence-based insights into balancing competitive success with character growth

Greg Clarence, Director of Cricket and Boarding Housemaster, The Scots College

 

K – Breaking the Myths of Masculinity: A Values-Driven Approach to Navigating the Manosphere 

Drawing on Dr Zac Seidler’s (CEO, Movember) insights and experiences in the increasingly complex landscape of mental health, the session will refocus the conversation on a strength-based approach and set an aspirational agenda that aims to shift the narrative about masculinity to a more balanced, deliberate discussion of how we can do better in this space. It will shed light on the concerning aspects of the manosphere, emphasising the importance of values in supporting young men in developing healthy identities, building emotional literacy, and fostering respectful relationships. The workshop will focus on practical strategies to engage young men through empathy and connection, and to challenge reductive stereotypes without alienating or shaming. Participants will leave with a renewed understanding of how character education can serve as a transformative tool in promoting authentic, inclusive masculinities.

Natalie Baines, Head of Professional Learning, St Ignatius College Riverview

 

L – Measuring and Tracking Students’ Effort: Using the Effort Tracking Framework for Motivational Goal-Setting Conversations.

By appropriately measuring, tracking, and making visible students’ effort, schools can foster positive character development in students of all abilities (e.g., diligence, persistence, conscientiousness). However, schools often measure students’ effort using ad hoc approaches (e.g., rudimentary teacher-rated grades) that are subject to bias. Research employing both teacher and self-ratings of students’ effort shows low correlations between these two perspectives, but that together, both perceptions provide valuable, complementary, insights into students’ effort. Measuring effort from both perspectives allows for rich, data-driven, goal-setting conversations aiming to promote student growth and intrinsic motivation for learning. Research suggests positive benefits in such interventions designed to help align student and teacher perceptions of effort. Effort Tracking provides a practical framework for doing so and is currently being used in the collection and visualisation of effort data at several NSW and US schools. Formative coaching conversations help develop shared student-teacher expectations of academic effort, focus on the processes of learning rather than their outcomes, and build better synergies between students’ and teachers’ expectations.

This workshop presents the theoretical framing of multidimensional effort (with operative, cognitive, and social-emotional effort dimensions) and an overview of Effort Tracking. Participants will be interactively involved in a hands-on exploration of (anonymised) effort data to inform individualised goal-setting conversations for different student profiles.

Dr Robin Nagy, School of Education, UNSW

 

M – An Outdoor Learning Program Embedded in Curriculum but Driven by Character Development

This workshop will look at The Learning in the Fields of Tudor program, a year 5 and 6 program to enhance engagement for learning support students. This initiative is structured around a project in the school that needs doing or a problem identified by the staff community. It takes a transdisciplinary approach that sees students become actively involved in researching, measuring, budgeting, shopping and constructing.

The workshop will look at the origins of the program, the purpose for running it, how it works, the outcomes to date and the research that underpins it.

Penny Coleman, ESS Teacher, The King’s School
Mark Hitchiner, Director Cocurricular, Tudor House

 

N – Beyond School Rankings: rehumanizing the measures of Australian school success

Every December Australia gets caught in a nasty, anaemic contest: after the year 12 final results are published, the newspapers rank schools. This is on a very narrow measure: just the examination results of the top 5% of students in the state. However, we all know that successful schools, of all sectors and varieties, are far more profound and variegated than just the getting of top marks. This is not to say that schools should not be externally accountable. But on what measures? A different approach is needed, that includes at its Character formation, and other ‘humanising’ measures. This workshop examines Australia’s political addiction to a ‘rankings’ mindset, and invites delegates to consider, and join a movement, that will seek to transform how we publicly evaluate schools in Australia.

Assoc Prof David Hastie, Senior Research Fellow, The King’s School Institute

 

O – The Role of Pedagogy in the Formation of Character

Some educationalists argue that schools should focus on knowledge acquisition and academic achievement alone, whilst others argue that the development of a student’s character is a moral imperative at the core of teaching. However, these two notions are not mutually exclusive. Indeed, they can and should be viewed as two sides of the same coin but they are often in tension. Pedagogy can (and should) play an important role in the formation of a student’s character; however, it is possible that certain pedagogies may contribute ‘more’ to developing one’s character whilst still acquiring deep disciplinary knowledge. For example, constructivist learning methodologies like project- and problem-based learning and the Flipped Classroom, where students work collaboratively to solve complex multi-disciplinary problems, offers participants a way of acquiring knowledge in an environment where skills critical to character development and a holistic education are deeply embedded, modelled, assessed and reported. This workshop will highlight the role these constructivist pedagogies play in character development and is supported by research findings conducted at our school over the past decade.

Dr Adam Hendry, Deputy Principal (Learning), Parramatta Marist High

 

P – Agency in Leadership for Character Development 

In a complex, uncertain and dynamic world, it has almost become obligatory for schools to develop students with agency and moral and ethical leadership characteristics. This is particularly true for young men in a world influenced by misinformation, misogyny and the so-called ‘manosphere.’ Therefore, how can we assist young men to develop a character that is able to navigate the ethical and moral minefields that they will encounter during adolescence and after school? How can we help form their character that is ‘fit-for-purpose’? And what are those purposes? Perhaps the answer lies in a whole school leadership and wellbeing program that attempts to build agency and resilience over a student’s life here at the school. This presentation will focus on our approach to character development which is inspired from our Marist charism but which has wider application beyond this school setting.

Dr Gavin Hays, Principal, Parramatta Marist High School

 

Q – Growing a Character ‘Ecosystem’ – the development of an alumni mentoring system to build the character of the next generation. 

To whom can young men turn when they need help or guidance? This question arose repeatedly as a consequence of many factors that were impinging upon the academic, spiritual, moral and ethical concerns of our students particularly in the lead up to (and certainly after) the COVID-19 pandemic. In essence, many students were being impacted by the online environment, social media, the 24/7 news cycle and other negative influences. This was exacerbated by a generational divide between staff and students and the perceived lack of appropriate male mentors in the lives of many young men at the school. It was therefore resolved in 2020 to develop a ‘character ecosystem’ composed primarily of recently graduated alumni to act as mentors to current students. Each alumnus selected was a school leader and achiever in one or more domains. Due to the success of the pilot program, between 15-20 alumni are now employed on a part-time basis as academic mentors in designated faculties (e.g., English, Business Studies) as well as in other areas such as robotics, youth ministry, archiving, pastoral, diversity (e.g., teacher’s aides) and ensembles/music. This presentation highlights the structure, nature, growth and successes of our character ‘ecosystem’.

Joshua Bryers, Acting Curriculum Coordinator, Parramatta Marist High School

 

R – Experiential learning and character development – the impact of the Duke of Edinburgh Award. 

Experiential learning is often able to ‘teach’ more than what is possible in the classroom. The Duke of Edinburgh International Award is one example of an experiential learning programme where character development is almost in-built. As a multifaceted holistic award, the Duke of Edinburgh acknowledges students for pursuing an ‘all-round’ experience. Following its introduction six years ago, participation in the Duke of Ed. programme has increased dramatically and the feedback has been overwhelmingly positive (which is also reflected in the Duke of Edinburgh Australia statistics). In this workshop, Duke of Edinburgh staff leaders will discuss the programme, its integration into the school wellbeing and character development agenda and student voice and opinion will be shared on how it has assisted the formation of their character.

Ryan Epondulan, Parramatta Marist High School
Charlene Harrison, Maths Teacher, Parramatta Marist High School

 

S – Organisational Character, Staff Culture, and the Moral Shape of Schools

When we talk about character education, the focus is often on students but do schools themselves have a character? How does the character and culture of a school impact its staff? This workshop explores the idea of “organisational character” and the formative power of workplace culture in schools. Drawing on research and practical case studies, including insights from Roseville College, we’ll consider what it means to foster a culture of compassion that goes beyond surface-level kindness and becomes embedded in systems, structures, language and leadership. The session will offer reflection tools and practical ideas for assessing and strengthening organisational character and staff culture in your own context.

Lia Sharma Head of Professional Growth, Roseville College

 

T – Measuring what matters: A research-based approach to defining, assessing and rewarding good character

Insights from 15 years of global research and consulting into how schools define character and construct frameworks for curriculum and assessment that link the values and aspirations of a community to the tangible and actionable behaviours of their students. This workshop will showcase a range of different approaches used by schools around the world so participants can compare and contrast leading practice globally with their current and planned frameworks and methods. Participants will take away:

• A succinct analysis of the research program’s findings on designing and measuring character
• A range of practical examples of character education assessment, recognition, rewards and sanctions
• A model for assessing the organisational development of character education in schools

Dr Phil Cummins, Hooke Family Professor of Practice in Educational Leadership, Education and Social Work Administration, The University of Sydney

 

U – School and University Character Partnerships: Teaching Personal and Social Responsibility (TPSR) through Physical Education in Primary Contexts.

This session explores the early stages of an exciting new initiative at The King’s School Preparatory School, in partnership with The University of Sydney, focused on embedding Teaching Personal and Social Responsibility (TPSR) through PDHPE, Outdoor Education, and Co-Curricular Sport. With a strong emphasis on character education, the program is designed to develop key personal and social values such as leadership, empathy, integrity, and resilience. As this process is just beginning, the session will share initial insights, emerging practices, and the collaborative planning that is shaping this values-based approach. Participants will learn how TPSR is being introduced into the school context and how this partnership aims to foster a culture of responsibility, respect, and purposeful growth in students.

Nick Papastamatis, Acting Head of Sport, The King’s School Preparatory School
William Sandwell, Housemaster and Teacher, The King’s School Preparatory School
Sonja Maric, School of Education, Macquarie University

Supported by