Shenton College Deaf Education Centre is a specialist facility, in partnership with Shenton College, for deaf and hard of hearing students. All of the Deaf Education Centre facilities are embedded into Shenton College to construct an inclusive learning environment. Shenton College itself is a secondary school divided into three sub-schools, the Middle School, the Lower Senior School and the Upper Senior School. It is located in Shenton Park, on the railway line and only 10 minutes from central Perth by train.
Currently, the Deaf Education Centre has 40 enrolments from Years 7 to 12. The students are able to select subjects and courses from those offered by Shenton College. Alternatively, the 4 Deaf Education Centres will offer programs that are tailored to the students' educational and vocational directions. Some students take advantage of mainstreaming, but also take advantage of more tailored and intensive Deaf Centred Teaching. Fully mainstreamed students take advantage of their Liaison Teacher of the Deaf onsite and enjoy the benefits of 'Deaf Friendly' mainstream staff.
The Deaf Education Centre has a resourceful school community, including strong links with the National Association of Teachers of the Deaf(WA), Deafness Foundation, Australian Hearing, Australian Sign Language Interpreters' Association (WA), North West Metro Education Office, Access Plus WA, and the City of Nedlands.
Programs are implemented that ensure all students develop socially, emotionally and academically. These also include mentoring by Deaf staff, Auslan as a LOTE programs, a dedicated VET Sector and Deafness Awareness Training for all areas around the college.
The Teachers of the Deaf are committed to continually developing their expertise through professional development in a wide range of related areas. The Educational Interpreters and Notetakers are highly qualified and work as a strong team to ensure the students can fully participate in all aspects of school life. Another integral part of our school life is our 0.4. School Psychologist.
The Centre promotes values of equity and diversity across the school and within the school community. The Centre also continuously looks for ways to improve and enhance the communicative access within the school for Deaf and Hard of Hearing students, parents and community members. Students and their families can choose any access to the curriculum that is a 'Best Fit' for them. Some students use both Educational Interpreters and Notetakers particularly if working in an ATAR stream. All students also benefit from the Captioning done at our Captioning Centre as all visual texts must be captioned.
The Shenton College Deaf Education Centre Council has very experienced representatives and contributes to the smooth operations of the Centre. Shenton College Deaf Education Centre's ultimate aim is to connect the students through the school community, to a very successful future.
The Centre has developed a positive reputation within the community. This is highlighted by our reputation at national and international conferences, our focus on Deaf staff, the acceptance and inclusion of the students within the school community, awards for educational interpreting, and students achieving excellent results in both ATAR and VET sectors.
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