Ballarat Steiner School & Kindergarten 244 Moss Avenue, Mount Helen, Victoria 3350

"Best decision we ever made. My children are excited everyday to go to school."

"I chose BSSK because of the landscaped grounds, beautiful classes, teachers present during my tour (in 2019) and the promise of high school being offered. Most of the parent community members of the school were lovely and very willing to help one another. Unfortunately after two years at BSSK I withdrew my child for quite a few reasons. The school administration created a culture where only certain parents’ opinions/desires were prioritised. The Business Manager (who appeared to be in charge despite no apparent educational training) was consistently rude to my child and me. I received a bursary in our second year, granted by the Board, which I was very grateful for. The quid pro quo was to clean the toilets, a task designated by the Business Manager, not the Board. In return for bursaries other Steiner schools ask families to do general cleaning tasks, provide classroom assistance, or they utilise a parent’s skills… or they offer a true scholarship program. There was poor communication about what was going on in the classroom and in the wider school, especially around excursions, student free days and events, and there was no transparency about school operations or collaboration with parents. Overall the school’s structure is not well suited to conventional working families, especially sole-parent working families. The understanding of neurodivergence that was shown was very outdated and stereotypical. My child’s teacher insisted my child was not neurodivergent, but then complained about and even punished my child for neurodivergent traits (child has since received a diagnosis). The expectations in the classroom were way too high, and children weren’t supported to meet them or provided modifications, often being kept in from play to do work. The teacher too had poor boundaries, and had an unreasonable sense of their place in our family. When my child and I first discussed moving schools, I was aghast to receive a text that said “I hear you’re leaving. Was I going to be consulted or does my opinion not matter?”. There were no positive methods of handling negative behaviours, there was only punishment which was reactive, disproportionate and biased (yelling, exclusion etc). There seemed to be very few teachers with true Steiner training and qualifications, most seemed to have done some parent courses or general introduction courses. There was also a lack of evidence-based literacy instruction. Academically my child left with significant gaps in his foundational literacy skills that could not be attributed to the slower-paced Steiner curriculum. Overall this school would have a lot to offer with an overhaul of administrative staff, a passionate Head of School, and better teacher education. I still feel sad that our time in Steiner was forced to an end because of the administration and teacher. It’s such a shame, as the physical school is beautiful and there is so much potential."

"Ballarat Steiner has been a good choice for our boys - a small community has allowed them to know and be close to everyone in the school; teachers and classmates alike. They have also loved the story-based curriculum, which allows them to do what they do best - listen, soak up knowledge and then make their own links between the stories they have heard and what goes on around them outside school. Good school - good environment, good people, good model for learning and teaching."

"Lovely playgroup"

"Nice nature..."