Hillcrest Christian College’s Virtual Learning Community (VLC) has reinvented traditional schooling. Established in 2023, the VLC offers students a flexible, innovative and personalised alternative to mainstream education, designed to suit the individual needs of families across Queensland.
Taking the ‘distance’ out of Distance Education, the VLC is an online learning community with wellbeing at its heart. Our Pastoral Care programs, delivered through an intentional structure of daily Life Group (pastoral care) classes, regular in-person and online social events, values-based Christian education, and access to our College wellbeing team, means students and families are supported at every step of the learning journey, from Prep through to Year 12.
Students in the Junior, Middle and Senior phases of schooling engage in daily online classes and virtual Help Desk tutorials with dedicated teachers, while also completing independent tasks in flexible learning time across the week.
Embedding the Australian Curriculum into realworld, integrated projects, the VLC aims to equip students with the skills and competencies to thrive in an ever-changing world, built on strong foundations of literacy and numeracy.
Hillcrest Christian College is a private, interdenominational, co-educational, day school for Pre-Kindy to Year 12. Our on-campus students are situated at Reedy Creek on the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia and our virtual campus is open to any students within Queensland.
Hillcrest caters for virtual, domestic and international students enrolling from Pre Kindy through to Year 12. Hillcrest’s founding mission was to provide a holistic Christian education to students of the Gold Coast. Hillcrest continues to operate and teach with this mission, and its vision and values are all underpinned by a Biblical world view.
Hillcrest is much more than just a College and offers a nurturing environment that upholds our motto of ‘Excellence in Christ’. Our exceptional Christian teachers are committed to providing the best possible educational experience as they strive to educate, equip, empower and energise each child.
Vision
To aspire, as an outreach of Reedy Creek Baptist Church and Queensland Baptists, to facilitate a world leading, future-focused educational experience; underpinned by a Biblical worldview.
Mission
Hillcrest Christian College teachers and staff create a positive and caring environment to deliver young people to society who are:
Educated and prepared for success in their personal, professional and spiritual life.
Equipped with the knowledge to discern what is good, the skills to demonstrate self-discipline and integrity and the spirit to live with compassion.
Empowered to commit themselves to action, for a better society.
Energised to live the truth of the gospel of Jesus in the service of God
Values
The values we have at Hillcrest are an important part of our culture and are woven into all aspects of our educational model.
The ability to reason, solve problems and demonstrate knowledge of a specified subject or discipline in various situations
Growing in understanding and leadership of mental and physical health and how to balance the domains to overall wellbeing
Identifying one's God-given purpose and living a values-driven life.
Exhibiting Social Emotional Learning skills in response to one’s environment
Applying the skills needed to be effective in one's changing environment.
Each year in the Junior VLC, students are placed in a class with a dedicated teacher for supported learning. Specialist subjects such as Music, Visual Art, French and HPE are taught by specialist teachers in weekly, live classes
A dedicated teacher supports students in Life Group (pastoral care class), as well as in their core subject areas. Students also participate in live Specialist lessons such as Music, Visual Art, French, HPE and Technologies.
Students in Senior VLC benefit from teachers with specific subject knowledge and experience in each of their chosen subjects In Years 9 and 10, students study core and elective subjects from the Australian Curriculum, while students in Years 11 and 12 can choose from a range of subject options as they work towards a Queensland Certificate of Education (QCE), and if desired, an ATAR. Our Pathways team can also discuss other options with you such as VET opportunities and accelerated subjects
As students progress through the different 'Phases of Learning', they require different styles of learning to maximise their growth
As a College we recognise that wellbeing incorporates the spiritual, social, emotional, academic and physical components of each individual student
All students are unique in their strengths and areas of development and subsequently have a diverse range of learning needs. Hillcrest Christian College understands that partnering with staff, students and families is critical to student success
At Hillcrest Christian College, student wellbeing is achieved through integrating evidenced-based practices into a dedicated, planned and coordinated series of Pastoral, Curricular, CoCurricular and student-led programs.
The shield is a symbolic representation of the College's mission, vision, values, elements and phases of learning
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Junior VLC blends a model of explicit instruction and ‘hands-on’ activities to engage children in their learning, as they develop knowledge and explore key foundational skills.
Core class teachers focus on the subjects of English, Mathematics, Science, Humanities and Social Sciences (HaSS), Health, Technologies and the Arts, through integrated and engaging units of work. A large emphasis is placed on our ‘I Love Reading’ (ILR) program, to promote a love of reading and strong literacy skills
Specialist teachers give students opportunities to explore Music, Visual Art, Physical Education (PE) and French.
Guided learning leads children to increased autonomy, as confident learners who have knowledge and skills to embrace an everchanging world It helps to develop greater independence, which prepares them to transition into our Middle VLC.
The College Values (Integrity, Respect, Courage, Service, Humility, Diligence and Discernment) are woven into the fabric of the Junior VLC Students outworking these values are encouraged to nominate themselves as student leaders throughout the year.
SECRET Skills (Self-Manager, Effective Participator, Creative Thinker, Reflective Learner, Enquirer, Team Worker) are integrated into the planning of Design-Centred Learning (DCL) projects in Junior VLC, creating meaningful, interactive, innovative and engaging units of work
I Love Reading (ILR)
The ILR program uses a unique colour and number system to identify the key phonetic sounds in the English language Through the application of the English Phonetic Code, early readers are given an effective tool to decode texts, allowing them to read at an accelerated rate.
ILR is not just about learning to read, but reading to learn The program assists educators to design learning conditions that stimulate a desire to read, write and speak. Students are trained to manage their own learning, work harmoniously with others, and creatively solve problems
For more information on ILR, visit www.ilr.com.au.
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At a stage where students undergo many physical, social and emotional changes, students require a focused approach to meet their specific needs. Middle VLC addresses these needs by supporting student learning through five domains that engage the whole child These include:
Wellbeing – Physical, social and mental health, student agency, connection with others
Intellectual – Design-Centred Learning, academic programs, literacy and numeracy
Global – Innovation, SECRET Skills (Self-Manager, Effective Participator, Creative Thinker, Reflective Learner, Enquirer, Team Worker), real-world learning
Emotional – Understanding of self, relationships, positive behaviours
Spiritual – Service to others, student leadership, identity in Christ, values
Learning in Middle VLC is largely delivered in a Design-Centred approach. This is a way of learning whereby students engage in realworld, integrated projects that include an authentic audience, a celebration of learning, student choice and engaging students' and teachers' passion for learning At a stage where students are forming their own identity and discovering their place in the world, DCL allows them to explore what impacts they can personally have on the world around them, both locally and globally.
Our Senior VLC is the final phase of learning at Hillcrest for students in Years 9-12. It is a time of significant emotional and physical growth, and a time when a student's identity begins to take a more defined form as they approach maturity and adulthood.
Our Senior VLC is the final phase of learning at Hillcrest for students in Years 9-12 It is a time of significant emotional and physical growth, and a time when a student's identity begins to take a more defined form as they approach maturity and adulthood.
Students are guided through the art of goal-setting, and meeting the higher expectations of independence, responsibility, self-motivation and self-discipline. We provide Senior VLC students with many opportunities to explore their personal strengths and interests, while preparing them for life beyond our College.
All students study the Australian Curriculum in Years 9 and 10 In Years 11 and 12, students study from a range of Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority (QCAA) General and Applied subjects and courses that count towards their Queensland Certificate of Education (QCE) and, if chosen, an Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR)
The Virtual Learning Community aims to provide offerings to enable students to choose their desired pathway, and offers an extensive range of choices. This flexibility fosters personal interests and strengths, and combined with staff support, provides the necessary roadmap to drive students towards their future goals - whether they are headed for further education, training, an apprenticeship, or straight into the workforce. Our goal is to help students find a pathway to success in a way that is meaningful to them
In the Virtual Learning Community, we recognise that learning should not be a ‘one-size-fits-all' approach
Each VLC student is given their own Individual Learning Plan (ILP), which recognises their unique circumstances, strengths, and learning needs.
At Hillcrest Christian College, we understand that highly gifted students have the capacity for higher-level learning and thought, and require a more challenging academic curriculum We offer Gifted and Talented programs in our Junior and Middle VLC, as well as enrichment programs in our Senior VLC Our full-time Lumos program is offered to suitable students in Years 3-8 As students select their senior pathways, in some cases they may be eligible to study subjects or electives in higher year levels, according to their talents and study pathway.
The early identification of learning needs is fundamental to implementing a successful strategy of support. Our VLC Learning Support staff work closely with families to develop a program to allow each child to flourish, within their own capabilities.
Middle and Senior VLC students can access oncampus and online tutoring options, provided by past students of the College This is a free service that operates online and on-campus, during scheduled lunch breaks and after school.
Uniform Shop
Our onsite Uniform Shop is open Monday - Friday from 7.30am - 9.15am, during term time. Extended hours are available before the start of Term 1 each year Additionally, purchases can also be made online
Resource Centre (Library)
Our Resource Centre provides an important service to our students and our wider College community Staffed by friendly and supportive librarians, The Resource Centre operates from several locations across the College campus and offers a comprehensive array of library services in our modern, bright and well-equipped facilities, which include:
• Glass learning pods
• Years 10 -12 mezzanine study space
• Bus Library - A decommissioned Hillcrest school bus was relocated to the site at the Castle, fully renovated and fitted with books and other literature, and comfortable reading spaces for our Prep - Year 2 students to enjoy
Chess – Students from Years 2-12 have the opportunity to enter inter-school chess competitions throughout the year.
Duke of Edinburgh Award – Bronze, Silver and Gold Duke of Edinburgh Awards are offered for students 14 and older.
Kokoda Challenge – Joining the Gold Coast Schools event, 30km, 48km and 96km Kokoda Teams are available for Years 10-12.
eSports – Students can enter inter-school eSports competitions, run by the FUSE Cup. This is available to Years 5-12 students.
Choral Program
Our renowned Performing Arts program features 14 choirs, with specialist vocal and choral staff. Within the Choral program, we have four Excellence Choirs who have represented the College locally, nationally and internationally
Instrumental Program
Our Instrumental program has over 320 musicians from Prep-Year 12, and Year 4 strings / Year 5 band programs are run as part of our general curriculum to give every student a foundational understanding of music. Students can also access private tuition from our team of highly accomplished instrumental tutors
Drama
The Drama program is designed to build confidence and to suit the student’s specific needs, abilities and interests. All Junior VLC Speech and Drama students are encouraged to participate in Festivals and Eisteddfods. Students in Year 4 and above can sit for AMEB Examinations in Voice and Communication or Drama and Performance.
Dance
Hillcrest Dance Academy, in partnership with the Currumbin Academy of Performing Arts (CAPA), offers instruction in all forms of dance and is run after school during the term.
Enrolment Process
Choosing a school can be a daunting and challenging experience, and we are here to assist you during your research Our intention is to help you find the right school for your child/ren. Feel free to email our VLC Enrolments Teams at hellovlc@hillcrest.qld.edu.au.
To begin your journey in the Virtual Learning Community, please visit our website (https://virtual hillcrest qld edu au/) to access the application form, fee calculator and further information.
If you would like more information on joining the Virtual Learning Community, we strongly encourage you to join us on a Virtual Parent Tour. A Virtual Tour gives you the opportunity to find out from VLC leadership about the day-today experiences of students and families in the VLC, as well as being able to ask questions specific to your family’s circumstances
Visit:
