Volleyball at Gilmore College is a powerful extracurricular opportunity for students to get active, develop their interpersonal and leadership skills, and develop lasting friendships through organised sports. Whether students are seasoned athletes or beginners just looking to have fun, we welcome anyone to join at any time throughout the year – all students have to do is show up to training!
Through the Volleyball lens, we develop:
- Social Skills – we teach and emphasise sportsmanship and being good teammates to students. Volleyball is a fantastic way for students to learn resilience as students face the highs and lows of competitive sports, learning to win with grace and lose with dignity while still being supportive of teammates. We set high expectations for students to communicate their progress and availability for training and matches, and to work together to organise teams and lead trainings, developing leadership and self-advocacy skills that set students up for adulthood.
- Academic Outcomes – studies show a strong link between consistent physical activity and students’ concentration, memory, and resilience in overcoming learning challenges. We teach students to play “smart Volleyball”, developing critical thinking and decision-making skills under pressure while working to win games, which translates to the ability to work under pressure during tests and exams.
- Overall Wellbeing – studies show that physical activity and social interaction reduces stress and anxiety, and experiencing success at training and in tournaments improves students’ mood and self-esteem. Volleyball is a sport that relies heavily on cardiovascular health, agility, coordination, and balance; studies have found that developing these attributes significantly improve self-esteem and body-image in participants.
Volleyball in Lower School has two branches:
Social – students are placed in teams according to their age groups to foster strong friendships for life. Students gain mentors and role models as senior students and former students volunteer their time to assist with coaching and refereeing the younger students.
Competitive – students and teams who show particular interest in Volleyball are encouraged to strive for Gold in the various tournaments around the city, and state and national team trials are strongly promoted.
Volleyball in Senior School has four branches:
Social – students are placed in teams with like-minded students and are given a space to enjoy playing Volleyball without the demands of elite level commitment to training and development. Teams compete in divisions according to their skill level and focus on enjoying social sport.
Competitive – students are placed in teams according to their skill level and given focused training with the intent to compete in top divisions and major tournaments throughout the year, where Gilmore has a reputation of consistently making it to semi- and grand-finals. Students are encouraged to join clubs to gain experience competing in adult leagues to further their development, push for State and Nationals teams, and go on tour as a team to the Australian Volleyball Schools Cup biannually.
Leadership – students are given the opportunity to train as referees and earn their Level 2 State badge. Refereeing develops students’ ability to apply their knowledge of the sport to practice critical-thinking and analysis skills and enhances people and conflict management skills. Likewise, students have the opportunity to train as coaches and earn their Level 2 State badge. Coaching develops students’ ability to communicate their knowledge, critically evaluate strategies and player performance, and mentor younger players.
Academic – the school’s ATAR Physical Education has a strong Volleyball focus, and students involved in extracurricular Volleyball tend to excel in this subject due to their greater experience and knowledge of the sport. ATAR Physical Education is well regarded for boosting students’ ATAR results on their pathway to University and higher education. Elite Sports Performance and Recreational Pursuits Endorsed Programs are offered through Volleyball and provide marks towards students’ WACE attainment in Year 12. This can be a valuable opportunity for students to show depth-and-breadth requirements in their academic transcript, or to secure enough C-grades to ensure graduation.
For more information about Volleyball, please email or phone the school – Gilmore.College@education.wa.edu.au or (08) 6595 2700.