High performing catholic schools: Two case studies

This study provides a mixed methods study of two large, coeducational, systemic Catholic high schools from southwest Sydney which have been identified as high performing, one of long standing and one a more recent success, through a combination of individual case studies and data analysis. Performing thematic analyses of 16 interviews for the two case studies, individual and common characteristics for school improvement and high performance have been identified. Among the key characteristics emerging were the importance of the 'school principal and leadership team'; 'high quality teachers'; 'data analysis'; 'school culture'; and 'professional development'. Interestingly, this research demonstrates that one school has moved out of the shadow of its established neighbour; overcoming residualisation to become a high performing Catholic school in its own right.