St Philip’s Christian College Dynamic Learning is recognised by NESA as a Special School. It was established in 1997 as DALE Christian School (Dynamic Alternative Learning Environment) to meet the needs of Year 7 to 10 students with emotional/behavioural problems and also catered for students with a mild intellectual disability. In 2012, the College extended its curriculum to include Stage 3 (Year 5 & 6). In 2018, Stage 2 (Year 3 & 4) and Stage 6 (Year 11 & 12) was incorporated into the scope of educational offerings.
Over the years the enrolment criteria has been refined to identify those students who would benefit most from the dynamic environment offered at the College. The criteria now meets the needs of students with Anxiety, Depression, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and Autism (Level 1 & 2).
With the move to include Stage 6, the school now offers students the opportunity to gain their HSC. The educational program is based on individual needs and focuses on building on the strengths and talents of each student.
St Philip’s Christian College Dynamic Learning is a ‘small school’ environment and has higher staff to student ratio compared to mainstream which gives many young people, who feel lost in a mainstream environment, a sense of security and belonging.
In 2023 DALE Christian School became St Philip's Christian College Dynamic Learning. Dynamic Learning focuses on, tailored learning plans for each student in a flexible learning environment. However, we use evidence-informed (rather than alternative) practices. For example: explicit teaching of literacy and numeracy, three tier intervention, quality feedback, visible thinking routines and explicit learning intentions.