Principal Report

Have you been obsessed with watching the Olympics in Tokyo? 

Have you had a favourite Olympic moment or event?

Is it one of the 15 Gold medals Australian athletes have won in swimming, canoeing, yachting, rowing or on the BMX, one of our silvers or any of bronze medals our country’s athletes have won?

Could you be looking forward to our basketballers, hockey team or another event being successful?

For me personally it was not one of our success stories and it had nothing to do with the drama involved.

I was touched by the Patrick Tiernan the 10,000 metre athlete. 

I happened to be watching the event as it was unfolding and was impressed with the race that Patrick was running. Even though he never looked like medalling, he was up with the front runners in the race right up to the last lap where the pace picked up. The footage followed the leaders right to the end of the race and then being an Australian supporter, I waited to see where Patrick finished in the race.

The cameras then panned back down the finishing straight and began to focus on the struggling athlete in green and gold. The scene was difficult to watch and after a fall or two he finally made it to the finish line, eventually leaving the track in a wheelchair.

I don’t suggest that any of us at Oatlands push ourselves to these unhealthy and dangerous limits but I couldn’t help but be impressed with someone who was 100% committed to his goal.

How does this relate to school and Oatlands?

Over my 40 plus years as a teacher I have taught hundreds of students. Not all of them have been academically, socially or athletically gifted. Most have done well at school and later in life. While some have found school life challenging.

While I’ve always enjoyed giving the successful students and their parents positive feedback, I have thoroughly enjoyed and am proud of the students that need to work harder at achieving their goals; the students that always try hard, that put in 100% and do the best that they can possibly do.

As a parent, encourage your children to be the best they possibly could be. Not all children go on to win gold medals at the Olympics, even making the Olympics is out of most people’s reach but being able to run 10,000 metres without stopping may be a goal or even being able to run 100 metres. 

For the non athletic types not many of our students will go on to becoming neuro surgeons or onto a university education.  However, as long as they do their best and keep trying, they will find their niche in life.

John Armao (Assistant Principal)