PRINCIPAL REPORT

From the College Principal

Dear Parents, Carers, and Friends,

Our mission statement says that BSC is trying to produce, ”Future-ready global citizens.” It’s helpful to, periodically, reflect on why this is the case.

With a bit of thinking, we can all deduce that we are citizens of the globe first, our nations second, and our suburbs (for those of us living in the cities) third. This is because citizenship of our suburbs, and nation, is dependent upon being able to, first, exist on our planet.

We know human nature tends to cause us to focus on our immediate, local, and personal needs, which is understandable, and often appropriate. So, whilst we are citizens of the globe first, nation second, and local area third, our personal sense of duty of care and responsibilities usually takes the opposite order of priority. 

In an increasingly interconnected world, where decisions taken by foreign governments, or even individuals, can have a direct impact on our personal circumstances, for example, the effects of trade sanctions on business, or cyber criminals on individuals, it is imperative to develop within young people their sense of place and responsibilities as a global citizen. 

This is a difficult thing to do because of the tendency of human nature mentioned above.

I think it is wise, therefore, to take the opportunities to demonstrate the tangible reality of global citizenship, both in terms of the impact it has on us as individuals, as well as the responsibilities it places upon us. Although the global COVID19 pandemic has brought the fact we are vulnerable to global events to the front of our thinking, it seems it is likely that for most of our children at least, this will be a transitory event which may only have medium term impacts, and probably, in two to three years, will be a bit of a distant memory for most of them (hopefully!). With just under four million deaths recorded already, this obviously belies the global toll of death, disease and suffering wrought by the pandemic, but from a local perspective, within a nation comparatively unaffected by the pandemic, it is understandable that our young people might respond that way.

The issue of global warming, caused by human induced climate change, presents a more powerful context to teach our young people about global citizenship. To use a fanciful analogy, if the world was represented by our house, and Australia by our living room, we would not sit there and continue to watch Netflix if the laundry was on fire. We would hope that everyone inside the house would immediately do their best to work co-operatively to put it out, and even better, have taken steps previously to make sure no fire could start. 

This is the scale and breadth of thinking we are trying to develop in young people. This is what we mean by global citizenship. We can use climate change as an opportunity to develop a global perspective in our young people, to extend the notion of citizenship that brings both rights and obligations, to our very place on the planet, and reinforce that these need to be understood, enjoyed and acted upon. It is our role to develop the skills and dispositions of young people to be able carry that critical work forward, and that is why is it in our mission statement.

Let’s work together to get their thinking out of the living room. 

Enjoy a lovely school holiday break, after another tough, COVID interrupted, term.

Yours sincerely, 

Richard Minack 

Principal