ASSISTANT PRINCIPALS’ REPORT

Assistant Principals

Paul Dawson and Bradley Headlam

Brad Smallman and Sarah Bridges

 

WELCOME BACK AGAIN

It is a pleasure to see and hear our students around the school grounds this term. They are enjoying being amongst friends and reconnecting with the school community. On-site learning, face to face in the classrooms, is progressing well. We are looking forward to welcoming all of our students back onsite in a safe and supportive environment.

For most students and teachers there is a huge sigh of relief that we can all be back on-site. Although remote learning has been a challenge, we are very impressed by the dedication and achievements of our students. Staying connected to the school during this time was key to their success and to the smooth transition back to on-site learning.

Student Managers are always ready to listen and enable students to access the support they need. The Student Wellbeing Team has been proactive and works with a wide variety of students.

YEAR 12 STUDENTS LAST DAYS AT SCHOOL

Monday, 18 October, was the last day for Year 12 VCAL students who will still have their exit interviews to be completed online. The Year 12 VCE students finished at school the following day, but will continue with an online revision program that has been timetabled for their VCE classes. These will occur up until their VCE relevant VCAA exam. We have reminded them that this is a time to improve their results and not be waylaid by other distractions e.g., extra work shifts. The attitude of the final year students has been incredibly positive given the trials and tribulations they have had to deal with this year. Graduation will be held at the Pier on Tuesday, 16 November. It will be live streamed to parents and families.

EXAMS

As Year 12 students continue their preparation for exams, we should consider the rest of the exam program and orientation programs, which are as follows:

YEAR LEVELSTUDY DAYEXAMSORIENTATION for 2022 courseLAST DAY
11

Monday

8 November

Tuesday

9 November to Friday 

12 November

Monday

15 November

to Thursday

25 November

Thursday

25 November

10NIL

Monday

15 November to Friday

19 November 

Monday

22 November to Friday

3 December

Friday

3 December

7-9NIL

Monday

22 November to Thursday

25 November

NIL

Classes

6 December

 

Activities and Enviro Days:

8 to 17 December

These exams have been adjusted for the junior students to cater for the disruptions they have experienced this year.

2022 Year 12 Captains

The 2022 Year 12 captains are currently going through the process of being selected. The applications, speeches and interviews will be completed this week. The process for selection involves the students developing a written application with staff and student referees. The students are then required to give a speech to their Year 12 peers and staff. The students will be then interviewed by a panel of staff.

Subjects for 2022

All students are well within the period where their subjects are being communicated and confirmed. Sub Schools disseminate this information along with details as to the process for organising swaps. In recent years the number of swaps has reduced, and this is a credit to the Careers Team who invest time and get it right for the individual the first time. Having said this, there are also a number of students who are undecided, and they have access to careers support throughout the year to help them identify any pathway changes that might influence their subjects. We do permit changes up until the first week of school in 2022. It is important to note that there will be limited opportunities to make changes as many classes are full.

Students at risk

One of our processes is to support students who are underperforming for one reason or another. This is underlined by the performance in the progress reports and Sub School Teams have worked with the students in this category all year, through setting goals and supporting their best efforts. At this time of year this involves conversations with these students and in many cases meetings with parents. The general process will start in week 5 when the last progress reports will be published. This data will be used to guide the conversations. We are well aware of the extreme challenges placed on students, but Student Managers will be looking to ensure that all students are prepared for a successful 2022. In the event the student is ill-prepared for going up to the next year level then Careers, Pathways and the Well-being Teams will be engaged to consider what is the best course of action for that individual.

Careers and Sub School Teams 

The process has again been refined this year and we have put in steps in the processes to not only support their workload, but also document their efforts. We have mentioned this previously, but at this time of year we seem to have a clear understanding of the pathways and next steps of nearly all students. So together the Careers Team, in partnership with all the Sub Schools, have been exceptional in supporting our improved understanding.

If your child is uncertain about their pathway, subjects or schooling please contact the relevant Sub School and they can determine the best cause of action to support your child.

Student Wellbeing

It is important to recognise the work of the Wellbeing Team throughout changing circumstances and their efforts have been amazing in reaching out to families, providing support, food hampers and referring to alternative opportunities. 

Compass Review

Compass is always improving, and you may have seen some changes to the arrangements on Compass. We have also made our own changes at different levels as part of an ongoing dedication to improving and, as part of the annual process, we are reviewing all the modules that we use to refine and improve our platform. If parents have any feedback about its use, please contact Brad Headlam.

Progress Reports

The last of the Progress Reports will be completed and shared with parents in week 5 and 6 and will not include attendance, as we have been in and out of school and hence this has affected our usual process of assessing the attendance. We did trial a combination of measuring attendance in the last reports, however, it seemed to overcomplicate things. Staff will begin to complete the Semester Reports which is a more detailed assessment of student performance against the standard inclusive of all the learning tasks.