Assistant Principals' Report 

Achievements and indeed challenges 

 What an incredible term it has been and as we head towards the holidays it's important to reflect on many of the highlights, achievements and indeed challenges we have faced as a school community. While we have spent a large proportion of this term in remote learning there have been important elements to highlight: 

Course Counselling

For Year 7 and 8 the course counselling took place without any issues. We held an online assembly for both year levels to step students through the process and to focus attentions on future pathways and endeavours. Whilst the current situation is very challenging for young people, we took the opportunity to share an optimistic and positive view of future pathways and professions. All students submitted their subject selections in a very prompt manner and we thank parents and students for their they follow up. Many thanks to the Junior school team and curriculum team for their efforts too.

Attendance 

It is also important to highlight online attendance, which has been remarkable. The daily attendance awards and the ongoing commitment our teachers and students have shown to learning and teaching, have seen very impressive attendance data across the school. 

We did a quick analysis of the attendance data in the junior school, which revealed in this current period of remote learning, 63% of year 8 students and 64% of year 7 students had attended 100% of classes for at least one or more of their subjects. That’s remarkable really when you consider the challenges some students face in remote learning. Our students and teachers have shown great resilience and motivation in the face of learning adversity.

Quality On-line Learning

One of the contributing factors to high attendance is well prepared lessons that use the technology to support students to think, do and learn. Our very committed teachers continue to build a repertoire of electronic tools and tricks to motivate their students to get online, to contribute during lessons and to learn in a virtual environment. Education Perfect, Edrolo, Mathspace, Quizlet, OneNote and a range of Microsoft Teams apps are just some of these tools. We have a basic online lesson sequence that prioritizes wellbeing check-ins, learning engagement and explicit instruction. This approach has helped to maintain learning routines and high expectations online.

Maintaining Mental Wellness

These uncertain and challenging times can create heighted and unwanted anxiety and negativity in our young people. Whilst we have a great support network at school for students, it is also helpful for students and parents to understand more about additional resources and supports available in the community. Here are a couple of great places to look:

1. Michael Carr-Gregg Wellbeing Webinar Series - Designed and delivered to senior school students, this is a series of 6 short webinars with associated resources for student to access. Webinar 3 (Thoughtful Solutions) is especially helpful to support student to understand how to recognize and manage negative thinking patterns. Webinar 4 is around Motivation and Motivators (How to Support Your Friends - Grit and Resilience) is very relevant to RU OK Day (9/9/21).

        2. BRAVE Program - The BRAVE Program is an interactive, online program for the                      prevention and treatment of childhood and adolescent anxiety. The programs are                  free, and provide ways for children and teenagers to better cope with their worries.              There are also programs for parents.

Natalie Manser

Assistant Principal