From the Deputy Principal, Secondary 

From the Deputy Principal, Secondary

Welcome to our school year and the Catholic Church’s Year of Youth.  The Year of Youth invites us into prayerful discernment about the importance and life-giving presence of young people in our community.  Our role is to accompany youth on their journey to maturity as they discover who God is calling them to be.

Year 12 (Stage 2) Results

Congratulations to the Year 12 cohort of 2017, with 99% of students gaining successful SACE (South Australian Certificate of Education) completion!  Thank you to our teaching staff and support staff, who have been co-educators with our families.  As with many staff members, I recall January 2013 and the first day of Year 8 for the graduating class of 2017.  The blessing of seeing these boys mature into fine young men is a gift of our profession.  For Mrs Hoendervanger, this gift extends back to our first Reception class in 2005.

Our students continue to achieve outstanding results with over twenty students achieving an ATAR above 90 and Merits in the subject areas of Religion Studies, English and Mathematics.  On Monday 19 February we will celebrate the exceptional dedication and talent of our highest achieving students at our Laureate Assembly.

A Dominican Education focuses on the formation of the whole person and honours gifted diversity.  The variety of gifts present in the Class of 2017 is reflected by the wide-ranging pathways chosen by the boys.  Future optometrists, pilots, teachers, pharmacists, nurses, engineers, writers, medical professionals, accountants, tradesmen and businessmen to name just a few of the areas chosen by our boys.  Regardless of their ATAR, job title or salary, we pray that these young men may reflect the Four Pillars of Dominican Life; Prayer, Study, Community and Service, throughout their life and in all they do.

A detailed presentation of our results, including our Dux, can be viewed here: http://www.bps.sa.edu.au/__files/f/27830/BPS-2017Year12Results.pdf

Merit Ceremony

It was a privilege to attend the SACE Merit Ceremony for our 2017 Merit recipients at Government House on Tuesday 6 February.  Families radiated joy, as the students soaked up the auspicious occasion. Congratulations to the following boys on achieving a Merit:

Faiz Muhammadi – Religion Studies

Thanh-Phi Nguyen – English

James Renney – General Mathematics

Luka Tokic-Bensley – English

Duy Minh Tran – Mathematical Methods

SEQTA

As you are aware, Blackfriars Priory School uses SEQTA as our learner management system.  All communication and reporting will occur through SEQTA. This year we are moving to continuous online reporting. As a parent, you will be able to read feedback on a specific task for your son, as soon as it is marked. Teachers will comment using the achievement standards of ACARA and SACE performance standards. In addition, students will be provided with details as to how they can improve and areas for growth. Given our continuous online reporting, the end of term reports will focus on Pastoral Care and provide a summary of each subject and an indicator of your son’s engagement in learning and personal responsibility. Please follow this link for instructions on how to access SEQTA on a variety of platforms; http://www.bps.sa.edu.au/learning/parent-portal

Home Group

The pastoral care of your son is imperative for his success in life.  Your son’s Home Group Teacher is the first contact point at the school.  Home Group Teachers see your son every morning and during extended Pastoral Care on a Wednesday.  Please communicate with them through email or phone contact should you have a query regarding your son.  Home Group Teachers will also contact you should there be anything they need to discuss in relation to your son’s holistic wellbeing.

Phones

The front page of the Sunday Mail (4 February) echoed the message conveyed at our first assembly regarding phones. The overuse of phones is a social catastrophe (I must admit some guilt here!) and we are assisting our boys in ensuring phones are not a distraction, by removing the temptation from them. Therefore, students are not to have phones visible at any time.  We will work in partnership with parents in ensuring students are not distracted by their technology.  Home Group Teachers will be in contact with you should the need arise.

Uniform

A reminder that we are in summer uniform and including the wearing of the school hat when in the sun. In addition, hair and jewellery must comply with our personal presentation policy.  A copy of our uniform policy, personal presentation policy and SunSmart policy can be found here:

Study Skills

While the smell of freshly opened books and new stationery is still lingering, we encourage you to work with your son on the importance of effective study skills at home.  A fabulous article on the simple steps required to assist students in creating a conducive study environment and routine can be found here: https://theconversation.com/study-habits-for-success-tips-for-students-89147

I also encourage parents to follow Steve Biddulph’s Raising Boys social media accounts.  His simply worded insights continue to assist educators and parents throughout the world.

Blessings and peace for the start of your school year.

Mr David Ruggiero

Acting Deputy Principal, Secondary (7 -12)