Craigieburn Secondary College Newsletter

College Covid Information

COVID INFORMATION​

As we continue to navigate through the latest Omicron variant of COVID-19 there will be a period of uncertainty about what the impact of student and staff absences will have on the teaching and learning program at the school.  We anticipate that there will be significant absences due to members of our community being positive and needing to isolate, particularly in the first few weeks.  

 

Students with symptoms must stay at home and get tested.

  • Students with positive RAT or PCR tests should inform the school and will be required to isolate for 7 days inclusive of weekends and must not attend school. A negative test is not required to return to school after the 7 day isolation.
  •  If a student is a household close contact please notify the school and quarantine for 7 days. 

Rapid Antigen Testing

All students will be provided with a pack of 5 RATS over a two week period. All students are encouraged to undertake a RAT twice each week.  There is no need to report a negative result. 

 

Possible outcomes if positive cases are identified:

  1. CRT agencies will be used to cover staff as a first option
  2. Job opportunity pool – returning retired staff pool
  3. Staff may be re-allocated to cover classes
  4. Camps and Excursions may be cancelled
  5. Classes may be collapsed and staff including ES staff will be allocated to assist with supervision
  6. Remote learning with approval from the Regional Office – limited time and last resort

Ventilation

Air purifiers have been delivered and will be allocated to high traffic areas as well as  areas of high density and limited ventilation.

  • Ventilation of all spaces should be maximised through open doors and windows even with purifiers present
  • External doors continued to be used to enter and exit classroom spaces
  • Outdoor learning is encouraged where possible

 Sanitation

  • We will continue to supply hand sanitiser and wipes for use in classrooms – it is expected that students wipe down surfaces and equipment before they use it. NB*****Deep cleaning no longer occurring
  • Provision of masks for staff and students
  • Physical distancing where possible
  • Mandatory for all students and staff to wear masks indoors when not actively teaching or communicating with students
  • Students are not required to wear facemasks outdoors

Teaching and Learning Although we will be working hard to ensure students have a continuous learning program, there will be times when the college will need to respond to staffing/student absences as they arise.  It is prudent that we seriously consider the reality of a highly disruptive program for at least the first month of school.

  • Teachers will prepare work for anticipated illness/isolation that is continuous with the learning program, linked to the unit plan and readily usable by non-method teachers
  • Students should be prepared to have their classes cancelled at short notice and be redeployed to another class for supervision purposes
  • For student absences due to COVID isolation, teachers will follow the college’s Extended Absence Learning plan policy and students/families will be referred to LMS/Compass to access learning materials

I hope that this information has helped to clarify any questions that are circulating regarding how the school will respond to our latest COVID challenges. 

 

Kind regards,

 

Kate Morphy

Principal