Assistant Principals' Reports
Continuous Reporting at Emerald Secondary College
For our Year 7 families, and families new to the school, I am writing to let you know about Emerald Secondary College’s model of continuous reporting that we use.
Approximately every six weeks a report will be published on Compass. This may be in the form of a progress report or end of Semester report. The progress reports give an indication of how each student is performing on each of the College Positive Learning behaviours. High achievement on each of these Positive Learning behaviours will help each child continue to grow in their learning growth each semester
Throughout each semester, families have continuous access to how a student is progressing in their learning. For each class, class work and performance on assessment tasks are recorded on Compass. Assessment tasks are also accompanied with a rubric. The rubric not only indicates student performance on the task, but also visually suggests areas of focus or goal setting for the student for future class work and assessment tasks. Most Learning tasks will also have a Conversation box where a student or parent/guardian can provide a comment to the class teacher, if further clarification or feedback is sought on the task. Parents/Guardians are encouraged to make use of the continuous reporting model used, and check in on Compass regularly.
At the end of each Semester, a report is published. This report compiles a summary of the assessment tasks, work requirements, coursework requirements and exam marks, applicable for each class. These may be different per year level and subject areas. The Semester reports will also contain a visual representation of a student’s performance against the Victorian Curriculum Achievement Standards, and also their learning progression, from the last time the achievement standard was taught to the student.
Janine McMahon - Assistant Principal
Anzac Day Assembly
Emerald Secondary College held our ANZAC Day assembly on Friday 23rd April. As always the students were extremely respectful of the occasion. The assembly was run by our school Captains and started with the beautiful voice of Year 10 student Cym Anderson singing the National Anthem. This year we were lucky to have CPL Chris May, who is also the Appeals and Welfare Officer at the Emerald RSL, as our guest speaker. Chris served two tours in Afghanistan attending his first tour when he was only 19 years old. On his return to Australia after suffering injury he has worked tirelessly to enrich the lives of Australian Veterans. When Chris spoke at the assembly you could have heard a pin drop. He was engaging, thought provoking and painted a vivid picture of his experiences. It was a timely reminder of all we should be grateful for.
Cyber Safety:
As with all issues that confront young people it is vitally important that parents support both their children and school in raising awareness of specific behaviours and how to manage them responsibly. Most young people have a phone and/or a laptop which has a camera and video capabilities, it is not uncommon for students to be using these devices long into the night. Cyber bullying is a type of bullying carried out through the various forms of technology. Comments or images can be shared quickly with a large number of people which can be dangerous or hurtful. The following website has important information and a number of strategies that can be used by parents and children. Hopefully this will be helpful should an issue arise.
Uniform
As we approach the cooler weather it is a timely reminder to check that our young people have the correct uniform. If families require support, please contact the sub school staff or Wellbeing.
Buildings Grounds and OHS:
There has been a large amount of work completed over the holidays and into term 2.
- S block has now had the carpet replaced throughout the building
- B3 is almost ready for classes as it is currently being turned into a usable space
- Asphalt was laid between S Block, EPAC and L Block to reduce tripping hazards
- Preparation work has been completed for the new bus shed
- The large fence at the front of the school has been replaced by a lower fence that maintains the safety aspect but improves the visual of the school
- The large fence panels are to be repurposed in other areas of the school
- The new bike shed is currently being constructed
- Preparation for the building program is in full swing. This is definitely an exciting time
Jonathon Rogers - Assistant Principal