Principal's Report

From the Principal

We have come to the end of what has once again been a challenging term. Even accounting for the circumstances that find our educational world reduced to a virtual mode, at this stage of the term it is important that students take the opportunity to reflect upon all they have achieved to date, and what they intend to focus on during Term 4.  This is especially the case for our Year 12 students who will now be preparing for their final school examinations. 

Perhaps more than usual, I would like to encourage all Year 11 and 12 students undertaking Unit 3 and 4 subject studies to take the opportunity over the break to commence preparing for their forthcoming VCAA examinations – even in the knowledge that there will still be a number of SACs to complete early in Term 4.  At the same time, it is also important that they afford themselves the opportunity to rest and recharge for the challenges ahead. 

Even in this year of turbulence and uncertainty, it is our hope that all of our Year 12 students are able to say at the end of the year that they have given their best – no one can ever ask for more than that.

I wish all students and families a restful term break and hope that it provides an opportunity to spend time with family and to stay safe and well. 

We sincerely hope that we will be in a position during Term 4 to welcome all of our students back to their on-site learning program and to be once more be given the opportunity to re-connect with their friends and teachers.

Term 4 on-site schooling arrangements for our students

Subject to the advice of the Victorian Chief Health Officer, the Victorian Government has released a staged approach for students to return to on-site schooling. 

The purpose of the plan is to get students back in the classroom as soon and as safely as possible without putting at risk all that has been achieved through the period of restrictions to reduce the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19).

To achieve both these aims, the return to onsite learning needs to be staged, just as the easing of all other restrictions is staged.

There are two reasons for this.

The first is that in metropolitan Melbourne, health authorities need to monitor the impact of students and parents beginning to move across the city again before schools move to a full return. Having one million students return to school all at once could compromise the ability to monitor this impact.

The second reason is that VCE students must return in week one of Term 4 and must be able to complete the three-hour General Achievement Test (GAT) that week. In order to ensure the focus is on these students and the appropriate safety measures are in place.

This is the best way to ensure the ongoing safety of the whole community.

For our school, the following arrangements will apply:

5–9 October (first week of Term 4) 

• remote and flexible learning will continue for all students
• VCE and VCAL students can only attend on-site for essential assessments, including the General Achievement Test (GAT) on Wednesday 7 October
• on-site supervision for children of permitted workers and vulnerable students will continue to be provided, consistent with existing guidelines.

From 12 October (second week of Term 4)

• Year 11 and 12 students will attend on-site schooling full time. Year 10 students enrolled in the VCE program will attend for those units only
• remote and flexible learning will continue for all students in Year 7 to Year 10 (except Year 10 students studying VCE units)
• on-site supervision will remain available for students in Year 7 to Year 10 who are the children of permitted workers and vulnerable students.

This will continue until a date is set for the return of all students to on-site learning, based on health advice. At the moment, it appears that October 26 will be the next trigger date for further announcements on this matter.

Parent/Teacher Interviews

I wanted to take this opportunity to thank both our staff and our parents for their involvement in our two Parent/Teacher Interview days over the past week. Although undertaken in a format that was new to us for this event, our interviews conducted via Microsoft teams on student devices managed to provide a valuable opportunity for parents and students to engage with teachers in discussing student performance and plans for future improvement. These conversations complement the ongoing dialogue teachers have with students during (virtual) classes and the feedback provided to students about their learning and performance on the Compass Learning Management system.

Given the logistics of not all parents being able to speak with all teachers over the two days, I would remind our parents that they able to keep abreast of student progress by consistent discussions at home and through regularly accessing Compass. Parents are also able to email individual teachers via Compass if they have specific questions related to student learning and progress.

We intend to distribute a survey to parents at the commencement of next term in order to gain feedback on the efficacy of the interviews in this format. 

Staffing

We have a very experienced staff member leaving us today. 

Andrew Grimes, after 30 years of service to the state education system, 16 years of which has been spent at East Doncaster SC, has retired effective the end of this term. As Andrew leaves us, we sincerely thank him for his commitment to teaching, his passion for impacting upon the learning lives of many students and his tangible contribution to our College. We wish Andrew and his family all the very best in his retirement.

Virtual Soirée – from our Music Department

Could I take this opportunity to recommend that parents and students spend a few wonderful moments looking at the third of our ‘Virtual Music Concerts’.

Featuring Sadaf Ardeshirdavani (violin), Chiaki Chng (viola), Amy De Rango (flute), Taanishka Gopinthran (guitar), Shawn Hoon (viola), Taejus Shreekumar (sax) and Michael Xu (guitar), this concert also features the video from the 2020 North Eastern Victoria Region Virtual String Orchestra project, which includes students from EDSC and other primary and secondary schools.

Wonderful entertainment from our very talented students. Please log into the Home Page of Compass to find the link to the concert posted by our Instrumental Music Coordinator, Carl Williams.  The link is also accessable later in the Newsletter in the 'Music News' section.

John Roberts

Principal

Updated Anaphylaxis Policy

At our February School Council meeting we updated and amended our College Anaphylaxis Policy.

The amendments (whilst important) were quite minor and related to the provision of epi-pens for students in our Food Technology classroom spaces.

Please see attached for a copy of this policy.

College Philosophy

At East Doncaster Secondary College we have a strong tradition of academic excellence and we aim to promote and sustain a reflective learning culture. We want students to experience a sense of achievement and growth in their academic, personal, social and emotional development. We have high expectations of our students’ commitment to being mutually supportive and striving for success as learners. We are proudly multicultural with a student population from 43 nationalities including a number of International Students. 68% of our students speak a language other than English at home.

A student’s life at school is full of opportunities, being rich and varied with a range of co-curricular activities in music, sport, productions, debating, clubs as well as camps and international experiences for the educational and personal development of students. Our students are vibrant, energetic, and talented young people. There are many student leadership opportunities and we aim to continue to increase student access to decision-making and self-determination as learners.

We endeavour to create a "Culture of Curiosity" with goals of ensuring learning improvement for every student – every student, every period, every day.

Our school’s purpose is to develop passionate learners who are critical thinkers with the confidence and capability to engage in the global community.

Care and Compassion, Curiosity, Excellence, Fairness, Resilience, Respect and Teamwork are the core values that underpin the culture of our school as we embrace the challenges of 21st Century learning.

We aim to sustain a learning culture that provides every student with a sense of achievement and of being their best in their academic, personal, social and emotional development.