Principal's Report

As always, school has started with a rush, and I would like to remind you of some important information and upcoming events.

All students have now been issued with a college planner. I would ask that parents familiarise themselves with it, and get into the habit of regularly checking it. We have asked teachers to instruct students to record home tasks within it. We hope the re-introduction of a hard-copy college planner will allow for easier access, monitoring and support of student learning by parents.

Learning Focus

The school year has started smoothly and approximately 850 students are already into the learning cycle across the college.  Priorities remain focussed on Learning and Wellbeing (FISO 2.0), establishing rapport with students, building connections and developing an engaging learning environment.

The college values of Responsibility, Respect and Resilience are being worked on with all students and many students have already positive merit posts for modelling these values over and above expected.  The whole school assembly held on Thursday 9th February provided the college with the opportunity to come together as a welcome but also to acknowledge our college leaders and set the expectations for the upcoming year.  The whole school assembly also provide our students to reflect of all the opportunities that are afforded to them both in and out of the classroom on a daily basis.

College Values

Lyndale Secondary College is an inclusive learning community that caters for the development of the whole person, allowing them to reach their full potential.  Our aim is for every child to experience growth and success.  This vision is underpinned by the core values of Responsibility, Respect and Resilience. These values will be embodied by staff and students throughout the year and will become the cornerstone of culture at our school.

Moving forward, students who model these values over and above the expected norms will be acknowledged with merit posts on compass.

Annual Implementation Plan

The Annual Implementation Plan (AIP) priorities for the 2023 school year, determined by the DE and the College are:

Learning – Support both those who need scaffolding and those who have thrived to continue to extend their learning especially in numeracy. 

Actions – Strengthen teacher capacity to have measurable impact on student learning growth through data informed assessments irrespective of student(s) point of entry (especially in numeracy and literacy) 

Wellbeing – Effectively mobilise available resources to support students’ wellbeing and mental health, especially the most vulnerable. 

Actions – Establish a whole school approach to positive relationships, resilience and behaviour through implementation of a schoolwide positive behaviour approach at the school. 

Key strategies that will be used to support attainment of the goals will include: 

• Development and delivery of common assessment tasks 
• Focus on development and accessing student Individual Education Plans 
• Implementation of College values in our everyday activities 
• Regular celebration of student achievement 

Staff will be focussing their professional learning and planning time on developing resources and implementing strategies outlined in the AIP.  Each of these strategies are designed to improve student engagement and learning outcomes.

School Review

Schools undertake a school review every 4 years to inform the directions of the school’s 4 year School Strategic Plan (SSP) (a legislative requirement for all schools).

• All schools must participate in a school review every 4 years.
• The school review informs the development of the school’s 4 year School Strategic Plan (SSP).
• The school review also provides assurance of ongoing compliance with the Minimum Standard related to curriculum and student learning.
• The School Review Guidelines, which include links to tools and resources to guide schools through the process, are available in the Guidance tab.

We will be undertaking our review during Term 3.

Year 12 class of 2022 – a great year of results

The college is extremely proud of the Year 12 cohort for 2022.  Their results are truly outstanding and reflect their commitment and efforts in both the VCE and VCAL pathways.

Congratulations to our College Dux:  Ivana Bukva  ATAR 98.15

Attendance: It’s not OK to be away!!

A reminder to parents of the importance of regular attendance at schools.  Daily attendance is important for all children and young people to succeed in education and to ensure they do not fall behind both socially and developmentally.   

School is important as:

• School participation maximises life opportunities for children and young people by providing them with education and support networks
• School helps children to develop important skills, knowledge and values that set them up for further learning and participation in the community 
• School helps them to make the most of life opportunities

Children and young people who regularly attend school and complete Year 12, or an equivalent qualification, have:

• Better health outcomes
• Better employment outcomes
• Higher incomes across their lives

Research confirms there is a strong link between poor attendance and adverse student outcomes like:

Early school leaving

• Poverty
• Substance use
• Unemployment
• Negative health outcomes

We have noticed that there are many students coming late to school in the morning. We expect our students to be at school by 8:30am and at their classrooms no later than 8:40am to start the school day. We are finding many students strolling in after this time. This is causing many disruptions for teachers with students walking in late to classes. Please ensure your child is getting to school on time and have these discussions with your child about the importance of getting to class on time. This also includes being punctual to class after Recess and Lunch time, we notice that some students are needing constant reminders about showing respect and coming to class on time. We thankyou in advance for your support in engaging in these discussions with your child. Missing school or being late to class can mean a lot of learning time is being missed.

Please contact the school if your child is absent from school.

Road Safety

At this time of year it is important to remind our students of the importance of road safety.  It is important that students are encouraged to use the pedestrian crossings where available on Gladstone and Halton Roads.  Roads are dangerous places and the rules and expectations around proper behaviour are designed to ensure everyone is safe.  The college appreciates your support in this matter.

Travelling to and from school

A gentle reminder to our students that when travelling to and from school whether on public transport or by foot, the College’s Student Code of Conduct and College Values apply.  Incidents reported to the college will be investigated and the college’s behaviour management process will be followed.  

SchoolTV

I am pleased to announce that we have continued with our subscription to SchoolTV.  SchoolTV is a collection of web-based online video (and other) resources designed to support parents in raising their children.

As a parent I know that, sometimes, we can feel overwhelmed by circumstances, and unsure what to do to support our children.

The resources we are bringing to you are all up-to-date and, and draw on the expertise of some of Australia’s leading child psychologists and parenting experts. This information is organised into various topics, as well as a series of special reports which seek to address hot topics of moment.

We know that the start of a new school year can bring with it some challenges for students and their families. There are many things to contend with –– new students, new environments, new families, new teachers, new obstacles and new learning. Much of which will often require some careful planning, organising or navigating to ensure a smooth transition.

I commend the following Editions to you as a valuable source of support:

• School Transitions
• Surviving Final Year
• School Refusal
• Managing Screen Time

 Also, Special Reports such as:

• Moving To A New School
• Surviving The Final Year
• Starting Year 7

 Our SchoolTV page can be accessed here (https://lyndale.vic.schooltv.me/Simply) and you can choose your preferred language when viewing/reading the resources.  Don’t forget to click on the Edition or Special Report tabs to navigate to the resources mentioned above.

Pam Robinson 

School Principal