Principal's Desk

NAPLAN Individual Results 2024

In March 2024, students in Level 3 and Level 5 participated in the National Literacy and Numeracy Assessment (NAPLAN). NAPLAN is the only national assessment that all Australian children undertake. Literacy and numeracy skills are the critical foundation for all learning and for the ability to participate effectively in society. NAPLAN questions assess content linked to the Australian Curriculum in English and Mathematics.

All students who participated in the National Assessment Program Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) tests in March 2024 will receive an individual report with their results. These individual student reports provide information about what students know and have achieved in the reading, writing, conventions of language and numeracy tests. 

Student achievement in NAPLAN is reported using proficiency standards for each assessment area at each year level. The standards are set at a challenging but reasonable expectation of what students know and can do at the time of testing. There are 4 proficiency levels: 

• Exceeding: the student’s result exceeds expectations at the time of testing. 
• Strong: the student’s result meets challenging but reasonable expectations at the time of testing. 
• Developing: the student’s result indicates that they are working towards expectations at the time of testing.
• Needs additional support: the student’s result indicates that they are not achieving the learning outcomes that are expected at the time of testing. They are likely to need additional support to progress satisfactorily.

We are so proud of our students and the results they have achieved. The results indicate that our students have a strong foundational understanding of the key concepts and conceptual knowledge required to excel in future years. We are also seeing early successful indicators of our refined approach to reading (implementation of a synthetic phonics approach in Foundation and Year 1, and a significant focus of small group instruction in reading) as well as our involvement in the Primary Maths and Science Specialist program. Our maths leaders and team have been working tirelessly behind the scenes supporting teacher understanding and developing innovative and engaging approaches to support our students in the classroom. With these early success indictors, we are anticipating our NAPLAN results will continue to show year on year improvement, supported by our internal extensive, ongoing assessments.

Whilst there is so much empathises on NAPLAN and the results externally, it is important to highlight  that the results are only a snapshot in time on the day and that they are not reflective of their attributes as an overall learner. As NAPLAN is held once every 2 years for each student, it cannot replace the extensive, ongoing assessments made by teachers about student performance. Your child’s teacher will have the best insight into your child’s educational progress. Please use our upcoming Parent Teacher Interview as an opportunity to discuss your child's academic progress.

It is very important to keep this NAPLAN report in a safe place for secondary school preparation as schools do not receive their own copies. 

For more information about the Individual NAPLAN Report, please go to  https://nap.edu.au/results-and-reports/student-reports .

Attendance

There is a direct link between attendance and achievement. If students miss the basic skills in the early years of schooling they often experience learning difficulties later on. Children need to attend school regularly to make the most of the educational opportunities available to them. It has been shown that poor patterns of attendance in the early years can lead to poor patterns of attendance throughout their school years. Poor attendance makes it difficult for students to form positive friendships with their peers.

An 80% attendance rate is the equivalent of missing

• 1 day per week OR
• 40 days per year OR
• Over 2 1/2 years of school from Foundation – Year 12

An 85% attendance rate is the equivalent of missing

• 30 days per year OR
• 2 years of school from Foundation – Year 12

An 90% attendance rate is the equivalent of missing

• 1 day per fortnight OR
• 20 days per year OR
• Over 1 year of school from Foundation – Year 12

Student Attendance

It is important for all students to be at school every day. It is also important that children are at school on time. Arriving late is upsetting and unsettling for both the child who is late and their class. For safety reasons children arriving late to school are asked to attend at the office to be signed in. A Late Pass will be issued before they go to class. It is a legal requirement that teachers mark the time of arrival/departure on their roll sheets each day.

Extended Family Holidays

If there is some known reason which requires your child to miss school for an extended time (eg. operation, overseas trip, etc.), parents are asked to discuss the matter with their Classroom Teacher first and then inform the Principal. You will need to complete a written form notifying the school of the details. We urge parents to use the school holiday periods for their family holidays if at all possible and to avoid having their children miss classes immediately before and after scheduled term breaks.

Absent Children

If your child is away for any reason, please report absences using Compass, alternatively you can notify the school, on the day, by phone and then provide a written explanation to your child’s teacher on their return to school. It is a government requirement to have all absences explained. In the case of unexplained absences, proformas will be sent home each term for you to complete. If a child is to be away longer than a week please keep the school informed. The school is required to report any unexplained absences to Department of Education and Training.

Taking Children Out of School for Appointments

When parents/guardians are picking children up early from school for appointments, personal reasons or sickness, children must be signed out at the office and an early dismissal pass for the class teacher will be given to you. Children cannot be released by teachers without this formal process being completed. Please note: The school must be clearly informed in writing of custody arrangements and access agreements in regard to picking up children from school. Notes must also be provided when any student is picked up from school by adults other than their parent/s.

Emergency Information

Please make sure you provide the school with two Emergency Contact numbers. It is very important that these are kept up to date with any changes in home, business and emergency contact phone numbers and addresses.

Parent Opinion Survey 2024

Earlier this week, I sent out information via Compass regarding information about the Parent Opinion Survey. The annual survey to find out what parents / caregivers / guardians think of our school. The Parent / Caregiver / Guardian Opinion Survey is an annual survey offered by the Department of Education that is designed to assist schools in gaining an understanding of families’ perceptions of school climate, student behaviour, and student engagement. The survey is optional but we encourage all families to participate. Our school will use the survey results to help inform and direct future school planning and improvement strategies. All families are invited to participate in the survey.

The Parent / Caregiver / Guardian Opinion Survey is open from Monday 29th July to Friday 30th August. 

The survey will be conducted online, is completely anonymous, only takes 20 minutes to complete, and can be accessed at any convenient time within the survey period on desktop computers, laptops, tablets or smartphones. The online survey will be available in English and 10 other languages including Arabic, Greek, Hakha Chin, Hindi, Japanese, Punjabi, Simplified Chinese, Somali, Turkish, and Vietnamese.

Results of the survey will be shared with our community once we receive them later in the year.

Parents & Carers Association (PCA)

I would like to highlight the incredible work that this very small group of parents do to enrich and connect our community. The following events are planned and delivered by the PCA and are not school run events; 

Student Halloween Disco Night

PCA Special Lunches Day (once a term)

Mother's Day Stall

Father's Day Stall

Bunnings BBQ

Sausage Sizzles 

Election BBQ

Second Hand Uniform Store

Future Stars (Foundation Transition) afternoon tea for future families

It is only through the efforts of this small committee that these events and activities can go ahead and they impact positively on our students Primary School education experience, and on our community as a whole. I am aware that the workload of this group is at times significant. 

If you would like to help out at one or more of these school events, please reach out to the school office and we can pass your details on to our PCA president, Catherine.

The school we have is the one we build together.

I hope you have a wonderful weekend. Please feel free to pop in for a chat with either Carrie, Brendan or I, should you wish to discuss anything. 

Our doors are always open! 

Take care,

Mr. Dale Blythman