Deputy Principal

We are stronger when we work together.

A report at the end of 2018 from the Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD) found that Australia ranked 70th out of 77 participating nations in terms of discipline in our classrooms. The report was based on a survey of 600,000 students aged 15. It asked them their views about discipline. A large number of Australian students reported that the teacher was not being listened to and it can take some time for the class to settle down and learning to occur. 

Lately I have had some teachers report the findings of the 2018 report. Students calling out, taking time to settle down and ask questions that have nothing to do with the work to sidetrack a lesson. What I have reminded the staff is that these are a minority of students. Most of the students at the College turn up every day to learn. Of course, we have over 1,500 individual learners that we need to cater for, and the staff do an amazing job to support the learning outcomes of your son. Sometimes we have some challenging behaviours, and it is my experience that if we work together, we will get the best outcome for all the students at the College.

We need to work together to show a united front to your son. We need to show that we are on the same page. I am certainly not asking parents not to ask questions. It is every parent’s responsibility to advocate for their child. However, we need to make sure that when you do advocate, you are advocating for the right reasons. Young men will make mistakes. That is normal and I encourage all parents to hold their son accountable when they do make mistakes. That is a part of learning and growing up. 

A recent article in the Sydney Morning Herald recounted a story of a beginning teacher who gave a student some improvement strategies and was later made to apologise. This was because when the student went home and told their parents, the feedback from the parents to the school was that the student was stressed by the teacher feedback. Teacher feedback is aimed at improving the academic, social, and emotional outcomes for each child. Yes, there are occasions where we do not get it right. Often, I am told by parents that their sons respond to positive reinforcement. While I understand that, and I encourage our staff to give positive reinforcement, should we be praising behaviour that is expected? Behaviour that includes coming to the class prepared, listening to the teacher, respecting everyone’s right to learn and respecting the teacher are all that I would consider ‘expected behaviours’. There should not be an expectation that these behaviours are singled out for praise.

We have a variety of learning and teaching styles. We have a variety of parenting styles. It is not up to us to judge all of these. What is important though is that we work together. If we can do that, we can ensure we get the best out of our students. 

Adrian Byrne

Deputy Principal