Principal
More Than a Game: Helping Our Boys Belong, Grow and Flourish
As the summer sports season begins, many families will once again spend time on sidelines, beside courts and around sporting fields, watching their sons represent the College. There will be wins and losses, personal bests and disappointments, and probably a few early Saturday mornings.
Recently, I read a report sent to me by Pivot Professional Learning, an education technology company that provides schools with evidence-based survey tools and analytics. The report synthesised their research on the link between student learning engagement and wellbeing, prompting me to reflect on the importance of these experiences in boys' education.
One message particularly resonated with me: success, belonging, and connection with a trusted adult can make a big difference when a young person starts to disengage.
It made me think about why sport, and indeed all co-curricular activities, are such an important part of the education we offer boys from Years 5 to 12.
Engagement does not happen only in the classroom. For some boys, a strong connection to school develops on the sporting field. For others, it may be through music, drama, debating, service, clubs or another activity. These experiences can give boys opportunities to participate, build relationships, discover strengths and contribute to something beyond themselves.
The Pivot report distinguishes between engagement in academic learning and broader school engagement, which includes participation, belonging, social connection, identity, conduct and attendance. Importantly, it notes that belonging and participation can begin to shift before attendance does.
This matters in boys' education. We want our boys not simply to attend school but to feel genuinely connected to it. We want every boy to find something he looks forward to, people who know him and opportunities that allow him to say:
I can do this. I can improve. I have something to offer. I belong here. More than the scoreboard.
Sport provides wonderful opportunities for boys to experience this. A boy may discover that he is a dependable teammate. Another may learn that improvement requires persistence. A younger boy may gain confidence simply from belonging to a team, while an older boy may discover that leadership is less about being the best player and more about encouraging others.
The same is true across the College's wider life. Not every boy will find his place through sport, nor should we expect him to. What matters is that every boy has opportunities to participate, contribute and experience genuine success.
The Pivot report makes the valuable point that progress can show where a student is heading, and it encourages schools to recognise small but real achievements, including showing up, completing something, and making progress.
As parents, this is worth remembering in our conversations with our sons. After a game, performance or activity, alongside “Did you win?” or “ How did you go?”, we might sometimes ask:
“What did you do better today?”
“How did you contribute?”
“Did you encourage someone else?”
“What did you enjoy about being part of it?”
These simple questions tell our boys that effort, improvement, relationships and contribution matter.
Every boy needs somewhere to belong.
The Pivot report also reminds us that students who are quietly withdrawing can sometimes be the easiest to miss. A boy doesn't have to get into trouble to become disconnected from school.
This makes participation particularly important. Whether through sport, music, drama, service, clubs or academic pursuits, every boy needs opportunities to be known, valued and connected.
Years from now, our boys may not remember the score of every Saturday game. But they may remember the coach who believed in them, the teammate who encouraged them, the teacher who recognised a strength, or the experience of discovering somewhere within school life where they genuinely belonged.
So, as another summer sports season begins, let us celebrate victories and outstanding performances, but let us celebrate persistence, improvement, teamwork, courage and kindness just as enthusiastically.
Ultimately, our hope for every boy from Year 5 to Year 12 is bigger than any scoreboard or examination result. We want him to leave school knowing:
I was known.
I belonged.
I contributed.
I discovered my strengths.
I learned that effort makes a difference.
That is education at its best, and some of its most enduring lessons can be learned well beyond the classroom
Dr Vittoria Lavorato
Principal
SPC boys can do anything!
**except divide by zero