Principal Team Editorial

It’s a busy time at school with the end of the year fast approaching and lots of events happening for all year levels. On Tuesday night, we farewelled our Year 12 students at the Valedictory and next Monday we will celebrate the outstanding achievements of students at Awards Night. The following week we look forward to welcoming our new Year 7 families at Transition Evening, with our new year 7’s coming together for the first time at  Orientation Day.

Today was our Year 11's last day of Step Up, with students experiencing a week and a half of Year 12 classes and moving into the Pathways Hub. Transition Days for Years 8, 9  and 10 will give students the opportunity to reflect on their year and prepare the following one; what they need to know, and what they can do to set themselves up for success. These Transition Days are very significant days on our school calendar and staff put in a lot of effort to ensure they are engaging and meaningful.

Valedictory

We formally farewelled our Year 12 students for the very last time, on Tuesday night, at the spectacular Palladium Room at Crown. This is the second year we held the Valedictory at the Crown, and it didn’t disappoint. The prestige of the venue added to the magnitude of the occasion, and our Year 12s graduated in style. Dressed in graduation gowns, students were given sashes as mementos and, after receiving their VCE certificate, they were invited to the dancefloor with their parents for a celebration dance. It was a special night and I thank our Senior Team for their time and effort in making this a night to remember and one that our younger students will aspire to. 

Final Assessments…

At Wantirna College, we are committed to supporting students to achieve learning growth, regardless of their starting point. 

Throughout a unit of learning, teachers are responsive to student learning needs and design their teaching to support students to move to the next level on the learning continuum. We do, however, understand that exams and assessment tasks are useful in measuring performance and to see if the learning throughout the unit has ‘stuck.’ 

Our Year 11 and 12 students have just completed their final exams while our Year 7-10 students are in the final phases of the RAF (review, assessment, feedback) period. Families will have access to their child’s learning growth (during a unit) data through Maestro and their performance achievement (end of unit) of our students when reports are released Wednesday 17th December.

NEW Parent Meetings 2026

All parents and students expected to attend.

Kids learn better when parents and teachers are on the same page…

At Wantirna College, we are committed to building a strong learning culture where students can thrive emotionally, mentally and academically. To do this effectively, however, we need to establish and maintain strong parent engagement to ensure we are all on the same page and using shared language and strategies. 

In primary schools, it’s easier – I certainly remember being more ‘involved’ as I dropped my kids off and picked them up and usually had time to have a ‘quick’ chat with the teacher if needed. 

In secondary school, this dynamic changes as kids grow into teenagers and no longer need parents to be so ‘present’ at drop off and pick up and, let’s be honest, they don’t necessarily want mum or dad looking over their shoulder or cramping their style. 

This independence however doesn’t mean teenagers need us any less, in fact, they probably need us more, just in a different way. And sometimes as a parent of a teenager, it’s hard to know how to give them the support they need.  There is lots of research that confirms the more engagement(as opposed to involvement) parents have in the education of their children, the more their children will thrive. 

Starting next year, we are holding parent engagement meetings at the beginning of the year for every year level with the expectation that all parents will attend. We will be sharing important data about where our students are at and what engagement we need from parents to help us do the best jobs we can for our students. 

Every year level is different and has different needs. The purpose of each meeting is to provide a clear set of expectations and strategies that we know, when enforced both at home and at school, will provide the strongest foundations for our students to thrive and achieve their very best emotionally, mentally and academically. 

Please make note of the following dates and times to add to your calendars:

Wed 28 January

6pm - 7pm: Year 8 Parents/Carers meeting

7pm - 8pm: year 9 Parents/Carers meeting

Mon 2 February

6pm - 7pm: VCE/VCE VM Parents/Carers meeting  (including Early Start Year 10 parents)

Thu 5 February

5pm -7.30pm: Year 7 Parent/Carers

Carrie Wallis

Principal