Principal Update

Welcome to Term 2. I trust everyone has had an enjoyable week. I hope everyone is settling back into the routine of school following the Easter Break. 

Yesterday I took a prospective family for a tour around the school, and I was so impressed by how calm yet engaged APS students are when learning throughout the various parts of our school. Furthermore, the way our students can confidently speak and articulate their learning to new adults in the school is something that makes me extremely proud to be a leader of our school. 

At the start of a new term we often welcome new staff and students. Firstly, to Cathy, who was successful in securing the Performing Arts role for Years 2-6. Cathy replaces Hannah who finished yesterday and will take maternity leave for the remainder of the year as she prepares for the birth of her second child. 

We also welcomed two new students into Year 2, Natalie and Isabelle. We wish them both all the best and are confident they will absolutely love being here at APS.

Finally, I would like to acknowledge Luke, who accepted to extend his Acting Assistant Principal position for Term 2. This allows us to continue progressing the strategic priorities outlined in our 2026 School Plan with minimal disruption following the completion of the substantive principal appointment process. The process to recruit and appoint a substantive Assistant principal will commence soon.

ANZAC Day Commemoration

This Friday at assembly we will hold a special Anzac Day commemoration. Our Year 6 students will outline the meaning behind Anzac Day and as a school we will observe a minute’s silence to commemorate those who have sacrificed so much to defend the freedoms and privileges we value as a country. The Year 5 's are also selling the commemoration  badges/pens and wrist bands supplied by the RSL. They will come around to each class this week so you can send along a few dollars with your child if they would like to buy something.

2026 Ski Camp 

The 2026 APS Ski Camp will run from Tuesday 21 July until Friday 24 July at Mount Buller Ski Resort.  There are limited places available for students on this camp. If oversubscribed, priority will be allocated on 1) seniority and 2) opportunity and will utilise a ballot system for selection.

With 62 Year 6 students in 2026 there is a likelihood that the number of spaces offered to Year 5 students will be minimal. However, it is imperative that we fill all 54 available spaces for the camp to be viable and so encourage all interested students to submit an EOI. 

The APS Ski Camp relies on self-funded parent volunteers for it to be a success. We require on-mountain volunteers who are capable skiers and/or snowboarders and 1-2 volunteers who are the lodge parents and organise the food preparation and delivery. Parents who wish to attend must also complete an Expression of Interest section on the form. The process for parent selection is based on ensuring a mix of genders, experience, applicable skills, and succession planning

There will be an information evening held in Week 2 of Term 2 on Wednesday 29 April from 6:30-7:30pm via WebEx. It is strongly recommended that all interested families attend this session.

https://eduvic.webex.com/meet/wilkie.shane.s

Expression of interest forms will also be sent home in Week 2 of Term 2. These will need to be returned to the school office by Friday 8 May at 9.00am. 

Victorian Teaching and Learning Model version 2.0 (VTLM 2.0)

At the end of last term I introduced the updated VTLM 2.0 via the newsletter.  I provided an overview of the model and included the four elements of learning.  Today I am sharing the elements of teaching, and in coming weeks I will further unpack these.

As a school, the implementation of VTLM 2.0 underlines much of our Annual Implementation Plan for 2026 and 2027. We spent much of 2025 unpacking the VTLM 2.0 with a focus on learning about the research behind the model. In 2026, we have developed a new instructional model, updated our lesson structure, modified our literacy and numeracy planners, and are currently working on enhancing our literacy and numeracy pedagogical practices to reflect the current research base. 

The VTLM 2.0 includes 2 components:

1. Elements of learning – the process of human learning, based on cognitive science, neuroscience and education psychology.
2. Elements of teaching – representing the evidence-based teaching practices that most effectively support learning: planning, enabling learning, explicit teaching and supported application.

Australian Education Union (AEU) Updates

Most of you will be aware that there are ongoing enterprise bargaining negotiations occurring between the Department of Education DET and the AEU. 

There are a number of work bans in place because of the industrial action. At APS, most staff are AEU members and undertaking the AEU work bans. There are two key work bans that impact the operations of the school. These are: 

• A ban on attendance at one hour of meetings per week.
• A ban on all aspects of work related to the provision of written comments in student reports to parents or carers.

The AEU Alphington Primary School Sub-branch has met to discuss these bans and from 6am Monday 20 April, no AEU member will attend the one-hour meeting held on a Tuesday from 3:45-4:45pm. During this time teachers will continue to work onsite on the various other tasks associated with their workload. As a result of the work ban, changes to our meeting schedule have been made which impacts aspects of our AIP work this term. 

Alphington Primary School student reports have a significant written element. Should these work bans remain in place for the duration of the term, there will be substantial changes to the APS student reports for semester one. These changes will impact the look of reports. All teachers will still undertake the process of assessment and reporting against the achievement standards. The school will provide more detail on what this will look like as we work through the information as it is provided to us by the AEU.

Have a great week! 

Shane Wilkie 

Principal