The Falcon Newsletter

Senior School News

Newsletter: A Bright Start to the 2025 School Year

 

Dear Families and Community,

It's been a wonderful start to the 2025 school year, especially for our senior students. It's been fantastic to see the study hall buzzing with students before school, during break times, and after school as they really set themselves up for success early on. Their commitment to their studies is truly inspiring.

 

Investiture Assembly & Acknowledging Achievements

On Friday, February 7th, we held our Investiture Assembly, where we had the honor of inducting our 2025 school leaders to the college. It was a special moment to witness the new leaders stepping up and taking on this responsibility. We also took this opportunity to congratulate our outstanding Year 12 alumni of 2024 on their incredible achievements. Their hard work has been rewarded with well-deserved incentives.

 

2025 Award Incentives

We are excited to continue our award incentives for 2025. Students who achieve an ATAR of 90 or above will receive a $500 voucher, while students with a study score of 40 or above will earn a $100 voucher. Additionally, outstanding VCE VM students will receive a $100 voucher as well. We are thrilled to be supporting our students in reaching their goals and look forward to celebrating many more successes this year.

 

Roz Blades Community Spirit Award

We are pleased to announce that Jessica Bonato of Year 12 has been awarded the prestigious Roz Blades Community Spirit Award, presented by Gabrielle Williams. This award is named in honor of former Councillor and Mayor Roz Blades and recognizes a student who exemplifies kindness, a commitment to community, and sets a positive example through their actions. Jessica is the perfect recipient of this award, consistently showing dedication and completing any task, no matter how big or small, with great care and attention.

 

Classroom Settling In & Course Counselling

We are now well and truly settled into our classes, and while some students have expressed interest in changing their courses, we want to remind the community that our course counselling process is a thoughtful and complex one. This ensures that students are choosing subjects and courses that best suit their abilities and future goals. Once timetables are completed, it is not always possible to make changes, particularly when students choose to go against recommendations.

Our Year 12 VCE VM students have also begun their VET courses, with the Multi-Trade Pathway and Public Safety courses in full swing. These courses offer fantastic opportunities for our students to start their applied learning journey while still attending school.

 

Sign-Out Process Improvements

A big thank you to everyone for supporting our students with the sign-out process when leaving school for study periods. We've listened to feedback and implemented a new system that will allow students to leave school more quickly, ensuring they can get home to study without delay.

 

Punctuality and Class Time

We’ve been truly impressed with the punctuality of our students this year. While we haven’t quite reached 100% on-time attendance yet, it’s clear that we are doing much better than in previous years. It’s vital that students arrive on time for their classes so they can make the most of their learning time and not disrupt the flow of teaching. If a senior student arrives late, they are required to sign in to Study Hall and follow their Compass lesson plan for that period.

We look forward to the continued growth and success of our students and wish them all the best as they move forward in their studies this year. Let’s keep working together to support their academic journey!

 

Every day counts

Secondary School Attendance

Going to school every day is the single most important part of your teenager’s education. 

Students learn new things at school every day – missing school puts them behind. 

 

SCHOOL IS BETTER WHEN YOUR TEENAGE IS THERE

 

Why it’s important

We all want our students to get a great education, and the building blocks for a great education begin with students coming to school each and every day.

Students develop good habits by going to school every day – habits that are necessary to succeed after school, whether in the workplace or in further study.

Missing school can have a big impact on students academically and socially. It can affect their test results, including VCE & VCAL, and, just as importantly, it can affect their relationships with other students, and lead to social isolation.

There is no safe number of days for missing school – each day a student misses puts them behind, and can affect their educational outcomes.

Each missed day is associated with falling behind in subject topics and assessment tasks, and lead to fewer subject choices and may impact on achievement in years 11 and 12 and post-school pathways. 

 

Getting in early

It’s never too late to improve attendance. Even in the middle years, when school can seem the most challenging for students and when attendance rates can be at their lowest,  going to school more often can make a big difference. Every day counts. 

Schools are there to help – if you’re having attendance issues with your child, speak to your school about ways to address those issues.

 

IN VICTORIA SCHOOL IS COMPULSORY FOR CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE AGED 6-17 YEARS

 

Student Absences 

The main reasons for absence are:

Sickness – There are always times when students need to miss school, such as when they’re ill. It’s vital that they’re only away on the days they are genuinely sick, and setting good sleep patterns, eating well and exercising regularly can make a big difference.

Family holidays - It's vital that holidays are planned during school holidays where possible, and not during the term. If you are planning to go on holiday during term time, make sure that you talk to your school in advance, and work with them to develop an absence learning plan.

“Day off” – Think twice before letting your teenager have a “day off” as they could fall behind their classmates – every day counts.

Truancy – This is when students choose not to go to school without their parent’s permission or skip out of school during the day. There can be many reasons for truancy; the best way to address this is for schools and parents to work together.

While all absences can effect academic performance, DET’s statistics show that unexcused absences are a much stronger indicator of lower reading and maths achievement.

School refusal - School refusing children experience significant emotional distress not only when going to school but also at the thought of going to school; they may be absent from school for weeks or even months at a time. School refusal differs from truancy as children generally stay home with the knowledge of the parents and despite their best efforts to encourage their child to go to school. See: My child or teenager has anxiety

 

BEING AWAY FROM SCHOOL FOR 1 DAY A FORTNIGHT EQUALS MISSING 1.5 YEARS OVER 13 YEARS OF SCHOOL

 

If your teenager is away

If for any reason your teenager must miss school, there are things you can do with your school to ensure they don’t fall behind:

  • Inform the school via your teen’s Form/Home Room teacher or Year Level Coordinator
  • Find out what work your teenager needs to do to keep up.
  • Develop an absence learning plan with your teenager’s teacher and ensure they complete the plan.

Remember, every day counts. If your teenager must miss school, speak with your home room teacher or year level coordinator as early as possible.

Openly communicating with your teenager’s school about all absences is a good way to prevent attendance issues being escalated to a School Attendance Officer. A School Attendance Officer is a Department of Education and Training Regional Director who has authority to follow up attendance issues. Chronic or ongoing attendance issues that are escalated can lead to an Infringement Notice being issued to parent/s.

If you’re having attendance issues with your teenager, please let the year level coordinator, wellbeing coordinator, principal or other relevant staff member know so you can work together to get your teen to school every day.

 

Top attendance tips for parents

  • Schools want to work in partnership with parents – act early if you have any concerns by contacting your child’s school and asking for advice and support
  • Remember that every day counts
  • There is no safe number of days for missing school – each day a student misses puts them behind, and can affect their educational outcomes and their social connectedness
  • Talk positively about school and the importance of attending every day
  • Open and prompt communication with your child’s school about all absences is a good idea 
  • Avoid making routine medical and dental appointments during the school day or planning family holidays during the term
  • Seek help from your school if you are concerned about your child’s attendance and wellbeing. Schools want to work in partnership with parents to support student attendance and wellbeing.

Further information 

For more information and resources to help address attendance issues, visit:

https://www.education.vic.gov.au/school/teachers/studentmanagement/attendance/Pages/improve-attendance.aspx