Teaching and Learning

WELCOME TO NEW AND RETURNING STAFF

I am pleased to introduce and warmly welcome our new and returning teaching staff members for the 2026 school year. We are delighted to have such a talented group of educators joining (and re-joining) our school community, and we look forward to the expertise, enthusiasm and fresh perspectives they bring to our classrooms.

New Teaching Staff

• Eunice Kou – Mathematics / Science

  Eunice joins us teaching Mathematics and Science and brings a strong commitment to student learning and engagement. She has particular expertise in Mathematics and will play an important role in promoting the value of mathematical problem-solving across the school.

   

• Viet Nguyen – English / EAL

  Viet will be teaching English and EAL, and we are excited to welcome her expertise in supporting diverse learners and developing students’ literacy skills. Having completed a placement with us during her university studies, Viet impressed us with her impact, and we are delighted to have her join our team now that she has finished her training.

   

• Nitzan Ron – Humanities / Science

  Nitzan joins the Humanities and Science teams and will be a valuable addition to both learning areas. Like Viet, Nitzan completed a placement at Lyndale, and his combination of Biology and Legal Studies qualifications is a rare asset. We are excited about the opportunities this brings to strengthen cross-curricular connections and further engage our students.

   

Returning Staff Members

• Helen Grey – Science 

  We are very pleased to welcome back Helen Grey, who returns to the Science learning area in 2026. Helen’s experience and familiarity with our school will be a great support to both students and staff. She is a passionate educator, and we are very fortunate to have her return to our team.

   

• Tayla Shannon – Science and Health & PE

  We are very pleased to welcome Tayla back on a more regular basis in 2026. As one of our experienced classroom teachers, she shows a strong commitment to student learning and wellbeing. Tayla also plays an important role as a Year 12 Coordinator, supporting our Year 12 students and working closely with the Senior Sub School team to ensure they are well supported throughout their final year.

MEET AND GREET CONFERENCES

Thank you to the many parents, carers and students who attended our Meet and Greet Conferences on Thursday 19 February, either in person or online. It was wonderful to see such strong engagement from our community and to witness the positive conversations taking place between families and teachers. 

The conferences provided a valuable opportunity to share insights into each student’s strengths, interests and goals, and to establish clear expectations for the year ahead. It was particularly pleasing to see students actively involved in these discussions, demonstrating ownership of their learning. We appreciate the time families took to attend and support the strong home–school partnerships that are so important to student success.

NAPLAN 2026

In 2026, the National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) testing period will be held in Term 1, running over two weeks from Wednesday 11 March to Monday 23 March.

NAPLAN provides valuable information for students, parents, teachers and schools, and helps inform programs that support student learning and growth.

Who will participate:

All Year 7 and Year 9 students will participate in NAPLAN testing.

Students will:

• Be issued with a NAPLAN timetable
• Complete all tests on their laptops
• Complete only one test per day

• Have limited opportunities to catch up on missed tests

   

  Technology requirements

• Students will need to install the NAPLAN lockdown browser. This will be completed at school with support from our IT team.

• Students must ensure their laptops are fully charged each day to allow them to complete the tests within the required time.

   

Support and exemptions

All students in Years 7 and 9 are expected to participate in NAPLAN. Support can be arranged for students with disabilities if they regularly use similar adjustments for classroom assessment tasks.

Exemptions may be granted for students with a disability that severely limits their capacity to participate in the assessment or students who have been learning English for less than one year.

NAPLAN reports

Later in the year, you will receive your child’s individual NAPLAN report. This report provides information about your child’s skills in:

• Reading
• Writing
• Conventions of Language (spelling, grammar and punctuation)

• Numeracy

   

The report also shows how your child’s results compare to the national minimum standards, which describe the minimum expected level of achievement for students across Australia.

For further information please read the NAPLAN 2026 Information for parents and carers information sheet below.