Principal's Address

Dear Families of Killester,

We are certainly becoming wary of the language of unprecedented, however again we find ourselves in most unusual times. One of the most beautiful conversations I have had this week has been about how we are behaving as a community here at Killester. A colleague described it to me as us being "people of the resurrection", this magnificent analogy drew me into thinking about the ways in which we need to ensure we remain focused on the hopefulness of the work we do and engender in our young women. It can be challenging to remain focused on hope in these times however, this is what we are called to do as faithful followers of Jesus. Our first reading this week is the story of Solomon asking God for the gift of wisdom; "“Give your servant an understanding heart to judge your people and to distinguish right from wrong. For who is able to govern this vast people of yours?” 1 Kings 3, 5, 7-12, our prayers remain with all those in positions of leadership at this time, that they are guided by grace and an understanding heart. I have witnessed many forms of leadership and wisdom this past fortnight at the College; from staff working collaboratively to create meaningful and engaging remote learning opportunities, to students sharing mask making patterns with each other. I am incredibly proud of the ways in which our community has come together and drawn strength from each other. Hope remains at the core of all work done in education, and in particular in Catholic education. It is what calls us to our ministry of work, it is what inspires us to continue to develop and evolve and 

Our return to remote learning for Years 7 - 10  is providing us with the opportunity to continue some elements of synchronous learning (where students learn in the same space and at the same time as their peers) and at the same time expand and develop opportunities for asynchronous learning (where students complete work individually, at their own pace, and where they have an opportunity to expand their skills and knowledge, through in-depth exploration of areas where they have a particular interest). The Passion Project; Change Yourself; Change the World, in Years 7 to 10, was developed to enable our students to refine their asynchronous learning opportunities and develop skills in lateral thinking, self-directed learning and higher order problem solving. These skills we know are most important for success in later years of schooling, and in post-compulsory education such as at University or TAFE. This round of remote learning will enact ‘Voice and Choice’ where students are led to investigate a project using a number of different options devised by staff. The work produced by our talented, innovative and determined young women in their first passion project was nothing short of remarkable and I am very excited about seeing the work that will take place for 'Voice and Choice'.

My congratulations are extended to the Year 12 VCE Drama class who performed their VCE ensemble on Thursday afternoon. This remarkable performance entertained and engaged the physically distanced and mask wearing audience, with it's fine balance of brevity and humour. Well done to Mikayla Bayliss, Feenaaz Esaq, Ziska Mayadeen, Tamara Narcis and Angela Nguyen and their dedicated teacher Ms Jenna Cronin.

When we finished our last round of remote learning we surveyed staff and students about what they found valuable and where they would like to suggest changes, this feedback informed our decision making and alterations to the current program. One of the most joyful elements to this feedback was that so many of our students identified spending quality time with their family as the most positive element to remote learning. I hope that families are able to continue to enjoy the slowing of pace and precious time together. 

Ms Sally Buick

Principal