Principal's Report 

Hello everyone,

Welcome to Term 4. 

The HSC Exams are underway and we wish Year 12 (and families) the best as they approach and complete these final steps of their secondary school education.

Students in Years 7-11 get a clear message from all adults in the school that Term 4 is the most important Term in the school year. 

• The best indicator of learning progress and learning habit development in 2023 is learning progress and learning habit development in Term 4 2022.
• Like all starting points in the academic year, the start of Term 4 provides the opportunity for a fresh look at academic, wellbeing and behaviour achievements and challenges. Changing outcomes usually involves changing habits. This can take time and the advantages of starting this term rather than putting off planning for improvement until next year are significant and obvious.
• For Year 10 students Term 4 2022 can be the most significant term in their secondary school education, allowing a productive transition to a successful senior school learning pathway, TAFE pathway or employment pathway.

Please encourage a conversation at home about goals for this Term. Each student in Years 7-10 has a Learning Plan that will be supported in Mentor Group and classes. You may like to see this Learning Plan as a starting point for a productive conversation.

Here is a Family School Partnership Agreement that families are asked to sign as a condition of new enrolment. This document is used at enrolment interviews at McCarthy now and will extend across the Diocese soon. It details how positive family school partnerships improve learning pathways for students. It leaves unsaid that a negative partnership increases the chances of an unsuccessful or less than successful educational pathway for students. 

Please talk up the benefits of learning, the importance of being part of a team and the imperative of seeking support when needed. If you feel that you are not in a positive partnership with the school, and wish to build that partnership, please contact me directly so we can move on this important work. Again, this is better done now rather than next year.

All the best,

Rod Whelan - Principal