Principal's Page

Principal's Message

Dear Parents and Carers,

On Friday, you will be able to access your child’s  Semester One report on Compass from 3:00pm. It is really important that you have an understanding of how the reports are written and how teachers make judgements to award grades to the students.

Teachers write the reports and award grades in line with the NSW K-10 Syllabus outcomes and the Diocese of Wollongong Religious Education Curriculum. In NSW, schools are required to report to parents using a 5 point achievement A-E grading scale for each Key Learning Area (KLA)

The A-E grading scale is for use within each stage of learning;

Stage 1- Years 1 and 2

Stage 2- Years 3 and 4

Stage 3- Years 5 and 6

How do teachers make judgements about grades?

Teachers make decisions about grades by making ‘on-balance judgements’ about a student's work. This means that assessment data is gathered across numerous work and assessment samples built up over time.  

Grades are not based on 'one-off' tests that may not fully reflect what the student actually knows and is able to do. This is why it is so important for students to be ready to learn each and every day. 

In each KLA, your child will receive an overall grade. However, there is more than one strand within each KLA.  For example, English has seven strands that include, listening, reading, writing, spelling, punctuation and grammar.  The overall grade is not always determined by averaging your child's performance across strands.  In many cases, more time has been dedicated to learning in one strand over others and this contributes significantly to the balanced judgement a teacher makes to award an overall grade.

Why do my child's grades change from one report to another?

It is not unusual for a student’s overall grade to change from one reporting period to the next as the knowledge, skills and understandings they learn each semester will vary from one reporting period to the next. The learning is different each Semester.

Can a student at the beginning of a Stage, Year 1, 3 and 5, receive an ‘A’ or ‘B’?

The grade is based on the content students have been exposed to in the Semester - judgements are not made against end-of-stage standards. Teachers can award grades to students based on their level of achievement of outcomes over the semester. 

So students in Year 1, 3 and 5 can receive grades of ‘A’ or ‘B’ if they are displaying high or outstanding understanding and application of the content. NESA directs teachers to give the grade that best matches the standard achieved so far.

What does it mean if my child receives a ‘C’ grade?

Celebrate because your child is at the expected level of achievement for the content they have been exposed to over the semester.  

A ‘C’ grade is considered sound and the student has demonstrated that they have gained the knowledge, skills and understandings expected of them at that point in time.

However, as can be seen in the sample below, the student received an overall 'C' grade but in one strand has achieved only at a 'Basic' level. This means that in that Stand, Working Mathematically, the student has achieved below the expectation for students during that Semester. 

Do teachers compare students when making judgements about each child’s grade?

No, grades are awarded against the standards, that is, the NSW K-6 Syllabus Outcomes, not compared with, or to, other students. This means that a class may have many students who receive As and Bs or where all students receive Cs. The intent is not to grade classes on a bell curve where there is a certain percentage of each grade given.

What do I need to consider before reading my child's report?

Now that you are thinking about reports, take a couple of minutes to watch the clip below from Michael Grose who is the founder of Parenting Ideas and one of Australia’s leading parenting educators.

Michael says that the last report may be used as a benchmark. This is not really about comparing grades from previous reports but rather the broad view of the report, specifically: socially, attitudes to learning and behaviour.

What feedback can I give to my child?

When giving feedback to your child try to ensure that they take on some of the responsibility for learning. You can’t learn for them and neither can their teacher/s. 

So:

• Be mindful of their confidence levels
• Be honest with them and positive about what they have achieved
• Be constructive - make plans with them about their improvement. Ask them where they feel they need to improve. They will surprise you!
• Be inclusive: make sure they are involved in the conversation. Children need to be challenged in their learning but with high support.

Why should I attend parent-teacher Interviews?

There are two parts to the reporting process. 

1. The written report
2. The parent-teacher meeting

Use the parent-teacher meeting next week as an opportunity to hear more about your child and their learning.  These meetings provide you with additional information and an opportunity for you to ask questions and gain clarity. 

Thank you for your support of St Joseph's and your child's learning. Have a wonderful week.

St Joseph, pray for us.

Jen Charadia

Principal

The coming week at St Joseph’s

Growing and Changing - Thursday 17 June 5:00 pm

This is a follow-up voluntary session for parents in Years 4-6. If any parent is unable to attend but wishes to see the videos students will see in the unit over this week and next week, please contact the school office to arrange an alternate time.

Kinder 2022 School Tour 

Tuesday 22 June 10:00am or 2:00pm

All Kinder 2022 families are welcome.

GREAT NEWS about the Fun Fair- Wednesday 23 June

• Tickets are now free!
• See the below attachment for further information.
• Please consider making a donation via Quick Cliq instead of paying for a ticket.

Thank you to our sponsors.

Last day of Term 2- Friday 25 June

School returns from the student vacation period on Monday 12 July.

Staff Professional Activities

Curriculum Network NESA- Friday 18 June

Mr. Miguel Aguilera

Christmas Story Art Exhibition Professional Learning- Wednesday 23 June

Mrs. Birac

Records Management Training- Thursday 24 June

Mrs. Karen Gallagher and Mrs. Margot Riley

Returning To School After Leaving Hospital

Please read the attachment with information regarding students returning to school after leaving hospital.

Principal Awards and Merit Awards

The following students will receive their Principal Awards at our afternoon assembly on Friday 25 June  2021(Week 10) at 2.00pm.

The following student will be presented their End of Term 2 Achievement Awards on Friday 25 June 2021 (Week 10).

Academic Achievement Awards

Habits of Mind Awards

Mary of the Cross Awards

Acknowledgement to Country

St Joseph's Bulli acknowledges and pays respect to the Dharawal people past and present, the traditional custodians of the land on which our school is built.