From the Deputy Principal, Secondary

From the Deputy Principal, Secondary

Our St Dominic’s Day celebrations captured the essence of the Four Pillars of Dominican Life; Prayer, Study, Community and Service, as we celebrated the life and influence of St Dominic. Old Scholar and dear friend Mr Dharmesh Raman (Head Prefect ’92) addressed the community on what it means to be a graduate of Blackfriars. His poignant and heartfelt speech can be accessed on our website and links are included in Mr Cobiac's article.

21st Century Learning and Student/Parent/Teacher Learning Conversations

When I hold my one-year old daughter I wonder what she will do with her life and how the world will look when she is an adult. I know that I desperately want her to be confident and happy in who she is. She will need skills to survive this changing world. She will need: faith, integrity, persistence, emotional resilience, ethical thinking, creativity, inquisitiveness, a multicultural and global world view, social and emotional intelligence, collaboration, and a passion for trying new things and doing new things. Her skills in coding, science, maths, communication and problem solving will be imperative as Artificial Intelligence and automation drastically alter her adult world.

Your son is also entering this evolving world and the exciting frontier of effective 21st Century Learning. We strive to equip our boys with the life skills that enable them to thrive in the dynamic 21st Century.  A critical ingredient to a thriving and happy boy is his family life and mental wellbeing. The importance of the partnership we have with our families cannot be overstated. Our Student/Parent/Teacher Learning Conversations are an opportunity for face to face dialogue about how we can partner together to give your son the best chance he has to become happy in who he is called to be.

Please note the following regarding the upcoming Student/Parent/Teacher Learning Conversations:

• Wednesday 5 September 2018, 2:00pm – 8:00pm
• Please note students will be dismissed at 1:00pm

This week your son has been given a letter with login details and procedures for booking your time slots to bring home with him.  If you did not receive your login letter, please speak with your son. We ask you to take the opportunity to book, as the partnership we develop with families is a critical ingredient to your son’s success. 

The conversations are not built on a deficit model but begin from a strengths-based approach. The aim of the evening is to keep your son central to the discussion, to ensure that his needs, developmental stage, strengths and perspective are considered and listened to.

A strengths-based approach is one founded on the following beliefs:

• All people have strengths and capacities.
• People change and grow through their strengths and capacities.
• People are the experts on their own situation.
• The problem is the problem: the person is not the problem.
• Problems can blind people from noticing and appreciating their strengths and the capacity to find their own solutions.
• People have good intentions.
• People are doing the best they can.

A strengths-based approach does not mean issues or concerns are not raised – rather it includes strengths in the conversation and ensures that the negative aspects are not the sole focus of the conversation.  Often solutions to problems can be found when strengths are identified.  It can also be a way to enable the conversation to keep moving forward and not become stuck in negativity and helplessness.

Intercol

Next week we will be participating in our Intercol with CBC. The aim of Intercol is to strengthen the friendship we have with CBC through the mechanism of our co-curricular program. As we are aware, sometimes humankind has displayed undesirable behaviour at sporting events. Whilst as a school we encourage competitiveness and pride, it is important that the passion of spectators and players is not displayed in a disrespectful, unsafe or violent manner. Intercol is a week to celebrate mateship and fine sportsmanship in a safe environment. Therefore, we do not condone any form of behaviour that detracts from the positive spirit of the week, including any form of afterparty following Intercol activities. Please refer to the letter that has been sent home to families regarding Intercol.

Mr David Ruggiero

DEPUTY PRINCIPAL, SECONDARY (ACTING)