Deputy Principal, 

Teaching and Learning

Feedback should cause thinking. It should be focused; it should relate to the learning goals that have been shared with the students, and it should be more work for the recipient than the donor. Indeed, the whole purpose of feedback should be to increase the extent to which students are owners of their own learning.

Dylan Wiliam 

The theme for Teaching and Learning this year has been 'Reimagine Feedback', and I have used this idea of reimagining to challenge our teachers to be curious and review how we engage students with feedback on their learning. We know that to be effective, feedback needs to be timely, clear, and specific.

Last semester at The Hamilton and Alexandra College, a pilot group of teachers trialled providing regular written feedback on both formative and summative tasks, published on our learning management system SIMON. The aim was to provide next steps feedback to students and parents on a continuous basis to emphasise growth and progress. Students were encouraged to reflect on the feedback provided and act on it accordingly.

This semester, the College is excited to launch the Continuous Reporting Program at the Senior School. Students will continue to receive grades, but on several of their assessment tasks this semester, written feedback to the student will be published on SIMON. Parents can access these comments via the online parent portal - PAM. We encourage parents to check PAM regularly and discuss the learning tasks that students are completing.

An important part of this process is engaging students to reflect on their learning. Students need to consider these three feedback questions.

1. Where am I going? What are my goals?
2. How am I going? What progress is being made towards that goal?
3. Where to next? What activities need to be undertaken next to make better progress?

 The role of the teacher in the learning cycle is to identify where the learner is going by clarifying, sharing, and understanding learning intentions.  The teacher will guide the student through discussion, tasks and activities that elicit evidence of learning, activating students as learning resources to one another (peer-to-peer support) and activating students’ own agency in the learning process. Ultimately, teachers aim to provide feedback to students that moves, and nudges the learner forward.

What this means for students and parents is that there will no longer be a Term Three report. The final design of the End of Year report is currently being reviewed; more information will be available later in the semester.

SUBJECT SELECTION

Our current Year 9-11 students are in the process of selecting subjects for 2024, and there will be an opportunity for students and their parents to discuss their learning in a subject interview with a senior member of staff. 

In week 9 of this term, we will hold student-parent-teacher interviews, and this will provide an opportunity for us to reflect on learning progress. Our partnership with you, our parents, is crucial. We encourage you to keep in touch and let us know how we can work with you and your child to meet their learning goals.

LEARNING ENHANCEMENT UPDATE

NCCD 2023

The Nationally Consistent Collection of Data on School Students with Disability (NCCD) takes place every year. The NCCD is a collection that counts: 

• the number of school students receiving an adjustment due to disability 

• the level of adjustment they are receiving to access education on the same basis as other students. 

Students are counted in the NCCD if they receive ongoing adjustments at school due to disability. This ‘help’ allows them to access education on the same basis as a child without a disability. The NCCD is compulsory for all schools. Submitted information is de-identified. For further information please read the attached document and contact the school with any questions.

VALETTA BOLTON

Head of Learning Enhancement