Principal's Report
Welcome
Dear members of the St Raphael's school community,
Smith Family Fundraiser
Last Friday a group of year six students initiated a fundraising day in support of the Smith Family Foundation. This initiative came directly from the students who wanted to make a difference to the lives of those less fortunate than themselves.
After making contact with the Smith Family and after many preparatory meetings, the leadership group decided on a casual clothes day and pizza lunch. They coordinated the day and with the support of the wonderful parent volunteers who assisted with the cooking of the pizza and donation of the ingredients they raised $1191.50! These funds will go directly towards the Smith Family Foundation.
I am extremely proud of this group of children, their coordination of the day and their desire to make a real difference to the lives of others.
For more information please visit the Student Wellbeing section of this newsletter.
School Review
This week we are undergoing our quadrennial school review which looks at all aspects of whole school improvement. Since January 2017, all Australian schools are required to develop a school improvement plan. A plan for school improvement is a process of collaboration, investigation and learning. To identify and prioritise areas for improvement, schools must first understand their current strengths and weaknesses.
By undertaking a review, conducted by an independent third party, schools arrive at a comprehensive starting point for the development of a school improvement plan, and are able to determine the best possible course of action for ongoing improvement of student learning and wellbeing.
This year we are using the Australian Council for Educational Research’s (ACER) National School Improvement Tool (NSIT). The NSIT was delivered by external educational consultants, Mr Tony McGruther and Mrs Meredith Nolte, and uses feedback from all staff, student groups and parents to develop the findings.
The NSIT is comprised of nine domains:
- An explicit improvement agenda
- Analysis and discussion of data
- A culture that promotes learning
- Targeted use of school resources
- An expert teaching team
- Systematic curriculum delivery
- Differentiated teaching and learning
- Effective pedagogical practices
- School-community partnerships
Using an evidence-based framework, the NSIT supports school-wide conversations about aspects of current practice, areas for improvement and evidence that progress is being made.
The NSIT was endorsed by the Standing Council on School Education and Early Childhood in 2012 and is available to all Australian schools for use in their school improvement planning.
How can the NSIT help St Raphael’s?
Research is revealing the powerful impact that school leadership teams can have in improving the quality of teaching and learning. The NSIT synthesises findings from international research into a practical framework that can be used to investigate and evaluate current practices in any Australian school.
By using the NSIT in the process of developing a School Improvement plan, schools can ensure they are adopting the practices displayed by highly effective schools and school leaders, and are supporting the development of their school improvement objectives with a solid base of evidence and research.
We look forward to sharing with you the findings from participation in this school review process and look forward to setting the agenda for whole school improvement over the next four years.
Please read the following article from Teacher Magazine which outlines the recommendations from the recent Gonski review and details the importance of quality assurance in all Australian schools.
St Raphael's Feast Day
We are pleased to announce that this year we will be holding a St Raphael's Family Feast Day on Sunday 21st October commencing with a whole school mass at 10:30am followed by fantastic amusement rides, animal farm, pony rides, games, demonstrations, activities, food stalls, face painting and live entertainment from 11:30am - 3:30 pm.
Please see attached the flyer with the details and keep this date free to join us to celebrate our feast day as a whole school and parish community.
School Fees
A reminder that all 2018 school fees and levies are now due and we ask that all parents reconcile their outstanding 2018 school fees as soon as possible and no later than Friday 21st September (end of Term 3).
If you are experiencing financial difficulties then please arrange a time to meet with me to discuss your payment options.
Road Rules
Thank you to the parents and grandparents who are exercising care whilst dropping off and picking up their children to/ from school.
The safety of all of the children is paramount to us and we hope that all adults can continue to display appropriate road usage by following the designated signage and road rules around our school.