Principals Message 

As we draw to the end of Term 3, we’ve been reflecting on what was yet another big and busy term. On Day One of this term we looked forward to a return to onsite activities, a re-focus on our 2021 key priorities and the opportunities of our School Review and planning for our future. Some of this came to pass: we did, for a time, resume sport, music, drama, camps and excursions, including significant preparations for our production of Pippin. We’ve made a great start on our four-year review, with staff, student and parent focus groups conducted online and our School Values and Culture survey run. This will continue in Term 4.  We've also made significant progress with our building works and will be ready for all students to return to the Story St site once lockdown ends. Most importantly,  our staff and students have yet again demonstrated resilience, positivity and flexibility in the face of uncertainty.

Refurbishment of South Building 

The refurbishment of the Ground and First Floor of the South Building is very close to complete, and we will be able to have students return to the building when we resume face-to-face learning. Ironically, Level 1 classrooms became available the day we went in to lockdown! We are very excited about using these new spaces, which are significantly lighter, brighter and more contemporary than the previous ones. 

Level 1 will be home to our Year 8 Renaissance program, Year 8 lockers and our Humanities staff team, and also contains a number of general-purpose classrooms and two smaller meeting/conference rooms. The Renaissance area is a shared teaching space that accommodates two classes, team-taught, with a focus on collaborative learning and a breakout area for presentations and discussions. Four of the classrooms also feature adjoining doors which mean they can be used discretely or with two classes together.  

The Ground Floor - Library will be finished during the school holidays, and we hope to have all the books and furniture moved in by Week 2 of Term 4. The Library makes the most of the natural light from the courtyard, and includes an outdoor learning and reading space, dedicated class areas and plenty of nooks and bookable rooms for small group collaboration and private study. The design of the Library and its furnishings has been based strongly on student input: we can't wait to see it in action! 

Now that these works have finished, we are able to commence planning for the refurbishment of the Science Labs and learning spaces on Level 2, which were most affected by the fire. This project will likely take place in 2022. With the addition of six relocatable classrooms that opened at the start of Term 3, we have enough spaces to accommodate all of our students whilst this is occurring. 

Our VCE students and sub-school will also be able to return to Level 3 of the South Building. The VCE team is working with students to upgrade the furnishings in these spaces as well. 

Other buildings and grounds works

Unfortunately, with the urgent work on the South Building, we have had to delay our planned refurbishment of the oval and basketball courts. This will still go ahead at some stage, but we need to manage the disruption to the school; and cannot have these key outdoor spaces out of action and contractors onsite whilst we are also working on the South Building. 

We are also planning, during Term 4, improvements to our outdoor spaces, including additional seating, shade and planting. Student voice has been a driver of this: I am working with the SRC to plan and implement these improvements. 

Pippin

One of the heartbreaking aspects of the latest lockdown was the cancellation of the school musical, Pippin, with hours to go. Opening night was scheduled for August 5 and the cast and crew had spent the whole day in rehearsal: with the lockdown commencing at 8pm we were not able to perform even one show. The cast and crew had already been endlessly flexible in overcoming the challenges posed both by COVID restrictions and by the fire, which meant that the show was to be staged, for the first time, at an external venue. 

The outpouring of support for the Pippin cast and crew has been significant; and the students within the show rallied together to celebrate themselves and their achievements. Even though we will not get to see the show, we know that that was just the icing on the cake. The months of hard work beforehand are what created the learning, new skills, confidence and relationships that have come from the experience; and we are very proud of our entire cast and crew. 

School Review and Values & Culture survey

Once every four years, schools undertake a comprehensive review, with an external panel, of their teaching and learning, student and community engagement and staff development. This is a valuable and important process which enables us to set strategic goals for long-term improvement. The review involves analysis of multiple forms of data, plus focus groups, classroom observations and examination of other school 'artefacts'. Our review has been impacted by the COVID restrictions, but we have been lucky enough to be able to undertake about half of the process so far.  At this stage, some clear themes are emerging around cohesion, consistency, collaboration and communication. We'll look forward to these being explored more when the review continues in Term 4. 

Some parents and carers have already been part of focus groups for the review; however we will be running more next term. Please keep an eye on Compass and your email for information about these. If you would like to know more, feel free to contact me on ciar.foster@education.vic.gov.au

Alongside our Review, we are also conducting a re-visioning of our values and culture. Thank you very much to all those students and families who contributed to our Values survey. Next term, we will be unpacking and exploring these results, with the aim of identifying key values to guide us in to the future, through parent/carer and student workshops. Again, please look out for these in Compass Newsfeed. 

COVID-19 impacts

I think we would all agree that this current outbreak and lockdown is far more significant than we might have anticipated a few months ago. We do not yet know when students will be able to return to onsite learning: I am hopeful that the plan for this will become clearer over the next few weeks.  

Our staff are planning for a range of contingencies, and continue to modify curriculum, activities and assessments to suit the remote environment. Keeping a consistent routine during remote learning is important, as is staying connected with teachers, peers and coordinators. I encourage all students to keep making sure that you complete your homegroup check-ins each day: they are important feedback for us which allow us to identify adjustments we might need to make and to contact you if you indicate you need support.  There are a range of wellbeing supports available through our school counsellors, and also online resources which you can find linked on our school website. 

Our Year 12s have been particularly impacted with the GAT being rescheduled several times and no change to the planned external exam dates. Our VCE team is working to try to spread and balance assessments as much as possible, whilst still sticking to a schedule that will see all students prepared for the end of the year. In Term 4, in-class time and reconnection with teachers and class groups will be prioritised, whether we are onsite or online. I encourage all Year 12s, if you are medically able, to get a COVID vaccination as soon as possible. This will help to ensure the safe running of exams and onsite learning. More information about this can be found in this newsletter. 

All students aged 12 and over are now also eligible for vaccination. Again, I encourage all who are medically able to pursue this. Each day when we are at school, we have over 1700 people on our site: the more of us who are vaccinated, the safer our community will be. 

NAPLAN results 2021

The 2021 NAPLAN results are in. UHS students have again performed strongly in comparison to similar schools and compared to state and network averages: all the more remarkable given the impacts of lockdowns throughout last year. There is, of course, a lot more analysis of the results and the stories they tell to be done, but here is a quick snapshot. 

Students in Top 2 bands

Relative Growth (from Year 7 to Year 9)

These NAPLAN results were being particularly watched as a marker of the impact of lockdowns on student achievement. UHS results revealed very little change in achievement across all areas from 2019 to 2021. In general, our results have remained quite consistent over the past five years. 

All Year 7 and 9 students and families should have received their results in the mail. If you have not received your results by the start of Term 4, please notify the school on university.hs@education.vic.gov.au

Happy holidays

These holidays, we will all be trying to prioritise rest, relaxation and healthy physical activity. I encourage everyone - even our Year 12s - to make significant time away from study and work; to reconnect with the protective activities that bring us energy, joy and peace. For me, that will be trail running (and maybe even some runs along the beach with the expanded travel radius!), cooking, reading, time with friends and plenty of games and pats with my lovely little cat! I'll be switching off from emails and the computer for some time: I hope you do the same. Stay safe and healthy, and we'll look forward to connecting next term. 

Ciar Foster - Principal