Principal's Report
Uniform Update
Our College Council recently selected PSW to become our new uniform supplier from 2020. PSW currently supplies the majority of the local primary schools and has a retail store in Carrum Downs. Our current suppliers will continue to sell stock, however please be aware that the availability of items will reduce over time.
The changes to the uniform have come about following extensive consultation with the school community, which has identified the following issues:
- Current polos are very hot in summer
- Polos tops have a 'primary school' feel
- Lack of warm clothing for winter in PE
Making changes to address these issues has presented us with the opportunity to look at further changes. We are planning that all 2020 Year 7 students will be expected to wear the new uniform, while current students will have 24 months to transition to the altered uniform.
We are now finalising some changes to our uniform and are seeking your feedback:
Confirmed Changes
- Introduce a shirt (to replace current polo)
- Pants/shorts (adjustable waist & zips)
- Senior rugby top to become a PE top
- New tracksuit pants for PE
- Introduce a College scarf
Still to Decide
- White shirt or shirt with stripe?
- New dress or current dress?
- Striped shirt for summer / white for winter?
- Incorporate the 'Eel' mascot image onto PE tops and caps?
- New jacket pattern or current jacket?
For further information and to leave your feedback please go HERE
Capital Works Update
The College will be selecting an architect in the coming weeks as part of our master planning and upcoming capital works project. Over the next 6 months, the College will develop a Master Plan along with plans for $8 million in capital works which will begin in the second half of 2020.
Recent consultation with the school community has identified the following priorities in the master plan:
- Year 8 Centre
- Classrooms that connect to our external environment
- Improved heating & cooling
- Staff offices to allow greater collaboration and access for students
- Improved flow through the school courtyard
- Retain the native gardens
- Create classrooms that allow classes to work in different formats (group work, private study, presentations etc)
- Incorporate sustainable design into the classrooms that enables students to engage with the technology .
- Combine emerging STEM focused technologies into one building
College Values Awards
I was pleased to see so many parents, carers and grandparents attend our recent College Values Award Ceremonies. A large number of students were recognised for their efforts throughout semester one. Students were eligible for four types of awards from their semester one classes:
Excellence, Persistence, Community & Respect.
Students will again have the opportunity to be recognised for their commitment to their studies and the community at the end of semester two. In addition to this, approximately 10 students per year level will be awarded with a Principal's Commendation trophy at the end of the year for displaying consistency across the four College Values throughout the year.
School Community Surveys
July - August is when the Department of Education & Training conducts the annual parent surveys in each school. It is also the time in which they release the student attitudes to school survey results.
The parent surveys are sent out to a random group of parents via an online link. Parents who were selected will have received an email, inviting them to participate. I highly encourage parents who have received an invitation to take the time to complete the survey as we use this information in whole school reflection and planning activities. We use this information for planning purposes so it is great to get as much input as possible. Having high participation rates, also ensures that the overall results are reliable and indicative of the overall perception of the parent community.
For those who have not been selected this year, just remember that you are always welcome to provide feedback and areas for improvement at anytime via dew@prsc.vic.edu.au
Student survey results: We recently received the results from the attitudes to school surveys that were conducted by all students in term two. Once again the College achieved strong results, with some pleasing improvements in student voice & agency.
Pleasingly, we demonstrated an improvement in nearly every measure compared to 2017 results. In addition, across Years 7-12 there was not a single measure that 'went backwards' compared to 2017. Areas that demonstrated particular growth included:
- high expectations for success
- student effort
- effective teaching time
- resilience
- stimulated learning
- school connectedness
- respect for diversity.
In the coming weeks, we will be conducting student focus groups to better understand the thoughts of the student body in relation to all aspects of the survey questions and results obtained.
Patterson River Secondary College Run Club
It was great to see the Patterson River Running Club back up and 'running' last week, when Mr Leith & Ms Lean met 11 students at 7:40am before completing a 6km run through the Seaford Wetlands.
All students challenged themselves with varying speeds. The running club will run each Friday morning (departing 7.45am sharp). Please see Ms Lean, Mr Leith or the general office to be added to the Compass event and parents need to consent once for students to attend all runs in Term 3.
Child Safe Standards
he Child Safe Standards were introduced in 2015 by the state government in an effort to ensure that all children are protected from child abuse and neglect. The standards apply to all organisations that provide services to children including Victorian schools. Since they were introduced, our College has made a number of changes to our polices, processes and procedures to ensure that all children are kept safe in all aspects of their lives. The changes have included:
- Staff training regarding detecting and reporting
- Development of a child safe policy
- Introduction of a code of conduct for staff
- Improved induction processes for contractors
- Introduction of an on-site supervision policy
- Recruitment processes in line with safety standards
I encourage all members of our school community to raise any concerns regarding suspicious behaviour, conduct or relationships that they have in relation to a child whether it be in or outside of our school community. Students and parents can raise concerns with their mentor teacher, coordinator, assistant principal or myself at anytime. Further information can be found here:
Policy Updates
Our College council has recently endorsed a number of new and updated policies which are attached below. Of particular note for families is the Personal Property & Insurance policy which states that the Department of Education & Training and Patterson River Secondary College do not have insurance for accidental injuries or accidental property damage.
Patterson River Secondary College encourages parents and carers to consider obtaining their own accident insurance for students and property of value that may be brought to school.
Mr Daniel Dew
College Principal