Principal's Report

Can you believe that it is only 2 weeks now until the school holiday break? I guess the saying is true that time flies when you are having fun! I would like to thank all of our staff and students for their efforts over the last eight weeks as we have settled into the 2022 school year. Overall, students and staff have had a positive start to the school year. The last few weeks have really seen students settling into the expectations of school, after two disrupted years of schooling. One of the important aims for us as a school in Term 1 is for our students to regain the learning stamina and it has been encouraging to see many students managing the return to school in 2022 in such a positive manner and maintaining wonderful attendance rates throughout the term. As we head towards the final weeks of term we look forward to seeing students continuing to support our positive and safe school environment and to applying themselves fully to the learning opportunities and co-curricula activities that are available across all year levels at Epping Secondary College.

On behalf of our staff and leaders, I would like to acknowledge the ongoing support of our parent and carer community throughout Term 1. Your preparedness to walk alongside us and support our students has been amazing and we always appreciate the forewarning of any concerns that allows us to be proactive in supporting individuals and groups of students with their academic, social and emotional development. It has been positive to receive regular feedback, suggestions for improvement and general contact from our parent/carer community as we work to reset our school culture following two years of interruption.

Thank you to the many parents and carers who recently joined us for the Year 7 Meet & Greet evening.

Learning Conferences  

Learning Conferences will be held on site at Epping Secondary College on Tuesday 5th April from 10:30am to 7:00pm.

Bookings for Learning Conference appointments are now open via XUNO and brief Interim Reports will be available to download via XUNO by Friday 1st April. Please check your XUNO news feed for details to support you to use the platform and access teachers for your appointments.  

Learning Conferences are a valuable opportunity for a three-way conversation between parents, students and teachers. As active participants in their own education, students are expected to attend the learning conferences. Students are encouraged to reflect on their efforts and discuss future learning goals and challenges with both you and their teachers.

Please note that this is a student free day and the school will not be providing supervision for students as there are no scheduled classes on this day.  

We look forward to this opportunity to meet and discuss your child’s learning and progress during Term 1.

College Open Night

Our College Open Night is to be held on Tuesday 3rd May, commencing at 5:15pm.

Our Open Night will be held on-site, allowing prospective families and their children to view our fantastic school. Open Night provides an opportunity to showcase the College’s many teaching and learning programs and facilities to the wider community. We are looking forward to meeting our future students and their families at Open Night.

College School Council

The Council held its March Meeting on Monday 21st March.

The College Council elections were ratified and I would like to thank all council members for their preparedness to serve our school community and ensure our school moves from good to great.

The Office Bearer positions for Council were determined on the night and our Executive is as follows:

President – Stuart Lord
Vice President – Petone Toeleiu
Treasurer – Janet Taylor
Facilities Sub Committee Chair – Joshua Wolter
Finance Sub Committee Chair – Brad Moyle
Uniform Sub Committee Chair – Annette Spence

The Importance of Sleep

The importance of sleep to one’s learning and wellbeing cannot be understated. Over the past two decades, a great deal of literature has correlated poor sleep routines with reduced academic performance, as well as lowered wellbeing outcomes in students.

Alarmingly, a recent article from Brett Henebery in The Educator also reminds us that Australian teens are the third-most sleep deprived in the world, and that 70% of Australian high school students experience regular sleep deprivation.

So, what can we do?

Henebery (2022) puts forward some clear evidence-based suggestions that students can take on to improve their ‘sleep hygiene’ – as he puts it.

Ways to improve your ‘sleep hygiene’

Exercise regularly every day, preferably in the morning – this will naturally reduce stress hormone levels and help you sleep more soundly.
Avoid bright lights in the evening – don’t have all the lights on until you’re about to go to bed. Reducing light will help your body and brain wind down.
Cut technology late at night – blue light from technology screens impedes sleep. Try putting laptops, phones and iPads outside your bedroom to avoid the temptation.
Reduce caffeine levels late in the afternoon or at night.
Keep the bedroom dark, cool and quiet.
Set a good sleep routine and stick to it – for example, shower followed by reading a book every night.

References

Henebery, B. (2022, February 17). The importance of promoting a better sleep routine. The Educator. https://www.theeducatoronline.com/k12/news/the-importance-of-promoting-a-better-sleep-routine-for-students/279607