Principal's Report

If no mistake you have made, but losing you are. A different game you should play.

Yoda, Jedi Master  896BBY-4ABY

Welcome to the Week 9 Term Two newsletter.

Why standing still is not an option

I have often mentioned in these pages in the past that it is my feeling that the 'problem' with schools and education is that everyone has been to school. This allows everyone to have thoughts and opinions on what schools do and or should do regardless of what qualifications they may or may not have. This is not to say that people are not entitled to opinions but as a parent said to me a couple of years ago,

'I wouldn't ask you how I should run my farm so don't ask me to tell you how to run the school. I expect that the government knew what it was doing when it hired you and if you stuff up then I expect that they will sort you out.'

It was a candidly refreshing backing of what we were doing. It also implied a level of trust and by extension such a level of trust imparts a heavy load of responsibility on me, the staff and the school. For every parent that makes the decision to send their child to Uralla Central School is saying that they trust us to ensure that, that child gets the best possible preparation for the future  - a future that appears so uncertain. A future that is both exciting and frightening at the same time.

We have not implemented changes to the way our school operates over the past six years on a whim or for the hell of it. We have done so because of a thoughtful, considered understanding that the way in our school operated was fundamentally broken and in all good conscience we had two choices;

1. Do nothing and continue as we had been doing

2. Look at what we were doing and see how it could be done differently.

Somewhere ages and ages hence: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference.

Robert Frost, Poet (1874-1963)

We have taken the road less travelled and I believe that it is making all the difference. In reflecting on this I am reminded of a story I read about a few years ago that goes as follows;

There was an important design flaw in the solid rocket boosters on the space shuttle - the two narrow, missile-like tanks that flank each side of the shuttle. The engineers at the ATK Thiokol Propulsion faculty in Utah would have preferred the solid rocket boosters to be notably wider. Unfortunately, the only way to transport the rocket boosters from the factory in Utah to the launch site in Florida is via railroad track, tracks that have to pass through several mountain tunnels, which are only slightly wider than the railroad tracks which are always exactly 1.435m apart. Railroad tracks in America are exactly 1.435m apart, because that is the exact spacing used to build railroads in England. Why did the English railroad designers use the measurement of 1.435m? That was the measurement that wagon makers used for their axle width. If they used any other axle  width, wagon wheels would break on the sides of established wagon wheel ruts in the roads. Where did those rutted roads come from? The first long-distance roads in England were built by the Imperial Roman Empire for use by the Roman military, and have been used ever since. Why did the Romans use the axle spacing of 1.435m? That is the original specification for the Roman war chariot, because it is roughly the width of two horses' backsides. So, the specifications for arguably the world's most advanced transportation system was dictated and compromised by the width of a horse's behind. 

The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.

Martin Luther King Jr (1929-1968)

What is my point? What happens in schools cannot remain static if we, the educators, are to fulfil the trust that you have placed in us in relation to your children and their learning. So you will continue to see your school change and evolve as we pursue a goal of being proactive in our operation and the programs that we run. We need to be agile, we need to be ahead of the game not chasing to catch up. Some of what you see might be confusing or you may not understand but I would urge all parents to come and ask questions if you wish to know why we are doing something in particular. In the meantime be assured that we aren't making it up and everything is underpinned by solid, relevant  research. Our goal remains the same as yours - to ensure that the students at Uralla Central School are provided with the best facilities, the best resources and the best educational opportunities that we can provide.

As always cherish your children and enjoy the coming winter break.

The capacity to learn is a gift;

The ability to learn is a skill;

The willingness to learn is a choice.

Frank Herbert (1920-1986) Author of Dune