Ormond Primary School

Principal's Report

From the Principal...

NAPLAN Summary

The leadership team has unpacked NAPLAN results and our findings indicate that Ormond PS is achieving well above the state as represented on the assessment area reports. The school summary reports provide us with a clear picture of how our high achievers have scored and even students performing at the lower end have clearly obtained excellent results. The Year 3 results were incredibly high across all areas of testing. In Year 5, only Writing was identified as an area of interest.

 

The results were consistent with the rest of the state but Ormond PS is confident that professional learning and changes to classroom practice in 2018, will positively influence our Writing NAPLAN results next year and beyond. The school comparison report demonstrates that Ormond PS is achieving results similar to our matched cohort of schools. In reading, the five year trend data shows that Ormond PS has achieved the highest results recorded. In 2014, the result was 537 and in 2018 this has increased to 557. Spelling and Numeracy have remained fairly constant over the five years but improvements can be genuinely seen with Grammar and Punctuation in 2018. The school community should be very proud of the achievements of the Year 3 and Year 5 cohorts and their achievements on the NAPLAN assessments. These results form only a small part of the overall mark allocated to students at the end of the year.

 

Capital Works Update

The school has now moved in to the second stage of planning and there is a clear vision for Phase One and Two areas of development. The five year master plan contains all the major works required to bring the school up to a level of compliancy and the upgrades will certainly provide more modernized and flexible learning spaces. Discussions continue with the VSBA around the order of the works and how we can ensure that priority areas are addressed sooner than later, in the master plan. We have contacted members of parliament to highlight our need to access further funding and to ensure Phase 2 is completed as well. The next meeting with the VSBA is scheduled for Friday this week and there should be more information to share with the school community after that.

 

Parent Opinion Survey Results

The results have been released for our parent opinion survey and again the results are very positive. The leadership team have identified key areas to work on and address. These areas link in well with the priorities outlined in the school strategic plan and for the remainder of this year, the school will continue to promote curiosity and powerful learning. We will continue to timetable peer observations and feedback opportunities for staff and foster greater student voice and agency. The school will also be addressing some of the following issues as we commence our 2019 planning and preparation.

  1. Improving the handover of information from teacher to teacher
  2. Improving student engagement and extension opportunities
  3. Introducing a Music/ Performing Arts  program throughout the school
  4. Educating students about social exclusion and its impact on student wellbeing
  5. Improving communication between home and school
  6. Improving the school environment particularly seated and passive play areas
  7. Improving secondary school readiness and transition processes
  8. Building  a more stable and consistent staffing profile

2019 - Planning and Preparation

Ormond PS has a current enrolment of 423 students. We now have 56 confirmed Foundation students enrolled for next year which has resulted in 3 small classes. Therefore in 2019, there will be 19 classes across the school and teaching spaces will be limited. The school understands that building works will impact on teaching spaces at different times and we are planning accordingly. We have advertised for two new classroom teachers to cover additional classes in the school. 

 

If your child will not be returning to OPS in 2019, please let the office know in writing as soon as possible. 

 

If you, or you know of any families who have not yet enrolled their children for 2019, please collect an enrolment pack from the office as soon as possible.

 

Fundraising 2018

I just want to thank all families who have contributed to our fundraising efforts in 2018. The events throughout the year have raised a staggering amount which will be used for immediate items such as the basketball backboards, interactive TV’s in classrooms and outdoor seating to create more passive areas for students. The remainder will be part of an ongoing campaign to compliment the capital works program with landscaping and furnishings to modernize both indoor and outdoor learning areas. We will keep the community posted on the total amount by displaying a school thermometer of fundraising results. As the Principal of Ormond PS, I greatly appreciate the work of the Parent and Friend’s Association and community members in raising money to help improve our school.

 

Foundation Transition

On Tuesday, we held another transition session for new Foundation students for 2019. The students were thoroughly engaged with the Art and Science activities. They settled in to their learning very well and from my observations they are forging new friendships and they are displaying school readiness which will set them up well for their start in January. I have included some pictures from this special event.

Kerri McLeod

Principal