A Year Like No Other

David Hansen (Deputy Principal - Learning & Teaching)

It has been a year like no other. Our Curriculum Executive Team began the year with energy and enthusiasm and under new leadership was considering new ideas and new directions. Suddenly we were thrust into managing a crisis that for us would be an educational revolution. When I look at how our team responded and so quickly led the staff of St. Peter’s College into a remote schooling model the words that come to mind are: amazement, pride, relief and gratitude. And yet I do not want to sound as if I ever doubted that we could do it. I know we did not have time to ever doubt ourselves. We just had to collaborate and act. This team was flexible and agile as they had to be and our whole staff - leadership, teachers, learning support officers, educational support officers, administration staff and IT department made it happen. I will not claim it was perfect, but it was certainly impressive and learning happened in the home of the vast majority of our students. For those who struggled, we have begun to target them for extra support and I am pleased that this will happen also next year through the tutoring program initiated by the Victorian Government.

We have learned a lot from the experience and have certainly improved a number of things such as our use of technology and exploration of new ways of doing things such as Parent Teacher Interviews. Perhaps the biggest improvement has been the parental engagement with our school. Education is a partnership with the parents and I thank all parents and carers for the work you put in with your children and the closer relationship many of you forged with the school.

I have invited the Curriculum Executive Team to share their thoughts on the year like no other:

Jade Smith (Acting Data Systems and Learning Coach)

‘2020 was a write-off’- a sentiment echoed across the media, social platforms, and even the toilet paper aisle in Woollies. And for a lot of our St. Peter’s College families I am sure there are aspects they are keen to forget. Many have faced significant changes, including loss of employment or even having to relocate to gain some stability during lockdown. We saw the necessary abandonment of many rites of passages - from our Year 12’s missing their traditional graduation ceremony, down to our Year 7’s, who returned to a school just as unfamiliar as it was at the beginning of the year.

In March, our Curriculum team recognised that the prospect of delivering a ‘normal’ study timeline was inconsistent with our pastoral approach. In the words of Clint Eastwood, when faced with difficulties, ‘...you improvise, you adapt, you overcome’. And so that is what we did. As a team, we worked to find a balance between essential assessment and providing an education that was supportive of the varied needs of our students. We provided diverse methods of assessment, often having to think ‘outside the box’ and improvise to allow for access of outcomes for all of our students. We adapted our reporting systems to reflect the hardships that students faced. Students and Staff had to deal with so many ‘unknowns’ and I am so in awe of the ability of us all to stay so close when we were so far apart. Together, we were all able to overcome these challenges and not just survive, but thrive. Most of all, I am proud of the fact that St. Peter’s College didn’t take on the perspective of ‘2020 was a write-off’ - but instead, we were able to look at this challenge as a way to better ourselves. We aren’t looking to ignore all of the events of the last year, but instead, we are using this experience as an opportunity to advance as a school with strength, collegiality and a growth mindset. I look forward to launching into 2021 as part of a school that is reflective, adaptive and agile.

Michael Dalley (Senior Years Curriculum Leader - Cranbourne)

My school friends and I look back on our final years of school with fond memories. The school productions and sporting carnivals, the great relationships we formed as our teachers began to treat us like young adults, and the special social events, both formal and informal. I cannot really write this reflection without feeling genuine sympathy for the classes of 2020 and 2021. In February, we could all tell that this was going to be a great year, with two wonderful groups of students. By March, things were less certain.

I am very proud of how our senior students have stayed connected to the college throughout this strange and unsettling year. I have been impressed by their patience, their persistence and their ability to persist with Zoom. I have been impressed by the flawless behaviour of our students in formal examinations. Even our external VCAA examination supervisors have commented on how polite, responsible and focused the students are.

As the saying goes, what doesn’t kill us makes us stronger. These students have missed many rites of passage, which are so important for people in their late teens. To our class of 2021, I look forward to working with you next year. I suspect that the challenges of this year will mean that you will return with an unprecedented resilience and maturity.

Bradley Scammell (Middle Years Curriculum Leader - Clyde North)

I remember logging on to my first Zoom Tutor Group and asking all the students how they were going. First there was silence. Then a little more silence. And then Year 10 Natalie asked me if I wanted to see her goldfish. I did. And she showed us all her pet fish. And then the challenge dawned on me. How do we extend the school environment to the homes of our students?

2020 is the year where we had to set boundaries. When was it time to work and time to relax? And where do we do that? Many teachers I spoke with and students that I taught struggled with balancing our homes as learning spaces but also as our private retreats. As teachers, we had new competition. We were near the fridge - with snacks a plenty. We were near the gaming console. And we were near the pets - some of those being fish.

But to our student’s credit and to you as their parents, I rarely had to answer why we were doing this. While not always completing all of the work - my students wanted to learn. They wanted to continue hearing from their teachers and their peers. Many of my students understood that the learning had to go on - their futures even more important in such a difficult time. It was hard work. Honestly, this year I felt stressed, anxious, overwhelmed and at times defeated trying to kick butt at remote teaching. But I never once felt that my job as a teacher wasn’t valued. And that’s pretty cool.

Natasha McKenzie (Acting Middle Years Curriculum Leader - Cranbourne)

Students in Years 7-10 approached the remote learning period in an open minded manner. They displayed perseverance and resilience as they troubleshooted their problems and became more accountable for their own learning. During this time, students realised and often acknowledged the extent of the work their teachers would undertake to provide an optimum learning environment while teachers also focused on student wellbeing and were more mindful of their students’ needs when planning and delivering their lessons.

As students prepared to select their subjects for the new school year, the Languages Faculty introduced Year 8 students to the concept of Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL). Commencing in 2021, during Semester 2 of Year 9, students can choose to do a CLIL elective unit instead of a CORE language unit. In CLIL classes, students study another subject in French or Japanese like Humanities or Science. In order for students to make an informed subject choice, Year 8s experienced a CLIL class in an online environment. Conducting CLIL lessons in a zoom forum was challenging but for me, it was one of the most memorable remote teaching experiences. Year 8 Japanese students were introduced to the story, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, 「はらぺこあおむし」 (harapeko aomushi) in Japanese. They were introduced to new vocabulary and watched a YouTube clip of the story. The students really enjoyed learning the vocabulary of the weekdays through songs and gestures. Then, students were divided into breakout rooms where they completed a quiz in teams based on the story. The teamwork approach to these lessons meant that students were able to feel supported by their peers whilst they grappled with learning new language concepts. Students revelled in the opportunity to step outside their comfort zone, experiment with language learning and develop their Japanese speaking skills. As a result of these lessons, many opted to enrol in the elective unit highlighting the success of these online lessons and the willingness of students to try something new.

On return to face-to-face learning and teaching, it was particularly pleasing to observe the learnings students had acquired in the online environment. When it came to revising the gestures in Languages lessons, it was rewarding to see the students had worked hard to improve their language skills and could follow along with the instruction. There was a sense of pride and overwhelming gratitude felt by students and teachers to see one another and once again engage in learning and teaching in ‘real life.’

Paul Woodbridge (VCAL Coach - Clyde North)

Back in March, I struggled to comprehend how we would continue a ‘hands on’ program such as VCAL in remote learning. It was always going to be challenging, however, I was delighted in the way our VCAL students rose to the challenge. In fact, it created lots of problem-solving opportunities, which we could never have planned for. I’d have to say the learning curve often seemed steeper for me as their teacher than many of our students who seemed relatively ‘at home’, literally, in the virtual world. Others who found it difficult persevered and showed a great deal of tenacity in order to complete their studies. An interesting experiment in being ‘flexible’ and ‘agile’ which I hope will never have to be repeated.

Chris O’Hara (VCAL Coach - Cranbourne)

The lockdown was brilliant for family time and the chance to take a break from the chaos that was “normal” life. Having two teachers and 3 primary aged children, in the household all trying to undertake remote learning was both rewarding and challenging. I have since prayed for a vaccine and never to experience that again!

Mr David Hansen

Deputy Principal - Learning and Teaching

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