From the Principal

Community

It's hard to believe that we are already in Week Six of Term One.  So much has happened in the life of LCS.  There have already been many highlights, both individual and collective ones.  The opportunity to engage in activities that build community are especially encouraging.

In Week Three we met around food and fellowship to welcome new parents to Kinder.  The success of this time led the Parents & Friends Association to extend this to a Welcome to Year 7 BBQ.  Although we had to cancel  last Thursday, due to an extreme weather event, this was held yesterday and could only be described as a raging success.  What a blessing it is to spend time with each other, hearing each other’s stories, sharing food and fellowship and just generally getting to know each other a little better, so next time we meet, there is a relationship that just grows and grows.  

School communities are unique in that they bring together people that are committed to a common cause for the benefit of their children.  Christian Schools have an added layer of strength in that they do so to encourage and grow the faith development of children through the provision of Christian Education.

In a few weeks’ time we will be celebrating our Annual Founder’s Morning Tea followed by the LCS Association meeting that evening, Thursday 2nd April.  It is good to recognise the involvement and commitment of those who poured so much into Launceston Christian School in earlier years.  Although many of the original founders of LCS have passed away and are with the Lord in heaven, many more have risen to take their place as long-time supporters of LCS.  One measure of this legacy is the generational blessings that are evident in our school, as parents of children who attended LCS now have grandchildren and great grandchildren as either students or old scholars of the school.  These same people remain involved and many pray consistently for God to bless our school. We are very thankful for this.  God has certainly grown and prospered our school.

Psalm 127:3 tells us that children are a heritage from the Lord. They are a blessing we must nurture academically but also spiritually and emotionally, to be salt and light in a world that is becoming increasingly hostile to a Christian worldview.  There is such an irony in this. We must love where hate abounds for ‘love never fails’ (1 Corinthians 13: 8). May God equip us by the Holy Spirit to support parents who remain committed to the vision for Christ-centred education and to show the Father’s heart to a world floundering to make sense of the pain and suffering we have and are still experiencing.

One way to support Christian Education is to understand the issues that lie at the centre of the Religious Discrimination Bill 2019.

The Association of Australian Christian Schools (AACS) have crafted some thoughts called Myth Busters that speak into some of the confusion and misrepresentation when it comes to understanding why we believe Christian Education to be so vitally important for our children.  I’ll be sharing these Myth Busters in a spot in subsequent editions of the Herald.  Here are a couple to start with.

Myth #1

Christian schools don't really have to employ all Christian staff, so they don't need religious exemptions.

• We are Christian schools. That is our ‘brand’. No parent is forced to enrol their child in our schools, nor is any staff member forced to work in a Christian school.  However, when they do they are aware that we want to stay true to our brand.  Those who choose to be part of a Christian school cannot turn around one day and suggest they should be drinking or serving Pepsi when they bought Coke.

• Political opponents of Christian education do not believe that our schools should have the discretion to be able to employ Christian staff in every position we determine.  But, just like political parties and trade unions are able to choose staff that align with their convictions and guard this choice.  Christian schools do the same and this choice requires protection.

• Parents have the right and responsibility to educate their child in accordance with their beliefs. Parents delegate this important role to staff at Christian Schools.  And we all know that teaching doesn’t just happen within the classroom, it involves a whole community of adults who model their Christian faith to children in all areas of life, from the front office, to the gardener and the bus driver.

• Christian Schools need to be able to employ staff who hold convictions and teach in accordance with parental beliefs so that parental rights are respected.

• We believe it is important that all staff in our Christian school community are on the same page, to authentically advance the ethos and mission of Christian education.

Myth #2

Christian parents just say they want “parental choice” to discriminate against

others in school employment.

• Parental choice regarding the education of their children is a fundamental human right, as set out in Article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Right, and parental partnership between parents and schools is a key tenet for the Christian Education sector.

• Christian schools are not islands – there are a variety of other educational choices for parents and those seeking employment that might better suit their worldview and pedagogical preferences. The education sector benefits from greater diversity, not less.

• Furthermore, the breadth and depth of the educational philosophies available in Australia is greater reason for broad accommodation by governments, as opposed to imposing narrow and rigid conformity.

Coronavirus Update

The following Broadcast was sent to our families in response to the Coronavirus outbreak.

We are receiving regular updates from Government agencies, Department of Health, Department of Education and other institutions who provide support to schools.

Please be aware of urgent request to parents to install the LCS HUB app on their mobile devices so that contact between school and home can be consistent and clear.  This is especially important in the event of an escalation of the situation where this clarity and consistency of information becomes more critical.  How to install the LCS Hub app is detailed in the document below and should you need any further help, please contact our office.

Further to my previous communication, I want to provide an update to our School community on our Coronavirus action plan.  We have developed a 4 phase response plan and are regularly seeking advice from the Department of Health, Dept of Education & Independent Schools Tasmania to inform any changes or actions required.

PHASE 1 (Current Phase)

Phase 1 describes the initial outbreak and strategies are aimed at the uninterrupted delivery of education plans, while managing tight containment strategies.

Actions include:

•             Clear communication and expectations of staff, students and families.

•             Promoting good hygiene practices

•             Recognising symptoms and taking appropriate proportionate actions

At present Phase 1 is applicable to the LCS situation and the following practical advice should be followed by all members of Launceston Christian School.  

Note that symptoms of COVID-19 can range from mild illness to pneumonia.  People with COVID-19 may experience:

•             Fever

•             Flu-like symptoms such as coughing, sore throat and fatigue

•             Shortness of breath

If symptomatic, do not delay in seeking advice:

Parents/Students:

•             If unwell with cold/flu symptoms keep children at home and seek advice early

•             Contact Public Health a.s.a.p. on the 1800 671 738 Ho

Child Safety

This week there have been a couple of incidents that require some careful attention by parents and children alike.  The first relates to the drop off and pick up areas at Windsor Park.  There have been a small number of near misses caused by parking in areas not designated for parking, backing out without care for children walking, reversing out over the walking areas for children and parents and taking off too fast.  Please, please take care when driving in this area.  The safety of our children is paramount and the consequences of a child being knocked over by a car through carelessness or speed are not ones I or any parent wants to have to deal with.

The second relates to an incident I was made aware of on Wednesday when a child from Riverside Primary School was approached by a man in a white ute.  It turned out to be the child’s father but was reported by another concerned parent who witnessed the incident and reported it back to the school.  What this reminded me about was the importance of reinforcing to our children how to stay safe.  Child Safety was discussed at our staff meeting last week and the following information was distributed and to be used to instruct our students again of what to do to stay safe.  I share it with parents again in the interests of being alert to the dangers around us.

STAYING SAFE

• Strangers are people you don’t know. Most strangers are good people. But you don’t have to always trust or believe an adult.
• Never go with a stranger — no matter what they say.
• Never, ever get in a car with a stranger.
• Make sure your parents or carers always know where you are.
• Sometimes strangers can help if you are lost. Look for a parent with children or go into a shop, police station, service station or library.
• If someone is following you or grabs you, scream for help as loud as you can. Shout ‘Go away, I don’t know you’ so other people will understand.

Please note:  If your child is being picked up from the classroom by someone new or unknown to their class teacher, please inform their teacher prior to this.