Concord Connect

Principal's Report 

Welcome Back

It is wonderful news that all our students will be back on-site from next Wednesday. It has certainly been a long time coming and we cannot wait to see them. I sincerely hope that the easing of restrictions from 6pm this Friday will mean that your families, including our wonderful students, can get back to experiencing some activities that bring you joy. I know that for many families some retail therapy will be at the top of the list of things to do. 

  

The other news to be celebrated is that from next Wednesday our students will be able to participate in most of the learning experiences that make school an exciting place to be. Classes are permitted to go on camps and excursions, and we can offer all our subject areas including sport, music and swimming. Graduations and the Secondary Spectacular can proceed subject to density limits. We are hopeful that at a vaccination rate of 90% predicted for late November we will see more family members permitted to attend these events.

Dates for Return to School

As written above, the 'official' return to on-site learning for all students has been brought forward from next Friday to next Wednesday 3rd November. For the rest of this week the 'staggered' return still applies. Next Monday is a 'Pupil Free' day. This is one of our four yearly Curriculum Days. Students are not to attend school and no on-line learning will be provided. Next Tuesday is the Melbourne Cup Public Holiday. Next Wednesday all the students are back on-site. 

School Council Report

 

School Council Meeting was held at 7:00pm on Monday 18th October 2021 via WebEx in which the following matters were discussed:

 

Welcome  

Karlie Gooding to School Council Board who is replacing Flora Nixon whilst on family leave.

 

COVID Safety Update

Recent DET guidelines for Covid safety presented, including the transition plan for student return.

Safety measures have been put in place to minimise risk for the Concord School community.

  • Students will only interact with students in their own section.
  • Changes to processes in bus exchanges have been made to alleviate congestion at the gates.
  • Concord School successfully rolled out Stage 1 of the Covid Vaccine program. Stage 2 will occur on Thursday 28th October.  This program was very well organised and Allied health supported with social stories for students where required. School Council thanked the school for providing this service to the community.

Remote and Flexible Learning Update

Students gradually returning on-site:

  • Year 12 students are back, with some VET programs running.
  • Term 4 remote learning has been very similar to Term 3 to ensure consistency and predictability for students.
  • WebEx meetings, live teaching and small group WebEx's have occurred as required.
  • Allied Heath sessions, Precal Experience days and the Wednesday Specialist program, Wellbeing sessions and WebEx assemblies continue to be well received.
  • Interactive worksheets and submission or work processes has been added
  • Teachers are currently planning for the return to on-site learning with a focus of reconnecting with the school environment and their peers.

Return to School Update

Return to School plan set by DET was shared with school council including the staggered process of multi aged classes.

 

New timeline- Year 7 and Year 11 students return October 22nd with all students returning 5th November.

 

Next School Council Meeting: Monday 15th November 2021 @ 7pm. 

 

Principal Award-  Luca Del Cielo

 

Luca has grown in his confidence and has been completing all tasks every day during remote learning. He has been mature in emailing me when he has any questions and submitting work. He has also been a key contributor to our discussions about WW2 and has encouraged others to empathise with those who have been through difficult times. He now communicates to non-preferred staff and students positively and has improved so much from the start of this year! He always asks for extra work and has a seamless return to school on Friday. 

 

Congratulations to Luca

 

 

"Students striving to be the best they can be"

 

Jason Coningsby

Principal