Assistant Principal's Report

Cheryl Evans and Nathan Wallace

What a year it has been!

Who would have thought at the start of the year that we would have experienced a global pandemic with students and parents working from home; face masks being mandatory and Victoria in lockdown for periods of time? Hopefully we are coming out the other side of COVID-19 with a new appreciation for the things that we have always taken for granted: catching up with family and friends; going to the shops; even playing sport. A positive that students and teachers have noticed after returning from remote learning is the improved level of independent learning being demonstrated. As I’ve commented to some of my students, remote learning has exposed them to what university life is like, where you are responsible for completing tasks, solving problems and dealing with adversity with reduced support. Hopefully this experience provides our students with a bigger toolkit of skills that leads to future success. 

 

Curriculum

With Year 12 exams being pushed back in 2020, this has a flow on affect to our Year 9-11 exam period and Headstart program that follows. Because the Year 9-11 students missed out on sitting an exam mid-year, we felt it important to hold end of year exams to give them experience in preparation for VCE exams. 

  • Year 9 students will sit an exam for Maths;
  • Year 10 students will sit an exam for English, Maths and Science (for those studying a Science subject in semester two);
  • Year 11 students will sit an exam for each VCE subject studied in Semester 2.
  • Year 12 VCE exams are conducted by VCAA.

To accommodate the Year 9-11 exams after the delayed year 12 VCE exams, a decision has been made to reduce the Headstart program to one week instead of the usual two weeks. This temporary measure is to ensure students have sufficient time to complete their coursework, prepare for and complete exams before students commence their 2021 subjects in Headstart. 

  • Headstart will run from Monday 7th December to Friday 11th December.

Reporting

The next cycle of Progress Reports will be in  published in Week 5 (Wednesday 4th November). This cycle will focus on how students have returned to onsite learning. Students should use this feedback to set learning goals for the remainder of the term. 

Semester Reports are now open and will be published on Monday 7th December. They will focus on both Remote Learning and Onsite Learning. Students should ensure they are completing CATs and SACs to achieve the best results they are capable of. Year 12 students do not receive a Semester 2 report.

 

2020 Student Attitudes to School Surveys (ATSS)

Another delay caused by Remote Learning has been to the Student Attitudes to School Surveys that normally are conducted in Term 3. In the coming weeks, Year Level Leaders will take students through the importance of providing honest feedback to help our school improve by prioritising areas identified from the surveys. Information about the ATSS was sent via Compass Newsfeed earlier this term. 

 

2020 Parent Opinion Survey

 

WE WANT OUR PARENTS TO TELL US WHAT THEY THINK! 

Our school is conducting a survey to find out what parents think of our school. The Parent Opinion Survey is an annual survey offered by the Department of Education and Training that is conducted amongst all parents. It is designed to assist schools in gaining an understanding of parents’ perceptions of school climate, student behaviour, student engagement and experiences of remote and flexible learning. Our school will use the survey results to help inform and direct future school planning and improvement strategies. 

All parents will have received an email with an invitation to participate in this year’s survey. If you did not receive the invitation, please email maffra.sc@education.vic.gov.au and one will be emailed. All responses to the survey are anonymous. This year, the Parent Opinion Survey will be conducted from Monday 12th October to Friday 13th November.

The survey will be conducted online, only takes 20 minutes to complete, and can be accessed at any convenient time within the fieldwork period on desktop computers, laptops, tablets or smartphones. 

Thank-you in anticipation of completing the survey! 

 

Nathan Wallace Assistant Principal
Nathan Wallace Assistant Principal