News from the Office

Student Attendance

We have quite a number of unexplained absences on Compass. It is a legal requirement for Parents\Guardians to ensure your child attends school every day or if they are unable to, then an explanation must be provided to the school for your child's absence. 

 

There is an obligation for Parents\Guardians to notify the school as soon as possible on the day of the absence using the school's preferred method (Compass) or to inform the school in advance of any upcoming absences where possible. 

 

If your child is absent from school with no explanation it will be marked on their attendance as an 'unexplained absence' and you will receive the following email: 'In accordance with Department of Education Guidelines, schools are now required to advise families if students have been marked absent without a recorded notification from the parent/carer. 

 

Student has been marked absent as of 09:30 AM.

Please log into Compass and update the details for this absence by clicking on the Add Attendance Note (Approved Absence/Late) which appears beside your child's photo on the homepage. This will take you directly to the absence area where you can enter the details. Select a reason from the drop down list and enter the details and date for the absence. If you have any questions or need assistance to complete this process, please contact the school on 5218 5100 or via email at armstrong.creek.school@education.vic.gov.au'

 

The attendance system is essential as the school needs to know when and why a child is absent and you also need to know if your child isn’t at school. This process also promotes daily school attendance, it is important that your child\ren develop regular attendance habits from a young age, as a child who misses one day a fortnight will miss four weeks in a year and more than a year of school by the time they are in Year 10.  

 

If you would like more information on your obligations as a Parent\Guardian in regards to attendance, please see the following link: https://www.education.vic.gov.au/parents/going-to-school/Pages/attendance-missing-school.aspx

 

We ask that you please update or notify the school of any unexplained absences on your child's Compass profile. If you are having trouble accessing Compass, please contact the school office and we will be able to help you with your log in details.

Collecting Students Early

If you are collecting students early please ensure to allow enough time for staff to retrieve students from their Learning Communities.  This can take longer than expected especially if they are in specialists subjects and not in their learning Community.  Please call the office prior and advise them of the collection time and we will do our best to have them ready for you when you arrive.

Compass - School Documentation Parent Info

There are many valuable resources for families on Compass under the School Documentation section including Medication Authority Forms, Term Dates and links to all previous Newsletters.

 

The School Documentation section can be found under the 'People Icon'.

 

If you are having trouble accessing your Compass account, please contact the office on 5218 5100 or armstrong.creek.school@education.vic.gov.au