Principal's message

Gratitude

Staying upbeat and sustaining our wellbeing in a global pandemic in 'iso'  amidst saturation media reports of doom and gloom is understandably challenging.  An important element of positive psychology is that of practising gratitude. As a school community we have managed the transition to remote learning and back again as successfully as we dared hope. This due to the extraordinarily positive way in which the whole school community has approached the undeniable challenges presented. Unsurprisingly, there have been bumps in the road, and we continue to modify what we do as we learn along the way.

I have been profoundly encouraged by messages received from parents, students and colleagues such as those below.

Just a message away from the flow of emails... this morning's 9am online session with Y8s was joyous. It was like waking up the village as kids slowly got online and shook off their sleepiness. Y played us a piano piece - X had some virtual backdrop going and slowly we moved into some learning. A new way of relating hey!

Amid the chaos and confusion I wanted to take this opportunity to say my daughters and I appreciate the support we have received from all of the teachers and staff at Princes Hill SC. ...the emails back and forth, the updates and feedback on compass and a call from the well being coordinator has made us feel hope. We appreciate you all and thank you deeply for your support.

...please count this family among those who support the school in doing its best, rather than having everything perfect. ...these are unusual times ...Australia is a fortunate location in which to find ourselves. Formal education will proceed somehow, but there is invaluable life learning happening in the meantime, and we should forgive ourselves for some wonky patches across all of our households (students, teachers, all).

I have had the privilege of overhearing some of my daughter's classes in the last week. This is probably no news to you but I wanted to tell you how impressed I have been with the care and genuine concern shown by her teachers to all the students.  The gentle enquiring and quiet encouragement and the message that while it's all very strange, this world we are now living in, things will get better and in the mean time we will do our best. I have been so impressed and feel very blessed that my child is fortunate enough to receive such a good education, be that in a school building or at our dining table.

I am a parent of a year 9 student and wanted to thank the school for the recognition of the pressures across the board, on teachers, families, kids, the people we care for, everyone, and the nuance of the statement on vulnerable children (a hard one to message given potential stigma or parental reaction) really summed up the core of this - that we need to work together, and that we need to sit in some uncertainty as we navigate this strange world we're in ...so thank you, and best of luck for this most challenging of school terms.

..while it was on my mind I wanted to send through a quick note to express our gratitude for the way the school is handling this difficult time. Thank you for your continual communication (even on a Sunday!) with the PHSC community – it definitely helps to alleviate anxiety as we navigate through these uncharted waters.

X has mentioned to me on a couple of occasions that he appreciates the way you have been putting together the classes. He says you are the gold standard in lockdown teaching (or words to that effect).

Thanks Dean and Woody (IT team), you need to start wearing underpants over tights with a cape. No one could ask for more than you've been giving these last few weeks.

The observation of a parent above that we are fortunate to live in Australia (and Victoria) in this time of a global pandemic, strikes a chord. We can be deeply appreciative of the fact that we are part of the Princes Hill school community as we face the trials of our time. We will continue to adjust our approach as we return to school and garner feedback from students, parents and colleagues about what works best in our context.

With gratitude and appreciation for your encouragement, support and perseverance.

Trevor Smith

College Principal