Principal's Report
Dear Families, Students and Community Members,
As we enter the final few weeks of Term 3, I hope everyone is keeping well and staying safe as we continue to navigate these uncertain times within Stage 6 lockdown restrictions. We will get through this period of adversity together and we understand that everyone is doing the best they can in the current climate.
Remote Learning Continues:
We know lot can change in a week or in a day in our current climate. The current lockdown continues to be extended and thus remote learning continues for all of our students until at least 2nd September – what will happen after this date we will have to wait for updated advice from the Victorian Health Officials. We understand the reasoning behind it and feel it is the best decision for the health and safety of all within our community and Victoria.
Understandably this may have caused considerable stress and anxiety for many of our students and families, not just for our students in their final year of school, but also our Year 10 & 11 students as they too continue to navigate the continuation of remote learning. As a college we will continue to do our best to support all our families to navigate through this uncertainty together. Please don’t hesitate to call or email a member of the College leadership team, IT or wellbeing team if you need our assistance in any way.
With remote learning having been extended, it is essential that students stay connected with their teachers and classmates through active participation when a Google Meet is running for their class – reminder all classes begin with a Google Meet as per the college timetable. Understandably some students may feel uncomfortable having cameras on, or prefer them off for a number of reasons, but all teachers and students are being encouraged to have cameras on, at least during the explicit teaching part of the lesson to support the student’s connection to the class and engagement with their learning. It also provides a valuable opportunity to check in on student wellbeing. Please encourage your child/ren to have their cameras on during our video lessons.
All our teachers are missing face to face teaching with their students in person and continue to work extremely hard to keep everyone connected with school and others in the class. They are especially thankful for any support parents can give in assisting to ensure this has been able to take place while managing the rest of the household and their own work commitments. Any parents/families who are concerned about their child’s learning or ability to complete remote learning are strongly encouraged to reach out to their child’s House Leader – this can be via email or by leaving a message with the general office for a House Leader to return your call.
There are also a number of Department supports available for parents/guardians and families. These include:
A short video produced by headspace with Tips and strategies for Victorian parents and carers during lockdown.
Student Mental Health and Wellbeing resources for advice
Advice for students about how to adapt during COVID-19
Resources for learning from home
Translated resources for learning from home
As part of the phased COVID-19 vaccination rollout, more Victorian parents, carers, and students are now able to receive the COVID-19 vaccines. With more appointments now available over the next two weeks, we encourage you to book your vaccine at Victorian Government’s COVID-19 vaccine online booking system.
I know our school community will continue to ensure we do the right thing at this time, by complying with the restrictions in place and making careful and supportive decisions that limit movement through the community. It is important that all families continue to monitor their children and themselves for Covid-19 symptoms and get tested immediately if they are showing any symptoms. It is also essential families continue to monitor the exposure lists to ensure if they have attended an exposure site they follow the health directions - Case alerts – public exposure sites
SUCCESS IN THE GAT IS CRUCIAL
This year, perhaps more so than in others, the GAT will be significant in the final calculation of students’ study scores.
Former VCAA employee and VCE data expert, Carmel Richardson, cannot emphasise enough the importance of the GAT on the statistical moderation of a student's study scores. It should always be taken seriously.
If in the unfortunate event of a student being unable to sit their final exams the GAT will be used as a key factor in determining a derived score for each subject
Every effort should be made to maximise the GAT results and students should practise the different types of questions that they will encounter in the test.
At this stage the GAT has been re-scheduled to occur on Thursday 9th September.
Arrangements for Year 12
Special Consideration arrangements that were in place last year for our Year 12 students will again be in place for 2021 students. The Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (VCAA) has put in place the ‘Consideration of Educational Disadvantage’ process to calculate VCE scores, considering disruptions to learning this year.
To calculate scores, the VCAA will consider a range of data provided by schools, together with each student’s exam results.
The Consideration of Educational Disadvantage process when calculating VCE scores will require schools to provide the VCAA with information on students and school circumstances to help calculate their study scores.
This will include information about the circumstances and impact of the disruption on students, as well as additional data, such as estimated assessment scores.
To ensure the fairness of final results, the VCAA will consider all available information, including the General Achievement Test (GAT) and appropriate comparisons of performance across all assessments and schools.
Based on this analysis, where disadvantage has been identified, this will be factored into students’ final scores, which will then contribute to the study score calculation. This approach will ensure that Victorian students are not disadvantaged in comparison to interstate students in the calculation of their individual ATAR.
Examples of significant severe impacts relating to coronavirus include:
direct impact on the health and wellbeing of the student and/or their immediate family
ongoing issues while learning remotely, e.g., internet connectivity issues, unavailability of a suitable device or workplace
students dealing with substantial extra family responsibilities, e.g., increased caring responsibilities for other siblings
ongoing mental health challenges
financial stress
family violence
family member losing their job (student needing to extend their hours of employment or gain employment).
Student will also be given the opportunity to complete a ‘Student Statement’ to assist in informing teachers of the impacts remote learning and the pandemic have had on their learning and achievement.
Kindest regards
Stay well and safe
Simon Haber
College Principal