Dear members of the St Raphael's school community,

On Sunday 2nd August the Premier of Victoria, Daniel Andrews, announced a State of Disaster for Victoria and Stage 4 restrictions for Melbourne. For many, this news brought groans of anguish at the prospect of a further six weeks of tightened restrictions.

Whilst all of us wish that this was over as quickly as possible and we could return to some sense of normality, we must listen to the experts and accept that this pandemic will only be defeated if we are patient and all do the right thing within our local community.

The Stage 4 restrictions have been put in place to protect the potential spread of this insidious virus and with news today of more than 700 new cases detected in Victoria, we must all do everything possible to adhere to the advice of the Victorian Chief Medical Health Officer.

In the last few days, I have received a number of requests from parents for the supervision of their children at school. I am urging all parents to think carefully about the safety of their children, themselves, family members and others in our community before requesting that their children receive on-site supervision at school over the next six weeks. I appreciate the difficulty for many parents as they try and balance working from home whilst trying to assist their children with their learning. I am experiencing this first hand myself having a Year 12 son who is now studying online from home. Many of our teachers are also trying to teach and work online whilst trying to supervise their own children who are now also learning from home. It is an extremely difficult job! However, we must all realise that if we all do the right thing then we will defeat the spread of this virus.

Following yesterday’s statement from the Victorian Premier regarding what constitutes a ‘permitted worker’ it means that the employee is permitted to leave home to attend the workplace because the work cannot be done for home. This means without the permit the parent is at home either not working or working from home. If this is the case, then children will need to do remote online home learning.

Therefore, I will only be accepting children to be on-site at school for supervision if their parents can provide a letter from their employees that they need to attend the workplace and a copy of the Permitted Worker Permit.

https://www.justice.vic.gov.au/sites/default/files/embridge_cache/emshare/original/public/2020/08/e2/751c2ab04/Permitted Worker Scheme Template.docx

I have been informed by Catholic Education Melbourne that the Victorian Government will take a hard line on any parents or schools who breach the new Stage 4 restrictions. I would also hate to think that your child caught the COVID-19 virus due to being on-site at school and having contact with staff or children whilst at school, that your children then infect you and your loved ones and that staff may become infected by your children. There are so many uncertainties around this virus that we must all do everything we can to prevent the spread.

I do hope parents respect and appreciate the difficulties that we are all facing during this unprecedented time and our attempts to keep all members of our community safe.

The move to remote online learning and the uncertainty of the present situation is having a significant impact on everyone, including young children. As adults, we need to make sure they feel supported, nurtured and assure them that there is hope and that things will eventually get better.

I have had recent discussions with numerous principals from schools around Melbourne who have said that their children and families are feeling exactly the same way. This is an unprecedented time for us all and our greatest wish is to have the children back on-site completing face-to-face learning. In the interim, as a school, we must find a way to support you as parents to enable your children to continue to learn remotely and to feel safe, connected and supported throughout this time.

This is a major challenge facing all schools and I know from the feedback we have received in the first few weeks of this term and from the last lockdown experience that St Raphael’s has led the way with our delivery of learning and teaching. Our teachers are working extremely hard to support you and your children. It is a really tough time for all. We have been commended and praised by Catholic Education Melbourne for the initiatives that we have put in place and have been told that we are exceeding what other schools are doing.

The variable in all of this is that you as parents will know what is best for your child and what they can and can’t cope with. This could change on a daily/ weekly basis as children struggle with this ‘unreal’ reality. If this means they can’t get work done in an allocated time then they (or you) can let their teachers know and we will modify expectations based on each child’s needs. It is very difficult remotely for the teachers to know how your child is coping or if they are refusing to go online. This is where we need your parent support to keep our teachers updated and informed. Our teachers are only too happy to offer support if required.

As parents, you will be naturally concerned about the effect that this interrupted year will have on your child's academic progress. We want to reassure you and reiterate that during this lockdown period we are focussing on literacy and numeracy outcomes. We hope that following today’s Parent/Teacher Interviews you will see that the teachers are tracking, assessing and monitoring your child’s academic progress. We know this is not a ‘normal’ school year and we will do our best to try and keep your child on task and learning whilst online. However, the teachers and your children need your support. The last thing that any children need to hear right now is adults blaming others, blaming the school or teachers. This will have a negative effect on their wellbeing and their ability to learn. Whilst we may be frustrated with the current situation we should not look for blame. We must embrace this adversity and rise above negativity to ensure that our children feel safe, nurtured and positive about their world and their future.

The ways that you can support us include:

1) Work out a routine/ timetable with your children. We need to make sure that routines are established and we encourage you to sit down with your children, discuss the reason why we are doing this online remote home learning and how important it is for them to be learning during this time and connecting with their teachers and peers. We encourage you to be strong and say 'no' to your children if they refuse to do what is expected of them! As teachers, we call this the ‘non-negotiables’! Get them up early, have breakfast, get dressed in school uniform top and ready to go online at 9am. This is the same as when you would get them up and drive them to school. Nothing changes and there is not an option whether the children attend school or not. All schools are mandated to take the roll each day and it is a government requirement that each child attends -'Every Day Counts'. If some children are absent without explanation then we must report repeated student absences to the Victorian Government's DEET who will follow this up directly with parents and the DHHS.

2) Complete daily set tasks. This is not an option! If it is too much for some children then email the teacher who will adjust accordingly.

3) Afternoon Zooms for focus children are an expectation and parents will be contacted by the teachers as to why their child was not online. The teachers have all reiterated that it is really important that children attend these sessions on their allocated days.

Once again, if your children are refusing to do what is expected of them then please notify the teachers who are here to support you and your children.

Finally, earlier this week there was a lovely news report on Channel Nine News about a retired primary school teacher who is a grandmother and has started reading books online to her grandchildren to remain connected with them. She lives in Templestowe and has become an internet sensation amongst young children around the world. At the end of the report, she was asked by the reporter what is the important lesson out of this difficult time? "Just spend quality time with your children and enjoy them". This is timely advice. Think of the positives that are emerging out of this time. How much time you are spending with your children. They will never forget this time spent they spent with you during this COVID-19 lockdown and the lessons that you are teaching them every day.

I was also sent the following quote (author unknown) that I think is important for you all to remember the wonderful job that you are doing as parents to support your children during this time.

Take care and let’s hope we get through this quickly and safely as we work together to protect everyone in our community.

Regards,

Damian

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