As we approach the end of Week 7, many students are beginning to feel the pressure of meeting assessment task deadlines, completing class and homework and generally keeping on top of everything. We are aware of this and staff are engaging with their classes to ensure students are supported. Where possible, students are given considerable class time to complete assessments, due dates can be negotiated on an individual basis and out of class assistance can be sorted. If parents are concerned about how their children are coping, please make contact with their teachers so that further supports can be put in place. Please be mindful that as a school, we are bound by NESA guidelines around assessment, but usually, we can work out some sort of compromise to help the students.

NAPLAN Readiness tests will be conducted at the College for all Year 7 and Year 9 students on Monday 23 to Wednesday 25 March. These readiness tests are designed to help the students feel comfortable with the online platform of the tests and to ensure they know how to navigate the tests. No results are made available from the readiness tests, so they are a no-pressure situation. Please encourage you child to participate fully so they are more comfortable when the real tests are conducted next term.

If you wish to request any special provisions for the actual NAPLAN tests, or if you wish to withdraw your child from sitting the tests, please complete the attached paperwork and return it to the College ASAP.

Parent consent for disability provisions

Parent consent for exemption or withdrawal

Last week during our Executive Planning Day, the executive staff participated in professional learning on conducting Learning Walks. The idea of Learning Walks is to go into classrooms and ask a selection of students five focus questions on their learning. The questions we ask are;

What are you learning?

How are you doing?

How do you know?

How can you improve?

Where do you go for help?

The student responses have been very enlightening. I am pleased to be able to report that most students seemed to have a good grasp of what the lesson was about (we have done considerable work in the area of setting Lesson Objectives and Success Criteria with staff). Their responses to the next question “How are you going?” were usually in the realm of “OK” or “pretty well” etc. The next question usually stumped the students, they were unsure of how to judge their progress. Most students were able to articulate ways that they could improve their learning, and the most common answer for the last question was “ask the teacher”. Our aim with the Learning Walks, and these conversations with students, is to gain an insight into how independent our learners are.  We will work with staff in the coming weeks in ways to move our students to be more independent.

John O’Neill

Assistant Principal
Curriculum and Achievement