Dear parents,
Change in Return to Face to Face Teaching – Monday 5 October
Hello everyone, late last night I received another change in the return to face-to-face teaching from the Department of Education. Students enrolled in Prep to Grade 6 in standalone primary schools will return to on-site learning from Monday 5 October. Again we had the option to stagger the return in that week, however we do not want to delay the start of face-to-face school at all for our students. That means that there will not be any remote learning at the start of term four and we will be welcoming students back straight after the holidays. Please put this date in your diaries.
Four Year School Review Process
Every four years, schools undergo a review process led by the Department of Education. In this process schools take part in a thorough evaluation of the previous four years and the review panel ascertains the extent to which the school has achieved the goals set out in the previous strategic plan. We are due to have our school review in term 1 2021. A review panel is assembled to carry out this work including, myself, the School Council President, Nina Moncrief, my line manager and Senior Education Improvement Leader, Chris Eeles, an independent reviewer contracted by the Department and two challenge partners who are typically principals who act as a critical friend for the process.
As a part of this review we have to complete a thorough self-evaluation which is presented in the review panel meetings. We are beginning work on this pre-review self-evaluation in term four of this year. To inform this self-evaluation we will be interviewing groups of students in student forum meetings and unpacking the relevant data sets with our teachers. Parents are also invited to attend a parent session that will delve into the data and aim to invite you to share your ideas about our current strengths and possible areas for improvement as we move into the future. It is likely that this event will need to be hosted online and the tentative date for this event will be Tuesday 10 November on WebEx. More details will follow about this session.
The school review is an exciting opportunity for us to check how we are going and develop a new and ambitious plan that will support student learning, wellbeing, and engagement as we move into the future.
It has been yet another term like no other. Please enjoy a safe and restful holiday period, I hope you get some time to make the most of the recent easing of COVID restrictions.
Matthew Forrest
Principal