FROM THE PRINCIPAL
REPORT CARDS
On Thursday 26 June, all students will receive their report cards after 3pm, via email or on Q Parents app.
The scale on scoring a child’s academic achievement can never tell the whole story. It cannot show the growth in a child’s character, their resilience, grit, determination, and ability to work collaboratively and cooperatively in a group, to show empathy, how they build relationships and simply just be a really good human being. However, it is important to understand how the scoring works.
When you look at the scale for Prep to Year 2, please understand these are as follows-
Applying
Making Connections
Working with
Exploring
Becoming Aware
- Working well above year level expectations
- Working above year level expectations
- Working at year level expectations
- Working below year level expectations
- Working well below year level expectations
Therefore, being at a ‘C’ level or ‘sound’ is actually stating that a student is achieving what they need to for that year level. It does not indicate they are struggling with the work. Throughout the year the teachers undertake moderation within the school and across our city cluster of some 17 other schools. This is undertaken to provide consistency with the results that are given to students.
If a child is achieving above a ‘c or sound ‘level, then that is wonderful, however it is more about their application and determination that speaks highly of them as a person. We are seeing far too many students who are ‘burning out’ or suffering from mental health conditions due to undue pressure to perform consistently at a higher standard than they may well be capable of at that time.
Our Educative Purpose as a school is all about students being in the ‘leaning zone’, which focusses on them just being challenged enough but not so much that they cannot achieve any success and then just give up.
What I want to make really clear is that the comments in English, Mathematics, Behaviour and General, tell the greatest story about your child’s achievement over semester one. Feedback is so very important to the growth and improvement of a child or indeed an adult at any age, if they are a willing and open lifelong learner. Done correctly and with the right intent, it is the greatest gift you can give someone to help with self-improvement.
I am not saying that having high expectations isn’t a good thing. We consistently work towards this as a school. However, there is a difference between achievement and effort. We want our students to have a deep love of learning and to want to be at school for this reason. With 13 years of schooling and potentially more if they attend university or undertake further formal study, a balanced and measured approach is really important.
Importantly, share the comments with your child as the report cards are written to them, with the intent that they will understand what they have done well and what they can focus on next to enhance their learning.
Q PARENTS
Just a reminder that using Q Parents is such an easy way to do so many school related activities such as-
- Most class excursion/camp permission forms
- Attendance and absence details, as well as the ability to notify the school of an absence
- Behaviour information
- Academic report cards
- Viewing unpaid invoice details, payment history, and making payments online
- Viewing and updating personal student details, including medical conditions and address
- Enrolment details
- Upcoming events list showing school events, exam and assessment dates, and excursions.
QParents will assist both staff and parents in sharing and responding to information in an efficient and effective way.
It won’t replace the traditional ways you communicate with our school, but it will provide another way to communicate with us!
Please see attached the quick guide for how to set it up.
BOOK PRIZES- TERM 2
At the end of each term, one student per class is nominated to receive a reading book prize, which are kindly donated by parents Rhiannon and Thomas Coussens from Place Real Estate.
A very big thankyou for these donations for what is a really great initiative.
The recipient might be chosen for an number of reasons- improved reading, always putting in a great effort with reading, a love of reading etc.
Below are the students who have received the book prize from each class for this term.
A big congratulations to all.
PLAYGROUND BEHAVIOUR INCIDENTS
From time to time, it is not unusual for student behaviour incidents to occur in the school playground before school or during break times. It is often when learning about how to get along and respond appropriately to conflict/ competitiveness will take place. Very occasionally the incident escalates and requires significant intervention.
Please note that whilst most issues can be dealt with easily by the staff member on duty, if the incident is more serious in nature, then one of the leadership team will become involved. It is not the role of the class teacher to deal with such playground incidents and therefore it is likely that if a consequence for poor behaviour needs to be put in place, this will be actioned by one of the Deputy Principals or the Principal.
The consequence could be that the student/s spend time during their breaks with one of the leadership team. Usually this is time for a chat, reflection and often an opportunity for some restorative justice where the students who were involved come together with the DP or Principal to try and resolve the issue in a calm and safe place.
It is only if the incident is of such a serious or repetitive nature that a student may be suspended from school for a period of time, which is not a decision taken lightly.
So, if your child does find themselves in such a situation, please note that we are working towards the goal of restoring the relationship between the students involved and doing so with the Deputy Principal or Principal is part of this process.
It would also be part of our process if a serious incident were to occur during class time, which required intervention from the leadership team.
Kind regards,
Paul Zernike
Principal
pzern1@eq.edu.au