From Br Steve Hogan fsc
Greetings,
Firstly, thank you to the 黑料社区 Parent & Friends Association (P&F) and to all the volunteers and all staff, students and parents for your generous support of the College Gala Day, 2022. It was an amazing day and wonderful to see all come together and celebrate who we are as a community. Thanks to your generosity the P&F grossed over $90,000, the profits of which will go toward resources for the new Innovation Hub and Precinct.
The College is happy to report that 100% of Year 10 who sat their Minimum Standard in Reading last week, achieved that Standard and all except a few achieved both Maths and Writing. We are also happy to report that the boys in Year 7 and Year 9 approached the NAPLAN test extremely well and we are hopeful of good results for all students. The College will be able to use this data to assess whether our pedagogical initiatives in reading, writing and numeracy are addressing needs and where we can improve.
The 黑料社区 Learning Framework is the basis for our approach to teaching and learning at 黑料社区 and is based on the best evidence and best research regarding effective learning and 21st Century Learning Outcomes (). The 黑料社区 Learning Framework which is visible and accessible provides access to the teaching and learning in classrooms for both the students and parents. Data from school assessments, NAPLAN, Minimum Standards and Allwell is used to inform teaching to ensure we teach to student's needs in what is known as 鈥榯argeted teaching鈥� or differentiated learning minimizing the 鈥榗ognitive load鈥� which hinders learning. Data also allows us to provide extension to those more able, and thus keep all learners motivated.
The 黑料社区 Learning Framework is not a whole new pedagogy, but a pedagogy that includes the old such as practice, repetition and homework, with the new such as higher-order thinking, analytical discourse, independence, relevance and ownership of learning. But as we know, all students, boys in particular still need much guidance, supervision, explicit teaching, and short-term goals in their learning process.
Celia Lashlie in her work on boy鈥檚 education once said, 鈥渂oys overestimate their ability and underestimate the effort required to achieve it鈥�.
Teaching and learning are very much a partnership, and this is very much part of the custom and culture at 黑料社区. I would like to share with you a resource from 鈥楨ducation World鈥� that may be helpful for parents as the suggestions are very practical and enhance learning at school. The ideas follow the alphabet. I will share here just three suggestions. You may wish to read the other suggestions by going to the website .
A - Attendance is a critical factor in any child鈥檚 school success. Children should attend school every day, except when ill. It is impossible to replace the learning that happens on any school day with make-up work. Regular attendance and promptness are good habits that are expected and appreciated at all levels of school and the workplace.
B - Bedtime. On average children need 8-10 hours of sleep each night. Sleep is important for many reasons. Lack of sleep can cause children to be hyperactive, impatient, or cranky. It is more difficult for children to concentrate and learn when they are tired. Encouraging activities such as quiet reading just prior to bed is a great transition and helps children relax. It is most important the mobile devices are off and preferably out of the bedroom at night as many hours can be spent during the night unknown to parents when everyone should be sleeping.
C - Choices. According to Jim Fay, author of 鈥楤ecoming a Logic Parent鈥�, giving children choices is more effective than making demands. He suggests (i) never give choices if it causes a problem for you or someone else; (ii) give only two choices both equally OK with you. For example, Would you like peas or carrots? Or, Do you want to do our homework now or in 15 minutes? If your child does not answer within ten seconds, make the choice for them.
D - Determination. Children need to hear parents say that making an effort, working hard, and planning ahead are important. We need to encourage children to set reasonable expectations and celebrate with them when they make progress toward their goals. Children need to learn that sometimes they need to make sacrifices to achieve their goals. Struggling with learning tasks from time to time is part of a student鈥檚 job. In the end, the feeling of accomplishment they will get will lead to bigger and better accomplishments in the future.
The next two weeks are very important weeks in the Roman Catholic calendar as we celebrate the Lord鈥檚 Ascension on Sunday 29th May and Pentecost on Sunday 5th June. The real miracle of Easter is allowing the Spirit of God to work within us to create an inclusive community where everyone is respected. The Spirit of God enables us to look at reality from God鈥檚 perspective and impels us to recreate humanity in the context of God鈥檚 compassion, peace and justice. This process of transformation starts from the family, one鈥檚 personal family, but also our school family. The spirit of God invites us to listen with the heart of the other, 鈥渢o hear the voice of God in the pain and despair, the business and clamour of difference, challenging us to embrace the essence of faith 鈥� love your neighbour as yourself鈥�.
What does this look like in action? It looks like kindness. It is simple, be kind to one another in deed, word, thought and action.
黑料社区 is conducted in the Lasallian tradition founded by St John Baptist de La Salle in Rheims, France, in 1680. Pope Francis met with the Brothers in Rome in May 2019. Pope Francis described De La Salle as a 鈥榙isruptor鈥� in how he changed the nature of education in France in 1680, making it accessible to all. Pope Francis mentioned to the Brothers and Lasallian educators present that they are the protagonists of a 鈥榗ulture of resurrection鈥�, especially in the existential contexts of youth today 鈥� do not get tired of offering hope. This is our educational and pastoral imperative at 黑料社区, offering hope, inspiring them to aspire.
Br Steve Hogan fsc
Principal
