From Br Steve Hogan fsc
Greetings and welcome to our new students and their families who will be joining us in 2022 and who will now receive our newsletter each week.
Saint John Baptist de La Salle committed his life to providing a quality Christian education to the young men of his time. 黑料社区 maintains this legacy with a contemporary focus on excellence in teaching and learning, a comprehensive co-curricular program and a proactive, positive approach to wellbeing that enables young men and women to find their passion and to make an impact in their world.
黑料社区 has a proud history of developing leaders across many domains including academia, arts, business, sport, construction and trades, and the professions such as education, medicine and law. We believe that an academically rigorous, spiritually challenging and physically engaging education, develops young men and women of faith, action, and service, founded on values such as honesty, respect, compassion, integrity and self-discipline so that they may be the best person they can be.
Being the best does not mean being exiled or labelled a perfectionist. This week I was reading an article by Jan Robinson about perfectionism, not being excessively self-critical or afraid of doing a task 鈥榳rong鈥 or taking a while to bounce back from disappointment. She said the myth of the 鈥減erfect life鈥 is pervasive, and 鈥減erception can be as hampering as reality鈥.
鈥淭here is a perceived need to always be reaching for more鈥 鈥 Jan Robinson
But perfectionism is not always negative. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a multi-faceted trait that varies from the healthy to the unhealthy. Understanding where behaviours fall on that spectrum can determine whether it is supporting a child鈥檚 learning, or creating barriers to it.鈥
A healthy dose of perfectionism can help us learn and achieve, but too much can lead to pressure and procrastination.
鈥楬ealthy鈥 perfectionism is when students:
- Strive for excellence and are satisfied with their personal best
- See success as a mix of effort and ability
- Allow for limitations and imperfections
- Accept failures and keep perspective when they are frustrated by failure
鈥楿nhealthy鈥 perfectionism is when students:
- Have excessively high standards for themselves and others
- Focus too much on mistakes
- Avoid taking risks
- Show self-doubt, poor organisational skills, and procrastinate
- Believe their parents expect too much, and may expect parents鈥 criticism
- Think their self-worth is equal to their grades
Mrs Robinson stresses the importance today of students developing 鈥榯olerance of uncertainty鈥, which is very relevant in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. She stresses the great value that 鈥榯he ability to act despite unknowns, complexities or incongruences鈥 can have for students in learning and in life.鈥 Another help is to give students the opportunity to see that, in some situations or tasks, there is more than a single way to achieve success. 鈥淟earning that there can be multiple correct alternatives can be very liberating,鈥 Mrs Robinson said.
This is very helpful as we begin to focus on our return to school and learning to live with COVID-19.
I invite us all to start preparing for our return to onsite learning. It will not be easy as we return to a more institutional, regulated routine 鈥 some may look forward to this, some will not, but we all need to mentally prepare. Furthermore, the campus is changed and we will need to adjust to new spaces, new yards and new routes to classrooms while our central precinct is being created.
To conclude,
I would like to congratulate our newly selected College Leaders for 2022. It is such a difficult task and one I would rather not have to do, as 黑料社区 is blessed in that so many students are competent passionate leaders who aspire to these formal roles. I encourage every single one (badged or unbadged) to continue on that journey you aspire to, and lead. There is scope aplenty at 黑料社区 to stretch your wings and fly and to be recognised for these achievements. Success is 100% attitude and application.
Br Steve Hogan fsc
Principal