3rd August, 2023 Newsletter |
Kia Ora Tatou,
Parent - teacher interviews
It was great to see so many people at parent-teacher interviews reviewing student achievement and setting goals for the remainder of the year on Thursday. The feedback from teachers was that there were many positive conversations and we are expecting to see the results of this over the coming weeks.
The reason that each student has a mentor within school, that we run parent-teacher interviews and have Conference days and evenings is evident in John Hattie’s work.
He is a New Zealand education academic and has become internationally famous for his work. His work includes investigating which factors affect a student's achievement in school. His book Visible Learning provides a large range of factors that will improve student success. Two of these are:
- Goal setting: when students are actively involved in setting their learning goals and assessing their progress, it can enhance their understanding and motivation to achieve those goals.
- Feedback: provide timely and constructive feedback to students about their performance and progress helps them identify areas for improvement and fosters a growth mindset.
These two factors make a significant difference to achievement. So we strongly encourage you to be supportive by attending parent-teacher interviews / Conferences and by talking to your child at home about their achievement and goals.
Technology expectations
This week Mr Doherty and myself have reinforced with all senior students the Health and Safety expectations in the workshop. Teachers of junior classes will do the same. We have done this as a pro-active measure to ensure that students remain safe at school. Many of the issues we talked about were “the small things” that need to be done well to avoid them being a bigger issue.
To do practical lessons in the workshop students need to have appropriate footwear. This means sturdy shoes, ideally steel toe capped, that will provide protection for the feet. We will not be allowing students into the workshop to do practical work with canvas shoes. The school has a small selection of footwear in Technology for occasional use if a student forgets their own one day but we can not stock footwear for every student. Students also need to remove outdoor coats and wear appropriate PPE (personal protective equipment) supplied by the school.
Students need to respect the equipment and tools. In the last five years the school has invested over $100,000 into resources in the Technology area. For example, the laser cutter provides great opportunities for students to enhance their work. We have multiple types of welding and for both steel and aluminium. A new suite of computers in the break out area allows for more advanced graphics to take place.
Covid isolation reminder
While covid cases are thankfully lower nationally we do still have the cases in the community. If a student does test positive for covid there is a seven day isolation requirement and students can not be at school. Students must remain away from school for seven days even if you have had covid before or subsequently test negative. The school has a supply of covid tests which are available to allow testing to take place at home. The following link provides the latest advice https://covid19.govt.nz/testing-and-isolation/if-you-have-covid-19/
Nigel Scarth - Acting Principal
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