Heard on the Hill Term 2, Week 5
From the Principal
Bonjour à tous, and Wanju
You know that we have been working on reviewing our current business plan to shed a light on the development of our next plan. The obvious place to start in our reflections is “who is Bunbury Senior High School?” “What makes us stands out from all other schools?”
Everyone who comes here raves about our location, I will get back to that later. As a relatively new member of our staff, and one with more of a helicopter view of things, can I say that a defining feature of this school is the quality of staff. From the teachers to gardeners to education assistants, our paraprofessionals and beyond. We cannot take this for granted because it is not the same anywhere else. The level of professionalism, commitment and the desire to be the best shines through in all that you do.
On a whole, the student body is also outstanding. Some small things that you may not be aware of: over 10% of our student body is involved in our school bands. That is amazing. Last week, while I participated in a Year 7 sports class, thank you Mr Allan, I heard students encouraging and congratulating each other rather than teasing and putting each other down.
Finally, let me get back to the location – it’s much more than just the view. We are in the heart of the city. Our teachers and students access the infrastructure of the city to enhance their education programs. The beach is on our doorstep and used regularly. We are the fourth oldest high school in the state. Our buildings are majestic and are integrating modern upgrades.
When I think about these things, I pinch myself to remind myself that Bunbury Senior High School is a really special place and a top-quality school.
Have a great week.
En Avant
Nuts and Bolts
COVID Update
To access the Leadership Minutes from last week, see below.
Survey My Class
It's that time of year again, when we offer teaching staff the opportunity to survey their classes to get some feedback. We offer this twice during the year, in Term 2 and again in Term 4.
The process is simple. During the dates the survey is open (30 May - 10 June) you send the link to your students. They click on it and off they go. It is a good idea to actually give them some class time to complete it. They can use their iPads to do the survey.
The survey data for each individual teacher remains private to those teachers. The combined data of all staff is compiled into a report for the Executive Team, which is simply another piece of data used to inform our school improvement plans.
Participation is not compulsory, but it can be a useful process to do for your own professional development.
If you have any questions about the process, please contact Kelly on 78902.
Survey My Class Link
Learning Support Update
Since the start of the year, I have been doing my best to fill the role of Learning Support Coordinator, while we advertised for someone to fill this position. Jenny Byatt, one of our new Education Assistants, was also assisting me with the development of Individual Education Plans. Jenny will continue to assist the new Learning Support Coordinator, especially with updating IEPs.
The new LSC's name is Sarah Hales. Sarah will commence with us in Term 3. She is coming to us from Cooinda PS, where she has had extensive experience working with students with special needs, especially ASD, as a key teacher in their special learning program for students with autism. Sarah has worked closely with teachers, delivering PL, providing strategies for adjustments, developing plans, and liaising with parents about student progress.
Sarah's appointment as LSC is a 0.4FTE role, and she will also pick up 04.FTE teaching. Sarah will be based out of the old HASS office, near to the EA office upstairs. Sarah will take over line management of the EA team (in partnership with Sue Gledhill) and manage their timetables and allocation to students.
Please make Sarah welcome when she commences in Term 3.
Cultural Inclusivity and Responsiveness at BSHS
Did you know that Aboriginal people preferred to be called aboriginal, not indigenous?
Did you know that we have several Aboriginal staff members or staff who have aboriginal family members?
Did you know that our current Aboriginal students and staff have been impacted by generational trauma, often caused by displacement from their country, removal from their families, and many other disadvantages caused by the colonisation process?
Did you know that the data shows that our Aboriginal students are the most at risk with regard to their school achievement?
BSHS recently formed a Cultural Inclusivity Committee which is focused on improving the educational outcomes for Aboriginal students and the cultural responsiveness and inclusivity of the school for all those with diverse cultural backgrounds. Kristy Carriage, our Aboriginal and Islander Education Officer, is a key staff member on this committee. We welcome expressions of interest from other staff in our school who would like to have input to this committee.
Kristy recently organised the inaugural meeting for a new Aboriginal Advisory Council, which comprises students, parents and community members, particularly elders, who will co-design our operational plan for improvement, and then monitor our progress as a school towards our shared goals. Thanks Kristy, for your work on this!
I would also like to acknowledge Nghia Nguyen and Paul Reynolds, who have also been contributing to the CIC. Nghia will be working on some ideas to improve the school's cultural inclusivity for other students with diverse backgrounds. Nghia and Kristy were behind the recent Harmony Day celebrations, and they hope to do more of this type of activity to celebrate cultural diversity, in line with our school values.
Expressions of interest to join the CIC, or suggestions for school improvement in this area, can be emailed to Kelly.
Lemov High Expectations
No opt out– A safe classroom does not mean for a student to hide or to not participate in activities. A safe classroom allows all students the opportunity to provide responses in a safe environment; they feel comfortable to share answers and thoughts. Within this safe environment, student accountability increases as the teacher utilises strategies to illicit responses from everyone. One strategy is the no opt out from Lemov High Expectatons.
Video for promotions
We love to see what projects are happening throughout the school! Across all the learning areas, we would like to capture a snapshot of what projects, activities and more happens during school for a new promo video that can be shared on our socials and website.
Ellie is available for classroom visits and can even attend incursions and excursions to get great footage of our students in action.
If you have something that you think could be videoed during class time or an incursion/excursion, please email Ellie: ellie.mackay@education.wa.edu.au with more details.
BUNBURY SHS INSTAGRAM
BUNBURY SHS FACEBOOK
Is something interesting happening in or around your classroom? Having an incursion or excursion this term? Please let me know!
We love to share updates from the school with our community and would like representation from each area of our wonderful school; no matter how big or small.
Please submit stories for our Facebook page via the wufoo link below and include as much information as you can, plus a few images to accompany the article. If you are having trouble with the wufoo form, you can email the information to me directly.(ellie.mackay@education.wa.edu.au)
Don't forget to follow us on Facebook and check out what our students and staff get up to.
What’s OnTerm 2, Week 5
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Mike's Week
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