06 Apr 2020
Good afternoon parents, carers and families, I hope that you all had a relaxing weekend with your families and were able to switch off from all of the stress of covid19, work, school and anything else that is happening so that you were able to spend time connecting with each other. Like you, I am continuing to try to develop a routine that works and enables all of my family to maintain some sense of 'normal' in their lives. My house has been turned upside down in order to create three separate dance studios so that my kids can continue to complete their dance classes online; we have had to set up 4 different work spaces so that the kids plus myself and my wife can continue to do our work with minimal disruption. These are interesting challenges that many of you will also be trying to overcome. Remember, there is no right or wrong way to do this - it is all contextual and has to work for you and your family.
It is important to remember through all of this, that our kids need to maintain their connections socially through whatever means you have available. Even my kids are missing the opportunity to build memories with their friends. They are lucky that there are so many ways that they can still maintain contact, however to them, it is still not the same as being able to connect face to face. It seems like such a little thing, but to them, it can be everything - a sense of certainty in an uncertain world.
I hope that the connections that the Year Advisers and staff have made with your families this past week has provided you with some reassurance and guidance on how you can best support your child with their school work. The staff at CHS have continued to refine the work that is being prepared for the next phase of learning for weeks 1 - 3 of Term 2. This has been guided by the feedback that we have received, as well as the additional resources which have become available from the Department of Education. It is anticipated that these new work packs will mailed out later this week ready for the commencement of Term 2. I do not expect that students in Year 7 - 10 will complete school work in the holidays, however, students in Year 11 & 12 should maintain a balance of work and rest over the holidays as they continue to move through their senior studies.
With no clear end in sight for the current situation, we are continuing to look at how we can more effectively provide for the continuity of learning for all students. I put out a survey recently to identify the number of students who do not have access to a device - PC, laptop or tablet. These responses are still coming in and are being further supported by phone calls from the school to families who have not responded. My executive team have been meeting to discuss our next step, and we are all in agreement that a move to full online learning is an essential step for us as it will enable us to provide regular work to students, provide for submission of work to teachers and feedback to students, as well as create an ongoing sense of connection for both students and staff.
In order to make this work effectively, I will be organising for any student in Year 7-12 who does not have access to a PC, laptop or tablet to be able to loan one of the school laptops for the duration of their time in isolation away from school. This has already happened for our Senior students. This will ensure that all students have equitable access to a device which will enable them to maintain and engage in online learning. Devices are currently being prepared for distribution, and the school will be working on the best method of doing this to ensure that we minimise the risk for all people. It is likely that we will develop a roster system much like the online Parent / Teacher interview form, so that there is a schedule for all people. Devices will have to be picked up from the school., as the student will need to sign in to the device, and the parent will need to complete a laptop loan agreement.
If you have not already notified the school that your child will need a laptop - either by phone, survey or email, please contact the school on 4285 1199, or via email on corrimal-h.school@det.nsw.edu.au with the following information -
* Child's name
* Year group
* Parent name
* Parent contact number
I anticipate that this process will commence this week and will continue into the first couple of weeks of Term 2, in order to ensure that every student is ready to go online from Week 4, if not sooner.
This is going to be something completely different to what students and staff are currently used to, and there may be some teething issues that need to be worked through. Staff have already been engaging in Professional Learning in order to be able to facilitate online learning and this training will continue indefinitely. Many staff have already set up online learning platforms for their students using a combination of Google Classroom and Microsoft Teams. This will continue with Google Classroom being the main site to connect to other strategies and platforms.
There has already been a large amount of information provided to you and your child about how to access the various online learning platforms, however, more information will continue to be posted to support you.
I continue to be very grateful and appreciative of the work that you are all doing to support your child's learning at home, and the support that you are providing to the teachers and to the school. I know that it will not always be easy, but your support is vital in your child's ongoing success.
I will continue to provide more updates to you over the next couple of days.
Regards,
Paul Roger
Principal