Congratulations to our students, staff, parents/carers and broader school community – we have had an amazing first term to our life as a school and it is no small part due to the considered effort of each of our stakeholders around our wonderful school.  It’s not to say everything has been perfect, we have had to learn and adapt as we have moved through the term, and in each instance, this agility has resulted in a positive step forward. 

Thank you to our students for grounding our work, giving us a real sense of excitement and hope, and for engaging with our programs across the areas of learning, wellbeing and extra-curricula events.  Thank you to our staff team for their flexibility, responsiveness and, most of all, their outstanding capacity to put students at the centre of decision-making. 

Our parents and carers, you have supported us along the journey, provided constructive feedback where it is needed and also sung our praises when it is warranted. Most of all, you have supported your children and our students to be positive contributors to our college and culture, thank you.  Our broader community must be thanked for their ongoing support and extremely high interest in our school and its success.

As we head towards the end of Term 1, I would like to wish all members of our school community a healthy, happy and safe school holiday break.  A reminder that our students will be dismissed at 2:30pm on Thursday 28^th March.  We look forward to seeing you all at our Conferences on Tuesday 16^th April.

 

Student Leaders

After an extensive and high energy campaign period, we are excited to announce that the following students have been elected to the position of Belonging Group Captains.  Congratulations to:

 

7A- Jamain Brodziak

7B- Dexter Mudie

7C – Kevin Bantu

7D – Armaan Sohal

7E – Mahir Ahmed

7F – Gibson Winpea

7G – Braxton McAdam

7H – Chloe San Jose

 

We look forward to supporting these young leaders in their leadership journey over the year ahead.  Please make sure you congratulate our successful candidates.

 

Students will soon receive information about how to nominate for our school-wide student leadership roles of Year Level Captains, House Captains and Values Captains.  Stay tuned and we cannot wait to announce our next wave of student leaders.

 

Assessment & Reporting

At Walcom Ngarrwa Secondary College we use multiple tools to provide ongoing feedback on learning progress to students and to parent/carer(s).  Over the coming weeks this cycle will commence for our Year 7 students.

During the 2024 school year, students, parents and carers will receive the following assessment, reporting and feedback components.

Progress Reports: From the end of Term 1 and then every five weeks, progress reports will be made available through Compass.  Progress Reports provide parents an indication of student’s demonstration of our Learning Mindsets.  Our Learning Mindsets are:

• Willingness to learn
• Positive attitude
• Effective communication
• Effective collaboration
• Self-management
• Resilience

Each of these Learning Mindsets are rated on a 5-point scale by the classroom teacher, ranging from ‘Exemplary’ through to ‘Limited’. A more detailed description of our Learning Mindsets can be found HERE in our ‘Learning Mindsets Matrix’. 

Continuous Reporting:  Students and parent/carers can access teacher feedback on Common Assessment Tasks (CAT) as they are completed throughout the semester on Compass.  This will commence during Term 2.

Semester Reports: Reports are distributed at the end of each semester, compiling the continuous reporting data, progress report data and student achievement levels against the Victorian Curriculum into one collective report. This will be available for students, parents and carers at the end of Term 2 and Term 4.

Conferences:  Students and parents/carers have the opportunity to meet teachers at our semester Conferences.  Our first Conferences for 2024 are being held on Tuesday 16th April and bookings are now open on Compass.

Recognising student achievements and contributions

One of our key ingredients in growing and developing a positive learning culture around our college is the positive recognition and reinforcement of our students.  This might be through the recognition of their academic achievements, their social capacities, extra-curricular contributions, demonstration of our mindsets or when staff catch our students being amazing individuals.

 

Many students have been presented with a “Positive Impression” card over the last term, with these cards recognising students who are demonstrating our College Values in a really positive manner.  Essentially, the actions of the student have left a really positive impression on the staff member issuing the card.  Students may be bringing these home to share with their parents/carers, however we know this isn’t always the case.  Parents/Carers will receive a Compass notification any time a Positive Impressions Card is given to a student and this gives you a chance to celebrate and recognise this achievement at home as well.

 

Over the coming month, we have also introduced our fortnightly Belonging Awards.  These are an award, handed out at assemblies to our students, based on the observations of our Belonging Group teachers.  It gives me great pleasure to share with you the following students who have been congratulated over the last month.

 

Recipient (Full Name)	Reason
Abbey Tonkin	For consistently taking care of their classmates wellbeing, putting the best effort into all of her classes and having a respectful demeanour at all time.
Damian Bugaj	For always supporting other class members in 7B.
Rhianne Amistoso	For consistently putting her best effort into all her classes, displaying positive college behaviours and for her polite and friendly attitude.
Yana Jindal	For consistently putting her best effort into all her classes, displaying positive college behaviours and for her polite and friendly attitude.
Rylee Walker	For consistently demonstrating the school values, always completing classwork to the best of her ability and having a positive and friendly demeanour.
Amelia Williams	For consistently putting her best effort into all her classes, displaying positive college behaviours and for her polite and friendly attitude.
Lillian Pritchard	For consistently putting her best effort into all her classes, displaying positive college behaviours and for her polite and friendly attitude.
Shiny Jah	For consistently showing responsibility and great effort towards her learning.
Logan Power	For showing a kind and caring nature by consistently supporting other students in Year 7.

 

Recipient (Full Name)	Reason
Mae Trawn	For always coming into class ready to learn and displaying our school values daily.
Kaiyah Harris-Pont	For always having a positive attitude and contributing to class.
Riley Haywood	For always coming into class ready to learn and displaying our school values daily.
Paiten Hawkins	For always demonstrating the school values, completing excellent  classwork  and having a positive, helpful and friendly attitude.
Jay Buchanan	For always being will to lend a helping hand.
Brighton Irankunda	For always having a positive attitude and contribution to class.
Tilly Hewitt	For being a supportive and friendly student to others and for always standing up for what is right.
Kayla Bell	For consistently showing responsibility and great effort towards her learning.
TeeJay Tanielu	For adjusting well to his new learning environment and demonstrating our College values.

Key Dates

As we work through the final days of Term 1, we would like to take the opportunity to remind students, parents and carers of the following key dates for Term 2:

 

Date	Event
Monday 15th April	Pupil Free Curriculum Day
Tuesday 16th April	Conferences – students attend conference meetings with parents
Wednesday 17th April	Term 2 classes commence for all students
Thursday 25th April	ANZAC Day Holiday
Monday 29th April – 1st May	Year 7 Camp
Monday 10th June	Monarch’s Birthday – Public Holiday
Friday 28th June	Last Day of Term 2 – students dismissed at 2:30pm

 

Brad Moyle
Principal

---

Walcom Ngarrwa Art Club with Miss Kelly

Monday lunchtimes in RG2.21

The artwork being produced by our students in our inaugural Walcom Ngarrwa Art Club has been amazing so far. New club members are all welcome!

Walcom Ngarrwa Art Club

Monday lunchtime in RG2.22

 

---

On Thursday March 21st, students celebrated Harmony Day, which celebrates the country's cultural diversity.

It was amazing to see so many students supporting their peers by wearing orange to school. Traditionally, orange signifies social communication and meaningful conversations. It also relates to the freedom of ideas and encouragement of mutual respect.

It was even more wonderful to see so many of our students come to school dressed in traditional costume to celebrate their culture.

Harmony Day fast facts

• Did you know that since 1945 over seven million people have migrated to Australia?
• Harmony Day takes place on the United Nation’s International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.
• Did you know that Harmony Day began in 1999 and since then more than 25,000 Harmony Day events have been held across the country?
• Australians identify with over 270 ancestral backgrounds.
• Often, before an event, function or meeting takes place, Australians will acknowledge the traditional custodians of the land they are on. This is called an ‘Acknowledgement of Country’ and it pays respect to Aboriginal culture and heritage.

---