From the Deputy Head of College, Pat Brennan
Prayer for Lent
O gracious Master, infuse in our hearts the spotless light of Your Divine Wisdom and open the eyes of our mind that we may understand the teachings of Your Gospel. Instil in us also the fear of Your blessed commandments, so that having curbed all carnal desires, we may lead a spiritual life, both thinking and doing everything to please You. For You, O Christ, our God, are the enlightenment of our souls and bodies; and to You we render glory, together with Your eternal Father, and with Your all holy, life-creating Spirit, now and ever, and forever.
Amen
Making the most of Year 7-11 Parent/Teacher Interviews
Monday 3rd April 2017 8.30am – 6.30pm Lacey Gymnasium
Monday sees the first major opportunity for all Years 7 to 11 parents to meet with their son’s teachers to discuss their academic progress in 2017.
The expectation is that students attend these meetings with their parents in their full summer uniform. Year 12 have a study day on Monday and are not required to attend. The College Library will be available for Year 12 students during school hours if they wish to use this resource. No uniform is required for Year 12 students on this day.
Research shows that parents have a significant impact on their children’s educational achievements. The value of events such as that on Monday cannot be underestimated.
In fact, parental engagement overrides all other factors that have been shown to influence a child’s achievement. It is therefore critical that teachers and parents develop effective relationships to bridge student learning between home and school.
There are many opportunities for parents and teachers to communicate at Waverley College. While face-to-face contact is ideal, there are myriad other platforms that are used to send messages and share information including email, phone, Team App, Skoolbag, Twitter (@waverleycollege), Facebook and the Nurrunga newsletter.
There is no better communication tool however, according to the research, than parent/teacher interviews. Waverley College strives to make parents feel welcome to visit the school and facilitate discussions. In 2016 the College identified the need for greater flexibility in parent/teacher interview time so the decision was made to allocate an entire day to this important event in the College calendar giving parents greater choice as to when they attend. Numbers of parents attending these interviews significantly increased ensuring the structure would remain in 2017.
Parents are encouraged to take the lead of the ten-minute time slot and bring up issues they’d like to discuss. Teachers will then work through relevant affirmations and areas of improvement and subsequent strategies appropriate to the needs of your son. Your son’s teacher will be armed with some very specific feedback of his performance thus far in 2017.
I would encourage all parents to take notes of their meeting, particularly when discussing strategies for your son. Parents can then refer back to these strategies with their son weeks and months later.
I, like all of the Waverley College staff, look forward to meeting with many of you on Monday.
