YOU SAID. WE DID.
Thank you for your feedback and recommendations, we really appreciate the comments and have put into action the following...
You said… Give more attention to VAPING.
We have taken the following steps:
Introduced stricter bathroom visit rules, and stronger consequences for those caught misbehaving; increased staff surveillance and supervision of bathrooms; provided more education at assemblies for students, especially the addictive nature of vaping. These approaches seem to be reasonably successful at the moment, although there is more work to be done.
We are also investigating vape sensors and other deterrent measures. Parents can help us by continually reinforcing the dangers of vaping. When students receive the same message at home and at school, they are much more likely to take on board the advice.
You said…. STEAM is not delivering.
We have taken the following steps:
It's fair to say that the initial roll-out of the programme has not been without some problems. On this basis, and from student feedback received, staff have made significant changes to the programme, some immediately (such as much less device time and more focus on practical work), and some for 2022 (the Y7 programme will change to a programme focused on building traditional skills across key areas).
I visited classes last week to check and the feedback from students is that they are enjoying classes much more now. Students were fully engaged in a number of rich tasks, constructing pest traps, creating shadow theatre performances, clearing noxious weeds from the river bank, and distilling essential oils for use in all manner of products. Students are currently engaged in a Wearable Arts inquiry which is proving to be very popular with students.
Staff will continue to review and evaluate the programme, and make any changes to ensure students are learning key skills, being challenged and having fun. We will survey parents again later in the year to assure ourselves that the programme is meeting expectations.
You said….BEHAVIOUR is inconsistent.
We have taken the following steps:
We agree there is room for improvement. Senior Leaders are rolling out a series of planned improvements, based on clear and consistent expectations to ensure students know with certainty how to behave appropriately. What we want here is a culture of genuine mutual respect to ensure a warm, relaxed, calm and safe environment where confident and courteous students behave impeccably inside and outside the classroom.
You said… PHONES should be banned at break times.
We have taken the following steps:
The majority of parents (66.4%) wanted phones banned (with scope for students to check messages from employees and parents at set times). We will roll this out next term among a suite of changes and tweaks to ensure we get the behaviour and culture that best supports fully engaged learning.