Experience matters or does it? Schools have changed, you should too! December 19, 2018 Experience matters or does it? Schools have changed, you should too! Here’s your challenge as a parent – when it comes to choosing a school, think different! Whenever we talk to parents about school choice one thing stands out – their own experience of school. And that’s because ‘school’ is an experience product – you really can’t know whether a school is right for your child…
Let the children play March 28, 2018 Let the children play How will you be spending this weekend? For some, it will be a time of reflection and restoration. For others, it will be rest and recreation. No matter what you do, we encourage you to get out and go wild with your family – let the children play, make, create and explore. Are you a…
Education Facts and Fiction March 28, 2018 Education Facts and Fiction We hear from many of you that choosing a school is sometimes confusing because there are so many conflicting messages out there. So what are the education facts and fiction? Single sex is better than co-ed (not necessarily, it depends on both the school and your child). Can’t go to a Catholic school unless you’re…
School attendance equals outcomes March 26, 2018 School attendance equals outcomes One of the most important things you can do as parent of carer or school age children is to make sure they attend school. The latest research, reported today (March 26, 2018) in The Conversation, shows school attendance has a huge impact on outcomes particularly in the upper primary years. Low attendance in Year 7… 0 Endorse
Your child is the architect of their future (or why an education matters!) February 12, 2018 Your child is the architect of their future (or why an education matters!) Young people will rule the world. This isn’t hyperbole, it’s fact – fifty percent of the world’s population is under the age of 30*. Your child or class room student is part of the highest youth population in history and inevitably, it will be their views, their vision that will shape us as we head…
Surviving School: My Year 7 Life February 12, 2018 Surviving School: My Year 7 Life Want to know what your Year 7 child or student is thinking? Then take a look at ‘My Year 7 Life‘ currently screening on the ABC and available on i-view. Following on the heels of last year’s doco about Year 12 students, ‘My Year 7 Life’ follows sixteen Year 7 students as they prepare to…
Starting School – Tips for Parents January 24, 2018 Starting School – Tips for Parents Who is more anxious in today’s world about a child starting school – the parent or the child? We tend to think that in the current context of child care, early learning experiences, grandparents as carers, co-parenting, shared parenting et cetera, that many children are actually pretty comfortable with the notion of going to school…
Uniformity rules…. September 13, 2017 Uniformity rules…. ‘Girls in Western Australia gain right to wear pants and shorts to school‘ reads the headline in the New York Times and the only response I can muster is a tired ‘really?’ Not because it isn’t a good thing that a young person felt empowered enough to write a letter to their Education Minister and…
Taboo topics – suicide and self-harm September 13, 2017 Taboo topics – suicide and self-harm According to an article in The Conversation today ‘suicide and self-harm remain taboo topics in schools, despite the fact youth suicide has reached a ten year high.’ Only yesterday a Principal of a primary school mentioned to us that a current priority was dealing with the ‘engagement’ of their Year 7 students in the news…
Generation lost – Parents need netiquette August 10, 2017 Generation lost – Parents need netiquette Have smartphones destroyed a generation? Are young people devoid of any social skills? Who is having the most trouble straddling the digital/analogue divide? Dr Jean Twenge is professor of psychology at San Diego State University and the author of Generation Me and iGen. In this article published this month in The Atlantic she explores these…
5 great examples of smart school design July 10, 2017 5 great examples of smart school design With more than 1500 new schools required in Australia by 2030, Victoria is leading the way with school design. The state has plans to build or upgrade at least 56 new schools at a cost of $2.5 billion and smart design is big part of these new buildings. This article discusses how smart school design… 0 Endorse
State of our schools in 2017 June 29, 2017 State of our schools in 2017 Hot on the heels of the current Gonski 2.0 (Turnbull 1.0) school funding debate comes the release of the Losing the Game report by Chris Bonnor and Bernie Shepherd, who between them have over 80 years of experience in the public school system. The report’s key findings include: equity in Australia’s schools is declining since… 1