Welcome to Week 4. Our Year 12 have commenced their trial exams and are presenting in a calm and serious manner for each exam. I was so excited to see Year 12 students at break time using palm cards to test each other for their upcoming exams. Palm cards and practice papers are the most effective ways of studying.

Thank you to all those families who took up the opportunity to attend parent/student/teacher interviews in person or face-to-face last Thursday. These opportunities are very valuable for discussing what your student is doing well and areas for growth. The presence of the student gives them a true voice in their learning.

By now students in Years 7 and 9 would have received hard copies of their Naplan results. These exams were sat in mid-March and are one of many tools the school uses to map student growth and achievement. The Levels of Achievement have changed from previous years. The levels are Exceeding, Strong, Developing, and Needs Additional Support whereas before we had 9 bands for Year 7 and 10 bands for Year 9. This change means that it is not possible to track student growth from their previous test. Literacy and Numeracy are a key part of the learning for all students at Hennessy. Our students are supported through:

• quality teaching which is focused on explicit instruction
• support with reading and numeracy through extra reading and maths programs (Macqlit and MathsMastery)
• PAT testing twice a Year in Years 7 – 10 to map student growth and achievement
• Growth from Year 9 to the HSC is also monitored through our DeCourcey results which show how students grow as mapped to other similar schools

I would like to clarify our mobile phone policy. State schools are bringing in new guidelines for phones, we have chosen to respond in a slightly different way and are not under the same jurisdiction. Mobile phones are banned from all classes (unless there is a particular need to use them eg medical monitoring, or photos of work). Phones are stored in pouches at the front of the room so they can be seen but not touched. Students may have them when changing classes and during breaks. Phones are confiscated if the policy is breached. The current Year 7 were not permitted to have mobile phones until Semester 2 and this is being reviewed to either keep or expand this ban for Year 7 in 2024. We also provide education in cyber safety on a regular basis to educate students in this regard. We are currently not seeing many major issues with our policy and have had other Catholic schools show interest in our policy.

I will be on Long Service Leave from Wednesday, August 16, returning on Wednesday, September 20. During my absence, the following changes to staff will occur:

Acting Principal - Mrs Mary Wright

Acting Assistant Principal - Mission and Ministry - Mrs Jess McInerney

Acting Director of Students - Mrs Emily Nowlan

Acting Nagle House Leader - Mrs Maryann Schiller

I know the College will be in fine hands during my time away.

Walking Together in 2023.