Dear Parents / Carers
It has been an exciting start to the college year. This includes a bush fire alert on the opening day. Thankfully all students and staff were safe and the community was spared for the most part. An increase in enrolments has seen Atwell College resume enthusiastically within an expectation of student achievement and engagement.
I congratulate all students for the start they have made and the manner in which students have adapted to the new start / finish times. Students are well presented with their college uniforms. I thank the P&C for their involvement in the selection of new materials supporting changes to the uniform.
I have already discussed at a general level with the P&C college academic performance from 2013. This discussion will continue with the college board at a fine grain level supporting analysis of college performance at all levels. Generally the community can feel confident in the performance of Atwell College students especially when compared to local schools both government and private. Given the college is still young in its development I look forward to continued positive performance into the future.
Laptops
I encourage parents to consider the option of purchasing the college recommended laptop computer. Although no child is disadvantaged by not having their own laptop some parents and families are keen to participate in the option for personal reasons. Mr Smith has some of his teacher time allocated towards developing e-learning skills within students and teaching staff. This is very evident in Years 7 and 8 but over the year will be generalised across the college.
LOTE (Languages Other Than English)
The college is committed to Japanese as a language taught from Year 7 through to Year 12 university entrance level. I am pleased to announce the college has started planning towards offering Mandarin as an additional language in 2015. Depending on interest in the current student groups and the community Mandarin will be offered in Year 11 to students that have Mandarin language background and in Year 7 and 8 to all students wishing to study this language. The college is anticipating high interest from students and the community particularly in Year 7 and 8 year groups. To this end selection for Mandarin classes will be based on an application process to be communicated to the public at a later date.
Communication
I have encouraged teaching staff to be proactive in their communication with parents especially through the use of email. Teaching staff have been directed to introduce themselves and provide details of the courses students are studying along with assessment schedules. To support this initiative I encourage parents to ensure email details are current on the Atwell College database. If parents have a concern regarding the frequency and type of information being received please contact the college for further clarification.
In general I encourage the community to interact with the college at every opportunity. The college website 'Newsroom' is being updated continually and the calendar provides information about scheduled events.
Kind regards
Noel Woodley
Principal