Embracing Change
In life, change is inevitable. As humans, we can find change and uncertainty quite a fearful proposition but, at the same time, we know that it can be exciting, stimulating and positive. The influence of the pandemic on the operations of the School has forced us to embrace change and I have no doubt that this has actually strengthened the community. Ultimately, the lessons learned this year will benefit our students as they have negotiated, compromised, adjusted and transformed.
Term 4 has begun, not in the manner that we hoped or prepared for, but instead with students and staff engaging again with the remote teaching and learning program. How marvellous to see the Year 12 students in person in the first week, only to be advised that they were to return offsite again. A sense of impermanence has imbued the course of our year, as calendar events, activities, plans, celebrations and all manner of occasions have been postponed, cancelled or moved online.
Throughout it all, our students, staff, families and community have not only accepted the variables and vagaries of our current situation, but have often become champions of change. In this way, our students in particular have been learning, through sheer necessity, the 21st century skills that schools have been espousing for years; creativity, communication, innovation and collaboration, not to mention technical literacy.
As the Year 12s look to their final examinations, I congratulate them on their stoicism and courage for managing to succeed throughout this year. Go well, be safe.