APA News

Dear Parents and Carers,

SEMESTER 1 REPORTING

Semester 1 report cards will be sent out in the final week of this term and therefore I feel it timely for a reminder around the purpose of assessment and reporting.

Report cards include judgements and comments on student learning, effort and behaviour for the semester.

The final A-E mark that you see in the report card is the result of an assessment process that takes place in each classroom that is facilitated by the class teacher over the course of the semester.

The Toowoomba Catholic Schools' 'Assessment, Feedback and Reporting Framework' provides the following definition of assessment:

Assessment is the ongoing process of gathering, analysing and reflecting on evidence by teachers and students in order to make informed judgements about what students know, understand and can do.

The same framework also provides a purpose for assessment.

The fundamental purpose of assessment in education is to establish and understand where learners are in an aspect of their learning at the time of the assessment and to map student progress over time.  It involves teachers making ongoing judgments about student progress which are then used to design and deliver effective feedback.

One key principle in both of those definitions is that assessment is ongoing.  No longer does a student's final result rely on a test at the end of the unit or term.  Students are now frequently assessed within lessons to help teachers understand where students are at in their learning and to inform what teaching they need moving forward.  All of this assessment and observations then contribute to the final mark that you see on the report card. 

IGNITE LEARNING 

At St Saviour's Primary we want our learners to STRIVE at LEARNING and at LIFE and they can do that through the following learning dispositions:

CURIOUS Learners have lots of questions to ask.  They like finding things out and are ready to be enthused and intrigued by new mysteries and challenges.  To help encourage curiosity several teachers have implemented a Wonder Wall in their classroom.  This is something that can also fit at home.  

A Wonder Wall is a display/whiteboard/board where learners can add questions they are genuiniely interested in.  They can use sticky notes or write them up.  As a reward or a family activity one of the questions can be selected and investigated.The idea is to value the questions and encourage learners to keep asking questions.

If you would like to provide any feedback, please feel free to email me.  sam.hannant@twb.catholic.edu.au 

NAPLAN ONLINE 2021

Students at St Saviour’s Primary in Years 3 and 5 will be completing NAPLAN Online in 2021. 

Preparation for the NAPLAN tests:

• There has been an online practice test for Year 3 and 5 students last week. 
• At St Saviour’s Primary, we are fortunate that our students are currently using devices to assist with their learning.  Teachers are currently asking students to write and read stories on their device, use an online calculator and drawing instruments in maths and teaching ICT skills such as drag and drop, copy and paste and understanding drop down menus. All of these skills will help them to complete the tests to the best of their ability.

For more information around NAPLAN please click on the below link for an online parent information brochure: https://nap.edu.au/docs/default-source/resources/naplan-online-information-brochure-for-parents-and-carers.pdf

The timetable for the tests is below:

RACE DAY 2021

SAVE THE DATE - Saturday October 30

St Saviour's Primary and St Patrick's Cathedral will again be holding a Race Day on Saturday October 30 in the Marquee at Clifford Park Turf Club.  This is also Victorian Derby Day and we will stick with the 'Black & White' theme for the day.

Please stay tuned for ticket sales and sponsorship opportunities in the next newsletter.

Sam Hannant

APA