Teaching and Learning Report – April 2016

2016 NAPLAN for Year 7 and Year 9 students

The 2016 National Assessment Program -“ Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) for Years 7 and 9 students will be held on Tuesday May 10, Wednesday May 11 and Thursday May 12. Friday May 13 will be used as a -‘catch-up’ day for boys who were absent for tests held earlier in the week.

NAPLAN tests assess student knowledge and skills in writing, reading, language conventions (spelling, grammar and punctuation) and numeracy. The results of the tests provide information for students, parents, teachers and principals which can be used to improve student achievement. All Years 7 and 9 students are expected to participate in the NAPLAN tests.

Support can be arranged for students with learning disabilities if the student regularly uses similar support for classroom assessment tasks. Large print, braille, electronic and black and white versions of the tests are available for students that require them.

Exemptions may be granted to students with significant intellectual disabilities and to students who have been learning English for less than one year. If your son is eligible for support due to disability or an exemption, you should discuss this with the relevant staff member from the Enhanced Learning Team prior to the tests. Parental consent is required before any support due to disability or exemption is granted.

Students may be withdrawn from NAPLAN by their parent or carer. This is a matter for consideration by parents and carers in consultation with the Headmaster. If, after consultation, you decide to withdraw your child, you must sign a Student Withdrawal form. These forms are available from the school upon request.

Parents of Years 7 and 9 boys will receive a personal NAPLAN report later in the year. The report will describe each boy’s particular skills in Reading, Writing, Language Conventions (spelling, grammar and punctuation) and Numeracy. The report will also show how the student performed in relation to national minimum standards (which describe the minimum acceptable standards for students across Australia).

The information parents receive as a result of their son’s participation in the NAPLAN tests will be valuable in helping to assess his progress in the key areas of literacy and numeracy.

For more information about the tests, please visit the VCAA website at www.vcaa.vic.edu.au or the NAP website at www.nap.edu.au.

Use of the Parent Access Module (PAM) -“ Years 7-12 Mid Semester Reports and Years 8 and 9 Parent/Teacher/Student interviews

The 2016 mid semester reports for all Years 7-12 students have been available via PAM since the end of last term. These reports provide you with an insight into a range of classroom work habits for each subject studied by your son, including a general statement of his overall academic progress to-date. Any parent yet to access these reports is asked to do so as a matter of priority.

Week 2 of Term 2 will see the second round of the College’s Parent/Student/Teacher interview sessions take place. This round of interviews aims to provide Years 8 and 9 parents, accompanied by their son, the opportunity to meet subject teachers and their son’s Pastoral Care Tutor.

These interviews will assist parents in coming to further understand the assessment requirements of each subject and allow the subject teacher to provide feedback based on the first term of classes. It is important that each boy attend the interviews with his parents.

There will be two interview sessions in week 2, the first on Tuesday, April 19 (from 4:00pm to 8:00pm), and the second on Thursday, April 21 (from 4:00pm to 5:30pm). The interviews will take place in the Wilding Wing. If it is not possible for you to attend interviews during the scheduled times, please contact teachers directly to discuss matters over the phone or arrange an alternative meeting time and date.

An email with your 2016 Parent Access Module (PAM) parent log-in details, username and password was sent to you early in Term 1. You will need these log-in details to access the mid semester reports and the Parent/Student/Teacher booking section of PAM. Please phone 5331 1688 or email the College (adminsupport@stpats.vic.edu.au) should you require further assistance with your log-in.

PAM can be accessed by either clicking on the link on the College’s homepage (https://www.stpats.vic.edu.au/) or by going directly to the PAM site (http://pam.stpats.vic.edu.au).

A PAM Parent User Guide has been written to assist you with the log-in process and to explain the key features of PAM. It can be accessed by clicking on the link on the College’s homepage (https://www.stpats.vic.edu.au/).

Please do not hesitate to contact the College should you have any further questions or concerns regarding PAM.