Executive Director's Update to Principals #55: COVID Update - 21 Aug 2021
Gracious God
May we discern Your call in our lives
Gracious God,
so that we have the courage to make choices, commit to them wholeheartedly,
learn from our mistakes,
Build love and hospitality in our families and communities, and participate with trust in your mission.
With vision for the good, bless us Gracious God.
With trust in your call,
bless us Gracious God.
With faithfulness in commitment, bless us Gracious God.
With love and responsibility, bless us Gracious God. Today, tomorrow and into the future.
Amen
Ann Gilroy rsj
Regional Lockdown Announced
Following the Premier’s announcement this morning, regional Victoria will enter lockdown at 1pm today, Saturday 21 August until Thursday 2 September.
As detailed yesterday, the following advice is offered to schools:
- Schools should be flexible in their arrangements to ensure continuity of learning, which can include digital learning platforms and/or the provision of learning materials.
- Where necessary, students should be provided with access to digital devices to enable access to learning programs being provided by the school.
- Schools will need to continue to provide on-site supervision for students in the following categories:
- Children whose parents are considered essential workers as listed, cannot work from home and where no other supervision arrangements can be made
- Vulnerable children, including children in out-of-home care, children deemed by Child Protection and/or Family Services to be at risk of harm and children identified by the school as vulnerable (including via referral from a family violence agency, homelessness or youth justice service or mental health or other health service).
- Where a parent/carer indicates that a student with a disability is vulnerable because they cannot learn from home, and/or informs the school the student is vulnerable due to family stress, the school must provide on-site supervision for that student. This may apply to students enrolled in specialist schools and students with a disability enrolled in mainstream schools.
As always, we are very grateful for all of the work schools are doing to provide continuity of learning for students under these continually stressful and exceptional circumstances.
Face Masks for Primary School Children
Victoria’s public health team are strongly recommending that primary school aged children wear a mask as an extra precaution when they are not at home, unless an exception applies.
The HIVE Remote Learning Resources
Remote learning resources can be accessed on The HIVE homepage and in the top site menu for teachers to use as required.
Updated Table of Restrictions and Authorised Worker List
The updated Table of Restrictions and Authorised Worker List is now available.
Updated School Operations Guide
We anticipate that an updated version of the School Operations Guide will be available early next week. We will circulate this when it becomes available.
Staff wellbeing support for schools
In meeting the broad needs of the school community, staff in schools will experience challenges and stressors that impact on them professionally and personally. Where these challenges are prolonged or significant, it may have a detrimental effect on staff wellbeing and our ability to flourish. Major changes in ‘normal’ operations, and the effect of work/life through COVID-19 can stretch our personal capacity and resilience, traditional support networks and usual coping strategies to the limit. CEB wish to partner with schools to support the positive mental health and wellbeing of staff.
CEB continues to refine a wellbeing strategy that will draw expertise and resources from the Wellbeing and the People & Development teams. In the meantime, this flow chart may provide clarity on who to contact for support and a suggested process for schools. This process will be adapted based on the individual context and needs.
Professional experience placements for pre-service teachers
Professional experience placements for pre-service teachers (PSTs) are essential to continuing the high-quality education offered by Catholic schools in Victoria.
Schools play a vital role in supporting PSTs to meet their professional experience requirements, ensuring a sustainable supply of quality graduate teachers ready to work in schools next year and into the future. Under the guidance of experienced principals and teachers, PSTs in our schools build their confidence, begin developing their sense of vocation and deepen their connection to the mission of Catholic education.
Initial teacher education providers are reporting that many schools across Victoria have postponed or cancelled their PST placements.
Despite the current challenges, I know that our schools are committed to the ongoing development of the profession; hence, I would ask that schools consider being able to support PST placements during this period and determine whether it might be possible to take on additional PSTs in 2021.
There is some urgency regarding these placements, as continuing postponements or cancellations will impact the graduates for 2022.
I am aware that placements continue to be a challenging issue for the profession, particularly for schools in metropolitan Melbourne. Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools (MACS) office staff have put together a guide on how pre-service teachers can support schools during changing COVID-19 arrangements to assist schools with addressing the challenges that come with placements.
To access the additional support that a PST on placement can offer, schools should contact their usual initial teacher education provider.
Tutor Learning Initiative surveys
The Department of Education and Training (DET) will not be administering the Term 2 Tutor Learning Initiative (TLI) survey as originally planned, due to the current period of remote and flexible learning. The DET now intends to conduct the Term 3 TLI survey for non-government schools in September.
In line with the terms of accepting TLI funding, the Term 3 survey will assist with monitoring the progress of TLI implementation and will capture valuable insights for evaluation of the initiative. The Term 3 TLI survey will have several enhancements to make it quicker and easier for schools to complete.
Please contact tutor@education.vic.gov.au or Dr Simon Lindsay, General Manager, Improved Learning Outcomes, via slindsay@macs.vic.edu.au for any queries.
Next COVID Update
We will continue to monitor the situation and advise principals of any updates. Please liaise with your Education Consultant with any questions or concerns.
Stay safe and continue to look after each other…
Ever blessings.
Andrew Watson
Education Consultant: Secondary Schools