Dear Colleagues

A special thank you to Steve Kennaugh for writing to you in the last newsletter on behalf of the CaSPA Board and chairing the Board meeting in my absence. I was fortunate to have some professional renewal leave in Europe, Egypt, and partake in the inspiring Edmund Rice Education Beyond Borders Congress in Dublin, Ireland, with 20 countries represented. This emphasised the importance of global partnerships in addressing global challenges. Certainly, this can only be dealt with by bridging the educational gap. This is the call from Antonio Guterres Secretary of the  United Nations, it is the call from  UNESCO. As Antonio says “Education is the key to personal development and the future of societies, it unlocks opportunities, and narrows inequalities. It is the bedrock of informed, tolerant societies, and a primary driver of sustainable development.” As a society, solidarity, compassion, ethics and empathy should be ingrained in how we learn – I would argue that this is a strength of our Catholic schools.

In addition, I was fortunate to visit Catholic secondary schools in Edinburgh. These schools, totally funded by the state, were impressive, being very aware of bridging the equity gap, with high academic standards, diverse offerings, encompassing skills development, and very multicultural – their Catholic ethos was strongly evident, with good facilities and a welcoming feel to the schools. In Ireland, I was also fortunate to spend time in schools in Kilkenny, where they showed their diverse talents across the board, but particularly, in the musical area, on the sporting field with hurling, amidst wonderful Irish hospitality. Again, the schools were inclusive, multicultural, high achieving schools, but very centred on the Edmund Rice charism and outreach. In both Scotland and Ireland, Principal wellbeing, increasing demands, was a topic for all, along with the problem of teacher shortages and staffing in general.

As a part of the CaSPA Strategic Plan the Board has committed to CaSPA engaging in annual research connected to the work of Principals. Over the last month the CaSPA Board has been liaising with the Australian Catholic University to conduct research regarding women in leadership and aspiring leaders in school leadership. CaSPA looks forward to publishing the final report which will provide contemporary knowledge and specific recommendations for the future. I hope our Principals and Associations will find this research useful in their work with aspiring leaders.

At the CaSPA Board meeting in Sydney it was a great opportunity to discuss educational and budget issues with Jacinta Collins (NCEC Director). The meeting also provided time to meet with the ACU research team to discuss the next iteration of the Principals Health and Wellbeing Research. In addition, David deCarvalho (ACARA) provided an update on NAPLAN and the work of ACARA.

I would also thank NCEC Director, Jacinta Collins, in her assisted lobbying support for Federal Funding for Asylum Seeker students – this had been denied and through our efforts, it has now been restored.

We are excited to have received our painting which we commissioned with Dr Miriam-Rose Ungunmerr-Baumann – it is a beautiful art work highlighting the unity, voice, and service of our CaSPA mantra. We are very appreciative to Miriam-Rose for her brilliant work for us, as she has been a Principal and First Nations Leader across Australia. I look forward to launching it soon.

I am very pleased to announce a new CaSPA Partnership with AGH Camps aghcamps.com.au as a Gold Partner. Many thanks to Brad Hicks for joining CaSPA to support, along with our other Partners, the Social Action, Professional Learning funding, Research and CaSPA Awards.

The CaSPA Board is looking forward to the Combined Meeting in Melbourne in July, where CaSPA will meet with the Chairs and Executive Officers of the State and Territory Catholic Principal Associations. It will be an ideal opportunity to discuss national issues and hear from AITSL, AERO and the Department for Education.

I wish you well for the remainder of Term 2.

Blessings to All

Ann Rebgetz - President

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• Board Meeting held in Sydney – met with ACU Research Team regarding the 2023 Principal Survey, David deCarvalho (ACARA) and Jacinta Collins (NCEC).

• Next CaSPA Board Meeting to be held in Darwin 16 – 17 August. The CaSPA Board looks forward to meeting with NTCSPA and visiting the Bathurst Island schools.
• CaSPA representative to attend the AITSL HALT Summit and Consultation in Melbourne in May 2023.
• CaSPA finalising being a funding partner for 3 years with Queensland University of Technology to research inclusivity issues in Australian Schools.
• CaSPA Board is liaising with ACU to conduct research and provide recommendations regarding the development of aspiring leaders.
• CaSPA Board met with Garrick Dostine (The School Photographer) and George Athas (Athas Concepts) in Sydney.

• Board Meeting with Higher Education Division of the Australian Government Department of Education to discuss admission practices.
• Board Meeting with Meg Brighton (Deputy Secretary Dept of Education, Schools) to discuss the recent budget implications for education particularly the $40M for NT schools.
• Congratulations to the ACSP – NSW Executive for hosting a fantastic conference (New Hope – New Growth) in Wollongong during May. An amazing professional learning and collegial 3 days.

Profiles of all the CaSPA Board are available on the CaSPA Website: https://caspa.schoolzineplus.com/current-and-past-board-members

Digital technologies are changing the way teachers go about their work. But not much is known about this.

Our first project phase was to conduct a survey. Thank you to those who responded to our survey!

Now, we want to explore in more detail how you are learning as you work. 

We invite you to participate in a qualitative research study where you will reflect on how your work is changing due to digitalisation and how you are learning in this evolving context.

This will involve approx. 9 hours of your time over a 12-month period where you will complete a short survey, write reflections about your learning experiences, and be interviewed by one member of our research team.

Participants will receive a certificate, which may be used for recognition of professional development hours, and $150 as a token of thanks.

Click here for more details - https://tinyurl.com/ARCDP-Phase2

A day in the life of an Australian school principal

by Brett Henebery 30 Mar 2023

The below ‘day in the life’ account was received by a Catholic school principal who agreed to participate in The Educator's 'A Day in the Life of an Australian school principal' series on the condition of anonymity.

7.30am: arrive at school and look at the diary. Doesn’t look like being a busy day on the Outlook Calendar – but that is usually a warning sign!

Start through all the emails that have come in since I last checked them before bed at 10pm. There are plenty. Three from head office requiring immediate and urgent attention – none of them are immediate or urgent and get through two of them before the first knock on the door for the day with a staff member sharing the news of the imminent death of a parent and looking at ways to take leave when they don’t have enough banked.

8.10am: Staff briefing. Going through details of the upcoming school cross-country and making sure that we have staff in place to manage and care for 1,600 students as they stagger around a five km course. We also discussed the implications for classroom teaching of our new Teaching & Learning framework and how that impacts on each classroom lesson. Five relief teachers in today who need to be welcomed, orientated and sent on their way into the wild!

8.30am: Out in the yard herding the cohort on their way off to Period 1. Chatting with D’Arcy who has been in a bit of trouble in class recently and encouraging him to be his best self today. Lilly is looking nervous as she struggles every day to get up and going – that kid is dealing with so much at home.

8.45am: In the carpark assisting a Mum to get their 13-year-old out of the car and into school.  Bevan has a history of school refusal and mum is at her wits end.  After a lot of counseling, cajoling and support, we are seeing light at the end of this particular tunnel and we eventually get him off, just a little late to class.

9.00am: walking around classes and just letting the young people know I am around. It’s great to visit classrooms and watch the learning process in action. Generally, things go well but occasionally I come across a student or a teacher who are struggling and need a bit of support.

9.30am: Leadership Team meeting. An hour and a quarter working through staffing issues, the next major building program, how to implement a new literacy program in the Middle school, discuss a particularly ‘at risk’ young person and reviewing the budget and how we are progressing after almost one term.

11am: A quick coffee and sandwich - desperately needed unless I start chewing mine or someone else’s arm off!

11.10am: An unscheduled visit by a parent who shares news of a family break up and the effect it is having on the three kids at school. The partner is being very difficult and feeding negative information to the kids. Why do parents, so often, use their kids as weapons during family disputes? Arrange some counseling and pastoral support for the kids and promise to have a chat with them the next time I get a chance.

11.40am: Tuck shop duty.  Hundreds of hungry, happy and boisterous adolescents who can’t wait to be fed and watered. Monitoring the Tuckshop door is a great chance to catch up with kids and have a low-key chat as they pass by. After most have passed through, walking around supporting the staff on duty to monitor lunch and to make sure the yard is tidy. The second half of lunch is out on the oval supervising the Year 9 boys playing Touch footy and making sure that doesn’t descend into Tackle footy!

12.15pm: Back to a large backlog of emails. More from head office, some requests from staff, some from parents with concerns about how their child is going in a particular class or the recent increase in the price of milk drinks in the Tuckshop.

12.40pm: A call from the head of Maintenance to inform me that water will be cut off as contractors have just cut a water line. Walked out to the area to see a large pool of water gathering and confounded contractors searching around for a quick fix. In the meantime, no water for toilets or drinking in a large part of the school. Have to inform staff and students of how to handle this.

1.10pm: Back in the office and a meeting with the Sports Master about sending teams to a local regional competition and finding staff who are able to go and support them. Buses have to be organised and Risk Assessments completed and signed off. We have Risk Assessments for everything now lest anyone suffer from a paper cut!

1.30pm: Back out on duty at Afternoon Tea break. Kids have one lesson left after this break and there is often a bit of restlessness in the yard by this stage in the day. Staying on top of things and being a calming presence is vital.

1.35pm: A staff member approaches me with three kids in tow who have been caught Vaping behind a classroom block. This will mean a week’s suspension for these kids and calls to made to parents and consequences explained. Resulting phone conversations had mixed results. Two lots of parents were supportive but the third thought the punishment was ‘cruel and unusual’ given that ‘everyone is doing this now’ and did the teacher actually see their child with the Vape to their mouth? Wanted video evidence to support the charge. 

2.15pm: Phone calls and emails to reply to. 

2.45pm: The Parish Priest rings, in a state of concern, because there are not enough of our students who have volunteered to participate in the parish Mass on Sunday. I try to explain that forcing young people to attend might not produce the result he desires. This does not go down well and I’m told that this is another example of how Catholic schools do not support the life of the Church.

3.10pm: Finally get to the car park to chat with parents and watch children disappear in an endless stream of cars and buses.

3.30pm: Staff meeting. Lots to discuss and work through. The workload of teachers is so much more complex now than when I started off. Unit plans to write, lessons to prepare, and students, with a huge range of needs and complex problems to cater for within one class. Do some work with staff on developing their skills as Emotionally Intelligent individuals. Would have loved some time today to brush up that presentation, but just did not get it.

4.30pm: Starving. I grab a late lunch. More emails to which to respond. Three reports in my inbox that are produced because of mandatory reporting requirements on child safety. One is serious and the other two have been dealt with by staff at school and parents have been informed. Still, the paper trail God must be appeased, and these have to be filled out, reported to Police, Head Office and the Department of Families. Nothing will come from any of them – even the more serious one – because Police and Department of Families just don’t have the staff to deal with anything other than those at imminent risk to life.

5.00pm: Get out on the oval to watch the end of training for two footy teams and the Netball team.  Kids love their sport and it’s a great part of life at school. Thank God for teachers still willing to take teams.

5.30pm: Tidy up the last of the emails and head home.

8.00pm: Upset parent email. Their child had a run in with a teacher today and the parent can’t believe that the teacher continues to be employed. I reply and remind the parent that there are often two sides to a story, and I will look into this first thing in the morning. Parent not happy and reminds me that “I have a wonderful relationship with my child, and they would never tell me a lie”. 

9.30pm: Last check of emails (always a mistake) to find one from Head Office pointing out that I had left off the Student Protection report, the time I returned the form to the office! I love how they always get straight to the important things!

Expert calls for broad rethink on behaviour management strategies

By EducationHQ News Team
Published May 11, 2023

Positive reinforcement is one of the most powerful tools at teachers’ disposal to manage student behaviour, according to an expert in education psychology.

Australian classrooms are ranked among the worst behaved in the OECD, but Monash University senior lecturer in the School of Educational Psychology and Counselling, Erin Leif, told EducationHQ that there are limitations to the data behind this ranking.

“What's unique about the PISA data and some of the OECD data is that it reflects a sample of student voice, and so it may not be representative of the wider perceptions of teachers and students of other age groups within schools,” she said.

“We don't actually have a comprehensive set of data looking at the frequency and type of disruptive and challenging behaviour that happen most often from the perspective of teachers within their classrooms, so there really is a need to develop a national survey or a national measure of how often different types of behaviours are occurring, as well as the types of behaviours that teachers think should be the top priority, or are the most difficult.”

Leif said that the narrative around student behaviour often focuses on the wrong areas.

“We often think about really, high-risk behaviours, such as assaults or things like using drugs at school, or self-harm.

“But actually, I think what teachers are experiencing is low level disruptive behaviour that just bubbles in the background every day in their classrooms, and these are actually the behaviours that teachers are most concerned about in relation to their day-to-day work.

"We need to know more about what those behaviours look like and what teachers are currently doing to address them.

“So, I think that is a really important piece of research that needs to be done, and that's actually something that my team and I at Monash are currently working on putting together.”

Some of those most effective behaviour management strategies are preventative, Leif said.

“One of the first things that we can do is just develop clear behavioural expectations for our students in our classroom.

“Rather than assuming that our students come to school, and they already know how to behave, we actually find opportunities to review the classroom expectations, model the expected behaviours, teach and reinforce all sorts of positive behaviours that we want to see from our students.

“We have [an expression], 'behaviour goes where reinforcement flows'.

Leif said teachers often don't reinforce positive behaviour, because they think kids should be doing it anyway, and then call kids out for doing the wrong thing.

"So what's happening is that kids are getting a lot of attention for unwanted behaviour and we really need to flip the script on that.

"We really need to be upping the amount of positive attention and feedback that they get for all sorts of positive behaviour.”

Establishing well-structured classroom routines is another key step.

“It's often during these periods of downtime, when it's less structured and kids are perhaps transitioning between activities or coming into the classroom at the start of the class, that we see a lot of disruption, kids have a hard time settling down and starting to focus on academic tasks.

“We need to really teach how to transition quickly, quietly, and appropriately, how to quickly pay attention to the teacher once you take your seat in the classroom.

"One really practical thing to do is have a ‘getting started’ activity ready for your students as soon as they come into the classroom and teach them how to get the materials that they need to be able to start that activity independently.

“Again, research tells us that a lot of lost instructional time happens at the beginning of class because it takes a long time for kids to settle down, so if we can get kids to get started as quickly as they can upon entering the classroom, then that can compete with a lot of the disruptive behaviour that we see.”

While preventative approaches can’t completely nip student misbehaviour in the bud, Leif said that it is important to take a measured approach to disciplinary actions.

“I think what we want to encourage teachers to do for low level disruptive behaviour is treat it like a mistake, just like an academic learning error,” she said.

“So instead of scolding the child or using some sort of punitive disciplinary practice in that moment, could we stop the student, provide a model of the correct behaviour that we want the student to be displaying, give the student another opportunity to fix their behaviour, and then when they do, [congratulate them] for doing the right thing?

Leif emphasised that the more educators can do that and quickly stop, redirect and correct misbehaviour in the classroom, the more that they can set the right expectations with students about what is expected and what is going to be allowed in a classroom and build that positive classroom culture.

“Now, if the behaviour is more dangerous, I think it's important that not just an individual teacher, but the school as a whole has an identified continuum of strategies that they might use,” she said.

“That way, no teacher feels like they don't know what to do when the proverbial stuff hits the fan in the classroom.

“They actually may need to exit the student from the classroom temporarily, because everybody has the right to be safe at school and if other students or teachers are unsafe, then that needs to be dealt with immediately.

“But if a student needs to be removed from the classroom as a result of their behaviour, that shouldn't be thought of as the intervention. Rather, that should be a flag to suggest that something's going on with the student and the student needs more support.”

Leif said that disruptive behaviour can be a form of communication.

“My philosophy is that there are no bad kids,” she said.

“We really need to avoid chasing the causes of behaviour inside the child and saying, ‘well, they're just the hyper kid’, or ‘they're just a disruptive kid’.

“I also think we need to be careful about chasing the causes of behaviour outside of school and into the home.

“Rather, what we need to do with our students is to look at the interactions between their behaviour and the classroom environment and discover how things that are happening at school are influencing the behaviours that they display at school.

So for some kids, Leif explained, if those children are struggling academically or have difficulties with some of their social skills and communication skills, those challenging behaviours might actually be a way that the child is communicating with their teacher.

“They might be telling you through their behaviour that the work that they're being asked to do is too difficult and they can't do it, or that they want help, or they are looking for peer approval or peer attention," she said.

“So, we need to think functionally about challenging behaviour and try to understand, what is this child telling me? What is this child communicating to me with their behaviour?”

(Source: EducationHQ.com)

Research to identify the areas of concern in relation to mathematics and numeracy has been performed by the Australian Education Research Organisation (AERO) using national NAPLAN numeracy data and by the NCEC using Catholic sector Progressive Achievement Testing (PAT) mathematics data. The key findings and actions of these studies are summarised below:

• the strand 'Number and Algebra' Catholic students in years 1-10 have most difficulty with nationally
• the strand 'Measurement and Geometry',  the sub-strand 'Using units of measurement’ Catholic students in years 3-10 are having the most difficulty with
• the strand ‘Statistics and Probability’, Sub-strand – ‘Data representation and interpretation’ has emerged as being problematic in Years 1and 2
• strong pattern emerging from the data, indicating that mathematical concepts are not being adequately learned by students in years 1 and 2, and continue to be a problem through to year 10 and beyond
• NCEC excellence work suggests that teachers may not have the content knowledge or pedagogical knowledge to effectively teach numeracy and mathematics
• NCEC is sharing these research findings with state, territory, and diocesan authorities for consideration and action.
• NCEC is currently developing a series of webinars for teachers and educational leaders to address the changes in pedagogy required. Some Dioceses have already commenced this approach.
• OCHRE Education is proposing to work with Catholic education to develop broader resource material for Mathematics Years 7 and 8 including lesson plans and professional development. The NCEC will be requiring appropriate evaluation and evidence-base for resource material.