Term 2 Week 5

FROM OUR PRINCIPAL

BEING PART OF TEAM SEHS – what’s in a uniform?

In recent weeks, there has been a lot of discussion about the Port Adelaide Football Club wanting to wear its traditional guernsey – commonly known as the ‘prison bars’.  But beyond anything else, uniforms, both in sport and school, serve a practical purpose.

Uniforms send a clear visual message about who is on your team and who isn’t.

In a sporting contest it ensures that you kick or throw the ball to your team member (or at least try to!).

Within a large school environment, uniforms are crucial in supporting student safety. For teachers on yard duty, it enables them to quickly identify any intruders and act accordingly.

With the low temperatures now a constant as we approach winter, it has become apparent that a small number of students have been caught ‘short’ and are wearing non-uniform jumpers and jackets.

This presents a risk to all students as it is not immediately obvious that they are SEHS students.

If your child does not have a school jacket, please organise to order through Devon Clothing as soon as possible.

Other uniform reminders:

• Pants must be plain navy or plain black - no stripes or large logos
• SEHS track pants are the only ones permitted
• Denim is never acceptable
• Non-uniform ‘hoodies’ are not permissible – even when worn under the school polo shirt.

KEEPING US IN THE LOOP TO SUPPORT STUDENT WELL-BEING

There are a range of ‘out of school’ factors that impact on a student’s wellbeing and thus capacity to engage effectively with the learning on a day-to-day or extended basis.

Such factors include family illness or bereavement, a change in family circumstances, having to move, an accident, mental ill-health, etc.

We greatly appreciate it when families let us know that a student might be ‘wobbly’. We understand that you may not always want to tell us exactly what is going on and we respect everyone’s right to privacy but general information that a student is ‘struggling’ can assist staff to navigate what can be tricky times for them and minimise the chances of a meltdown or blow-up.

It also avoids us asking unnecessary questions about a period of absence which can sometimes make the student uncomfortable.

If a student has been away from school for an extended period of time, it is also appreciated when we get a ‘heads up’ that they are returning.  That way teachers can ensure that they make time during their lesson to specifically supporting the student to re-connect with their learning.

COMMUNICATING WITH STAFF OUT OF SCHOOL HOURS

Once upon a time, if you wanted to communicate with a teacher, there was really only one way – you rang Reception during school hours and a message was taken for them to call you back.

However, times have changed and it is now possible for us all to communicate electronically through email or  Daymap – at any time of the day.

Having said all that, it is important to remember a few things:

• If the issue is urgent, it is still advisable that you ring Reception.
• Generally speaking, teachers will not be accessing their emails or Day Map messages late at night or over the weekend. (they will most likely to get back to you over the next 24-48 hours).
• Some of our staff work part-time so may not check their messages on a day when they are not on site.
• Similarly, if a teacher is sick or taking another form of leave, it is unlikely that they will respond that day.
• If you have not had a reply within a few days, please contact Reception and check that the message has been received.

Students are encouraged to also contact their teachers out of class time using Day Map – especially when they are having difficulty with the learning.  This is a great way of alerting teachers where there is a problem.  However, sending a draft at 10.00pm and then expecting that it has been read and responded to by 9.00 am the following morning is rather optimistic!

MOBILE PHONE POLICY – HAVE YOUR SAY:

Like all secondary schools, we are required to review our existing policy before the end of this term.

The Department for Education recognises that it is reasonable for secondary students to bring phones to school with family support.  However, it is up to schools to determine whether they are able to be used and for what purpose.

Currently at our school students are permitted to carry their phones but are not permitted to use them without teacher permission during class time.  After getting a reminder, students can have them confiscated and securely stored at the front office until the end of the day.

Phones are certainly a temptation for many students at our school and the level of distraction is something that many teachers are concerned about.  Inappropriate use of phones can occasionally present difficulties if other members of the school community are photographed or filmed without their permission.

So what do you think?

Given that the government says that it is reasonable for secondary students to bring phones to school, what should happen to them once they are at school?

• Some schools require phones to be stored in lockers for the day or at least during lesson time.
• Some schools require phones to be stored in a YONDR pouch for the day which means that students can have them in their possession but means that they cannot be used -even at recess or lunch.
• Some schools confiscate immediately the phone is seen in class – without giving a warning
• Some schools have different approaches for different year levels – eg tighter restrictions for younger students.

Over the coming weeks we will be gathering student perspectives but we want to hear from you as well.  Email your views to Kristen.masters775@schools.sa.edu.au.

STUDENT FREE DAY – REMINDER

A reminder that on, Tuesday, June 15 there will be a scheduled student free day.

The purpose of the day is for all staff to engage in professional learning about Intercultural Understanding so that we can support all of our students better.

This day follows a public holiday on the Monday.

Kristen Masters

(Principal)

Year 7 and 8 transition to High School

Since the last newsletter, we have started to make some progress around buildings and facilities for our new middle school students. This will happen in two stages and start with some new spaces for Design and Technology. These spaces will be flexible and will allow teachers to tailor their new Design and Technology curriculum to suit the needs of our new students. The second stage will involve some conversions of rooms back into science labs.

With new spaces, comes the need for new furniture. We have started the process of surveying staff around furniture and will aim to survey students next week as well. I am very interested to see how the two sets of data compare and will share some of these in coming weeks.

Additionally, we have recently been working with some of our local feeder primary school teachers to reduce the ‘jump’ that students experience when they start high school in the expectations of work and social skills. We have spent time sharing resources, and will trial a social skills program with Madison Park to adjust to the size and happenings of a high school, particularly at lunchtime.

I am very excited for the Year 7s to join us at SEHS. I think it will provide excellent an excellent opportunity for learning continuity and challenge for students. If you have any questions about the move to high school, or concerns you would like to discuss, please feel free to contact me on the details below.

Kate Mckinna

(Learning and Transition Coordinator)

Phone: 8258 2070

Email: Kate.Mckinna122@schools.sa.edu.au

Year 8 HASS

Students in Year 8 HASS have been learning about the effects of erosion as a part of their landscapes and landforms Geography unit. Students discussed landslides and what happens after a big downpour of rain. They explored ways that erosion can be reduced by conducting an experiment to see if adding vegetation could reduce the amount of erosion. Students were surprised that by simply adding mulch they could improve the water quality so significantly.

Sustainability at SEHS

At the end of Term 1 we had KESAB (Keep South Australia Beautiful) come to our school and talk to classes about recycling, reducing and reusing. The rubbish from all classrooms and outside bins was collected the day prior to the KESAB visit and students sorted the rubbish into the various recyclables and organics. The contents of each of the tubs were weighed and measured bylooking at an average day here at SEHS, KESAB were able to work out how much waste SEHS produced per year.

Results

The findings showed that we produce 611 litres per day which goes into land fill, that is 873 wheelie bins (140 Ltr) per year.

The Student Sustainability Group who meet every two weeks and the Staff Sustainability Group will be working on trying to reduce this amount. 

The SEHS Sustainability Team over the last five years has introduced recycle bins for Cans/Bottles, metal, plastics, batteries, phones and polystyrene and are continually working on the sustainability garden with students.  We are looking for more students to join the Student Group, so if you are interested, please come along to one of the lunchtime meetings to learn more and share any ideas you may have.  Please see Ms Rowe in M28 or Ms Wood in M39.

Good Luck Lochie!

Former SEHS student Lochlan Czapla is jetting off to Europe this week to begin a professional soccer contract with St Mirren!

The 18-year-old is pursuing his lifelong dream of making a living out of the sport by joining the Scottish Premiership team on an initial two-year deal.

Lochie, who was a star of our school’s soccer program for four years, decided to forego Year 12 in 2021 when he was offered the chance of a lifetime with the ‘Buddies’, a top-flight club formed in 1877 and based in Paisley, Renfrewshire – on the border of Glasgow in the west of Scotland.

Links with his home team, Para Hills Knights, put him on the radar of the Saints and he will now be training full-time, five times a week, while hoping to break into the first team and eventually play against the likes of Celtic and Rangers.

As a paid professional player, Lochie will also have his own house to live in and be given access to sports scientists, nutritionists, physiotherapists and analysts, while being coached by some of the best in the game.

He recently visited us to say farewell to friends and teachers (and pose for a photo!) as he made the final preparations before flying to Scotland on Monday ... and everyone at Salisbury East High School is very proud of his amazing achievement – good luck Lochie!

Road Awareness Program at Salisbury East High School

The Road Awareness Program was held at SEHS this month for all our Year 11 and 12 students.

It is a powerful, hard-hitting road safety presentation delivered by firefighters to both young and experienced drivers across South Australia and interstate.

Designed to give an open and honest insight into the experience of firefighters working in road crash rescue, RAP seeks to actively engage and empower drivers and other road users through positive peer pressure and its core message: “You get to choose the risk; but you don’t get to choose the consequences”.

During the 100-minute presentation, out students were given a confronting and realistic insight into road crash trauma including vision of real crashes and crash survivors. Some survivors, many now living with permanent disability or loss of a loved one, shared their stories as part of the presentation.

Our students also took part in an evaluation, which has been developed to help identify changes in attitude that can lead to changes in behaviours as road users.

Participants nominated during the evaluation process what type of driver/road user they were prior to the RAP presentation, then indicated the type of driver/road user they intend to be moving forward after the presentation.

This is both a measure of the impact of the program and a commitment from each participant to make a more conscious effort to use the roads more responsibly.

From the 72 feedback forms received back from our group: 

• 18 nominated that they were RESPONSIBLE as road users prior to seeing RAP
• 50 nominated that they were RISK TAKERS as road users prior to seeing RAP
• 4 nominated that they were TOTALLY IRRESPONSIBLE prior to seeing RAP
• However, 72 participants checked the box indicating they choose to be a RESPONSIBLE road user after participating in the RAP presentation
• And, in response to the question, "Following the program will you adopt safer road behaviours?", 72 out of 72 participants said "YES"

This is an excellent result and the feedback highlights our students’ clear understanding of the content presented and the value of the Road Awareness Program.

Art in SLC

Students in the senior supported learning class have created these artworks using pastels and water colours in their art classes focussed on “Natural and Constructed Environments”.

Year 6 STEM days at SEHS.

During week 3 and 4, over 200 year 6 students attended STEM transition events here at SEHS. The students from six of our feeder schools learnt about digital technology and the engaging learning opportunities it can present at our school.

They took part in robotics workshops and an engineering challenge. The students were tasked to create a robotic arm that could throw a projectile as far as possible. The students came up with some awesome ideas and it was great to see their ideas come to life. We look forward to welcoming many of these students into our school community next year as our first year 7 cohort.

Cultural Day

Awards Assembly

In week 3, we had the absolute honour of celebrating the achievements of many of our students who have demonstrated commitment and perseverance with their academic endeavours during Term 1.

Students in Years 8 to 12 were acknowledged at a whole school assembly for significant improvement in their Grade Point Average and for consistently achieving grades at a high level. We are incredibly proud of the work of these students and look forward to awarding many more certificates for their Semester 1 achievements early next term. Keep up the great work guys!