When I am asked what keeps me awake at night, the answer is always clear – that we provide the best learning opportunities for our students to prepare them for their future.
Our students, Generation Alpha in the Junior School and Generation Z in the Secondary School are very different from those of the same age born in the 70s, 80s and 90s! They are far more digitally connected (the first iPad was introduced in 2010) and globally connected.
Social researchers are predicting that Generation Z will have at least 18 jobs across 6 careers, immersed in the changing world of work that requires them to be life-long learners. They will also need to be resilient, have the fortitude and character to not only set goals to achieve them but to overcome adversity in their lives.
At Camberwell Girls we have a long-standing and strong culture of learning, where we value the depth of the subject disciplines and know that we must also assist our students to develop transferable skills. Those skills that can be used in a variety of contexts that are highly valued by employers and society as a whole. Our CGGS transferable skills are problem solving, teamwork and collaboration, planning and organisation, communication, leadership, creativity, critical thinking and initiative.
Our work with the University of Melbourne has been invaluable over the last two years and we are continuing this year in their New Metrics for Success project. Together, with a group of schools from across Australia and the university, we are building metrics to assess these transferable skills. The evidence of these skills and other micro-credentials will build a learner profile that will not replace but sit alongside an ATAR to give a more holistic picture of a student. We are currently in the development phase of building a learner profile to share later in the year.
This year in Middle and Senior Schools, we have re-arranged components of our timetable to protect the teaching time for the subject disciplines and increase time for some core subjects. In addition, the development of our Upskill Days with new programs that focus on innovation and entrepreneurship, provide further opportunities to develop transferable skills and demonstrate competency.
Ms Kate Manners our Director of Strategic Initiatives is responsible for this innovative Upskill Program and she works closely with students, staff and external providers in its development. Kate has prepared a video overview to share more with you – click the button below to view the video.
I look forward to introducing you to some new partners who are part of this program in the coming weeks.
With best wishes
Debbie Dunwoody
Principal
Each year we conduct a parent survey to obtain value feedback from parents about a number of key areas at CGGS. The confidential parent survey was conducted by MYP Corporation through their School Results Survey (SRS) from 28 November – 9 December 2022. The survey also enabled comparison of results with similar schools.
32.8% of parents participated in the survey (32.1% in 2021 and 37.1% in 2020). Parents indicated that the 5 top reasons for choosing CGGS from highest to lowest were: academic excellence, school reputation, the size of school/classes, location and values/culture. The satisfaction rating is summarized in the table below.
Satisfaction Rating (out of 5.00):
The key areas in which feedback was sought were:
Of the 15 Key Areas surveyed, 14 received an excellent satisfaction rating and 1 received a good satisfaction rating (Rating out of 5). The rating of the highest 5 categories of satisfaction are listed below:
The lowest 5 categories of satisfaction from least satisfied to more satisfied were:
Informed by the survey including individual responses, the following will be areas of focus for the school in 2023:
I would like to take this opportunity to thank parents for their valuable feedback and look forward to our continued work in partnership.
Debbie Dunwoody
Principal
