Letter – Changes to School Operations

August 3 2020

Dear Parents/Carers

Re Changes to School Operations for the remainder of Term 3

Yesterday, the Victorian Government announced that, on the advice of the Victorian Chief Health Officer, regional and rural Victoria will move to Stage 3 restrictions to slow the spread of coronavirus.

These requirements apply to all schools across the government, Catholic and independent sectors and across all
metropolitan Melbourne and rural and regional Victoria, including Maryborough Education Centre.

The changes to schools’ operations will come into effect from Wednesday 5 August, following a student free day on
Tuesday 4 August, and are likely to apply until the end of Term 3.

As outlined in the Chief Health Officer’s advice on Friday, schools remain safe places for staff and students – but these steps are critical measures to reduce the movement of students and families across the state.

There are implications for our school, and for families in our school community. Many of these are similar to our
previous experience of remote learning in Term 2.

A summary of what the changes mean for MEC is below:

PREP TO YEAR 10

  • Prep to Year 10 students will move to remote and flexible learning.
  • On-site supervision will be available to:
    o Children whose parents cannot work from home
    o Vulnerable children
    o Any child with a disability

SENIOR SECONDARY YEAR 11 AND 12 (VCE, VCAL & VETiS)

  • All Year 11 and 12 provision for both VCE, VCAL and VET will move to remote and flexible learning.
  • The GAT will be rescheduled from Wednesday 9 September to Wednesday 7 October.
  • The schedule for the VCE examinations and release of results will remain as previously advised.
  • Further information about consideration of disadvantage and coronavirus (COVID-19) will be provided shortly

SPECIALIST SETTING

  • Any child enrolled in the Specialist Setting at MEC will be able to continue to attend.
  • Any parent of a child enrolled in the Specialist Setting wishes to keep their child at home can do so, and where
    possible, we will provide learning materials and activities for the child and their parent to complete at home.

TIMELINE

  • Monday 3 August will be a ‘normal’ day of school under current arrangements, with students attending on site
    learning asked to take all their necessary learning materials home.
  • Tuesday 4 August will be a student-free day across Victoria to enable teachers, especially in rural and regional
    Victoria, to prepare for flexible and remote learning.
  • Wednesday 5 August will be the first day of new arrangements for schools across Victoria
  • This is a day ahead of the statewide introduction of the Stage 3 restrictions in rural and regional Victoria, but will provide for a smooth transition and will enable as much continuity of learning as possible.

ON-SITE SUPERVISION

  • Any parent/carer wishing to have their child attend school for on-site supervision and who meets the
    necessary criteria are asked to complete the short application form located on the school website, or by
    telephoning the school on 54617900. This includes mainstream and specialist students.
    http://intranet.maryborougheducationcentre.vic.edu.au/
  • Any child over 12 who is attending school for on-site supervision will be required to wear an appropriate face
    covering at all times.
  • Mainstream students attending for on-site supervision will be completing the remote learning work set by
    their regular teacher/s.
  • The Specialist Setting program will be determined by the number of specialist students who attend school.
  • School buses will be running as normal until further notice.

REMOTE AND FLEXIBLE LEARNING

  • The remote and flexible learning program will be undertaken in a similar fashion to Term 2 and will be largely
    conducted using the Microsoft Teams platform.
  • Please contact the school if you have any issues relating to this style of learning.

SCHOOL CONTACT

  • The school office will remain open for telephone calls during normal business hours.
  • I will be working from home. I can be contacted at any time on the school mobile 0488617900. Please call or
    text me if you have any concerns.

This is a most challenging period in Victoria’s history and the health and wellbeing of our children is the most important thing. Many children will be feeling confused, worried and frightened as well as frustrated at these sudden and unpredictable changes to our lives. Our student services team will continue to be available to students and families. Contact can be made via the website or a call to the school.

Please remember, parents and carers know their students best and are in a position to modify and adjust remote and
flexible learning so it best meets the needs of their children. If your child is overly, tired or worried is overwhelmed
with workload please feel free to adjust the program as necessary. As student well-being is the priority it is imperative that this style of learning is tailored to meet individual needs of children.

Please take care and do not hesitate to contact me, or any school staff, if you have any queries.

Thank you for your understanding and support.

 

David Sutton
Principal