Learning is at the heart of every interaction in our school, and the key to learning success at Whites Hill is students knowing that they have agency over their own success.  Now that the busyness of assessment and exams have passed it is important to reflect on the magnitude of learning that students have engaged in across the past 10 weeks.  When reflecting, it is critical that students acknowledge the level of effort that they have expended to receive their academic results. 

At Whites Hill we believe a growth mindset is an important element of student agency.  Students taking responsibility for and being the leader of their own learning is integral to our values of Imagine and Believe.  

Growth Mindset is a belief that growth comes as the result of hard work and not solely innate ability or talent.  Research undertaken by Professor Carol Dweck, confirms that students who are acknowledged for hard work are more likely to take on learning that challenges them, thrive on challenge, and as a natural consequence increase their resilience, ability, and eventual outcomes. 

One of school values is Achieve and at Whites Hill we believe that everyone can learn and grow academically, socially, and emotionally. As a school we are committed to ensuring that the special qualities, interests, and character of each of our students is developed.  I am confident that each of our students has experienced a personalised journey of growth during term 1 and we look forward to discussing these learning journeys with our parent community at parent teacher interviews on Monday April 28^th from 3:30pm. 

As the term ends, I also ask students and their families to ensure that the correct uniform items have been purchased in readiness for term 2.  Our uniform is one element of our great school that provides us with a sense of belonging.  I am confident that all our students are proud to belong to the Whites Hill community, therefore I look forward to seeing students wear their uniforms with pride during term 2. 

I would also like to highlight that ‘every day is a day of learning at Whites Hill.  Learning at Whites Hill is dynamic and engaging, and when students are not at school, they are missing out on opportunities to learn.   Students should ensure that they are arriving at school on time each day and minimising absences so that they can maximise their exposure to learning.  Our school day starts at 8:45am and our attendance target for all students is a 90%.   Attendance at classes and effort are critical factors on student success. Attendance for each year level this term has shown improvement on their overall attendance rate compared with last year. 

Thank you to each member of our community who has contributed to the success of our students this term.

Enjoy your holiday. 

Samantha Hawkins
Head of School - Secondary