20-March
Good evening one and all
I apologise for the lateness of this message but I wanted our community to be among the first in the State to know about a few decisions made today by the Department of Education that will impact on our school in the next few weeks and months.
Additional Pupil Free Days
The Minister for Education today approved an additional two pupil-free days. The first will be on the last day of this term – Friday next week (March 27)– and the second will be on the first day of Term 2 (Tuesday April 14) after the coming school holidays.
We have been working hard to prepare for the possibility that we will need to move at some stage to more flexible learning arrangements, including remote learning. These days will help to provide an important opportunity for us to consolidate our preparations for remote learning- keeping in mind the necessity to ensure educational equity. While our school and teachers are well prepared to commence remote learning, it won’t always be perfect, and we will continue to learn as we go.
SCHOOL REMAINS OPEN
On the recommendation of the Australian Health Protection Principal Committee (AHPPC), the National Cabinet also determined that early childhood settings, schools and higher education institutions remain exempt from the social distancing requirements. Based on this advice, schools will continue to be open next week.
We will continue to encourage our staff and students to practise the new social-distancing measures- where these are practical in our setting.
We will continue to follow the recommendations of the Victorian Chief Health Officer, and if the advice changes, we will be sure to let you know as soon as possible.
ABSENCES
From the DET email this evening “If parents choose to keep their children at home, the onus will be on parents in the first instance to support the learning of their children. However, where teachers have capacity, they can support these children.”
Edithvale Primary staff often go above and beyond in their daily work and we are committed to providing some home learning tasks for our students, although these will be limited. The FUSE website which contains useful resources for students and parents, is available to use at home to help complement the learning set by our staff.
NAPLAN
And finally…. Education Ministers met this morning to discuss the evolving coronavirus (COVID-19) situation and the implications for schools. They have today decided that NAPLAN testing will not proceed for 2020.
I want to thank you again for your understanding of the situation we find ourselves in and continue to appreciate and value your support of our school and all of our members in very challenging circumstances.
Enjoy your weekend
Kind Regards,
James Whitla
Principal
Important links:
- DET Learning from home tips, advice and resources
- Seesaw Help Center
Additional Information:
DHHS – the importance of our schools remaining open (118) 16-Mar-2020
Novel Coronavirus Fact Sheet (144) 28-Jan-2020
Coronoavirus Update – 13 Mar – (209 KB) 13-Mar-2020
Coronoavirus Update – 3 Feb – (124 KB) 03-Feb-2020
Coronoavirus Update – 31 January – (57 KB) 31-Jan-2020
Information about EPS Home Learning with SEESAW – (121KB) 25-Mar-2020
Learning from Home: Information for parents and carers (208 KB) – 10-Apr-2020
Letter explaining student work from home – (376 KB) 19-Mar-2020
Loan of Assets Agreement (444 KB) – 10-Apr-2020
Physical Distancing Guidance for Schools (218 KB)
Reduce your risk of coronavirus poster – (651 KB) 15-Mar-2020
Update on the coronavirus outbreak – 28 January – (74 KB) 28-Jan-2020
Important Phone Numbers:
- COVID-19 Hotline – 1800 675 398
- DHHS Hotline – 1300 651 160