Dear Students and Parents/Carers

Term 4 commences tomorrow and there are a range of things I ask you to note.

Resumption of Classes

  • Monday October 4: Year 12 students and Year 11’s doing a VCE Unit 3/4 subject return to site while other Year 11 students continue with remote learning.
  • Tuesday October 5: the GAT is held and only those students doing the GAT attend on site. Self-directed work will be set in Compass for Unit 2 VCE classes and all VCAL classes.
  • NETschool students resume on Monday October 4.
  • Wednesday October 6: ALL BSSC students return to site for a resumption of face to face learning.

Be Prepared
With the increase in COVID cases around the state we are seeing localised 7-day lockdowns applied at short notice in regional Victoria. It is possible this may occur at some stage in Bendigo. As a precaution, I strongly encourage students to get into the habit of taking home with them each day all the materials they would need to continue their studies remotely.

Please note that in the event of a localised lockdown I expect the GAT and VCAA exams would proceed as planned given the focus on vaccination of students and staff and the precautions factored into the planning for these events including additional distancing of students in exam rooms and other measures including ventilation and enhanced cleaning.

End of Year 12 Classes and Graduation
We now have updated advice from the Department of Education and Training about the level of health restrictions in schools to allow us to finalise our plans for Year 12 Graduation and last day celebrations for students. Unfortunately, we cannot run these events with any face-to-face component as we’d hoped. The option we are now proceeding with for graduation is the one in which we will pre-record the event and stream it out to students and families as we did in 2020. This event will be streamed out, as previously advised, on the evening of Wednesday October 20.

Further details about Graduation and the final day celebration for Year 12 students will be emailed to students tomorrow.

These plans are subject to change if COVID restrictions change.

Consideration of Educational Disadvantage
The information below was shared via Compass on September 16 and applies to Unit 3 & 4 VCE and VCE VET scored students only. Please note the deadline of October 8.

The Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (VCAA) recognises that every Victorian student may have been impacted by disruption caused by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

However, the VCAA understands some students have been significantly affected, beyond others, and the purpose of this statement is for you to tell your school how you have been affected.

It is important to understand that the level and/or number of boxes ticked does not equate to a change in your study score. This information will complement what your teacher and your school already know about you.

Instructions:

  1. If you believe you have been significantly affected by the coronavirus pandemic (above how most students have been affected), click on the link and answer the questions (you MUST use your BSSC username and password to log in to Google).  Please indicate in the Affects Me column which type of disadvantage you have experienced and in the Level column record a level of impact (1 being the lowest impact). You should make these judgements for your overall program of studies, not study by study.  This form must be submitted by Friday 8th October.  You do not need to provide any supporting evidence, however the school may contact you for clarification if needed.
  2. If you do not believe that you have been significantly affected above how most students have been affected, you do not need to complete the online form.

Note: Students who are completing a Performance Exam may be contacted and requested to submit their form earlier, if they are wanting to be considered for CED.

Special consideration also applies to VCAL and VCE VET non-scored students, however these students are not required to complete the Student Statement.

If you have any queries about this process, please contact the relevant Student Engagement Coordinator.

I’m looking forward to seeing students back on site this week.

Yours faithfully

Dale Pearce
Principal