The School’s Towards 2025 Strategic Plan poses the question, ‘How do you prepare a young girl for her future?’ and responds that ‘at St Catherine’s School we believe it begins with courage. The moment a student walks through our Heyington Gates, she is encouraged to be bold, to inquire, to question, to learn and contribute.’

The Class of 2021 has been courageous in the face of uncertainty, bold in the face of challenge and persistent in their determination to continue to learn, irrespective of their location. They have demonstrated independence, curiosity and care as they have continued to contribute to the life of the School both in person or on screen, at a time where their leadership has had a huge impact.

It was wonderful to have the Year 12 students return to campus last week for their GAT and exam preparation.

We feel incredibly privileged to have had the VCE Units 3 & 4 students return to our School campus for the General Assessment Test (GAT) and their revision classes in the first two weeks of term. The positive energy they have returned to School with, bodes well for their upcoming exams and also for the impending return of the younger Year levels. The ability of the students to take up from where they left off after an extended lockdown, speaks not only of their courage and resilience but the strong bond they share with their peers and teachers.

Despite the disappointment of having some of their usual celebratory events and assemblies postponed until after exams, the Year 12 students have shown great maturity and understanding, prioritising their study and health and seeing the bigger picture. The whole cohort can be proud of the way they have conducted themselves during remote learning in lockdown and in the lead up to the examination period. They continue to serve as excellent role models to the younger students, as has repeatedly been the case in their time in the School.

We look forward to officially honouring the Class of 2021. Having completed their VCE over the two years of a pandemic, this cohort will be etched in St Catherine’s history as embodying the essence of the St Catherine’s girl – the courage to meet challenge with conviction and an optimism for the future in unparalleled global circumstances.

Our admiration continues also for the students who patiently await the staggered return to school dates. We are mindful that there will be some apprehension as well as excitement and the Heads of Year are planning to welcome and support the students at every level.

Online Safety Reminder

As we still have most students learning online, it is timely to remind parents that, in addition to the wonders of technology, we must remain ever vigilant of the perils associated with online activity, particularly during extended periods of lockdown.

Cyber Safety expert, Susan McLean warns of the dangers posed for young people in her video to parents on the topic of Grooming and Online Predators. McLean discusses the prevalence of predators and outlines some of the strategies they use to seek out young people and gain their trust.

McLean notes that popular children’s apps are being targeted by paedophiles in Australia in greater numbers than ever before. She also offers strategies for parents to have safety discussions with their child from a very early age, using language they understand. Parents are also given advice about how to respond if their child has been groomed. She concludes her brief video with the important advice to “protect your children, talk to your children and be there with them”.

Other tips for online safety can be found on the Learn@Home hub Wellbeing pages.