Perhaps broader opportunities yet increasing accountabilities at a personal level.  Young people are open minded and able to learn new technologies quickly and for the most part, the future looks hopeful in a complex world.  It’s often the adults who need assistance isn’t it?  At the College we are open to your enquiry about the issues of learning for our students and families.

Next Thursday evening 14 September we want to assist parents in guiding your children and teenagers in the subject of pornography.  Increasingly our young people are being exposed to inappropriate material through their internet use.  It is a growing problem for families. We have a special guest – James Grady to speak to us and we recommend your attendance. It’s a free night and you can book through trybooking.com/RGXC. Please come along. 

Our Year 9 students are the first group to have their NAPLAN results linked to a minimum standard for the HSC in 2020. We wrote to all Year 9 families about the detail and now have included this letter below for your information.

Year 12 students are about to graduate and a special assembly will be held on Friday 22 September. Parents and grandparents attend for most students and it is a lovely opportunity to reflect on the journey across the school years. For an increasing number of graduates Thomas Hassall Anglican College has been their only school. Please continue to pray for Year 12 and their final HSC examinations. 

Thank you also to Mrs Christine Bessant and the Executive Team for the smooth passage of the College during my recent time away.

Ross Whelan

‘But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive in Christ, even when….’ Ephesians 2:4-5

Letter sent 21 August 2017 as follows:-

Dear Parents,

This week you received the results of your child’s 2017 National Assessment Program in Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN). The College performed strongly in comparison to the State average and many of our Year 9 students received their marks that automatically qualify them to receive a Higher School Certificate in 2020. Students who did not receive a result in the Band 8 - 10 range in all 3 of the Assessments (Reading, Writing and Numeracy) have not automatically qualified to receive a HSC in 2020 and will be given subsequent opportunities to qualify at a later time as outlined in the accompanying letter from the New South Wales Education Standards Authority (NESA).

The table below shows how Thomas Hassall students performed in comparison to the rest of the state.

Students Who Have Qualifed to Receive a HSC in 2020  Reading Writing Numeracy
Thomas Hassall Anglican College 66.2% 56.6% 68.4%
State 58.8% 47.2% 58.5%

We anticipated that not all Thomas Hassall students would automatically qualify at this first opportunity.  Therefore; we have a number of measures in place to assist students to achieve the qualification at one of their next opportunities. These opportunities will be offered over the course of the next year and include:

  • Online courses to improve literacy. We have implemented Literacy Planet for targeted groups across the Senior School to improve student’s basic skills in literacy. We have received positive feedback regarding the uptake of this program and would like to offer students who are yet to qualify an opportunity to be a part of the program. 
  • The Study Centre is open and available for all students from Years 7-12, four afternoons a week. However, we will target specific skills on selected afternoons for students in order to assist students in preparation for their next test opportunity. Invitations will be sent to parents of the candidates targeted for intervention.
  •  Mathematics and English classes in Secondary will continue to ensure that students are given regular feedback via their internal tests and exercises as to how they are achieving in regards to the qualification standards. Students who are identified as yet to qualify will be encouraged to take up the opportunities made available by the College.
  • Reading Support: There is a withdrawal system in place to support students in their Reading (Multi-Lit). Whilst this has been primarily a Junior School program, we do have targeted students doing Multi-Lit Extension in the Senior School. Other similar programs targeting writing and numeracy are being considered.
  •  In our Year 10 schedule there is now going to be opportunities for specialist days of targeted tutorials in the specific areas of numeracy and literacy most needed to assist students in qualifying for their HSC.

We will also continue to ensure that all of our staff across the College are being regularly informed of the most up to date numeracy and literacy strategies to assist our students across all of their subjects.

We are expecting that the majority of students will have qualified by the end of Year 10  However, some students will require more ongoing and targeted support. From our experience, when a student commits to their learning and has the right encouragement and support from their home and school environments, a great deal can be achieved. 

If you have any questions or concerns please contact our Director of Studies, Ms Kelie Munro or Director of Improvement Innovation (Middle Years) Mr David Butler at the College.