FROM THE PRINCIPAL

TRINITY – A STRONG COMMUNITY IN LOCKDOWN

The past few months have certainly been very testing for everyone. As a society and as a College community, we have all been required to navigate unchartered waters with respect to the global pandemic associated with COVID-19. We have had to conform to various societal restrictions and adjust to the many frequent amendments to health, travel and social advice as our federal and state governments, in consultation with respective health authorities, have focused on minimising and preventing the transmission of COVID-19. I am sure that I echo the sentiments of most when I reflect upon how lucky we are to have been living in Perth throughout this time.

What has been particularly alarming has been the rapid acceleration of the pandemic and the effect it has had on aspects of our College life. I first mentioned the coronavirus in a College newsletter on 28 February and then soon after, sent the first formal letter to all families on 17 March. Since then, in rather rapid succession, I have sent another ten letters to families (and students and staff) providing various updates as our context has changed. Amidst a backdrop of changing school operations, increased hygiene measures, our school closure, the implementation of a Remote Learning Program and then our school resumption, we have positively and successfully maintained our teaching and learning processes while keeping all within our community safe. This has been the focus for Trinity College. Throughout this most unusual time, we have consistently prioritised the health and safety of our students, staff and all within our community. In doing so, we have considered specific guidelines and advice from various health, education and school governance authorities at both a national and state level. There has certainly been plenty of advice to consider! In fact, a most recent check pointed to a total of 45 memos and seven government directives that needed to be discerned and then implemented within our Trinity context. Over the past months, we have seen our College largely shut down as we transitioned into remote learning and then resumed again as we implemented a phased return to direct learning. I am most grateful for the understanding and remarkable support of our College community as we adapted accordingly. It was most humbling and very satisfying to see the smiles on students’ faces as they returned to campus to be with their mates and teachers. It was a very real reminder about the important role of relationships and community within our College. While teaching and learning can be done effectively in a remote manner (and our College has certainly achieved this over the past months), holistic learning is best achieved through the respectful, purposeful and real interaction of people. It is in the shared effort and caring relationships of people – students, staff and families – that community is formed, and it is this strong sense of community and support that makes Trinity College such a great school. It is not buildings that make a school, for they are just shells without some scuff marks and the excited voices and energy of students to bring them to life. It is not programs or good digital connections that make a school, but rather the shared work of the staff and students in working towards making such learning relevant. This obviously happens more effectively when delivered in a face-to-face manner. I sincerely acknowledge the difficulty that the changing nature of ‘school’ and ‘mode of instructional delivery’ presented to all within our College community. While I appreciate the general understanding of the circumstances that we all found ourselves in, I am also very grateful for the patience, support and trust of our families. Likewise, our students should be commended for their adaptability and willingness to remain engaged in their learning, whether remotely or within the classroom. Generally, they have remained positive and applied themselves to the various tasks presented to them. I am also incredibly proud of the teachers and support staff who have continually adapted and worked incredibly hard over the past months. Such an enormous shift in teaching pedagogy has been handled most professionally and in a manner that has demonstrated their genuine dedication to the students in their care.

FROM THE PRINCIPAL CONTINUED...

This point was highlighted in a recent letter that all staff received from Dr Wayne Tinsey, Executive Director of Edmund Rice Education Australia (EREA). It served to acknowledge, congratulate and thank teachers and College staff for their part in keeping education alive and relevant during these difficult months. I include some excerpts below: “… In these extraordinary days of COVID-19, our society has realised how dependent we are on the people who do ‘ordinary’ jobs; those who in normal times, we can tend to take for granted. During this time, our rubbish has still been collected, our police and firefighters have still responded, our hospitals have still been wonderfully staffed, our supermarkets have been replenished and our students have still been taught. So many of the contributions that may have been taken for granted prior to the pandemic, are now valued more than ever. The ‘ordinary’ has become the site of the heroic! These professions have proven themselves to be extraordinary in their contribution. With little notice and minimal preparation time, our school staff have contributed to unprecedented adaptation and innovation in the process of education. I have no doubt that reflection on what has been achieved in recent weeks will result in a transformation of education practice for generations to come. Be very proud of your part in this. Who would have thought it possible that millions of young people would be able to continue their learning in the midst of a global pandemic? Could we have ever imagined that educators of all ages and experience would embrace technology and the discipline of distance and remote learning, just so that our young people could remain connected to school and education? I have never been so proud of my profession; and I have so much admiration for you, the teachers, youth workers and our support staff who have selflessly put the needs of our students above your own. I know that many of you have had to juggle the needs of your own families, as well as the care and concern for your students. Ours is a profession of service and very few would consider their contribution as being heroic. But for me, what you have selflessly achieved in recent weeks is just that, heroic. I hope that, as things return to a new normal, we as a society are more grateful for the teachers and the other ‘ordinary’ heroes who just did what they had to do. I hope that as we reflect on the pressures of working from home and the experience of home schooling, our society will have renewed appreciation for educators. We now realise more than ever the privilege of schooling, where shared humanity makes all the difference in the formation of the young...” These are wonderful sentiments that have been echoed by many families and students within our Trinity College community as they have forwarded many cards, letters and emails of appreciation and support. As we continue to emerge from this COVID-19 period, may we look to return to ‘normal’ school operations with a renewed sense of community and deep appreciation of our shared responsibilities in working together in the formation of good young Men for Others. Live Jesus in our hearts.

Mr Darren O’Neill

Principal