Week 5 Term 2 Update

It has been another full and productive week at Como Secondary College, with a strong focus on both student support and strengthening our collective direction as a college community.

Throughout the week, our staff have continued their important work in supporting students, both in the classroom and through our broader wellbeing structures. This has included targeted work around learning support, where staff worked together to ensure we are identifying and supporting students who require additional resourcing.

Alongside this, our leadership and student services teams have continued refining documented plans and processes to ensure they are clear, consistent and centred on student outcomes. We have also been working closely with Statewide Services to review our assessment data, helping us better understand student achievement trends and identify opportunities to further strengthen teaching and learning across the College.

We also continued our engagement with our broader college community through our Advancement Council conversations this week, reinforcing the importance of partnership and shared voice in shaping the future direction of our College.

A significant milestone this week has been the commencement of Year 10 exams. This is an important experience for our students as they begin to develop the habits, resilience and discipline required for senior school. For our Year 11 and 12 students, exam periods are fast approaching. While this can be a challenging time, it is also an opportunity to demonstrate growth, independence and commitment to learning.

We encourage all students to focus on a balanced approach:

Study tips

Break revision into manageable chunks and plan ahead
Use a variety of strategies; practice questions, summaries, discussion
Focus on understanding, not just memorising
Seek support early from teachers when unsure

Wellbeing and self-care

Maintain regular sleep routines
Stay active and take breaks between study sessions
Eat well and stay hydrated
Keep perspective! Your wellbeing matters more than any single assessment

As always, our staff are here to support every student to navigate this period with confidence.

One of the highlights of the week was our Cancer Council Morning Tea, which truly showcased the spirit of our College. Our students did an exceptional job in organising and contributing to a smorgasbord of food for staff to enjoy, demonstrating initiative, generosity and a genuine sense of care for others. The event raised just under $1000 for the Cancer Council, an outstanding achievement and a reflection of the compassion within our community.

A sincere thank you to all students and staff involved in making this such a positive and meaningful event.

As we move through the term, I want to take the opportunity to reflect on The Como Way, our shared commitment to Integrity, Care, Ambition, and Effort.

These values underpin how we learn, how we treat one another, and how we prepare our young people for life beyond school. However, for these values to truly have impact, they must be more than words, they must be lived, understood and owned by all members of our community.

Over the coming weeks, we will be commencing a deliberate and important piece of work to ensure that The Como Way is:

Meaningful – clearly understood across our community
Purposeful – evident in everyday behaviour and decision-making
Collectively owned – shaped by the voices of students, staff and families

We will be seeking input from the entire college community to identify, what do they expect from ourselves and others? How do we embed our values consistently in our practice? What do you want to see in the people within our college, now and into the future?

At the heart of this work is a simple but powerful question: What kind of community do we want to be, and what does that require of each of us?

As a school, we remain committed to creating an environment where: