Pastoral care of students has become more important than ever in the year of Covid-19.
One local school, Macarthur Anglican at Cobbitty, says the pandemic has highlighted just how important student wellbeing is to learning.
Year 2 teacher Katrina Ha believes that you can’t teach without first tending to pastoral care.
“If a student is going through something difficult, it will impact their academic performance, so I need to provide them the support they need,” Mrs Ha said.
“The old adage that it takes a village to raise a child is so true. The involvement of parents is key to their children’s success, and I always listen to parents and keep them informed.
“Young students need a lot of people on their team – teachers, parents, older children, extended family, and others.’’
The school’s dean of studies, Kylie Elling, says that educators have always known that pastoral care has a direct correlation with academic achievement.
“Students need to feel safe, secure and happy before they can succeed at school.
“As dean of studies, my role is focused on academics, and my colleague Tim Cartwright in his role as the dean of students, focuses on the wellbeing side of student life.
“We work very closely together, allowing us to guide and support each student holistically, rather than in isolation.’’
The pandemic has also meant the annual Macarthur Anglican trip to Thailand was cancelled for 2020.
Dean of students Tim Cartwright, pictured above with students, said that although the children visit Thailand to learn about a different culture, it is also very important as a pastoral care activity.
“I’ve spent many hours walking through Thai villages side-by-side with students. It allows me to speak to young people in a much more relaxed and authentic way,” he said.
“Activities such as these, give you the chance to establish real lines of communication with students. This year, we have had to look at alternate ways of doing this.’’
