Our Tutor Group and Pastoral Care Program is designed to give each student and their family a teacher who is there to support them in their time at the school. This teacher is a contact for families and students (their first port of call) to discuss attendance, academic and social issues and any other issues that may arise.
Students meet with their Tutor Group teacher every morning for roll call and notices and for approximately 45 minutes each week to deliver pastoral care sessions. Pastoral care sessions consist of a variety of topics including social and emotional wellbeing, cyber safety, time management and study skills.
Overview of Tutor Group
Every morning, students meet in small groups with other students from their year group with their Tutor Group Teacher. The aims of the morning session are:
- To build a sense of belonging and connection between TG teachers and the students in their group.
- To provide close monitoring of students with regard to wellbeing, attendance and behaviour.
- For students to receive school-wide information via the daily notices.
Overview of Pastoral Care Sessions
Our school’s pastoral care curriculum aims to meet the needs of students as they progress through their high school education. The program explores various themes and focuses on the development of students as; a learner, a person, a community member and a contributor to society.
Students at each year level have opportunities to address topics not generally covered in class e.g. Positive Behaviour for Learning, bullying, resilience, Student Pathways, protective behaviour, wellbeing etc.
Pastoral Care themes
Each year students will explore units of work related to their stage of development and needs of the year group. Topics may include:
Esafety – Students look at their responsible use of devices, social media and staying safe online.
Pathways – Students look at their transition into and out of high school. This includes setting personal goals, exploring subject choices and study options, Work Experience, looking at plans for the future (including career aspirations).
Wellbeing – Students explore topics to do with personal wellbeing and taking care of themselves and others. This includes looking at lifestyle choices, positive psychology, resilience and relationships.
Protective Behaviours – Students explore ways to minimize harm towards themselves and others. This includes education about advocacy for safe practices around substances, social gatherings and use of technology.
Communities – Students are encouraged to think beyond themselves and engage in ways to make a difference within the school and local communities. This includes being an active member of the school community and ‘giving back’.
Tutor Group/Pastoral Care Teacher Responsibilities
Tutor Groups are established in year 7 and remain together (ideally with their teacher) until graduating year 10. Students meet with their TG teacher every morning. During this brief morning session, students have their attendance recorded, and receive information relating to things that are happening around the school.
Classroom Teachers:
Manage behaviour in your classroom through:
- Trauma informed practices and restorative approaches
- Engagement with and implementation of student plans (ILPs, PBSPs, PLPs)
- Engaging lessons
- Differentiated/scaffolded work
- Established classroom rules and routines in line with our PBL expectations
- Acknowledgment of on task/appropriate behaviour (Deakin Deeds)
- Following up on inappropriate and off-task behaviour
- Phone calls home to report on progress and engagement
- SAS entries - enter positive and negative incidents
- Monitoring and following up students attendance
Faculty SLCs:
- Support classroom teachers with behaviour management
- Phone calls home and meetings with parents
- Managing behaviour in faculty areas
- Run restorative meetings between teachers and students
- Facilitate card agreements
Year Coordinators take on a leadership role and support Tutor Group Teachers and students within their year cohort. They support the attendance, academic progress and social development of students within their year group, and case manage a small number of tier 2 and 3 students in their year group. Each year group has two year coordinators.
Year Coordinators:
- Advocate for students
- Identify students requiring extra support in the form of mentors, action plans, parent meetings
- Monitor ongoing truancy and behaviour issues and respond to low level issues (playground, classroom behaviour will be followed up by Classroom Teacher and Faculty SLC).
- Support student engagement
- Year Level acknowledgment/rewards of achievement/success and appropriate behaviour including end of semester/year celebrations
- Run restorative meetings between students
- Communication: Phone calls home, meetings with students/parents/teachers.
- Assist Tutor Group Teachers
- Contribute to the development of Pastoral Care lessons and manage and support Tutor Group Teachers with the delivery of these sessions.
- Support with re-engaging students at risk across several subject areas
- ILP development (classroom adjustments)
- Promote a positive school culture by supporting the PBL team
- Support Year Coordinators with positive behaviour of universal and selected groups of students
- Development and implementation of whole school Social and Emotional Learning through Pastoral Care (with Year Coordinators)
- Whole School Behaviour Management policy development and implementation
- Follow through with major incidents in discussion with Deputy Principal, Principal and/or Faculty SLCs
- Mentoring the Student Wellbeing Team (program development, Professional Learning, administration, student support)
- Support Year Coordinators with behaviour of selected and targeted students.
- Support with re-engaging students at risk across several subject areas
- Case manage Tier 3 students (attendance, behaviour, mental health and welfare)
- Model and promote Restorative Practices
- Develop whole school wellbeing initiatives
- Support student leadership opportunities in the school
- Lead strategic direction of wellbeing across the school
- Ensure systems and process are aligned with Safe and Supportive Schools Policy
- Suspension decisions and re-entry discussions
- Support SLCs and Student Wellbeing Team with major incidents
- Ensure all staff are following behaviour management processes
- Staff Professional Learning
- Case management of Tier 3 students and students/families with highly complex needs
- Lead Student Wellbeing Team in the development of Positive Behaviour Support Plans, Individual Safety Plans and Individual Learning Plans
- Coordinate referrals to the Targeted Support Team and Allied Health
- Liaise with Occupational Violence Team
Student Wellbeing Administration Officer
- Provide support in developing and maintaining the student record systems
- Provide operational, administrative, technical and professional support for Student Wellbeing
- Oversee accurate student data and attendance information
- Provide appropriate advice and support to staff on student related matters
- Oversee operational management of Student Wellbeing
School Psychologist
- Conduct psychological and educational assessments, writing comprehensive reports and providing recommendations
- Provision of psychological intervention for children and young people
- Conduct mental health risk assessments
- Assist in managing critical incidents
- Consult and collaborate with key stakeholders, including teachers, parents, carers, school administrators and external agencies to support and enhance student learning and wellbeing
- Consultation, development, and evaluation of behaviour, social emotional and individual learning plans
- Support student learning and wellbeing by making referrals to directorate programs and external agencies
- Assist in the selection, design, implementation and evaluation of prevention programs
- Provide information and psychological education to students, school staff, parents, carers and external stakeholders
- Support the development of policy and processes
International Private Student Coordinator
- Supports International Private Students and facilitates communication between home and school
- Supports International Private Students with academic and social and emotional issues
- Monitors and coordinates International travel arrangements throughout the school year