The school is funded under the federal government’s Remote School Attendance Strategy, which allows them to hire a school attendance supervisor and four school attendance officers who pick up students in the morning and case manage children whose attendance is under 85 per cent. “Our motto this year is that attendance is everyone’s business,” Lisa says. “Even though the attendance officers are employed to bring the children to school, if we provide a safe, welcoming and supportive environment the children will come on their own accord,” she says. “We deliver the Australian Curriculum through evidence-based pedagogies that are designed to accelerate learning based on individual needs. Along with this, we have a strong social justice committee made up of school and community members that assists those student’s needing extra support." "This has improved learning confidence, engagement and success. Students feel comfortable coming to school because they know their well-being is paramount." Lisa says there has been “a paradigm shift” in the community this year. “The expectation is that kids go to school,” Lisa says. “We had a big back-to-school community celebration at the start of the year, which was supported greatly by the community. It set the year off on the right foot," she says. She says every staff member at the school had contributed to the success. "The success we have had cannot be attributed to one person. It’s a whole team effort, from the cleaners keeping our school clean and tidy, to our tuckshop staff providing our breakfast and lunch programs. We are all very excited to be above the state average for all schools,” Lisa says. “The school received a letter from Nigel Scullion the Federal Indigenous Affairs Minister, congratulating us for having ten consecutive weeks of 90 per cent attendance or above, the best out of all the school’s implementing the Remote School Attendance Strategy,” she says. “It was a valued recognition for such a proud community.” The school will celebrate NAIDOC Week in August. This year it’s just one of a number of celebrations in Woorabinda, which is marking its 90th anniversary as a community. Lisa says NAIDOC should be celebrated by all schools. “So much of our history isn’t spoken about enough. Ensuring our younger generation can hear the stories, revive the languages and pass on the rich cultural knowledge is a big step towards reconciliation,” she says. “It’s part of who we are as proud Australians and it needs to be acknowledged, valued and celebrated." |