From the Principal

How liberating would it be if we viewed ourselves first and foremost as learners?
And…what if we were actively aware of ourselves as learners and could adjust our approach for success accordingly? How much could we achieve then?

Dr Shyam Barr, author of ‘Educate to Self-regulate: Empowering Learners for Lifelong Success’

Before we launch into this week’s topic of Learning Discussions, the first of which commence next week, there are a few key – very exciting – sporting events coming up that I’d like to take a moment to acknowledge.

Firstly, congratulations to our fabulous Rowers, whose collective hard work and dedication earned them the Champion School Point Score Trophy at last Sunday’s IGSA Sport Rowing Regatta. The girls showed up in highly spirited and ever-respectful Pymble style, much to the great pride and joy of their parents, supporters and two Pymble principals in the crowd (me, and our former Head, Mrs Gillian Moore AO). The teams now have their sights set firmly on Head of the River on Saturday 8 March and we can’t wait to cheer them on in their season’s grand finale.

Our sensational Swimmers and Divers are also training their hearts out for the annual IGSA championships at SOPAC on Friday 14 March and, of course, Tildesley Tournament begins on Wednesday 19 March for our ace Tennis team – I am loving hearing the thwack of tennis balls every morning from my home as they practise, practise and practise some more! It was very special to witness our Secondary girls sing the Pymble war cry with great pride as our Year 12s formed a guard of honour at assembly this week to celebrate our athletes and wish them the best for these upcoming events.

And now, back to Learning Discussions…

Learning Discussions are an important part of the academic feedback cycle at Pymble, in addition to semester reports, NAPLAN and Allwell (AAS) testing, and ongoing formative assessment and feedback given to students by their class or subject teachers throughout the year. 

This year, based on feedback from parents, we have made some changes to the Learning Discussions in the Secondary School, including the re-introduction of face-to-face sessions for Years 7 and 12 parents and students, along with online options, which remain the format for all other year groups (8 to 11). Junior School families can choose either online or face-to-face interviews in Week 8.

These sessions have been carefully designed to give parents and carers feedback on four key measures of your daughter’s learning: her Knowledge, Skills, Character as a learner, and her Motivation to learn. Our Deputy Principal – Academic (K-12), Mrs Christine Kenny, says parents can expect to hear feedback along the following lines:

Knowledge and skills – what your daughter knows about each subject, her depth of that knowledge, and the connections she can make between different facts gleaned from a variety of sources.

Character as a learner – the unique dispositions that make your daughter an effective learner; someone who approaches learning opportunities with resilience, persistence and curiosity. 

Self-evaluation – her ability to reflect on what she is doing well, her motivation for learning, and what could be “even better next time”, across all subjects.

Our aim is to nurture each child into a young adult who graduates with a strong sense of ‘Learner Identity’ – someone who understands their unique learning process and who also has a set of tools to help them adapt to each new learning experience, whether that’s in the classroom, at tertiary study level, in the workplace, or in everyday life scenarios.

Dr Shyam Barr, who is quoted at the start of this column, explains the importance of understanding Learner Identity in this 15-minute TEDx talk based on his book, Educate to Self-regulate: Empowering Learners for Lifelong Success, both of which are well worth diving into if you have the time. 

So, as we head into Learning Discussion season, Mrs Kenny, along with our Deputy Head of Junior School – Academic, Mrs Lara Bird, share their advice to help parents gain the most from their session(s):

Before the interview

• Talk to your daughter and ask her how she is feeling about school, what she enjoys and any challenges she faces.  
• Write down questions or points to discuss, such as her academic performance and the skills she is developing (communication, critical thinking, organisation, etc), as well as her wellbeing and friendships.

During the interview

• Teachers and parents all share a common goal of supporting each student’s learning and personal growth with open minds and mutual respect. 
• You know your daughter best, so if you are new to Pymble, please share information on her academics, wellbeing, skills, strengths, passions and interests to strengthen your partnership with the College.
• Discuss strategies and solutions together. Your daughter will have developed an academic goal (Junior School) and be working on specific tasks (Secondary School), so this is a great opportunity to discuss next steps for her.

After the interview

• Share and celebrate positive feedback with your daughter! The girls love to know that their parents and teachers are cheering for them as they grow as learners through their years at Pymble. 
• And, if there are areas that could be “even better if…” or “even better next time…”, give your daughter lots of encouragement to better understand her learner identity and take the next step in her learning journey.  

Meet our superstar staff member of the week

Given 2025 is the year of Respect at Pymble, each week this space will be devoted to honouring a staff member for demonstrating this important value in action. This week’s superstar was an easy choice.

Ms Lucy Macaulay teaches Design and Applied Technologies to Years 7, 8, and 9, is the Co-ordinator of Vertical Wellbeing 7-12 (better known as our House system), and delivers co-curricular cooking classes after school. She is also a Design and Technology HSC Marker for NSW Education Standards Authority, otherwise known as NESA.

Ms Macaulay was the subject of several emails that landed in my inbox this week highlighting the numerous ways she shows Respect towards students, staff and our broader community. She voluntarily shares her Design and Applied Technologies skills in her release time to co-teach states of matter to a Year 3 class – the same class she ‘book bounces’ with by reading to them in her spare time. She has also been helping to prepare different machines for student-led fundraising events and working with the leadership team to track respectful uniform wearing and pilot new uses of the portal. But wait, that’s not all! Earlier in the week, Ms Macaulay stepped in to assist members of our community who had been involved in a minor accident, offering her comfort and support until the situation was managed and everyone was feeling okay.  

If you see our superstar around the grounds, please don’t hesitate to say what we are all thinking: we are so grateful to have her as a role model and educator in our community.

On that uplifting note, wishing you all a wonderful end of the week.