Dear Parents, Guardians and Caregivers,

In order to improve the quality of education that we are able to provide for students at Pinjarra Senior High School, a new timetable structure has been developed for implementation in 2020.

The model we are moving into has been designed to address limitations in the current timetable and to expand the scope and quality of educational experiences for students from year 7 to 12.

The new timetable has several features that will enable us to enhance both the range and depth of programs currently offered, as well as to add value to the pastoral learning programs and specialist pathways within the school.

There will be no significant changes to the school week. Changes to the start and finish times of the school day will be minor; the biggest impact will be the removal of the early closing time on Mondays, so each day will be of equal length. It is anticipated that school will commence at 8:30am and conclude at 3:00pm daily.

The internal structure of the timetable will see an increased number of lessons in each day, moving from the current 5 period day to a 7 period day, with each period running for a shorter period of time. This enables us to schedule 35 periods across the week through which we can allocate time to learning activities more flexibly and appropriately. This change will enable us to broaden curriculum access for students and better support individuals and groups to achieve to their academic and personal potential.

The PFA and AEP programs will have additional time allocated to them in recognition of their specialist status. This will enable students involved in these programs to continue to participate in the implicit extra – curricular activities (eg: games and excursions), but with considerably less impact on general class time. For senior school students, the new timetable enables access to additional time for study skills programs and directed study, endorsed programs, community service and pastoral care programs, all of which will serve to add value to their learning and support their individual well-being.

The process of designing the new timetable has been consultative with all Pinjarra Senior High School staff, South Metropolitan Education Regional Office and with our network Primary schools. Support for the initiative has been very strong, including endorsement from the Department of Education following our recent School Review Process. While the changes may require minor adjustments, I am confident that these will be minimal, posing no detriment to students or staff during the implementation process.

A survey is available on the Pinjarra Senior High School website to enable parent, student and community feedback about the new timetable model and change management process. I would encourage those who wish to comment to complete the survey before the end of week 7, term 4. A parent information evening will also be held on Wednesday 6th November 2019 to provide a forum for interested parents to access further details of the timetable model. The date, time and venue of this event will be confirmed via SMS prior to the event.

Yours sincerely

Jan Stone
Principal