Anthony Rodaughan, Principal, Kurnai College: One of the things that brings me most joy in my job, is seeing the work that we do and the success that we have here at Kurnai College. These kids need us, they need the best teachers they can get, they need the best leaders to be looking out for them and to have them in their corner.
Hollie, Year 11 student: I’m Hollie, I’m in Year 11 and I have ADHD. It’s hard for me to concentrate when I’m working. When I do the work, obviously it’s hard for me to start and then when I start, it’s hard for me to stop.
Sarah Eccles, Assistant Principal – Disability Inclusion: For our kids, it goes beyond those labels of ADHD, autism, dyslexia. We probably look at our kids each day and say: ‘How ready are they to learn’, because who knows what’s happened between the end of yesterday and the start of today for them. They could have overnight become homeless.
Hollie: Letting me go out for a 5 to 10 minute break, so I can go get a drink, go get fresh air, or go for a run, just so I can calm down again and go back into the class and re-connect with my work.
Sarah: For our college, we find that for our students, their learning and their wellbeing is extremely intertwined, so we can’t start learning until their wellbeing needs have been met. So, all of our kids have access to all of those things whenever they need them. For example, the advocacy office, brain breaks, time out of class if they need it. We provide food for our kids, clothing for our kids. What we’ve found is that those strategies help everyone in the classroom.
Anthony: They don’t always have a voice. They don’t always have the capacity to get the help they need and that’s my job as college principal and every teacher in our school and every assistant in our school’s job is to give them the support so they get a good life and a way forward and a future. And the best way to do that is to make them the best learners they can be.
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