tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-80370302010069546142024-03-14T20:16:58.064+10:00Signing In - the ABSA Blogthe comings and goings of the Australian Boarding Schools AssociationChief Executive Officerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00558182176033643518noreply@blogger.comBlogger43125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8037030201006954614.post-22825394731412474982023-12-13T07:43:00.000+10:002023-12-13T07:43:00.473+10:00The Role of a Boarding Supervisor<p><span style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 11px;">In the intricately woven fabric of boarding school life, the role of a boarding school supervisor stands out as a crucial thread. These individuals are more than mere overseers; they act as guardians, mentors, and sometimes even as surrogate parents. For many students, they become the pillars of support during the transitionary period of boarding school life. It is thus essential to address an emerging concern in some schools - the need for boarding school supervisors to remain active and engaged during their duty hours, rather than diverting their attention to personal tasks.</span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><b></b><br /></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>The Responsibility of a Supervisor</b></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">At its core, the responsibility of a boarding school supervisor is the well-being, safety, and development of the students under their care. From ensuring that boarders follow their schedules and maintain discipline to being there as a confidante during moments of homesickness or academic pressure, a supervisor’s role is multifaceted.</p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">However, when supervisors engage in personal tasks during their duty hours, it can lead to lapses in oversight. Whether it’s completing personal assignments, indulging in entertainment, or even something seemingly harmless like scrolling through social media, such distractions can compromise the primary duty at hand.</p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>Potential Implications of Divided Attention</b></p>
<ul>
<li style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #0e121d; font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"><b></b></span><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Safety Concerns: Active supervision ensures that potential hazards, whether they be physical, emotional, or psychological, are addressed promptly. A distracted supervisor might overlook signs of distress, bullying, or any other issue that could escalate if not addressed in time.</li>
<li style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #0e121d; font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"><b></b></span><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Discipline Lapses: Consistency is crucial in maintaining discipline. When supervisors are not fully present, students might take liberties with rules, leading to a gradual erosion of the established order and potentially fostering an environment where rules are seen as flexible.</li>
<li style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #0e121d; font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"><b></b></span><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Missed Teachable Moments: Boarding school life is full of teachable moments - instances where life lessons can be imparted. A supervisor engrossed in personal tasks may miss out on these spontaneous opportunities to guide and mentor.</li>
<li style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #0e121d; font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"><b></b></span><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Relationship Building: Active engagement with students fosters trust. When supervisors remain present, both physically and mentally, they can build stronger relationships with students. These relationships often act as the bedrock for effective mentorship.</li>
</ul>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>Changing the Paradigm: Shifting Priorities</b></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">It is understandable that everyone, including supervisors, need personal time. The rigours of overseeing a group of energetic young minds can be taxing. However, the key is to distinguish personal time from duty hours. Here are a few strategies that can assist in ensuring supervisors remain active and engaged:</p>
<ul>
<li style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #0e121d; font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"><b></b></span><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Scheduled Breaks: Just as there are designated times for meals, study, and recreation for students, supervisors too should have clear, scheduled breaks. This not only gives them a designated period for personal tasks but also ensures they return refreshed.</li>
<li style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #0e121d; font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"><b></b></span><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Professional Development: Continuous training programs that emphasise the importance of active supervision and its implications can be beneficial. Role-playing scenarios can help supervisors understand the potential risks of inattention. The free ABSA ‘Active Duty’ Course is a clear reminder of the things to remember in this area.</li>
<li style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #0e121d; font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"><b></b></span><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Technological Aids: The use of technology, such as walkie-talkies or surveillance cameras, can be a boon. They can serve as additional eyes and ears, but they should supplement human oversight, not replace it.</li>
<li style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #0e121d; font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"><b></b></span><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Feedback Mechanism: Encourage students to voice their concerns. If they feel neglected or believe that their supervisors aren’t as active as they should be, there should be a safe and anonymous avenue for them to communicate this.</li>
<li style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #0e121d; font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"><b></b></span><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Personal Workspace: If possible, boarding schools can designate a specific area for supervisors to complete personal tasks during their breaks. This physical demarcation can serve as a reminder of their primary responsibilities when they are in the students’ space.</li>
</ul>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>In Conclusion</b></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Boarding schools are much more than institutions of academic learning. They mould characters, build resilience, and foster community values. At the heart of this transformative experience are the supervisors, whose guidance can leave a lasting impact on a student's life.</p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Being present, in every sense of the word, is not just an obligation; it's a privilege. Every interaction, every nod of approval, every word of advice, and even every disciplinary action plays a part in shaping young lives. Let's honour this responsibility by ensuring that when the lights are on in our boarding schools, our attention is undivided and unwavering.</p>Richard Stokeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00403683278806316036noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8037030201006954614.post-89217031794923085012023-07-14T08:50:00.002+10:002023-07-14T08:50:09.374+10:00What Makes Boarding Staff Training Different?<p><span style="font-family: Times;">During the last six months I have been in discussion with </span><span style="font-family: Times;">a number of professional learning providers about what </span><span style="font-family: Times;">they are offering and, without fail, they are intrigued </span><span style="font-family: Times;">when I talk about the incredible role our boarding </span><span style="font-family: Times;">staff play looking after other people’s children for that </span><span style="font-family: Times;">other 18 hours a day - when they are not in class.</span></p><p style="font-family: Times; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;">M</span>ost recently we have been working with a provider to put together some online Child Protection training which is aimed at the specific needs of boarding staff - concentrating on areas such as grooming, careful supervision around bedroom and bathroom spaces and developing protocols which ensure both the boarders themselves and the staff working with them are comfortable and safe. This was highlighted even more to me recently when I met up with one of my ex-boarders from the early 1990s and he talked about how when training to become a counsellor it brought back to him his experience as a Year Eight boarder when one of the staff clearly was grooming him - thankfully for him nothing more happened, whilst</p><p style="font-family: Times; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">for others this was not the case.</p><p style="font-family: Times; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p style="font-family: Times; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Our Duty of Care Level Two - Essential Knowledge workshop highlights these issues specifically, but it is clear to me that one training in this area is nowhere near enough - it must be re-visited annually and mention the specific situation that boarding is, so that it is completely relevant and the perfect reminder of our need to take care and watch. So we are looking forward to being able to provide this for our members later this year.</p><p style="font-family: Times; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p style="font-family: Times; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">However, child safety is not the only issue in which our staff need continual training - it is every aspect of their boarding journey. This term we have provided Certificate Courses in both Risk and Academic Performance Improvement, the Online Boarding Conference had some great speakers once again, and the ongoing webinars provide deep learning in specific topics relevant to the work of the boarding house staff member. However sometimes I wonder why these online activities are not oversubscribed - especially</p><p style="font-family: Times; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">given we have over 3,900 boarding staff in Australia. I have heard all sorts of excuses - we don’t have a budget for that, our teachers do heaps of professional development, we don’t have enough time in the day, just to name a few but I challenge you to consider it with your legal glasses on - what will that day in court be like if the only training boarding staff have undertaken was a Duty of Care workbook</p><p style="font-family: Times; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">completed six years ago?</p><p style="font-family: Times; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p style="font-family: Times; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">For too long the boarding section of the school has been treated like the poor cousin, the one who gets the spoils of PD money once all the important people in the school have spent theirs. For too long those boarding staff who work part-time in boarding and also work elsewhere have used the excuse that they don’t have time.</p><p style="font-family: Times; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p style="font-family: Times; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">For too long those who are also teachers in the school treat boarding as an add-on and therefore not one which requires any level of training. And for too long those running our boarding houses have thought they have all the answers and there is nothing more they can learn. As the lucky one who gets to see most of our training options as part of my work I can’t believe how much better I would have been at my job running a boarding school if I had had the opportunity to up-skill like we do today. </p><p style="font-family: Times; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p style="font-family: Times; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">So here are ten quick ways you might consider expanding yours and your boarding team’s learning:</p><p style="font-family: Times; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">1. if you have subscribed to the webinar bundle (and for those of you who haven’t this is by far the cheapest online training available for your staff) structure your staff meetings around getting</p><p style="font-family: Times; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">staff to report back on a webinar they found useful and/or interesting over the last term.</p><p style="font-family: Times; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">2. closely follow your PD certificates (your Head of Boarding gets a listing each term and every staff member can request one from our office) to ensure you undertake at least 15 hours</p><p style="font-family: Times; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">of training each year.</p><p style="font-family: Times; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">3. if you are new to boarding, complete the Duty of Care Level 1 - Induction course online which is free for all members</p><p style="font-family: Times; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">4. complete the free online courses ‘Active Duty’ and ‘Top Tips for Boarding Staff’</p><p style="font-family: Times; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">5. check the range of Certificate Courses offered each term and subscribe to at least one every year</p><p style="font-family: Times; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">6. send in a request to our office if you have a topic which is pressing in your work and you would like us to teach out learning on</p><p style="font-family: Times; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">7. if your work includes handing out medication to boarders, complete the online 'Administer Medications’ course</p><p style="font-family: Times; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">8. spend time watching the free online boarding house tours - they are a fantastic way to pick up new ideas and learn how others have solved the same problems you face</p><p style="font-family: Times; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">9. whilst you will have missed the 2023 Online Boarding Conference, make this a priority for future years. Where else can you get access to fabulous international keynote speakers for such a reasonable price and without leaving your staffroom or office?</p><p style="font-family: Times; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">10. Register for the International Boarding Conference in September to be held in Hobart - the program entitled ‘Keeping Boarders’ Lives Safer’ is quite exciting.</p><p style="font-family: Times; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Good luck on your professional journey in this wonderful profession and don’t forget that ABSA is here to help you at every step along the way.</p><p style="font-family: Times; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Richard Stokes</p><p style="font-family: Times; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Chief Executive Officer</p>Richard Stokeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00403683278806316036noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8037030201006954614.post-28273127900539665662023-04-05T10:14:00.007+10:002023-04-05T10:14:27.400+10:00Are We Doing Our Job?<p><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><span style="color: #c82127;">Imagine you are a new boarding parent </span></span><span style="color: #c82127; font-family: helvetica;">and the idea of sending your child to </span><span style="color: #c82127; font-family: helvetica;">boarding had never crossed you mind </span><span style="color: #c82127; font-family: helvetica;">until your circumstances changed </span><span style="color: #c82127; font-family: helvetica;">a few months before the school year </span><span style="color: #c82127; font-family: helvetica;">started. Where would you start? How </span><span style="color: #c82127; font-family: helvetica;">do you know what boarding school can </span><span style="color: #c82127; font-family: helvetica;">best serve your needs? What thoughts </span><span style="color: #c82127; font-family: helvetica;">might go through your mind?</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><span style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">M</span>y first thoughts would be - how do I know they will </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">look after my child properly? How can they prove </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">this to me? Do they measure themselves against </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">anything? How can they get help when something </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">goes wrong?</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Now, I do know I’m a little biased when I look at these ideas - </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">but I would be very confident that many of your new parents </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">would have been thinking the same thing. So how do you know</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">you’ve got it right for the moment and kept up with all the rapid </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">changes occurring in our industry? Do you measure yourself? </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Is there anything you can do to ensure you can answer their </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">questions with real confidence? Of course there is......</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Many boarding schools over the last few years have reached </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">out to see if we could help them by reviewing their boarding </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">operation and sharing ideas garnered over many hundreds of </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">visits to schools and a deep understanding of the one thing we </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">have to measure our success: AS5725:2015 Boarding Standard </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">for Australian Schools and Residences. I must admit this is one </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">of the great joys of my work, getting the chance to talk with all </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">boarding and many key school staff, parents and the boarders </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">themselves about how things are operating, and then producing a </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">detailed report on the strengths and weaknesses of the program </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">being reviewed. </span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">These are not only asked for by schools who </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">feel they are struggling - quite the opposite in fact, as strong </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">boarding programs are often very keen to become even stronger, </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">and ‘outside eyes’, especially those with a good deal of boarding </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">experience, provide this opportunity.</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Other schools are very keen to get detailed responses from </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">well designed surveys of boarders and boarding parents, and </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">use these questionnaires to gauge how well their boarding </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">programs are working. Parents need to </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">be asked regularly about how they view a </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">school’s boarding program, and requested </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">to provide responses which can guide </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">the development and expansion of key </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">programs to assist the boarders. Those </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">within our care, too, need to be able to </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">voice their opinion on how boarding is </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">going, and be respected for their opinions </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">and advice. Surveys such as this satisfy a </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">number of the sections of the Boarding </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Standard which expects regular feedback </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">from parents and boarders.</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">And the exciting development is the </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">completion of our Certification Scheme. </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">With the lockdowns and border closures </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">of Covid behind us we have been able </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">to finalise the scheme we began putting </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">together back in 2017 which includes </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">two levels of self-assessment to ensure </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">all items within the Standard are covered, </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">and now a Certification inspection and the </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">ability to happily be a Certified Boarding </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">School. Two trial schools have helped us </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">ensure the program is robust and workable, </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">and given us an understanding of the </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">work involved and the time it takes, and </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">we will roll out the option to all schools </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">in the next few weeks.</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">But why would you do any of these - as </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">they all cost money, and we all know </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">money is tight in our schools? The simple </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">answer is because they satisfy the one </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">and only Standard which exists to ensure </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">our boarding schools and their programs </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">are up-to-scratch. The longer answer is </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">because if we don’t continually appraise </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">ourselves, measure ourselves and ensure </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">we are providing an appropriate standard </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">of care for our boarders we will start to </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">fall behind and struggle for enrolments </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">as the boarders will be going elsewhere - </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">where the School is meeting the Standard.</span></p>
<p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Food for thought - I’m more than happy </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">to chat in greater depth if you are interested.</span></p>Chief Executive Officerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00558182176033643518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8037030201006954614.post-15039266860723265812022-11-18T11:40:00.000+10:002022-11-18T11:40:00.064+10:00What could you improve?<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px;">Many of you reading this will have noticed that I often challenge people in my piece in Lights Out - and this edition is no different. Do you know how your boarding school is faring when compared with others? If not (and this is the case with many of our member schools), what are you doing about it? I get concerned from time to time when schools report that their enrolments have a waiting list - do they then rest on their laurels and sit back and accept that they are in a greta situation? Whilst it is wonderful to see a school with a boarding waiting list, those who don’t then reach out to consolidate this to ensure their parents are the best advocates possible for their boarding service are putting themselves at risk. Boarding numbers are influenced by so many wide and varied aspects - and acknowledging these and ensuring a well developed and thought through marketing plan is in place is critical for boarding success. During 2022 we have conducted ten reviews of boarding programs to assist them in their development, and in each case we have been able to assist the schools to raise the profile of their boarding house, to assist them with their marketing, and to ensure they are providing a boarding service which is of excellent quality. Each of them needs to be commended for putting their school on the line and asking the hard questions - and my challenge to everyone reading this is to do the same - ask just how your boarding program is going, and what will it look like in five years time? What is excellent practice around Australia, and the world, and how close are you? What could you improve?</span></p>Chief Executive Officerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00558182176033643518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8037030201006954614.post-23840781055994489982022-07-15T08:14:00.004+10:002022-07-15T08:14:34.379+10:00The Great Professional Learning Debate<p><span style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px;">In many a conversation I have with Principals and Heads of Boarding Schools I am reminded of the importance of effective Induction Training for boarding staff, and how difficult it is to provide this effectively before staff begin their important work with our boarders.</span><span style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px;">It is the reason we here at ABSA are writing an online Boarding Induction course which will be available before the year ends - to assist every one of our boarding schools with getting the critical information across to those about to take on the formidable role of looking after boarders.</span></p><p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">However, it is the ongoing Professional Learning for boarding schools which is the great debate. </p><p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">How much learning should boarding staff do? </p><p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">What do we do about all our casual staff?</p><p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">How targeted must it be?</p><p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">What are the key topics?</p><p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">How do we handle people’s busy schedules?</p><p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">What needs to be re-visited regularly?</p><p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">All of these are great questions, and ones which we at ABSA are trying to make easy for you all. Some people tell me we offer too many webinars, and my answer is always the same - they are not aimed at all staff - it is different topics, and different levels of role, which make some but not all relevant for every staff member. We are trying to cover all needs.</p><p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">However, there are some which are relevant to all - the free online Active Duty Course was written for every staff member to undertake - from Heads of Boarding right down to the casual junior supervisor - and this course is a reminder which everyone should do regularly - maybe even every year. It concerns me that FREE training such as Active Duty and our Top Tips courses have not bee taken up by every one of our boarding schools, and every member of staff.</p><p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">But the question which doesn’t ring true to me is:</p><p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Doesn’t teaching PD cover my boarding needs?</p><p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">My simple answer is - probably not. Whilst I believe boarding staff are the most important teachers our boarders have, their roles are much more complex and cover so many more topics. And they work the other 18 hours each day, and all weekend. If you work in boarding you need to learn about boarding, you need to put aside time to learn more about your role and the critical support work you do. Do you feel confident that if your school ends up in court you can easily answer the question “and what boarding professional learning have your staff done”? Youth Mental Health, Understanding their Technological Needs and Uses, developing Cultural Competence with those groups you have in your boarding house, understanding the Behaviour Management Pillars, learning more about the multitude of risks associated in boarding - these are just of few of the specific topics which relate to our boarding houses and which would only be effectively covered by boarding specific training. After all, you wouldn’t put a teach in front of a class without specific teaching training - what about a boarding staff member in a dormitory?</p><p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">So what can you do in your boarding houses to better look after the Professional learning needs of your staff? My first suggestion is a skills and interest audit - what do people already know and what would they like to learn more about? Where are the gaps? Ask what they would like to learn more about? Then I would look at what is available, and would do some matching. Get staff to watch one or two webinars a term and report back to the whole staff at your next staff meeting. Get one or two staff to undertake a certificate course and then share their critical learnings with other staff. Above all, don’t let staff avoid this important part of their work. As the Boarding Standard for Australian Schools and Residences requires in Section 4.3(c) “Provision of annual professional learning relevant to the role and context”.</p><p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">As Craig d’cruz said in his recent article in Lights Out entitled Boarding Staff Training: An Essential Risk Control which also appeared in the weekly email School Governance published by CompliSpace during National Boarding Week said</p><p style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 16px;">“ If training is going to be impactful, schools need to better understand what their boarding staff really need to know, and they need to allocate a suitable budget to allow for this training to take place.”</p><p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">So let’s not be the school which told ABSA they didn’t want to watch any webinars as “we are over this online stuff”, or the schools which did’t have any budget to purchase boarding professional learning - be the boarding house which leads from the front and is confident that all boarding staff meet the requirements of the standard and undergo relevant, up-to-date and on topic professional learning for their boarding role.</p>Chief Executive Officerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00558182176033643518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8037030201006954614.post-28971695112551422172022-04-13T16:24:00.001+10:002022-04-13T16:24:39.955+10:00How Important Can this Be?<p><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 11px;">One of the challenges in all our busy lives is the huge amounts of information we receive daily - in fact at times is can be quite overwhelming.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitAQ1vDH-MMObOxj9yGqnajCNwfIr1TVNJ5Lw439fwqj0mWj6oSOeH6NOkM4ieSNaZ6RktrnMtvpP5n3l8f-wAhljLkzdFznSp63QjfHYukSNbic658kltc-wyJ3QxQkHd0h7jg3EHEI7Q1uVEu7R5-EK1JpJGYtnH9gVX_Fq7NATevyrH0SahiAyXyg/s672/Screen%20Shot%202022-04-13%20at%204.22.41%20pm.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="411" data-original-width="672" height="196" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitAQ1vDH-MMObOxj9yGqnajCNwfIr1TVNJ5Lw439fwqj0mWj6oSOeH6NOkM4ieSNaZ6RktrnMtvpP5n3l8f-wAhljLkzdFznSp63QjfHYukSNbic658kltc-wyJ3QxQkHd0h7jg3EHEI7Q1uVEu7R5-EK1JpJGYtnH9gVX_Fq7NATevyrH0SahiAyXyg/s320/Screen%20Shot%202022-04-13%20at%204.22.41%20pm.png" width="320" /></a></div>However, the risk in dealing with this overload is to ignore it, think it won’t be important, or think that you’ll get to it later. One of the great skills I learnt from our Leaders Conference in Adelaide in 2019 (doesn’t that feel so long ago) was how to manage my email inbox. Interestingly, at the time this was the second time I had undergone the ‘Email ninja’ course, but it was the one that made the difference. Tim and Daniel taught all those in the room just how to overcome that swamping of information, and how not to miss the stuff that is important. (Interestingly they are offering the Email Ninja course to all ABSA members for free at present - send us an email if you are interested). However, it is not the course that I am promoting here, it is the fact that so many people just don’t read things properly any more, if at all.<p></p>
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<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">As many of you know we produce a weekly eNEWS which highlights a few critical bits of information relevant to that week - and in tracking the opening rates we are continually distressed that our average ‘open’ rate is just over 30%, and the open rate by Heads of Boarding is still under 50%. It makes us wonder how people know what is going on if the emails aren’t even opened.</p>
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<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Another observation is the number of people who call to ask a simple question - one which was actually answered in the email we had sent them which prompted the call, but they hadn’t read the whole email.</p>
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<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Anyway - enough whinging - we are keen to hear more about how we can make our communications better - don’t be frightened - let us know!</p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Richard Stokes</p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Chief Executive Officer</p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Australian Boarding Schools Association</p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 12px;"><br /></p>Chief Executive Officerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00558182176033643518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8037030201006954614.post-7991907898271969012022-03-25T06:58:00.004+10:002022-03-25T07:38:31.267+10:00The nonsense of declaring one in a thousand year events<p><i style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 10.5px;">Food for thought in this blog post.......</i></p><p><i style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 10.5px;"><br /></i></p><p><i style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 10.5px;">Fellow Risk Watchers,</i></p>
<p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 10.5px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><i>My name is Mike Dunn. I'm the Managing Director of risk management consultancy Intelligent </i><i>Outcomes Group. You can find my details on LinkedIn or by visiting our web site </i><i style="color: blue;">www.iog.com.au</i><span style="color: black;"><i>.</i></span></p>
<p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 10.5px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><i>The Premier of Queensland declared the recent rain and flood event initially as one in 500 years </i><i>event and then improved on that to a one in 1,000 years event. No doubt this frequency was </i><i>used to indicate how unusual the event was and therefore why no one (including her and her </i><i>government) was prepared for it to occur, and therefore was to blame. I think this example is a </i><i>great teaching point for us risk watchers and anyone else looking to credibly identify an event’s </i><i>likelihood.</i></p>
<p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 10.5px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><i><br /></i></p><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 10.5px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><i>The first teaching point is what exactly was the event that occurred and how might it be </i><i>conceptualised? Was the event unusually large quantities of rain falling on the Wivenhoe Dam </i><i>catchment area that quickly filled the dam and threatened uncontrolled releases of water from</i></p>
<p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 10.5px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><i>the dam? Was the event unusually large quantities of rain falling on the Brisbane CBD that </i><i>caused the creeks and stormwater levels to rise and flood low lying areas? Was the event </i><i>unusually large quantities of water falling in South East Queensland that caused widespread </i><i>flooding? SEQWater (the dam operator) was no doubt thinking of the 2011 releases of water that </i><i>broke the banks of the Brisbane River and flooded large parts of Brisbane, actions that are still </i><i>subject to ongoing litigation. I suspect the government was thinking of this possibility as well.</i></p>
<p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 10.5px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><i><br /></i></p><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 10.5px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><i>The second teaching point is who really thinks an event that is assessed at these frequencies is </i><i>credible or likely to be taken seriously by anyone including government? Some of the best </i><i>companies in the world have come to grief relying on this approach to likelihood. And I am sure </i><i>we all know how difficult it is to gain management buy in for likelihood frequencies much more l</i><i>ikely than this one. How do you convince managers to adopt any likelihood controls or </i><i>consequence mitigations for events that statistically shouldn’t occur in theirs, their children’s, </i><i>their grandchildren’s, their great grandchildren’s lifetimes? As risk professionals, if we are going t</i><i>o be of relevance to decision makers, we need to conceptualise likelihood very differently to just </i><i>straight frequency projections.</i></p>
<p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 10.5px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><i><br /></i></p><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 10.5px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><i>So, two problems to work our way through. The answer to the first problem is to work in </i><i>scenarios, and not only scenarios based on actual past occurrence, but ‘outside the box’ </i><i>scenarios as well. If you are a government concerned with managing the capture of drinking </i><i>water for the city and to engage in flood mitigation in southeast Queensland, you require a </i><i>robust scenario planning regime that identifies all events that are possible, all indicators that </i><i>point towards any scenario’s occurrence, and controls that can reduce that possibility of </i><i>occurrence. This process will lead to the identification of realistic levels of likelihood. The answer </i><i>to the problem is to associate levels of likelihood with realistic timeframes. I have spoken to </i><i>many middle-aged people who have experienced four ‘one in 100-years’ flood events in their life</i></p>
<p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 10.5px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><i>to date. Either they have been exceptionally unlucky, or the likelihood descriptors have been </i><i>unrealistic. My contention is that it’s the second reason. Timeframes associated with likelihood </i><i>are evaluated best by looking at the full range of indicators and controls identified for each</i></p>
<p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 10.5px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><i>scenario.</i></p>
<p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 10.5px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><i><br /></i></p><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 10.5px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><i>My point is made with this scenario: unusually large quantities of rain fall on the Wivenhoe Dam </i><i>catchment area, quickly fill the dam, and require uncontrolled releases of water from the dam. </i><i>This last happened in 2011 when the uncontrolled releases caused massive flooding in Brisbane. R</i><i>eporting by journalist Headley Thomas indicates we came within hours of being placed in the </i><i>same position with this year’s floods. Reporting quoting SEQWater officials indicates they had no </i><i>idea that such large quantities of water would fall on the dam catchment. The Bureau of </i><i>Meteorology (BOM) did not forecast such heavy rain in the dam catchment, but SEQWater would </i><i>surely have had this scenario on its risk register. And the Premier’s statement on being surprised </i><i style="color: #000081;">by the scale of the rainfall, indicates that no one in authority thought what occurred was </i><i>possible.</i></p>
<p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 10.5px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><i><br /></i></p><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 10.5px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><i>To risk practitioners this means that relevant indicators for this scenario were not sighted in the </i><i>catchment area for the Wivenhoe Dam, and therefore relevant controls were not implemented. </i><i>What might have been the indicators for this scenario: the confluence of the La Nina weather </i><i>pattern, the Indian Ocean Dipole, the Southern Annular Mode, and the Maddern-Julian </i><i>Oscillation, all indicated significant rain was going to fall in eastern Australia. Prior to this rain </i><i>deluge, the Wivenhoe Dam held approximately 59% of its total capacity. Because of the inquiry </i><i>that investigated Brisbane’s flooding in 2011, SEQWater was restricted from releasing water </i><i>based on weather forecast. It had to wait until rain was falling on the dam catchment. The first </i><i>water releases tied to the heavy rainfall at that time occurred on the Friday in the late afternoon. </i><i>These releases were criticised as too little too late, but SEQWater considered them adequate as </i><i>they did not cause the river banks to burst and add to the flooding caused by creek rises and </i><i>stormwater flowing into the creeks and streets. Within three days (Friday, Saturday, and Sunday) </i><i>of heavy falls (approximately 220mm per day) the dam’s capacity rose to approximately 160%. </i><i>Luckily, the heavy rain ended on Sunday and Wivenhoe Dam was able to continue to release </i><i>much of its excess water safely in the following days. Disaster from uncontrolled releases was </i><i>averted this time unlike in 2011. But SEQWater came close again to having to make uncontrolled </i><i>releases.</i></p>
<p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 10.5px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><i><br /></i></p><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 10.5px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><i>Imagine the furore and consequences if 2011 had been repeated within 11 years? No doubt </i><i>SEQWater will count their strategy a success but I think this analysis indicates the risk </i><i>methodology and thinking was flawed. I would think from SEQWater’s perspective, the principal</i></p>
<p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 10.5px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><i>likelihood control for this scenario was water releases. If water had been released in the week </i><i>before the heavy rains, then the Wivenhoe Dam would not have come as close to causing </i><i>catastrophic flooding as it did. As risk managers contemplated that coming week and the </i><i>prospect of rising creeks and stormwater backup, and the dam quickly filling, this scenario would </i><i>have filled them with dread: a repeat occurrence within 11 years. If it did, then they should have </i><i>modified the above scenario to the following: unusually large quantities of rain are likely to fall on </i><i>the Wivenhoe Dam catchment area in the short term and fill the dam to approximately 160% of </i><i>capacity. Therefore, the current mandated practice of only releasing water from the dam once </i><i>rain is falling on the catchment area, must be stopped. This approach would have warned </i><i>government for the possibility of significant flooding caused by uncontrolled water releases within </i><i>11 years of the last occurrence, and assisted risk managers to obtain a change of policy on when </i><i>water should be released.</i></p>
<p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 10.5px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><i>I</i></p><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 10.5px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><i> hope this is food for thought.</i></p>Chief Executive Officerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00558182176033643518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8037030201006954614.post-15865626359410218132022-01-14T11:43:00.003+10:002022-01-14T11:43:50.305+10:00Post-Covid - some thoughts<p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; caret-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: "Source Serif Pro", serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 3.2rem; margin: 3.2rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">Thanks to one of ABSA's good friends (and a personal friend of mine) Chris Croft for these great thoughts to start of 2022!</p><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; caret-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: "Source Serif Pro", serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 3.2rem; margin: 3.2rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">I wonder if this omicron variant will finally be the end of this stupid and frustrating virus epidemic? I guess it will always be with us now, but perhaps in a minor role that we manage and live with. So the question is whether we learnt anything about happiness, and what can we be doing as we enter this post-Covid world in order to maximise our happiness? Here’s a little list, hopefully one or two will strike a chord and give you some ideas or some inspiration:</p><div class="reader-image-block reader-image-block--right-align" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; caret-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); clear: both; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); float: right; font-family: "Source Serif Pro", serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 3.2rem; margin: 3.2rem 0px 3.2rem var(--spacing-four-x); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><div class="ivm-image-view-model " style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><div class="ivm-view-attr__img-wrapper ivm-view-attr__img-wrapper--use-img-tag display-flex
" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; display: flex !important; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><img alt="No alt text provided for this image" class="ivm-view-attr__img--centered reader-image-block__img lazy-image ember-view" id="ember830" loading="" src="https://media-exp1.licdn.com/dms/image/C4D12AQEV24-4JlxlnA/article-inline_image-shrink_1500_2232/0/1642018692899?e=1647475200&v=beta&t=YsgIYgHvYaM-oWrARUVzVmbAFhml4K4TAlLWFEe3KIg" style="background-position: 50% center; background-size: cover; background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border-radius: var(--corner-radius-medium); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: var(--color-text); font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); height: auto; margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); max-width: 432px; object-fit: cover; object-position: center; outline: var(--artdeco-reset-base-outline-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);" /></div></div></div><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; caret-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: "Source Serif Pro", serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 3.2rem; margin: 3.2rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><b>Present:</b> it’s tempting to look back to the old days before Covid, or to worry about what it holds in the future, but happiness can only be found in the present, doing things which bring us into a state of flow where we are totally absorbed. So forget the past and don’t worry about the future, (a bit of planning of course but not too much fretting), and make sure you’re living every day in the present.</p><div class="reader-image-block reader-image-block--resize" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; caret-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); clear: both; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: "Source Serif Pro", serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 3.2rem; margin: 3.2rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><div class="ivm-image-view-model " style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><div class="ivm-view-attr__img-wrapper ivm-view-attr__img-wrapper--use-img-tag display-flex
" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; display: flex !important; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><img alt="No alt text provided for this image" class="ivm-view-attr__img--centered reader-image-block__img lazy-image ember-view" id="ember831" loading="" src="https://media-exp1.licdn.com/dms/image/C4D12AQGdOmYu4-guTA/article-inline_image-shrink_1500_2232/0/1642018802263?e=1647475200&v=beta&t=pAxRFkXCj9Uh2zL6K0xpOnLYSLWPcc1Xf4BYqtKch1I" style="background-position: 50% center; background-size: cover; background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border-radius: var(--corner-radius-medium); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: var(--color-text); display: block; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); height: auto; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 432px; object-fit: cover; object-position: center; outline: var(--artdeco-reset-base-outline-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);" /></div></div></div><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; caret-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: "Source Serif Pro", serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 3.2rem; margin: 3.2rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><b>Other people:</b> 80% of our happiness comes from relationships with other people, spending as much time as we can with friends (and focusing on our good friends, and getting rid of the ones that have stagnated or become toxic, perhaps should never of been friends in the first place). And also helping other people, whether they are friends or relatives or strangers: so take every chance you get to help people. We get a lot of happiness from relationships with other people, and I think we have all realised since we’ve been locked down that we have really missed these relationships. </p><div class="reader-image-block reader-image-block--left-align" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; caret-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); clear: both; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); float: left; font-family: "Source Serif Pro", serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 3.2rem; margin: 3.2rem var(--spacing-four-x) 3.2rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><div class="ivm-image-view-model " style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><div class="ivm-view-attr__img-wrapper ivm-view-attr__img-wrapper--use-img-tag display-flex
" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; display: flex !important; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><img alt="No alt text provided for this image" class="ivm-view-attr__img--centered reader-image-block__img lazy-image ember-view" id="ember832" loading="" src="https://media-exp1.licdn.com/dms/image/C4D12AQFpsZXriTr_Pg/article-inline_image-shrink_1500_2232/0/1642018824767?e=1647475200&v=beta&t=Y5gOb0ajYf8goSJvlZZ2ukYi1jV1_zNxjGpHeuanRSM" style="background-position: 50% center; background-size: cover; background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border-radius: var(--corner-radius-medium); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: var(--color-text); font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); height: auto; margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); max-width: 432px; object-fit: cover; object-position: center; outline: var(--artdeco-reset-base-outline-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);" /></div></div></div><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; caret-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: "Source Serif Pro", serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 3.2rem; margin: 3.2rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><span style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); font-size: var(--font-size-large);"><b>Small stuff.</b> Both during lockdown and now that it has finished you’ll probably have realised that small things count for a lot. The small things that we were not able to do, and the small things that got us through being locked down. Savour the small stuff, take time to smell the roses, because the big ambitious achievements take ages to arrive and are often disappointing - there’s lots of happiness to be got from the small stuff. </span></p><div class="reader-image-block reader-image-block--left-align" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; caret-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); clear: both; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); float: left; font-family: "Source Serif Pro", serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 3.2rem; margin: 3.2rem var(--spacing-four-x) 3.2rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><div class="ivm-image-view-model " style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><div class="ivm-view-attr__img-wrapper ivm-view-attr__img-wrapper--use-img-tag display-flex
" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; display: flex !important; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><img alt="No alt text provided for this image" class="ivm-view-attr__img--centered reader-image-block__img lazy-image ember-view" id="ember833" loading="" src="https://media-exp1.licdn.com/dms/image/C4D12AQGeNbzbzrnKtQ/article-inline_image-shrink_1500_2232/0/1642018848483?e=1647475200&v=beta&t=yxkCv-7noRLolvqSvCvaQmfBIVxwrtVLy4Its10vY3k" style="background-position: 50% center; background-size: cover; background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border-radius: var(--corner-radius-medium); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: var(--color-text); font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); height: auto; margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); max-width: 432px; object-fit: cover; object-position: center; outline: var(--artdeco-reset-base-outline-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);" /></div></div></div><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; caret-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: "Source Serif Pro", serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 3.2rem; margin: 3.2rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><span style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); font-size: var(--font-size-large);"><b>Thankful.</b> Many of us are just happy we are alive, and happy that most of our relatives are still alive after what we’ve been through. We’re thankful that we can go back to the life we had before, …maybe a slightly better version of the life we had before. A daily gratitude diary where you think of three things you’re grateful for at the end of every day and write them down is a great way to get a second bite of happiness from the good things that have happened, and to make sure that we don’t take our lives for granted. If you’re reading this on a computer you’re probably in the top 5% in the world when it comes to wealth; you may not feel wealthy but you ARE compared to most people, and we should never take this for granted. </span></p><div class="reader-image-block reader-image-block--resize" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; caret-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); clear: both; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: "Source Serif Pro", serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 3.2rem; margin: 3.2rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><div class="ivm-image-view-model " style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><div class="ivm-view-attr__img-wrapper ivm-view-attr__img-wrapper--use-img-tag display-flex
" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; display: flex !important; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><img alt="No alt text provided for this image" class="ivm-view-attr__img--centered reader-image-block__img lazy-image ember-view" id="ember834" loading="" src="https://media-exp1.licdn.com/dms/image/C4D12AQFJz7lIhV_DJQ/article-inline_image-shrink_1500_2232/0/1642018872857?e=1647475200&v=beta&t=PvB60V7vSnVbiszttdyBwmeQOicDj2niXLh8HCD8u6g" style="background-position: 50% center; background-size: cover; background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border-radius: var(--corner-radius-medium); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: var(--color-text); display: block; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); height: auto; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 432px; object-fit: cover; object-position: center; outline: var(--artdeco-reset-base-outline-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);" /></div></div></div><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; caret-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: "Source Serif Pro", serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 3.2rem; margin: 3.2rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><b>Courage to come out of our comfort zone.</b> It feels quite radical even leaving to come out of the house and go to a crowded pub or a football match, but once you’re used to those things again you could maybe keep pushing your envelope, keep doing things that require a bit of courage, because that’s where learning and achievement come from - and happiness follows from those. </p><div class="reader-image-block reader-image-block--right-align" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; caret-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); clear: both; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); float: right; font-family: "Source Serif Pro", serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 3.2rem; margin: 3.2rem 0px 3.2rem var(--spacing-four-x); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><div class="ivm-image-view-model " style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><div class="ivm-view-attr__img-wrapper ivm-view-attr__img-wrapper--use-img-tag display-flex
" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; display: flex !important; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><img alt="No alt text provided for this image" class="ivm-view-attr__img--centered reader-image-block__img lazy-image ember-view" id="ember835" loading="" src="https://media-exp1.licdn.com/dms/image/C4D12AQEXb_1IczQP5g/article-inline_image-shrink_1500_2232/0/1642018905815?e=1647475200&v=beta&t=YOkE9gf5Y7GFo5WImaogXxKlGN2VgnH4DERmREVM3QY" style="background-position: 50% center; background-size: cover; background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border-radius: var(--corner-radius-medium); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: var(--color-text); font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); height: auto; margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); max-width: 432px; object-fit: cover; object-position: center; outline: var(--artdeco-reset-base-outline-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);" /></div></div></div><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; caret-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: "Source Serif Pro", serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 3.2rem; margin: 3.2rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><span style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); font-size: var(--font-size-large);"><b>Overcome procrastination.</b> It’s so easy to put things off, and having lost a couple of years I think you would agree but now that we’re free again we should really get on and do all the things that we have missed during this period of inactivity. Now that you CAN do them again, don’t put them off. Visit India! Learn kite surfing! Get married! Do that parachute jump! Spend time with your parents!</span></p><div class="reader-image-block reader-image-block--left-align" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; caret-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); clear: both; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); float: left; font-family: "Source Serif Pro", serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 3.2rem; margin: 3.2rem var(--spacing-four-x) 3.2rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><div class="ivm-image-view-model " style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><div class="ivm-view-attr__img-wrapper ivm-view-attr__img-wrapper--use-img-tag display-flex
" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; display: flex !important; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><img alt="No alt text provided for this image" class="ivm-view-attr__img--centered reader-image-block__img lazy-image ember-view" id="ember836" loading="" src="https://media-exp1.licdn.com/dms/image/C4D12AQEB9u2KjwoWcQ/article-inline_image-shrink_1500_2232/0/1642018926800?e=1647475200&v=beta&t=SyDBtVvC9DOEyWJgWtc5itEANiGevFiNWy0K3hwUZkQ" style="background-position: 50% center; background-size: cover; background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border-radius: var(--corner-radius-medium); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: var(--color-text); font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); height: auto; margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); max-width: 432px; object-fit: cover; object-position: center; outline: var(--artdeco-reset-base-outline-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);" /></div></div></div><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; caret-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: "Source Serif Pro", serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 3.2rem; margin: 3.2rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><span style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); font-size: var(--font-size-large);"><b>Variety.</b> Dabbling in lots of things brings more total than being an expert in one thing, more than being great at one thing and be able to beat other people at that one thing. So now is the time to take up new hobbies and try new things, maybe writing poetry or swimming or learning the saxophone - don’t worry about being bad at it just give it a go. What have you always wanted to try but not got around to doing?</span></p><div class="reader-image-block reader-image-block--resize" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; caret-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); clear: both; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: "Source Serif Pro", serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 3.2rem; margin: 3.2rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><div class="ivm-image-view-model " style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><div class="ivm-view-attr__img-wrapper ivm-view-attr__img-wrapper--use-img-tag display-flex
" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; display: flex !important; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><img alt="No alt text provided for this image" class="ivm-view-attr__img--centered reader-image-block__img lazy-image ember-view" id="ember837" loading="" src="https://media-exp1.licdn.com/dms/image/C4D12AQGxLdMZ7TuM2g/article-inline_image-shrink_1500_2232/0/1642018941622?e=1647475200&v=beta&t=GwbwmXeqEAurM0f7A7THSKEoVluwU_l-xu8H4pyoP9I" style="background-position: 50% center; background-size: cover; background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border-radius: var(--corner-radius-medium); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: var(--color-text); display: block; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); height: auto; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 432px; object-fit: cover; object-position: center; outline: var(--artdeco-reset-base-outline-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);" /></div></div></div><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; caret-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: "Source Serif Pro", serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 3.2rem; margin: 3.2rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><b>Ideal job.</b> A lot of people have been reevaluating their employment, particularly as working from home has felt very different to going into an office, and some people have preferred it (at least for some of the week), enjoying a break from relentless daily commuting, which is known to reduce our happiness substantially. What’s your ideal job? How are you going to get it? And if you’re a manager, make sure you really look after your people well as they start to come back to the office. Communicate with them, involve them, delegate interesting work to them, and thank them, otherwise they might well leave - and that is expensive!</p><div class="reader-image-block reader-image-block--right-align" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; caret-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); clear: both; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); float: right; font-family: "Source Serif Pro", serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 3.2rem; margin: 3.2rem 0px 3.2rem var(--spacing-four-x); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><div class="ivm-image-view-model " style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><div class="ivm-view-attr__img-wrapper ivm-view-attr__img-wrapper--use-img-tag display-flex
" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; display: flex !important; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><img alt="No alt text provided for this image" class="ivm-view-attr__img--centered reader-image-block__img lazy-image ember-view" id="ember838" loading="" src="https://media-exp1.licdn.com/dms/image/C4D12AQHW38uVG4czUg/article-inline_image-shrink_1500_2232/0/1642018958084?e=1647475200&v=beta&t=oaYyptiFJ13UNTiXAME6XKqoauSFFEeJ9yXbBbdBdHw" style="background-position: 50% center; background-size: cover; background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border-radius: var(--corner-radius-medium); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: var(--color-text); font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); height: auto; margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); max-width: 432px; object-fit: cover; object-position: center; outline: var(--artdeco-reset-base-outline-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);" /></div></div></div><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; caret-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: "Source Serif Pro", serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 3.2rem; margin: 3.2rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><span style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); font-size: var(--font-size-large);"><b>Do and Be, - not Have.</b> When you’re thinking about your goals for the coming year, think about what you would like to DO, and what you would like to BE, not the things that you would you would like to HAVE. Having things doesn’t make you happy, it’s what you do with them. That flashy car will not make you happy, but going driving or racing with your friends in any car probably will, assuming you like that kind of thing! That expensive new guitar will not make you happy after the initial glow of ownership wears off rapidly, but playing music with friends on any old guitar WILL make you happy. What do you want to be spending your time</span><span style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); font-size: var(--font-size-large);"> </span><span style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); outline: var(--artdeco-reset-base-outline-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><span style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Georgia, "Source Serif Pro", serif; font-size: 0.975em; font-style: var(--artdeco-reset-typography-font-style-italic); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); outline: var(--artdeco-reset-base-outline-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">doing</span></span><span style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); font-size: var(--font-size-large);"> </span><span style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); font-size: var(--font-size-large);">in 2022?</span></p><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; caret-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: "Source Serif Pro", serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 3.2rem; margin: 3.2rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">onwards and upwards!</p><p><br class="Apple-interchange-newline" /></p>Chief Executive Officerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00558182176033643518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8037030201006954614.post-15386215483493835352021-12-14T07:36:00.000+10:002021-12-14T07:36:20.799+10:00The Management Potato<p>Thanks to my good friend Chris Croft for this gem. Chris and I met through our wives, who have been pen friends since they were at high school!</p><p><br /></p><div data-section-id="1576616261664" id="section-1576616261664" style="caret-color: rgb(63, 62, 62); color: #3f3e3e; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: -webkit-center;"><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="wr " kjb-settings-id="sections_1576616261664_settings_background" role="presentation" style="background-color: white; border-collapse: collapse !important; max-width: 640px; width: 100%px;" valign="top"><tbody><tr><td align="center" valign="top"><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" role="presentation" style="border-collapse: collapse !important; width: 100%px;" valign="top"><tbody><tr><td class="cn" width="560"><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="cn " role="presentation" style="border-collapse: collapse !important; width: 100%px;" valign="top"><tbody><tr><td class="tb tm" kjb-settings-id="sections_1576616261664_settings_body" style="color: #3f3e3e; line-height: 1.7;" valign="top"><h1 style="color: #00529c; font-size: 36px !important; line-height: 1.2; margin: 10px 0px; text-align: center;">The Management Potato - applied to the band…</h1></td></tr></tbody></table></td><td align="center" class="sr hm" valign="middle" width="40"><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://a.kajabi.com/9/9d08eac.png" style="border: 0px; display: block; outline: none;" width="40" /></td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr></tbody></table></div><div data-section-id="1596023802865" id="section-1596023802865" style="caret-color: rgb(63, 62, 62); color: #3f3e3e; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: -webkit-center;"><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="wr " kjb-settings-id="sections_1596023802865_settings_background" role="presentation" style="background-color: white; border-collapse: collapse !important; max-width: 640px; width: 100%px;" valign="top"><tbody><tr><td align="center" class="st hm" height="20" valign="top"><img alt="" border="0" height="20" src="http://a.kajabi.com/9/9d08eac.png" style="border: 0px; display: block; outline: none;" width="1" /></td></tr><tr></tr><tr><td align="center" valign="top"><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" role="presentation" style="border-collapse: collapse !important; width: 100%px;" valign="top"><tbody><tr><td align="center" class="sl hm" valign="middle" width="40"><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://a.kajabi.com/9/9d08eac.png" style="border: 0px; display: block; outline: none;" width="40" /></td><td class="cn" width="560"><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="cn " role="presentation" style="border-collapse: collapse !important; width: 100%px;" valign="top"><tbody><tr><td class="tb tm" kjb-settings-id="sections_1596023802865_settings_body" style="color: #3f3e3e; line-height: 1.7;" valign="top"><p style="font-size: 14px; margin: 10px 0px;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-bfe55be5-7fff-8475-cba7-40ce6c586076"><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I know you like stories about management ideas applied to real life, here’s one: <br /><br />You may remember the idea of the Management Potato, where if you criticise people their ‘Potato of Performance’ just gets smaller until it becomes a prune, but if you build them up you can get a pumpkin…<br /><br />Well, even if you know about the theory, it still happens, and I can feel it happening to me in the band - and there’s not much I can do about it.<br /><br />It started when I made some posters for us to give to pubs, and our guitarist and band leader, who is a very talented artist but too busy to make any posters, said <em>“Oh well, I suppose they’ll do until we get some proper ones”</em>. So I don’t think I’ll bother with making a version 2…<br /></span></span></p><p style="font-size: 14px; margin: 10px 0px;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-bfe55be5-7fff-8475-cba7-40ce6c586076"><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Next I got us a gig at a pub that turned out to be less than brilliant, and the comment was (translated for spam filter suitability) <em>“This is a rubbish gig you’ve got us Chris!”</em> It took several visits and a few phone calls to get that gig, they’re always a pain to get, and so I think I’ll not bother with getting gigs any more.</span></span><span id="docs-internal-guid-bfe55be5-7fff-8475-cba7-40ce6c586076"><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p style="font-size: 14px; margin: 10px 0px;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-bfe55be5-7fff-8475-cba7-40ce6c586076"><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Our previous bass player used to bring song ideas along, but they were nearly always rejected out of hand by the leader, and although I think I’ve got some really good ones I don’t think I’ll risk it.</span></span></p><p style="font-size: 14px; margin: 10px 0px;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-bfe55be5-7fff-8475-cba7-40ce6c586076"><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I had been planning to get a back-drop printed, and I’ve got a good idea for a design, but I know what he’ll say, so I think I don’t do it.<br /><br /><strong>So basically I don’t really do anything now, apart from the minimum, which is to turn up and play.</strong> Don’t get me wrong, I love the music, and the band is great, but it needs people to do more than play, and that’s just not happening any more. I guess everyone else feels the same as I do!<br /><br />Conclusion:<br /><br /><strong>A) Am I too sensitive?</strong> Should I persevere for the good of the band? Maybe, but it wears you down after a while (the above were shortened for clarity, it’s been a long relentless process), so however tough you are your potato gets diminished eventually. Mine has taken about 5 years to reach a prune…<br /></span></span></p><p style="font-size: 14px; margin: 10px 0px;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-bfe55be5-7fff-8475-cba7-40ce6c586076"><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><strong>B) What should the leader have done</strong>, given that maybe my posters weren’t very professional and the gig I got was a bad one? The answer is to think <em>“Posters - At least he’s done this much, which is more than anyone else, and much better than nothing”</em> and say <em>“Brilliant, thanks Chris!”</em>. Gig – <em>“Don’t worry about the gig not working out, there’s no way to tell until you get there on the night, and your next one will probably be a great one”</em>. And yes, he should have agreed to play one of the bass player’s songs, even if it wasn’t our best number. I expect John Lennon’s first song wasn’t as good as Imagine! <br /></span></span></p><p style="font-size: 14px; margin: 10px 0px;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-bfe55be5-7fff-8475-cba7-40ce6c586076"><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><strong>C) Parallels with work</strong> – anyone who suggests ideas or does work beyond the minimum needs to be noticed and encouraged, however small their efforts appear and however tough and experienced you might think they are. The oak tree has to start as an acorn, at which point it is easily trampled!</span></span></p></td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr></tbody></table></div><p> </p>Richard Stokeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00403683278806316036noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8037030201006954614.post-88795269480441255342021-10-18T09:57:00.007+10:002021-10-18T10:00:15.339+10:00Do You Look After Yourself?<p style="color: #cd0000; font-family: Times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Over the past few years it has become increasingly clear to me that the role of being leader of the boarding community, or even a staff member in a boarding house, is becoming more and more immense and this has never been more obvious than during 2020 and 2021 with the added pressures of dealing with the impacts of Covid-19 in boarding houses.</p><p style="color: #cd0000; font-family: Times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p style="font-family: Times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Juggling sudden lockdown, border closures, detailed and challenging regulations written by bureaucrats who have never been in a boarding house, anxious parents and students, vaccination and on-line learning have all impacted on the role a great deal. And guess who is usually pushed to the side - YOU! So, I thought I’d take this opportunity to help you think about a re-set - a chance to look at what you can do for yourself so that you can continue with the huge role of looking after your boarders.</p><p style="font-family: Times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p style="color: #cd0000; font-family: Times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">READING</p><p style="font-family: Times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I know many people find it difficult to make time to read, but I can’t encourage you enough to set aside the time to get lost in a book. Many years ago I undertook the ‘Seven Habits of Highly Effective People’, course, and habit number seven, Sharpen the Saw, included one of my great loves - reading. However, Stephen Covey talks of only reading non-fiction books which will improve your knowledge, and I can’t object enough to this. Certainly, reading non-fiction is great - my last two non-fiction books were Norman Swan’s new book ‘So You Think You Know What’s Good For You’ and Chris Thurber’s new book ‘The Unlikely Art of Parental Pressure’ (and I’d recommend them both to you). However, it is with fiction that you can get lost and enjoy stretching your imagination. Reading books like ‘Boy Swallows Universe’ and ‘All The Shimmering Skies” both by Trent Dalton, ‘The Dry’ and ‘The Survivors’ by Jane Harper, and ‘The Dictionary of Lost Words’ by Pip Williams (can you tell I love Australian authors!) and ‘Where the Crawdads Sing’ by Delia Owens (one of my all time favourites) just to name a few. Finding time every day to get lost in words is good for the brain, and for the body - so try it!</p><p style="font-family: Times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p style="color: #cd0000; font-family: Times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">EXERCISING</p><p style="font-family: Times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">So many boarding staff forget the role exercise plays in a healthy life. We are often so busy looking after other people we forget to look after ourselves, and this was never more evident to me than over the last two years here in the ABSA office. So I took the time to do two things - firstly I left my car at work and walked to and from home - a distance of between 2.5km and 3.5km depending on which path, and have discovered the delight of time to myself with no-one interrupting. It gives me time to plan the day, to let go of the tough issues, and above all, to think about the things I love. I have discovered how beautiful the sunset can be, how amazing it is to watch the full moon rise, how very few days it actually rains fi rst and last thing of the day (I have only been caught twice). Try to find time to walk - it is good for the heart and good for the mind. Secondly, we have brought in a Personal Trainer two afternoons a week (and yes, I walk home after the session too). Mat is one of my ex-students, is qualified and enjoys hearing us complain about how sore he made us from the last session. Yes, sometimes I go back to my desk afterwards to finish off what didn’t get done before he arrived, but most often I have enjoyed the full-bore way to end a day.</p><p style="font-family: Times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p style="color: #cd0000; font-family: Times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">LISTENING</p><p style="font-family: Times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I must admit that pre-Covid I had never listened to a podcast, even though my two sons kept telling me about great things to listen to. Therefore, I decided to use the time walking to listen to things for me, speakers who would improve my life in some sort of way. I have laughed and cried through some of the interviews on ‘The Howie Games’ (his recent chat with Andrew Gaze post the Olympics is priceless) and have loved improving my basketball and business knowledge on ‘The Old Man and the Three’ by JJ Reddick with interviews of many NBA players as well as hearing from Bob Iger the Executive Chairmen of the Walt Disney Company - as an example. I am hoping many of you subscribe to ‘On Duty’ and ‘Study Time’, the ABSA podcasts (I won’t mention my favourite interviews, but wow - they have been fun to listen to). So find your thing in podcast world - my wife Karen enjoys ‘Conversations’ by Richard Fidler, there is a great one called ‘You’re Wrong About’ - you name it, there is a podcast for every interest.</p>
<p style="font-family: Times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p style="font-family: Times; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">These are just three ways I have discovered to ‘Look After Myself’. What can you do for yourself? The first step is to try something, and make time for it - I challenge you to, as you will find you do an even better job of looking after your boarders once you look after yourself.</p>Chief Executive Officerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00558182176033643518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8037030201006954614.post-41546906274586078072021-09-14T11:36:00.003+10:002021-09-14T11:36:20.053+10:00Do We Really Know It All?<p><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">The last twelve months have given everyone a chance to ponder - to ponder the landscape of boarding staff in Australia, to ponder how we might all do a better job of looking after our boarders, to ponder just how demanding the Head of Boarding position really is, to ponder what support we need to do our job to the best of our ability, and to ponder what our vision is overall.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">At ABSA we have been doing the same - we have looked carefully at how we were doing things, and worked hard to find better ways. We have used our Strategic Plan to focus on the key visions of our members, and looked at how we might fulfil the key areas of this plan before it is re-envisaged for the next three years. We have worked to plug holes, to expand horizons and provide better data for schools. And I’ve even started my Masters’ in Residential Education - and will be researching how sustainable the Head of Boarding Role actually is in today’s boarding schools.</p>
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<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>But where is this leading?</b></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">My greatest concern in our boarding schools at present is complacency - and I’m not talking about how we deal with the Covid epidemic. What we at ABSA have discovered is how important our role is to provide targeted, specific boarding staff training. So many people have been reaching out for it. So many people have been keen to give us ideas for topics. So many people have registered for something we have run.</p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">However, so many haven’t. We have heard comments such as “we don’t have time”, “our staff aren’t interested” or even “as a teacher I already have to do lots of PD”.</p>
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<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I must admit I believe this is a cop out. Getting suitable Professional Learning opportunities for my own boarding staff over 30 years of running boarding houses was close to impossible - so I did it myself. I made sure every member of staff, from uni students who were paid in ‘board and keep’ to Heads of House with many years of experience, we all approached the idea of getting better at our boarding duties with a passion. Whilst a number of us enjoyed many PD activities as teachers, only a few really translated easily into our boarding work. However, almost all of the boarding learning opportunities translated really well into our teaching - especially those around developing positive relationships.</p>
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<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>So where is my rant going?</b></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I believe every boarding house in Australia has a key responsibility - to provide at least 15 hours of professional learning opportunities for every staff member working there every year. Of course some of this will be Government regulated and critically important Child Protection training, updating to CPR or First Aid training and the like. But some of it needs to be specifically about boarding - how to be better at the important role we play looking after the teenagers in our care. Some of our Boarding Schools are already doing this really well - and that is just awesome. But to be honest, many aren’t. Those boarding leaders make excuses and don’t end up leading their boarding staff to be future focused and the best they can be. They take the easy way out. They get so bogged down with managing their boarding house that they forget the important role they have as a leader - to move their boarding house forward, to improve their staff and to develop their boarding program to best face the 21st Century.</p>
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<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>Where does ABSA fit in?</b></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Firstly, we don’t profess to offer everything for every person. There are lots of good things available all over the country. But we do profess to offer affordable, easy to access, high quality training which any level of staff could relate to. The online Active Duty course is available free to anyone and only takes around 40 minutes to complete - I struggle to see why every single boarding staff member in this region of the world has not completed it. The webinars are targeted at different boarding roles, but over the year everyone will get plenty of chances to watch and learn and get better at their role. The certificate courses help everyone to ‘deep dive’ into a topic which is relevant to their work. And those of us undertaking the Masters in Residential Education through Buckingham University - we are well on the way to our research projects.</p>
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<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Please don’t be shy. Reach out if you have a topic you want us to look into. Reach out if you think we are heading in the wrong direction. Reach out if you want something researched. And reach out if you need help in accessing the PD - we are here to help.</p>
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<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">So we don’t know it all - in fact there is so much to learn. How can the boarding leaders in Australia play a critical part in continuing to make this country the best in the world when it comes to boarding practice? We can make sure our staff continue to develop, to learn, and above all to really do well at looking after those wonderful teenagers in our communities.</p>Chief Executive Officerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00558182176033643518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8037030201006954614.post-16452217156258752062021-06-14T13:48:00.005+10:002021-06-14T13:48:55.263+10:00 Let’s all Celebrate Boarding<p><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 11px;">I am writing this at the end of National Boarding Week, a week which saw so many of our boarding schools celebrate the fact that they have boarders. Too often in the busy-ness of life at school the little things get missed - the girls enjoying the chance to cook together on a Sunday afternoon, the boys helping each other with their assignment work, the boarders getting in and assisting with school events - the list is endless. But this week has given us the chance to highlight those things which make our boarding communities special. Special assemblies which mentioned the challenges many of our rural and remote boarders face at home, videos produced which have allowed our boarders to talk about what boarding means to them, photos of the community having fun together and above all the chance to remind all students in our schools that there is a boarding house (or more than one) on campus, and that it’s a fun place to live. It was great to watch boarding school celebrate the work of their boarding staff - special cupcakes, flowers, cards of thanks from the boarders and special words from the Principals to name a few.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">ABSA proudly produced the first of a series of videos. Entitled ‘Why Boarding?’ this video, which is available for all member schools to use, is aimed toward parents and those interested in what boarding schools are all about. </p>
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<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">However, there is an underlying theme in the video which is important to remember. It highlights how important it is for all schools to be at the highest standard. It is easy for those leading our boarding schools, and staff working in them, to be satisfied with what they are doing, and have been doing for a number of years. It is easy to be satisfied that they meet the minimum standard required by different State Governments, even though these are not at the same level as the National Minimum Standard. It is easy to be satisfied with staff who are undertrained, or haven’t undergone any specific boarding training for some time, or at all. These are the boarding houses which put us all at risk. I still hear stories of where young staff let the older boys bully the younger boys and turn a blind eye (yes, this was reported to me this year!), where staff are content that their Duty of Care training completed in 2011 means they know what is expected of them in 2021, where staff are rostered on long duties covering the whole weekend without any breaks or support, where schools will not spend money to help improve their boarding school by introducing Boarding School Management software or improve their staff by encouraging them to undertake the free online training offered and where those who are teachers and work in boarding believe they don’t need to undertake any boarding training as they already do enough Professional Learning.</p>
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<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">So what can schools do to really celebrate boarding? We can ensure our boarders get the best support from their well-trained staff, we can spend time talking with our boarders about current issues such as consent, pornography, social media and bullying, and why it is important for them to develop a balanced, well-rounded view on this rather than just leaving it for the day school to handle. We can make our boarders feel special by actually listening to what they are saying and reading their body language, we can ensure all our boarding staff understand that they hold an incredibly important position, one which is professional in its own right.</p>
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<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Thanks for all that you are doing to make events such as National Boarding Week so special - keep up the good work!</p>Chief Executive Officerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00558182176033643518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8037030201006954614.post-36731243693606969012021-03-29T10:13:00.002+10:002021-03-29T10:13:11.728+10:00No Barriers in the Bush<p> I was privileged to attend the 2021 Northern Territory Isolated Children's Parents' Association State Conference recently, and the opening piece was such a great reminder fo the challenges these wonderful families face. Read on and enjoy.</p><p>Richard Stokes</p><p style="font-family: Calibri; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p>
<p style="font-family: Calibri; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Good Morning, </p>
<p style="font-family: Calibri; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Welcome to the 2021 ICPA NT State Conference. It is a great honour to be the first to speak at the Conference, and set the scene for the theme – ‘No Barriers in the Bush’. First let me introduce myself, my name is Kerrie Scott, and I am the Katherine Branch President, and sit on NT State Council. I wasn’t born in the NT, but I’ve lived here for 23 or so years of my life, and my husband is a born and bred Territorian, along with our three children. All of our children have been educated through Katherine School of the Air, with my oldest daughter now in her first year of boarding in Charters Towers, whilst my Yr 4 and Yr 6 children continue to study through distance ed. We live on Mountain Valley Station, a cattle and buffalo property along the Central Arnhem Road, 225km from our nearest town, Katherine. </p>
<p style="font-family: Calibri; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">When I was approached to say a little something to introduce the theme of today’s conference, the first thing I said was “I’m sure there are far more important people than me that would be suitable to speak!”. As I said those words, I realised inside, I felt like my voice really wasn’t worthy. Who would want to listen to what I had to say? There will be so many amazing, accomplished people in that room, I’m just a Mum, trying to educate her kids in the bush, like all the other Mums, jumping the same hurdles. Our very persuasive President Mrs Cook replied “Who better to talk about Barriers in the Bush than someone who lives it, and is passionate about it!”, so here I am, overcoming one of the biggest barriers, the invisible one that feeds our self doubt, tells us we are wasting our time, that no one is listening, that we don’t count, that we will just make do the best we can, that we will sacrifice and go without financially, that it is our fault we live out here, where no one else wants to, so we must suffer quietly and ‘suck it up’. …the government has no money for remote education right?........... The Territory Government spent $1.108 Billion dollars on education in the last financial year, and with 43% of Territory students enrolled in remote or very remote schools, a big chunk of that must have come our way right?.... </p><p style="font-family: Calibri; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p>
<p style="font-family: Calibri; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">There just isn’t enough time for me to go through all the obstacles we face as parents trying to educate our children. But for the benefit of those that like to be reminded, there are the financial drains of the full time position we have teaching, (or as the more inexpensive term used ‘Supervising’) our children in the home classroom, which is literally being a bloody teacher, yet without the perks, the training, the pay or the time off…or stress leave for that matter. If you are not in a position to “Supervise” yourself, you must find a way to pay someone to do so, whether you dedicate one parent’s wage, or you negotiate a deal with an employer to allow you to have a Home Tutor, in any form, you are paying for your child’s free public school education like no other Australian Citizen is expected to. Then it might be Boarding School Fee’s, travel costs, extra support, perhaps you have multiple aged children and you’re doing it all…it is all adding up. Financially, we are sucked dry trying to educate our kids. But you know what, we are not victims, we are a people that are okay with paying our own way, in fact, our mantra is that nothing good comes easy, but when the one thing our country prides itself on is access to a free education for all children, where is the equity? Why is the starting point for every other family different to ours? Isolated families are literally leaving the Territory in droves because they just can’t afford to educate their children up here. So many good families, ready to contribute so much to our community and economy just say, ‘It’s too hard and it is just too expensive’ and head off to greener pastures. I know this, because I </p>
<p style="font-family: Calibri; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">know them, I’ve seen it, over and over again. The only reason we have isolated families left at all in the Territory is that the ones that don’t leave are incredibly stubborn, relish in a challenge, and fundamentally just love the Territory. But I’ll come back to that. </p><p style="font-family: Calibri; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p>
<p style="font-family: Calibri; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Okay, so it is financially crippling, but that is just one barrier. Try finding support services when you have children with special needs. Feel the guilt of not identifying developmental issues or learning difficulties in your child earlier because you just didn’t know, and the precious little contact time with peers and professionals just wasn’t enough to pick up on those subtle signs. Try finally finding health and teaching professionals that ‘get it’, only for them to move on and leave before you even had a chance to let that breath of relief out. </p><p style="font-family: Calibri; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p>
<p style="font-family: Calibri; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Okay, so this is not a conference theme of ‘Here are the Barriers’, it is ‘No Barriers in the Bush’, and here’s where the good news comes. ICPA NT has been on the front line advocating for isolated children since 1981, and every single entitlement, support and allowance currently in place to help these kids, is there because of the dedicated councillors and members working constantly to improve our circumstances. I’ve been involved with ICPA for around 6 years, and on State Council for 4 of those, and I can tell you that these amazing women work their butts off getting it done. We’ve experienced some amazing achievements, but I tell you, it can be a hard slog. Our recent success with advocating for internet subsidies for distance education classrooms took two long years of phone calls, letters, delegations, teleconferences, research of legislation and statistics, information on classroom demographic and data usage in distance ed classrooms, and our own personal stories and case studies. We had to find the answers that no government department had ever bothered to look for, and our ducks had to be in a row every single conversation, every single audience. I can’t express the emotion we felt when at what felt like the 11<span style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">th </span>hour, we had success. If only it was that quick and easy to get results on all of our issues, but if you ever think for a moment that we can’t change the situation you are wrong. We are the ONLY ones that can change the situation. </p><p style="font-family: Calibri; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p>
<p style="font-family: Calibri; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">So I did say I’d come back to our love of the Territory. The ICPA branches in the NT have the majority of their membership cohort coming from the Pastoral industry. This industry contributes over $450 Million dollars directly into the NT economy and in excess of $1 Billion dollars indirectly. But one of the barriers we face is the total misconception by the general public that all the people in the cattle industry are wealthy, and they pay because they can…and they should. The families on the coal face of this billion dollar injection of funds into the NT economy might have something to say about that. They’re ordinary people, working their butts off every single day, in the heat, in the flies, battling the tyranny of distance, where no one else wants to be, and you’d be embarrassed to work out their hourly rate. They’re working every single day, even when they’re not there, the existence of their livelihoods depends on them not dropping the ball…ever, and the majority of these people are not wealthy, if they were they might be on a yacht sailing the Whitsundays instead of processing cattle in 46 degrees, and whether it is pulling dying cattle out of bogs on Christmas Day because it hasn’t rained, or pulling bore pumps out of rivers because it has, they are there, and there is no ‘I’ve knocked off’. Our life is our industry, it is one. Any quick browse of a boarding school article on social media where remote families are asking for financial assistance, you’ll see hundreds of comments from the blissfully naïve suburban keyboard warriors, telling us to ‘just send them to the local school like we all have to’…only problem is our local school might be 700km away. We don’t want to send our children away to school, but what we do want is for them to have an unabridged education, and if we can’t provide what they need at home as they progress, we have no choice. For some families, there may be a small school offering a limited program nearby, or to home school through distance ed all the way through may be the preferred or ONLY option. </p><p style="font-family: Calibri; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p>
<p style="font-family: Calibri; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Anyway, my point is, it is of utmost confusion to me, why these isolated kids are not supported completely and without question in every way, as much as they need, to access an education – whether that be in the distance ed classroom, in a boarding school, or at university – wherever that might be. Our options in the Territory are extremely limited compared to other states, and so is our support. There are motions that will be presented today that have been put forward for many years, and it breaks my heart. Why do we need to fight so hard for every single thing? These are the kids that have an instilled love of the Territory, they have an incredible work ethic, they don’t see the social issues, the distance, the terrible roads, the lack of assistance…they see home. These are the kids that will return to the Territory, will remain in the Territory, as Doctors, as Truck Drivers, Cattlemen, Nurses, Teachers, Tradesman, because this is their home. The Territory needs these kids. </p><p style="font-family: Calibri; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p>
<p style="font-family: Calibri; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Access to education is the key, whatever your level of disadvantage, education is what will save us. Isolation is a complication that is difficult to quantify, yet if we don’t acknowledge the financial and social implications of neglecting to fully support isolated children trying to access a quality education throughout this geographically broad community, regardless of their colour or culture, we are doing more than just a disservice to the people within, we are essentially ensuring the demise of the Territory lifestyle we want to protect. Our kids need us to be their voice, and we need to break down every single barrier to ensure their right to an education, that will bring opportunity, fulfilment, success and achievement. </p>
<p style="font-family: Calibri; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Thank you.</p><p style="font-family: Calibri; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p style="font-family: Calibri; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Kerrie Scott, Katherine Branch President, ICPA NT State Councillor. </p>Chief Executive Officerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00558182176033643518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8037030201006954614.post-52583152409261484372021-03-16T12:26:00.001+10:002021-03-16T12:26:23.334+10:00 SEXUAL CONSENT - by Dr Tim Hawkes OAM<p><br /></p>
<p style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Dr Tim Hawkes OAM</b></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 16px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b></b></span><br /></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>INTRODUCTION </b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Boarding schools have not been immune from criticism that they aren’t doing enough to educate students about sexual consent. Indeed, with boarding staff acting <i>in loco parentis</i>, it becomes even more imperative for staff to ensure the boarders in their care are well-informed in relation to matter of sexual consent.</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>However, it is not just information that is needed, it is motivation to do the right thing. It is the creation of a culture of respect. It is an understanding of our common humanity and what needs to be done to live a generative life characterised by respect for each other. These things are often best modelled than lectured on.</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="color: #343434; font-kerning: none;"><b>The genesis of the contemporary drive to improve sexual consent education was a petition started in February 2021, by Chanel Contos</b></span><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>, an ex-student of a boarding school in Sydney. The petition went viral with thousands of alleged sexual assaults being described by respondents when they were at their respective schools. The resultant publicity has led to urgent remedial activity in many boarding school communities. </b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>History suggests this was not the first time sexual consent was diagnosed as a problem among young people. A previous Australian poll indicated that 55 percent of boys in their senior high-school years confessed they had a friend that had sexually assaulted someone. (1) In another study of Australian children, half of the girls and a third of boys aged 16 – 17-years said they had experienced unwanted sexual behaviour over the last year. (2)</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>It is clear that society continues to have a sexual consent problem among its youth.</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b></b></span><br /></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>THE CONSEQUENCES</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>The tragic reality is that many lives have been ruined because of predatory sexual behaviour. It is time for urgent remedial action. No boarding community that would want to call itself civilised can countenance the emergence of a culture of disrespect towards women, or a predatory sexual license among its students. </b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Our boarders need to recognise that satisfying sexual pleasure without the full consent of the sexual partner is a serious crime. Under certain circumstances, it can result in jail and being placed on a sex offenders register. This can be an appalling experience for the offender, their family and their school. </b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>However, it can be even more appalling for the victim who may have to live with emotional scarring for life. Victims have been known to be so traumatised, they have found it difficult to form intimate relationships in the future. Many have suffered depression and engaging in acts of self-harm. </b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 16px;"><br /></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>THE LEGALITY</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>The legal definition of sex does not necessarily align with the definition of sexual activity. For a jury to decide whether sex took place, it generally needs the penis, finger or any other part of a person to be partially of fully inside another person’s vagina or anus. Sex is also deemed to have happened if oral sex was engaged in.</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Those that are involved in kissing or fondling are not usually considered to have engaged in sex. They will usually be judged to have engaged in sexual touching or a sexual act. However, our boarders need to be careful. Although not classified as having sex, activities such as kissing and fondling, when uninvited and non-consensual, may be judged as sexual assault.</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>For this reason, any form of sexual activity should only be undertaken if it is transparently clear there has been consent. </b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>In judging the legality of sexual relationships between young people, the law typically takes into account three factors:</b></span></p>
<ul>
<li style="color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>Consent. (Did the person agree to sex?)</b></span></li>
<li style="color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>Equality. (Is there a power imbalance between those having sex?)</b></span></li>
<li style="color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>Coercion. (Were threats of any kind used to obtain sex?)</b></span></li>
</ul>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b></b></span><br /></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>CONSENT</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>The law has a difficult job in legislating sexual consent for children. On the one hand, the law wants to protect children from exploitation and harm. On the other hand, it wants to acknowledge children as sexual beings with sexual appetites and a natural curiosity about sex. These two goals do not always sit comfortably with each other.</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>In Australia, consent laws vary. Generally, the age of consent is fixed at 16 years, but in Tasmania and South Australia, it is set at 17 years. </b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="color: black; font-kerning: none;"><b>The age of consent is the </b></span><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>age it is judged a person has the maturity needed say ‘no’ and to say ‘yes’ in an informed manner. It is also the age when it is recognised that most are able to navigate the risks in sexual activity so that it doesn’t harm themselves or their partner.</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Our boarders need to recognise that consent to sexual activity in the past does not mean consent is given for sexual activity in the future. Another important fact to bear in mind is that silence is not ‘yes’. Consent needs to be clear and ambiguous, and it needs to be continually given as sexual activity moves into different levels of intimacy.</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>If a boarder engages in sexual activity when their partner is drunk or under the influence of drugs, they may be charged with sexual assault or some other related offence. Boarders need to recognise that anyone in a condition that renders good decision-making less likely, must be considered ‘off limits’ to sexual advances. Likewise, if they engage in sexual activity with a partner who was asleep or too drowsy to understand what was going on, may well be found to have engaged in criminal behaviour, as would a person who tricks a person into sexual activity.</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Consent means agreement to. Indeed, in order to avoid any change of being found to be acting unlawfully, boarders should be encouraged to seek </b></span><span style="font-kerning: none; text-decoration: underline;"><b>enthusiastic</b></span><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b> agreement to any sexual activity they are proposing. </b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>As things progress sexually, checks need to be made that the sexual activity is still wanted. Phrases such as, ‘Are you OK with this?’ and, ‘Is this good for you?’ need to used. It is important for boarders to know that a partner being silent is not a partner who is necessarily giving permission.</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Body language is as important to note as much as verbal language. Squirming away, pushing away, arms and hands used to fend off advances, needs to be taken as clear signals of unwanted sexual activity. They are not to be seen as a challenge. They need to be seen as ‘no’. </b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>A tricky element to the consent issue is the right of partners to change their mind. This is important to recognise. When affection and trust develops, there will often be a signalling that a greater level of intimacy is now appropriate. </b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>However, care needs to be taken. The speed of arousal in some can be quicker than the speed of arousal in others. Therefore, it is important to advance the growth of sexual activity at the pace set by the slowest. </b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>When checking on consent, it’s often better to adopt an ‘opt in’ policy rather than an ‘opt out’ policy. In other words, it is safer to ask if it’s OK to go further, than to go further and then ask if it OK.</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Our boarders must recognise that for intimacy to be mutually enjoyable, the needs, feelings and desires of each partner needs to be satisfied. When no effort is taken to accommodate a partner’s preferences, a person runs the risk of being judged to have engaged in non-consensual sex.</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Sexual appetites vary. Personalities vary. Upbringings vary. It is also important to recognise that religions and cultures vary. These influences need to be acknowledged. For one person, sex might just be a bit of harmless fun. For the other person, it may threaten estrangement from their family, banishment from their community and a difficult repentance before their God. </b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Respecting a person requires respecting their rights to determine what can happen to their body. Personal space needs to be respected. This includes when greeting and farewelling, when talking, when dancing and when kissing. </b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b></b></span><br /></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>EQUALITY</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Equality is not just judged on age and on issues such as an overage person engaging in sexual activity with an underage person. It can also include sexual activity between people where there is a power imbalance such as a teacher and a student, a carer and the one they are caring for, and a coach and the person they are coaching. Any situation where a power imbalance is used to obtain sexual favours will likely to be seen as illegal. This includes sexual activity with someone who has a disability that prevents them from making appropriate choices about such activities.</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Laws vary as to the age of consent. Some courts will consider a claim that a person ‘looked’ over the age of consent, but this cannot be relied on. </b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Some courts will also tolerate sex between underage youth if consensual and if both were underage and not too young and that there was not too much of an age difference. A person just over the age of consent engaging in sexual activity with one that is just under the age of consent may be deemed not to have committed a sexual crime. However, this is dangerous legal territory. If in any doubt about a person being an appropriate age, sexual activity should not be entertained.</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b></b></span><br /></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>COERSION </b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>The use of physical threats to obtain sex is transparently recognised by most as being coercion and unconscionable. Somewhat less well understood is the use of social and emotional coercion to engage in sexual activity. </b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Our students need to recognise that the law may see the following sort of language as coercion and criminal:</b></span></p>
<ul>
<li style="color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>‘You would if you truly loved me.’</b></span></li>
<li style="color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>‘Everyone else is doing it.’</b></span></li>
<li style="color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>‘Don’t you want to make our relationship stronger?’</b></span></li>
<li style="color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>‘You don’t want to be labelled “frigid” do you?’</b></span></li>
<li style="color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>‘You’ll be bagged out for being a virgin if you don’t do it with me.’</b></span></li>
</ul>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>An extreme example of coercion is rape. The exact definition of rape varies, but it usually requires there to have been penetrative sexual activity without consent. It is a serious crime that can lead to significant prison sentences. </b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Aggravated rape is usually determined if the rape involved force, a weapon, leads to injury, was committed against a minor or involved a significant power imbalance. The penalties for aggravated rape are usually more severe than for rape.</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 6px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Other sexual crimes include:</b></span></p>
<ul>
<li style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 6px;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>Sexual Act. Examples include sending ‘nudes’ (sexting) and exposing yourself.</b></span></li>
<li style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 6px;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>Sexual Touching. Examples include ‘feeling up’ and caressing either under or over clothing.</b></span></li>
<li style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 6px;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>Sexual Assault. An example would be engaging in sexual intercourse without consent.</b></span></li>
</ul>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Some sexual predators have used blackmail to get sex. Sometimes this can involve such activities as the threat to release intimate photos or nudes unless sex is given. This sort of behaviour will be seen to be a very serious crime, as could any form of bribery to gain sexual favours. </b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b></b></span><br /></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>THE ‘RED FLAGS’</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>There are absolutely no certainties whatsoever, but research suggests a number of ‘red flags’ exist that indicate non-consensual sex may be more likely. A boarder may be more at risk of failing to respect the notion of consent if they have the following attributes: </b></span></p>
<ul>
<li style="color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>A tendency to drink too much alcohol at parties.</b></span></li>
<li style="color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>A reputation for ‘cutting loose’ at parties.</b></span></li>
<li style="color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>Hanging with a group that’s heavily into casual sex.</b></span></li>
<li style="color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>A regular watcher of pornography.</b></span></li>
<li style="color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>From a family where respect for woman is not modelled.</b></span></li>
<li style="color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>A tendency to see the opposite sex as ‘fair game’ to be hunted.</b></span></li>
<li style="color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>A person with a history of multiple sexual partners.</b></span></li>
<li style="color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>Ignorance about what constitutes consent.</b></span></li>
<li style="color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>Having the common, ‘I want what I want when I want it” mentality.</b></span></li>
<li style="color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>The desire to be thought to have great sexual ability.</b></span></li>
</ul>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>However, someone with none of the characteristics described above can still be guilty of demanding non-consensual sex, and someone with all the characteristics described above may never behave in this manner. Therefore, care is needed when making generalisations of this nature.</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b></b></span><br /></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>AN ISSUE FOR BOYS</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Statistically, teenage boys are at a higher risk than girls of being charged with sexual assault due to engagement in non-consensual sex. </b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Sometimes, they are charged with the offence immediately after the sexual event. At other times, they are charged with the offence later in life. Anyone that has failed to ensure the sex they engage in has always been consensual, is living with a legal bomb that can go off at any time. </b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Quite properly, society is becoming more and more appalled by non-consensual sex and less and less willing to dismiss the matter as ‘boys being boys’.</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Boys need to recognise that sex is not about conquest. A ‘yes’ given to sex needs to be arrived at without social, emotional and physical pressure. They also need to be aware that ‘no means no’. It doesn’t mean ‘maybe’. Neither does it mean the need to put more pressure on a partner to change the ‘no’ to a ‘yes’.</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Having noted the above, predatory sexual behaviour by girls is not unknown. Some girls know just what to do in order to manipulate a partner into engaging in sexual activity. </b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b></b></span><br /></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>INFLUENCE OF PEERS</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="color: black; font-kerning: none;"><b>In the cold light of day, most recognise that exerting inappropriate pressure for sexual favours is wrong. However, this recognition can become </b></span><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>diminished at events such as parties. Alcohol and other recreational drugs, the urging of peers, and the arousal caused by pornography or the sexual behaviour of others, can result in a sexual hunger that trumps sexual morality.</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>A factor in many cases of non-consensual sex is the influence of peers. A victim, in wanting to be thought well of, will sometimes tolerate unwanted sex. A perpetrator, in wanting to be accepted by peers, will sometimes partner in sex acts that are demeaning and predatory.</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>For this reason, our boarders need to recognise that choice of friends becomes important, as is cultivating the capacity to make your own choices when it comes to engaging in sex. As the saying goes:</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b><i>Show me your friends</i></b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b><i>and I’ll tell you your future.</i></b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 16px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b><i></i></b></span><br /></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>THE INFLUENCE OF PORNOGRAPHY</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Advocating consent is not easy in the contemporary age where teens have almost unlimited access to pornography. Research varies, but estimates suggesting four out of five teenage boys watch pornography at least once a week and one teenage girl in five. </b></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Boys aged 14 – 17 years are the most frequent users of underage pornography. (3) In 2017, the Australian Institute of Family Studies reported that 44 % of 9 – 16-year-olds had watched sexual images in the last month. (4)</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Much of the porn watched does not model consensual sex. It can encourage unhealthy fantasies associated with power and dominance. This can be carried over into real sexual relationships resulting in great harm to all parties. A mind saturated in pornography is a mind that can develop unrealistic expectations as to what is normal when having sex. Furthermore, a promiscuity can be encouraged which results is a growth of physical intimacy not matched by growth in social maturity.</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Many sex criminals in our jails were big into pornography.</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 6px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b></b></span><br /></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 6px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>SEXTING AND REVENGE PORN</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 6px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Some couples increase the sexual element of their relationship by sending ‘nudes’ to each other. It is interesting that engaging in sex, if consensual and of the legal age, is considered permissible by law; but filming sex and sending it to each other is not. The law is still catching up with modern times in some areas, and this is one of them. </b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 6px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Currently, the law threatens to make criminals of the third of our teenage boarders – this being the proportion of Australian teens that have sent, received or distributed nudes.</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 6px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Given the uncertainty of outcome from a legal perspective, it is as well not to engage in any form of sexting. A further reason is that when a photo or video is posted, it can remain in the digital world forever, and can re-emerge later in life with the potential to cause great embarrassment and harm.</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 6px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Solution: We can’t do anything other than encourage our boarders not to engage in sexting. It’s just not worth the risk. Research varies, but about 80 percent of nudes are shown to people without proper consent. Boarders need to recognise that assurances of confidentiality should never be relied on. </b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 6px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b></b></span><br /></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 6px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b> </b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 6px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>When an intimate relationship is dissolved, there can be significant anger and hurt. People tend not to make good decisions when angry or hurt. One thing some people go and do is to seek revenge by posting the nudes they have of their ex-partner. This is known as ‘revenge porn’.</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 6px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Our boarders need to recognise that revenge porn is considered by most courts to be a form of sexual assault. In other words, it is considered non-consensual and illegal. </b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #18191a; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>A further thing to be very careful of is viewing some else’s ‘nudes’ and sending them on to friends. Indulging in this sort of behaviour, is not just the innocent sharing of pictures between ‘besties’ and mates. It’s illegal and could result in criminal charges. Our boarders must not be a party to sharing nudes.</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #18191a; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b></b></span><br /></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #18191a; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b></b></span><br /></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #18191a; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>SOME HOMESPUN ADVICE</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #18191a; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b></b></span><br /></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #18191a; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>There is much more that can be said about sexual consent. Included in this is homespun advice on matter such as the following.</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 5px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>In a situation where one of our boarders may feel unsafe, they can discus ‘escape’ techniques such as saying they need to go to the toilet, or that they think they’re going to be sick. Thereafter, encourage them to retreat to the protective company of trusted friends, phone for help, or using the SOS feature on their phone, or leave the venue and make their way safely back home. </b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="color: black; font-kerning: none;"><b>Advice might also be necessary about safe and responsible sex. Our boarders </b></span><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>need to know something of the biology of sex before they engage in the physics of sex. There are a lot of mistruths out there such as not being able to contract an STI via oral sex, or not being able to get pregnant if you have sex standing up. Sex hygiene and contraception also needs to well understood.</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 6px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Advice might also be needed on love and sex. As boarding staff, we need to recognise that teenage love is real and should not be dismissed as inconsequential or just ‘puppy love’. That said, it can be useful to gently share the reality that most people fall in love several times, with each occasion having the potential to bring great pleasure and pain. </b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 6px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>It might also be good to explore the notion that some feel it appropriate to have a right to sex if they, or their partner, say they are in love. Wrong. Being in love is not necessarily a green light for sex.</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 6px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>For a variety of reasons, some want to wait not just for love, but for the right time before they engage in sex. These wishes need to be respected. </b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b><i>A real demonstration of love </i></b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b><i>can be in the preparedness to wait </i></b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #343434; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b><i>rather than in a constantly voiced request for sex.</i></b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 6px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b></b></span><br /></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #18191a; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b></b></span><br /></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #18191a; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>ACT WITH GRACE</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #18191a; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b></b></span><br /></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #18191a; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Finally, being judged to have engaged in consensual sex is more likely if it is done with G.R.A.C.E.</b></span></p>
<ul>
<li style="color: #18191a; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>Given. Sex that seeks to give rather than get is more likely to be consensual as well as mutually enjoyable.</b></span></li>
<li style="color: #18191a; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>Re-set. The boundaries set by any partner need to be able to be re-set at any time. Just because an activity was done in the past does not make agreement to that activity a given in the future.</b></span></li>
<li style="color: #18191a; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>Agreed. Consensual sex is sex that is agreed to. Furthermore, this agreement must be checked and re-checked.</b></span></li>
<li style="color: #18191a; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>Coercion-free. Manipulating a partner with emotional, social or physical blackmail, or by intimidation in any way, will generally be seen as breaking the law.</b></span></li>
<li style="color: #18191a; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>Educated. Knowing what makes for safe sex, free from the worry of pregnancy, sexually transmitted Infections (STIs) such as chlamydia, or blood borne diseases such as HIV, will decrease the chances of sex being described as irresponsible.</b></span></li>
</ul>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #18191a; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b></b></span><br /></p>
<p style="background-color: white; color: #18191a; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>CONCLUSION </b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>One of the best ways to encourage our boarders to behave in relation to sexual consent is to get them to imagine what they would feel if a sexual partner was their daughter or son. Would they be happy for them to be treated in the way they were treating them? If not – they should then be encouraged to treat them better.</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: #f5f4f1; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Boarders need to recognise that consent is about respecting the boundaries set by a partner. Most sexual assaults don’t happen by masked strangers in dark subways. Usually, it’s perpetrated by someone the victim knows.</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Sex is a wonderful thing. However, if it is engaged in in a non-consensual way, it can lead to a life-time of mental and emotional scarring. It can also lead to prison. Therefore, our boarders need to be sure – as in absolutely sure - that any sexual activity engaged in by them is wanted, pleasurable for both parties and without harmful consequences.</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b></b></span><br /></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>If any boarder needs further help or advice on the matters raised, there are many they can go to for help including parents, boarding staff, doctors and counsellors at school. However, they may need to be reminded that any criminal matters should be reported to the Police.</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b></b></span><br /></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>There are many other help agencies that can assist including: </b></span></p>
<ul>
<li style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 5px;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><a href="http://www.kidshelp.com.au/"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; background-color: white; color: black; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><b>Kids Help Line</b></span></a></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b> - 1800 55 1800</b></span></li>
<li style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 5px;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><a href="http://www.lifeline.org.au/"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; background-color: white; color: black; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><b>Lifeline </b></span></a></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>- 13 11 14</b></span></li>
<li style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 5px;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>1800Respect</b></span></li>
<li style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 5px;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"></span><span style="background-color: white; font-kerning: none;"><b>1800MYLINE (1800 695 463)</b></span></li>
<li style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 5px;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><a href="http://www.relationships.com.au/"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; background-color: white; color: black; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><b>Relationships Australia</b></span></a></span></li>
</ul>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b></b></span><br /></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b><i>There is nothing wrong with us</i></b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b><i>that can’t be corrected by that which is right with us.</i></b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 16px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b><i></i></b></span><br /></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: right;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Old saying</b></span></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 16px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b></b></span><br /></p>
<p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Dr Tim Hawkes</b></span></p><p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;"><b><span style="font-size: x-small;">1</span></b></span></p><p style="color: blue; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 10px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: black; font-kerning: none;"> Visontay, E. (2021) Viral petition reveals more than 500 alleged sexual assaults in Australian private schools. <i>The Guardian. </i>19 February 2021. <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2021/feb/20/viral-petition-reveals-more-than-500-allegations-of-sexual-assault-in-australian-private-schools"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; color: blue;">https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2021/feb/20/viral-petition-reveals-more-than-500-allegations-of-sexual-assault-in-australian-private-schools</span></a></span></p><p style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 10px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 11px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></p><p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;">
</span></p><p style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 10px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;">Zhou, N. and Visontay, E (2021) Viral petition against student sexual assault a ‘wake-up’ call Sydney private school principals say. <i>The Guardian. </i>22 Feb. 2021. <span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; color: blue;"><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2021/feb/22/viral-petition-against-student-sexual-assault-a-wake-up-call-sydney-private-school-principals-say">https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2021/feb/22/viral-petition-against-student-sexual-assault-a-wake-up-call-sydney-private-school-principals-say</a></span></span></p><div><span style="font-kerning: none;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">2</span></span></div><div><span style="font-kerning: none;"><p style="background-color: white; color: blue; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 10px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 7.5px;"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; color: black; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span><span style="color: black; font-kerning: none;">Warren, D. and Swami, N. (2019) The Longitudinal Study of Australian Children.</span><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; color: black; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> <span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; color: blue; font-size: 10px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><a href="https://growingupinaustralia.gov.au/research-findings/annual-statistical-reports-2018/teenagers-and-sex">https://growingupinaustralia.gov.au/research-findings/annual-statistical-reports-2018/teenagers-and-sex</a></span></span></p><div><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; color: black; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; color: black; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">3</span></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; color: black; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><p style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 10px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"> Campo, M. (2016) <i>Children and young people’s exposure to pornography. </i>Child Family Community Australia. <span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; color: blue;"><a href="https://aifs.gov.au/cfca/2016/05/04/children-and-young-peoples-exposure-pornography">https://aifs.gov.au/cfca/2016/05/04/children-and-young-peoples-exposure-pornography</a></span></span></p><div><span style="font-kerning: none;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-kerning: none;">4</span></div><div><span style="font-kerning: none;"><p style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 10px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"> Quadara, A. El-Murr, A. and Latham, J. (2017) <i>The effects of pornography on children and young people. </i>Australian Institute of Family Studies. <span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; color: blue;"><a href="https://aifs.gov.au/publications/effects-pornography-children-and-young-people-snapshot">https://aifs.gov.au/publications/effects-pornography-children-and-young-people-snapshot</a></span></span></p><div><span style="font-kerning: none;"><br /></span></div></span></div></span></div><div><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; color: black; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><br /></span></div></span></div><div><span style="font-kerning: none;"><br /></span></div>Chief Executive Officerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00558182176033643518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8037030201006954614.post-12942060822841352642020-11-09T12:38:00.003+10:002020-11-09T12:38:23.779+10:00Who would have predicted.......<p> <span style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px;">As I write this we should have just concluded our 2020 International Boarding Conference in Fremantle, and, as for so many of us, we are actually stuck in our home States thanks to border closures and quarantine requirements. So I thought it would be useful to ponder what ABSA has had to do, and where it might end up in the next few years.</span></p>
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<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><i>Who would have predicted that we would have transformed every ABSA event into an online offering, ranging over more than 100 different topics?</i></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;">The ABSA Strategic Plan under B: Learning, number 7, states: Online professional learning – Review the current approaches to professional development offered by ABSA and where feasible set up online formats to improve efficiencies and accessibility of programs. What was expected to be a second semester project for us became a task for one week in March, and we are very proud of how far we have come. </span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><i>Who would have predicted that we would produce the first of our online training courses and that over 400 people would have completed it?</i></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;">We always knew that online training would be a worthwhile addition to our offerings, but the original lockdown faced by us all in Australia gave us time to research worthwhile platforms and develop our first course in Active Duty. Work is already underway to develop two additional courses - one a generic induction course for boarding school staff joining the profession, and the second a course aimed at more established boarding staff entitled ‘Ten Tips to be a Successful Boarding House Supervisor’.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><i>Who would have predicted that 3557 people would have been online for our events?</i></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;">It is so exciting to see just how many people have joined in to one of our webinars, the online boarding conference and/or courses. Our Strategic Plan challenges us to have the critical outcome of having the status among boarding schools as the number one provider of knowledge and information relevant to their needs - and we are getting there!</span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><i>Who would have predicted that we could provide such great service to our remote and rural members?</i></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;">The professional learning opportunities we have now opened up to every boarding staff member in Australia, from Broome in Northern Western Australia to Hobart in Tasmania, from Weipa in Far North Queensland to St Joseph’s School in Port Lincoln, South Australia, and everywhere in between, have been not only exciting to do, but really well received.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><i>Who would have predicted that so many International Schools would reach out and take part in our webinar series?</i></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;">Our New Zealand and Singapore members have continued to be well connected and attended many of our meetings and events. However, we have had many schools from China, Malaysia, India and more recently Armenia and Bosnia take part in our webinar series - again a key part of our Strategic Plan Under A: Engagement, number 2: International membership – To add a global perspective to the Association, explore opportunities to gain overseas membership of ABSA, expand professional learning for boarding staff, and provide cross-cultural networking for ABSA members.</span></p>
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<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><i>Who would have predicted that our relationships with the media and Government Ministers would grow so strong?</i></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;">One learning for me has been that it takes an issue to find out who needs information and who needs support. The issues surrounding COVID have really highlighted this, and so Section C: Influence, Numbers 2 and 3 from the Strategic Plan - 2. Government and corporate relationships – Establish an authority position such that ABSA is recognised as the peak body regarding all matters relating to boarding and, as a result, to ensure support and access to government funding options and a voice at the table on policy and related matters and 3. Media relationships – Develop stronger relationships across all elements of the media to ensure ABSA is the number one recognised authority in the sector and to communicate all positive aspects of boarding have both been outcomes of this challenging six months. The issue at hand is how to keep this going, as the positive relationships both with government and the media are ones we are keen to continue and strengthen.</span></p>
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<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><i>Who would have predicted that we could run Virtual Duty of Care Workshops?</i></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;">What more can I say - those who have attended one of our workshops have really enjoyed the chance to share stories, learn from and complete the workbooks, and all for a fraction of the cost of having to run these workshops face-to-face. We will endeavour to offer both options in the future, depending on Government regulation.</span></p>
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<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><i>Who would have predicted that up to 90 of our Heads of Boarding would come together, firstly weekly, and more recently fortnightly, and that each of our State groups of Heads of Boarding has also grabbed the virtual world to share stories, successes and challenges so often?</i></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;">This speaks for itself - the opportunity to discuss current and relevant topics across a broad range of different schools from all State is something we had never worked out how to do - but were forced to and have really enjoyed. These virtual gatherings will continue for Head of Boarding, and will expand to cater for our boarding school nurses, general boarding staff, and other if a need arises.</span></p>
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<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"><i>And who would have predicted that we could do all that without getting on a plane - something I did 137 times last year!</i></span></p>
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<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;">So, overall, there have been so many good things to come out of the COVID-19 situation which we have all faced. Let’s all look forward, enjoy the wonderful opportunities offered through our online webinars, virtual Duty of Care workshops and get togethers, until we can (hopefully) come together in Fremantle, or possibly somewhere else this time next year.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></p>Richard Stokeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00403683278806316036noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8037030201006954614.post-13408610409965561192020-09-14T07:48:00.005+10:002020-09-14T07:50:18.925+10:00The Value of Appraisal<p> <span style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px;">Appraisal</span></p>
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<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;">I now turn my thoughts to helping our staff to be more professional in their approach to the important role of looking after the boarders. Boarding schools generally appear to struggle with the idea of effective Appraisal for all levels of boarding staff. As those of you who have attended a Duty of Care workshop in recent years have heard, we believe this is quite likely due to the historical understanding that teachers didn’t like anyone watching them teach - and this has translated to the boarding house.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;">However, how are we going to raise the bar when it comes to boarding staff?</span></p>
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<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;">The first step in this area is to prioritise developing an effective appraisal system - which includes all levels of staff in the boarding house. As Tim Hawkes in Book 1 of Duty of Care - A Certificate Course in Student Residential Care states:</span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;">“Staff appraisal needs to be a feature of a boarding institution and should encompass all staff. The appraisal should focus more on professional development than on accountability. In other words, the process should not just be a ‘policing initiative’ but a constructive and continuous process of feedback, review and reflection.”</span></p>
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<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;">He continues:</span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;">“An appraisal system is generally more effective when:</span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;">• it is undertaken regularly; for example, every year or on a biannual basis.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;">• the process is understood and accepted by staff.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;">• it is not too cumbersome or time consuming.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;">• it is positive and empowering.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;">• it employs feedback from a variety of sources including supervisors and colleagues.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;">• it is based on the staff member’s job description.”</span></p>
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<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;">My question is this - if the above is part of the basic training for all boarding staff, why haven’t more schools and specifically more Heads of Boarding made this a priority? I suggest the answer usually offered to me is that they are too busy and don’t have time to put together an effective appraisal system. My thought is quite the opposite - if you are a boarding leader you don’t have time not to! </span></p>
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<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;">The impacts of an effective and trustworthy appraisal system are nothing short of amazing - staff working toward a common goal, staff understanding their Position Description at a completely new level and above all, much better care for our boarders. Is this not the main reason we are in this industry - to provide outstanding care for our boarders?</span></p>
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<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;">So, let’s all band together - Principals can expect to see an effective appraisal system in place, Heads of Boarding share thoughts across their network, ask questions of ABSA and put together a great system, and boarding staff expect to develop in their role because they are provided with an appraisal which supports them in their work.</span></p>
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<p style="font-family: "Lucida Grande"; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></p>Chief Executive Officerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00558182176033643518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8037030201006954614.post-3726640160896234432020-07-14T11:29:00.003+10:002020-07-14T11:29:26.220+10:00Why We Need to Celebrate Our Profession<div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
Boarding staff are a special breed! For so much of your time your focus is on other people, and you play such a critical role looking after other people’s children. You walk the floor in the boarding house, stop to chat, help with homework, encourage the boarders to give things a go, teach them about sensible technology use, help with tough decisions, ensure you know where they are, eat your meals with them and hopefully get them enough sleep - just to name a few of the daily chores.</div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">But isn’t it a challenge to explain to those not in our industry just what you do? No-one really understands the demands you actually face, the time pressures you are under, and the challenges you come across. Imagine describing to a stranger the extra workload the coronavirus has meant to so many of our schools. One Head of Boarding recently said to me - “I thought I was pretty good at handling stress, but this coronavirus nearly broke me”. And all of this happened on top of the induction of new students, the homesickness, the new staff, and all the other administrative tasks which can dominate the work day.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">So this year, we in ABSA are working extra hard to help others understand just how important your work is for our society. We are working to get our profession recognised, not only by those who are doing the work, but by all those who are affected by it - and those who aren’t. The focus of all our media contacts for the year will be about the professionalisation of the industry - no longer is the boarding staff member just a teacher who wanted a free house to live in, or a person who thought it might be a good job for a while - the boarding staff member of today is a professional, trained in their important work, continually looking for professional learning opportunities, and who is working toward not only having an excellent standard of boarding provision in the school but also becoming accredited themselves.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6xQcsSrWtlxi072SsjG6KlMmPDdYOqS3QnMCTTO3MLZi8hl-3M4rSsyfyQYpRyKqCbE_ZIadvMn0Se8XCeAT4bKTGm_T4kFs9kXOo1pM1kqUZHNDDPLFjHgQEQASV_jn85t7C8QPIUIA/s1600/ABP+Graphic.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1111" data-original-width="371" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6xQcsSrWtlxi072SsjG6KlMmPDdYOqS3QnMCTTO3MLZi8hl-3M4rSsyfyQYpRyKqCbE_ZIadvMn0Se8XCeAT4bKTGm_T4kFs9kXOo1pM1kqUZHNDDPLFjHgQEQASV_jn85t7C8QPIUIA/s200/ABP+Graphic.png" width="66" /></a><span style="font-kerning: none;">ABSA will launch the Certification Scheme for Boarding Schools, using AS5725-2015, the Boarding Standard for Australian Schools and Residences, in coming months and believe it will be critical to see all of our schools become certified against this standard. The Accredited Boarding Practitioner Scheme, jointly developed with the UK Boarding Schools Association, is growing steadily, giving staff a real opportunity to celebrate their professional standing within the industry. National Boarding Week from 17 to 23 May will help schools to focus on what makes their boarding school programs special. The ABSA Training Academy will soon launch, offering base level training (as we do at present), and further options including on-line courses and specified workshops, right up to a Masters in conjunction with Buckingham University in the UK - again sharing in the good work of our sister organisation in the UK. And we are working on a complete re-write and re-design of the Duty of Care Certificate Course to launch in 2021.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">So how can you be involved? Get along to the many and varied activities ABSA is running across Australia, New Zealand, Singapore and shortly in Malaysia. Our aim is to provide a wide range of activities to suit every level of staff - from ‘A Look Inside’ where you get to see how others run their boarding program, to ‘nuts-and-bolts’ sessions for those at the coalface, from user workshops in boarding software to boarding-specialised Youth Mental Health First Aid qualifications, from First-Aid training which is targeted to boarding schools to personalised workshops run by ABSA personnel to address those issues faced in your specific school. And of course if you haven’t undertaken the Duty of Care Certificate Course during the last four years your qualification is out-of-date - time to come along again!</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Let’s all work together to get our professional recognised, not only in our schools but by the wider community as a whole. The work everyone in this sector does is exceptional - keep it up!</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Until next time - Signing Out</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Richard</span></div>
Richard Stokeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00403683278806316036noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8037030201006954614.post-26642871585147767592019-08-16T09:00:00.002+10:002019-08-16T09:00:09.569+10:00The Role of a Head of Boarding<div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
I regularly get asked what the role of Head of Boarding is like, and can honestly say that it is impossible to explain to someone who hasn’t ever done it. However, it has got me thinking - what should a modern day Head of Boarding be doing?</div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">First and foremost</span><span style="color: #e6000e; font-kerning: none;">,</span><span style="font-kerning: none;"> I believe the role is one of Leadership not Management. Too often in the busy-ness of life those running a boarding house can get bogged down in management tasks - approving leave, answering emails, writing reports, and the myriad of paperwork tasks which come across their desk every day. I can clearly recall how difficult it was to get on top of this all and still do the job I was meant to be doing - actually leading my staff and my boarders and the community as a whole. It is the place of the leader to develop the strategy of the boarding house and put together an action plan for this strategy, not just be doing the actions!</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">My thoughts are that a Head of Boarding needs to step away from their desk and provide the boarders with the life skills they will need for their future. With the boarders spending 40 weeks of their year under our care they miss out on so many opportunities to learn the important things in life - about money, about health, about sex and relationships, and about living independently, just to name a few. Our boarding houses are being challenged more and more to fill these gaps, and we should all be reaching out to grab this opportunity with both hands. However, I am surprised and concerned that so many of those leading our boarding houses don’t see this as a critical part of their role, or say that they don’t have time for this. If we do not provide these life skills for those under our care, who will? The answer is actually quite simple - no-one - and this is very obvious when you talk with some of those ex-boarders who can’t budget and are always running out of money, don’t know anything about the options of where they might live when they leave the boarding house, of how to sign a lease and find the bond payments necessary, of how to cook simple meals, change the tyres on their car or even sew on a button or iron their clothes. It is the boarding houses job to teach these - not the schools, and we can’t rely on their parents as they are not at home long enough to do this. We need to develop a Residential Curriculum for our boarders, and put the time and effort into ensuring age specific skills are learnt by every boarder, and it is the job of the leader of the boarding house - the Head of Boarding - to do this.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">So, when anyone working in boarding feels snowed under with the administration needs, it is time for them to step aside and re-analyse the way they are working. Our Leaders Conference in Adelaide in August will help with these skills - email ninja which teaches you how to be on top of your emails every day, the skills of turning strategy into action, balancing work and life and ensuring the important things are done well, all of the time. We all need to read more on leadership (have you read ‘Leaders Eat Last’ by Simon Sinek?), to spend time being the role model for whom your boarders are looking, and to see strategy as the way forward, not just busy work.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">I was once told you should never answer a question with ‘I didn’t have time’ as time is a choice - you choose whether to do something or not to - and I believe all those leading our boarding communities need to make the choice to lead, to develop their own Residential Curriculum, and to make sure that when their boarders leave school they are fully equipped for the challenges they face.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Richard Stokes</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Chief Executive Officer</span></div>
Richard Stokeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00403683278806316036noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8037030201006954614.post-18930273429752066412017-05-26T11:42:00.000+10:002017-05-26T11:42:13.088+10:00WHY BOARDING STAFF NEED TO KEEP UP-TO-DATE BY COMPLETING EDITION THREE OF THE DUTY OF CARE COURSE<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal;">
<span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;">How long ago is it since you completed the ABSA Duty of Care Certificate Course in Student Residential Care? In recent times we have heard many staff say that they have already done the course and that they see no need to re-visit what is in there.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">We disagree. Edition 3 of the Duty of Care workbooks is completely updated, and includes a number of new chapters, and our workshops are designed to highlight the critical issues which affect the boarding schools of today. Topics such as Dealing with Modern Technology and Developing a Life Skills Course for Boarders are addressed in depth and the National Boarding Standard is not only discussed but the Student Welfare section is debated in depth, as well as getting staff to analyse which areas of the Standard they are addressing well and which areas will need work.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">We believe ABSA’s Duty of Care Workshops provide the opportunity to complete the workbooks in an engaging way. Many staff who are quite experienced in boarding produce ‘to do’ lists of the ideas raised by others attending, broadening their view on how they can achieve good practice in their Boarding House. By bringing a number of people working in different boarding roles to learn together, sharing stories and questions, the workbooks are brought to life and give those attending a much richer learning experience.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">To quote some of the feedback received from our Duty of Care workshops:</span></div>
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<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;">“I simply thought the content was so relevant, practical and useful. The delivery was excellent and not "dry" at all.”</span></li>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;">“It was refreshing to hear Richard refer to real examples and discuss methods that have worked for him (or not) in the past, rather than simply stating theoretical principals that may not have much relevance in an actual boarding school. Very worthwhile and relevant”</span></li>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;">“I really enjoyed the unit where we discussed the different learning styles and how we could alter our normal ways of life in the dorm to cater for the different students"</span></li>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;">“The opportunity to hear about different experiences and how these were handled by boarding staff was really useful. I gained a lot of practical knowledge from anecdotes and examples given. I also found Richard's presenting style to be conducive to completing the book”</span></li>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;">“Loved hearing the boarding stories, which can then make the words on the paper come alive”</span></li>
<li style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-kerning: none;">“I got a lot from hearing the stories from when you worked in boarding schools. It was also helpful to hear stories from the other participants. There was lots of practical advice and tips drawn from personal experience which we wouldn't get if we were doing the books by ourselves.”</span></li>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">The National Standard expects all boarding staff to attend on-going specific boarding professional learning, and there is no better way to keep up-to-date than completing the new workbooks. ABSA offers the workshops either in house, aimed at a group of staff who want to learn professionally together, or in groups.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">When was the last time you spent two full days thinking about the important role you play in your boarding house? Isn’t it time?</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Richard Stokes</span></div>
Chief Executive Officerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00558182176033643518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8037030201006954614.post-40613413883094941112017-05-09T06:37:00.001+10:002017-05-09T12:06:49.323+10:00How to Nurture the Growth of Boarding House Students<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: 12px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 10px; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;">How to Nurture the Growth of Boarding House Students</span></div>
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Boarding house staff are required to tirelessly provide individualised support and attention to all boarding house students. This includes being a stand-in parent for hundreds of students all at once who all have their own individual issues, needs and wants. It is the duty of boarding house staff to care for the future of tomorrow; to nurture the young minds of today, but how it is possible when a house parent has only two hands?</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Here at <a href="https://www.ateamtuition.com/" target="_blank">A Team Tuition</a>, we have been working closely with over 300 young boarding house students throughout 2012-2015, tutoring them one on one to find that our role and responsibilities extend beyond checking student’s homework and assignments. As influential role models, it is vital to provide pillars of support from a home environment to nurture the growth of students within a boarding house setting.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"> So, what are the pillars of support that comes from a child’s home? Each student requires personalised attention that allows them to nurture the two most important areas of their growth: <i>their education</i> and their <i>physical, mental and social wellbeing</i>. Therefore, the pillars of support include academic mentoring and life guidance, whereby the focus of these vital areas will allow any child to flourish in their development.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Academic mentoring involves providing students with tools on how to successfully complete their school tasks and teaching them how to apply these skills and resources across all of their subjects. Under the care of A Team Tuition, the <i>Creating A Student’s</i> program allows students to approach their academic studies with a holistic outlook on success. This is done by examining features such as their behaviour inside their classroom, their attitude towards their individual subjects and how they effectively integrate their knowledge outside the classroom.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">For example, take the traditional study method of writing out lines after lines of black and white notes, transferring the words of a whiteboard into another book. Does this really test whether the child will remember their work? How do they know whether they are really engaging with their subject’s content? Does this give them the opportunity to understand what those teacher’s notes really mean? By using this mind numbing study technique and after working with over 1000 students, the evidence points towards “No”. </span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Therefore, at A Team Tuition we have integrated neurological and psychological theories on how to maximise the usefulness of well presented, effectively crafted study notes that will allow students to take pride in their work. By following our step by step study framework, we encourage boarding students to focus on the quality of their study habits rather than the quantity of their workload. Ensuring to continuously promote effort over results.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Having developed a strong partnership between two boarding houses on the Gold Coast, the most rewarding experience is derived from the positive impact that the tutoring has on the student’s wellbeing and their overall school experience. Being able to provide life guidance and steer students in the right direction is what defines the difference between an authority figure and distinguished adult role model. </span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">It is important to address that the school experience of boarding students is distinguishably different to the experience of a day-school student. If a student experiences a challenging day at school, it makes it easier for them to deal with their struggles, when they know they are returning home to family and loved ones who can discuss and debrief on the issue, calm the student and remind them that tomorrow is a new day. </span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">On the other hand, a boarding student may have the burden of carrying those issues without being able to escape the environment; as they may surrounded by the same stimuli that may be aggravating their personal challenges at school. </span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Despite the lines of support boarding students have with onsite house parents, nurses and counsellors; important adult figures who carry a sense of authority can give off an intimidating aura to young students. In the presence of intense, emotional situations, this daunting impression of older adults can become exaggerated and leave students to dwell on their emotional states rather than focusing on resolving the problem.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Therefore, A Team Tuition focuses on hiring boarding house tutors that are relatable to young adults. All of A Team Tuition’s teaching staff are current tertiary students and graduates who specialise their teaching around their current field of study. Our recruitment data reveals that only 2-5% of applicants are hired based on their teaching ability, mentorship and resilience. </span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">By combining their current university knowledge and experience, as well as their recent schooling experiences and our accredited Academic Personal Training program, our tutors are equipped to build strong connections with their boarding house students. By relating to their own past school experiences, Academic Personal Trainers can converse and empathise with boarders who might have endured a challenging experience on the very same day.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">So, what is the outcome of combining academic guidance with life mentoring? Having both pillars of support allows the student to grow and mature to a level which extends <i>beyond</i> their daily homework tasks and social dynamics.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Combining the nurturing of academic success through educational strategy, along with the mentoring of social and life events allows for a healthy advancement in one’s character development and career direction. By developing these two areas of growth, boarders will be able to cultivate their sense of identity and the role they will play as adults in society. </span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Career direction will involve assisting children in their areas of interest inside the school curriculum, monitoring why students succeed in certain subjects rather than others, why students enjoy these subjects and how they can apply their aptitude and skill towards a fulfilling and purposeful career path. </span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Character development involves assisting students to problem solve and reason with situations that will appear in their schooling, social cliques and general life events. Our role as Academic Personal Trainer’s is to help students find their own answers, by providing advice on what factors they need to consider to achieve the best outcome for themselves and other people involved. </span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><i>In the eyes of a boarding student,</i> these young adults find a great interest and friendship in someone such as an Academic Personal Trainer who provides continuous support and insight on <i>how</i> to succeed in major aspects of their lives. Not only providing guidance on how to enjoy their studies but also through their social dynamics and interests, which may appear unimportant to a general audience. By taking a professional interest in the student’s academic success and their wellbeing, we create a foundational support system that is away from their family home; therefore creating a home away from home! </span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><span style="font-family: "lucidagrande";">For more details on Boarding Private Tutoring, visit </span><a href="https://www.ateamtuition.com/" style="font-family: LucidaGrande;">https://www.ateamtuition.com/</a></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Written by Libbie Rowley-James, A Team Tuition</span></div>
Chief Executive Officerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00558182176033643518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8037030201006954614.post-24675451027740633212016-06-16T20:27:00.004+10:002016-06-16T20:27:58.980+10:00Are our ‘devices’ causing us to lose connection?<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 11px; line-height: normal;">
<span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;">I was recently taking part in an interview panel for a Director of Boarding role, and the question was raised regarding just how much the art of conversation has disappeared amongst our young people. The comment was made of the number of time two teenagers were sitting in the same room and were texting each other, not a word was spoken.</span><br />
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Should we be concerned?</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">I think we should! Even in business we see today the advent of people thinking it is appropriate to text in when they are not able to go to work or are running late, or to send an email to a colleague rather than walking across the office to discuss an idea. What happened to creating teams where everyone is able to collaborate, discuss and come up with the best idea as a group? These discussions are the lifeblood of good business, and ensure the younger and less experienced members learn from those with more experience. If this is done without any personal contact, with no body language watched and with no opportunity to ask deep questions, then younger business people will struggle to develop quickly in their roles.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Those in relationships who text rather than talk, or talk over the phone without really connecting up, don’t actually get the chance to see face-to-face how their partner is actually feeling, and can’t reach out to share a personal touch to help develop the partnership. Many young people today think that texting solves all woes, and fail to see that actually making the physical connection changes everything!</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">So how can you help the teenagers in your care? Maybe try some ‘device free’ time each weekend, or each night? Maybe provide time and places where friendships can flourish? Maybe teach the art of recognising body language? Maybe have areas in your boarding house where phones can’t be used? Or do you have ideas …..</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Food for thought!</span></div>
Chief Executive Officerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00558182176033643518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8037030201006954614.post-15357334363250190802015-07-26T14:56:00.000+10:002015-07-26T14:56:09.097+10:00Do You Have a Change Agenda?<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px; text-align: center;">
THE BICYCLE BOOK</div>
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At a large hospital in the centre of London, during the Second World War, the powers that be decided that they would seek ways of reducing the cost of fuel associated with bringing staff to and from work. As well, bombing raids during the war made public transport both hazardous and unreliable. It was decided that the staff would be encouraged to ride bicycles to work. To monitor the effectiveness of this plan, a Bicycle Book was established in the Porter’s Lodge at the entrance to the hospital. The number of bicycles and who was riding the machine were recorded.</div>
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In 1975, during a routine efficiency audit, the specialists conducting the assessment chanced upon the Porter’s Lodge and began an inventory of all that went on there. The Bicycle Book emerged in the look see and the auditor asked about the book and its contents. It was explained that the book contained details of anyone who rode a bicycle through the hospital gates. When asked what happened to the information, the Porter proudly announced, “Nothing, Sir. It’s just always been done that way. My father’s father was Porter here during the war, and we have carefully kept up the tradition. Every bicycle ridden through these gates since 1942 has been faithfully recorded.”</div>
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Like any good Talmudic parable, it’s best not to comment on the story.</div>
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I can’t imagine working in a boarding program where I didn’t have a change agenda and a couple on the back burner.</div>
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(The story came from Edward de Bono in the 80s.)</div>
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Chief Executive Officerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00558182176033643518noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8037030201006954614.post-86695977338792775492015-07-09T09:44:00.000+10:002015-07-09T09:44:16.235+10:00Flight Zone - from Lights Out<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12px; text-align: center;">
<span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;">Queensland graziers have been advocating that stockmen should understand and respect the ‘flight zone’ of cattle when close to the herd or moving a mob of cattle.</span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;"> </span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;">They suggest that there is</span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;"> </span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;">valuable saving to both cattleman and beast if cattle are moved from place to place slowly and quietly without stress.</span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;"> </span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;">Whip cracking and shouting to move cattle from one place to another should be replaced by a quieter and more relaxed form of management.</span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;"> </span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;">The Queensland graziers believe the results have been noticeable that animals seem less anxious and cattle go forward in better condition!</span></div>
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The Queensland graziers explain that at times you have to get close or inside the ‘flight zone’ to shift cattle however the majority of contact with the animals can be made from a distance, respecting the animal’s private space.</div>
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The team responsible for the management and care of school boarders can gain knowledge from this practical example of controlling live stock. If the supervision of boarders by staff is erratic and without the appreciation that boarders need a good deal of ‘space’ it will create a negative response by the students and an unsettled atmosphere in boarding houses. Boarders will feel much more secure and comfortable if they know boarding staff are taking care of them and maintaining a keen interest in their development from a sensitive distance. Boarders do not need staff who are absent from their watch for long periods of time and then suddenly penetrate their ‘flight zone’ when things become unsettled. </div>
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A consistent living environment and they thrive and routine provides the opportunity for a boarder to thrive. Residentail students will feel comfortable if they are constantly supported by well trained, friendly boarding staff who can be relied upon twenty - four hours a day. Boarders who are left without stable supervision will develop less consistent standards of behaviour (especially over weekends) and will react poorly to supervisors who are not reliable. I have noticed cattle reacting in the same way. Cattle that are isolated for months on end without human contact that suddenly have horses, bikes and dogs racing around them will take fright and behave badly.</div>
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Boarders benefit from a boarding program that is carefully designed and well organised. Organisation and discipline should be clearly understood by the boarders and administered by competent staff. Decades ago boarders suffered largely under the control of inexperienced senior students who had permission to discipline younger boarders. Boarding staff were also quick to revert to corporal punishment for incidents viewed today as minor matters! The atmosphere and environment in boarding houses often lacked trust and security between boarders and staff.</div>
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Today the well-being of all boarders can be achieved in a quieter more relaxed and caring environment. Certainly there are times when staff have to make urgent corrections to an adolescent’s behaviour and intervene their ‘flight zone’, however most boarders will grow and develop in a caring and supportive environment where there is no sign of panic, raised voices or severe punishment!</div>
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Boarders today live in a relationship of friendship with peers of their own age and fellow boarders older and younger. Respect for senior students is earned by the leader by their performance as a fair and supportive role model, not gained through fear. Boarders will thrive in a secure, well organised and compassionate environment. </div>
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If the correct atmosphere prevails in boarding houses boarders will respect the boarding staff and also display respect for fellow boarder’s privacy and space. The allegiance of staff and boarders will be based upon co-operation and trust. If boarders living in the boarding community feel comfortable they will treat their fellow boarders with admiration and help each other to cope with the many physical and emotional demands of teenage years. They will also have confidence in the boarding house management team.</div>
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I have no idea how cattle think but if cattle are approached with respect and have more time to understand what a stockman is trying to do with them they may do what the stockman wants then to do! Good communication and timing by House supervisors are also paramount in giving boarders the chance of comprehending and understanding daily routine. Early and regular information from House staff regarding boarding house rules, personal expectations of behaviour and performance will provide boarders with greater opportunity to do the right thing. Boarding House staff must give the boarders plenty of notice regarding their responsibilities by meeting with them daily and displaying news of coming events on notice boards and internet portals well in advance of deadlines. If boarding supervisors do detect problems with an individual they should discuss the matter with the boarder and seek as much specialist help as is available. If everyone has a clear understanding of what is happening on campus the boarding community will be more relaxed, comfortable and it will result in a more successful place.</div>
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The administration and organisation of a boarding house is not rocket science. It can be compared to the needs of a family unit. All groups need a sympathetic understanding by their managers and an understanding every child have their own God given talents. It is the responsibility of carers to discover those talents and allow the individual to shine in the community by being able to demonstrate those talents providing the individual with self esteem and confidence. </div>
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Boarding house supervisors must be attentive at all times yet not be too obtrusive. There are no short cuts when caring for boarders especially in regard to the time and interest<b> </b>that must be devoted to their care. The flight zone must be kept on the radar at all times but not always penetrated!</div>
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David L Anderson</div>
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Shore School</div>
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danderso@shore.nsw.edu.au</div>
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Chief Executive Officerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00558182176033643518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8037030201006954614.post-20759243181193189312015-07-01T13:21:00.003+10:002015-07-01T13:21:43.625+10:00How Many Staff are Needed? <div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(199, 32, 38); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; color: #c72026; font-size: 47px; margin-bottom: 12px;">
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Andrew Knott Special Counsel Tresscox Lawyers </div>
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We have been requested to make some comments in relation to the issue, understandably of concern to both decision-making staff and implementing staff, of how many staff need to be on duty in different situations. Unfortunately, this question, as with the meaning in particular circumstances of ‘what is reasonable’, cannot be answered with great precision, but there are a number of things we can say which may be of assistance. </div>
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First, in applying the general duty of care it is important to remember that it is about taking the steps that are reasonable to minimise the risk of foreseeable injury. In determining what is appropriate, one looks at a vast range of issues such as the details of the situation, risk factors, the age, maturity, and behaviour patterns of the students in question, the resources that are available, and balancing the two considerations of risk minimisation and giving students, particularly as they become older, the opportunity to accept responsibility for themselves (in a manner consistent with the duty of care being implemented). From the supervisor’s perspective, there is a need to consider what resources should be made available. This can be a difficult decision to make in the context of the operation of a boarding house, but if the supervising decision- maker feels that the resources are in- adequate, there will clearly be a duty to alert the management to whom the supervisor reports so that the matter can be reviewed. Similarly, staff at the ‘pointy end’ who are implementing the relevant supervision should raise with their supervisor or with management concerns that they have. The provi- sion of information, when there may be unacceptable risks, is an obvious duty which can be discharged with minimum time and effort but may have significant impact. </div>
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Secondly, consultation and collegiate decision-making can produce (and demonstrate) careful, informed out- comes. </div>
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Thirdly, there are a number of contexts in which there may be specific provisions. For example, there may be provisions in relation to transport regarding maximum number of persons who can be in a vehicle (which goes to staff/student ratio as, if a second vehicle is needed, for that reason then obviously a second staff member is needed to be in the second vehicle). Workplace health and safety legislation, particularly codes of practice, may have some specific requirements which are imposed by law. That is a matter which will vary across jurisdictions. Fire and emergency laws may be relevant. Sporting association protocols may assist. </div>
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In many States and Territories, there already exist mandated standards. These should be examined, not only to ascertain whether numbers are included, but as to whether the mandated standards are relevant to assessing what staff ratio is appropriate. Simi- </div>
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larly, the draft boarding standard (accessible on the ABSA website) has relevant principles, such as 3.4(e) relating to the need for ‘an accredited and capable person available at all times who can administer and manage’ certain medical issues. </div>
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Finally, (and somewhat sadly), numbers are sometimes recommended by Coroners in inquests resulting out of tragic situations, such as drownings in pools or on excursions. </div>
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It is important in such situations to err on the side of caution and to be part of ‘the mainstream’. Conversations with peers in other boarding schools or at conferences of boarding school staff and discussion within the school boarding house are all of assistance in developing approaches which will be supportable in the event of criticism in that the person who has made a decision about numbers can show that they have considered the issues, and consulted appropriately, and that their general approach is consistent with that of the boarding school community generally. </div>
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Chief Executive Officerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00558182176033643518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8037030201006954614.post-51792539296276406602015-06-21T17:13:00.000+10:002015-06-21T17:13:09.775+10:00Why wouldn't you attend your industry conference?This last week I was reminded about the importance of attending Professional Development which is targetted at your work. The Australasian Society of Association Executives ran a two day Conference and Exhibition, and those of us who attended were privileged to hear Alex Malley, CEO of the Association for CPAs who challenged us to do some uncomfortable things, but I was expecting to hear from people such as Alex, and whilst he was quite outstanding, this was no surprise.<br />
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However, it was speakers such as Janette Wright, CEO and State Librarian from the State Library of Queensland who made it such a special time for me. I would never have 'chosen' to be at her talk, but given she was a keynote I thought I had better go along, and I am so happy I did. It is wonderful to listen to and learn from an expert, especially one who loves her job as much as Janette does. What she is doing for society, not just for the State Library, is nothing short of remarkable, as she works to engage the community by coding stories, and to digitise memories to ensure everyone can capture the history and spirit of our community. Janette was wonderful - shy, unassuming, and making a difference for everyone in Queensland, and I would have missed hearing her story if I hadn't gone along. <br />
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Later the same day I was privileged to listen to CEO of Getup! Australia, Sam McLean who talked to us about needing a low floor and a high ceiling for our members, to encourage all to come in and take high impact actions. He too would not have made my 'list' but made my time out of the office so worthwhile.<br />
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So this got me thinking - are you coming to our Leadership Symposium in Alice Springs in August? If not, why not? Too far, too expensive, to hard to get away? I learnt just how important it is to step out of your comfort zone and learn from those you don't think have anything to tell you - they'll make you think.......<br />
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See you all in Alice!Chief Executive Officerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00558182176033643518noreply@blogger.com0