2020 was a year like no other! The year commenced as one full of challenges for Joseph Banks Secondary College from the get go. As a community, we witnessed bushfires in our own backyard at the end of 2019. We then saw the devastating fires that occurred in the Eastern States over the summer holidays. Many in our community were affected either directly or indirectly and we knew that as a community we would need to offer what support we could.

Then as the 2020 school year was underway, Joseph Banks Secondary College knew that our achievement data from 2019 was below par. For College staff, this meant that we would have to closely examine our teaching, learning and assessment practices, and we would need to review the courses offered to our Senior School students. A direct outcome was that we needed to raise the bar on many different levels. Our staff collectively created our Targets 2020 document: a plan that encompassed improvement targets across many areas, including in attendance, NAPLAN, OLNA, and in our ATAR achievement. This document was reviewed and updated throughout the year to ensure that staff were on track in terms of making improvements, and to ensure that we were tracking every student for their success, especially our Year 12 students.

Shortly after the year started, we were engulfed in the Covid-19 pandemic which saw the school closed for a short period of time. During this time, staff were preparing for an unknown environment where we could possibly be teaching our students in an online world for a period of time. Our staff were amazing. We were able to pivot to a different way of working in a very short amount of time, and through uncertainty we worked hard to develop online teaching and learning programs. Staff were conscious of remaining in touch with students during this time, and like the rest of the world, we quickly learned how to use WebEx and Zoom.

I am incredibly proud of our students and staff. Throughout the year, everyone continued to do their best to make significant improvements to the achievement data that we had set out in our Targets 2020 document that was in place well before Covid-19 and the community restrictions that followed. Our Year 12 students proved to be hard working and  resilient, despite the challenges they faced throughout the year. They set a great standard for other year groups and overall our students did well in every aspect.

As a community, everyone at Joseph Banks Secondary College came together in 2020 to ensure that we were the most improved public secondary school. Support from our families was incredible. Our students proved that that they are kind and caring, and our staff went above and beyond to ensure that there was stability at school, always. Our 2020 Annual Report sets out to share some of our
celebrations from 2020, and some from 2019 too. The Annual Report is directly linked to our Business Plan 2020 – 2022. We are well on our way to achieving many of the priorities and milestones included in the Business Plan. Our success is supported by strong governance shown by our College Board, and by the extraordinary support of our P&C.

Thank you to everyone who contributed to our success in 2020.