For the last week, the school has been troubled by plumbing issues that caused several toilets to be less than fully functional.
We knew the cause was a damaged or broken underground pipe.
Over the weekend, after much breaking up of concrete and digging, we found that the cause of the problem was an old soft drink can rubbing against, and finally breaching, one of our larger subterranean plastic pipes.
A can that had probably been left when the pipe was laid.
This was an expensive lesson in how small things that we do can have a serious impact on our lives.
Here are a few “small” things that can make a huge difference to education and life:
Turning up → Being at school every day possible makes a huge difference. Being there means you don’t miss vital information or experiences, allows learning to become an entrenched habit and prepares you for the responsibilities of life after school.
Being prepared → Turning up is great but turning up prepared is even better. Being at the right place at the right time, having the right equipment, having done the right preparation all makes a huge difference.
Asking questions → Good questions are the key to better insights. Questions allow you to assess your understanding as well as others. Identifying gaps in your knowledge is the first step to filling them. We can learn a lot, often more, from the work involved in answering a question than from the answer itself.
Taking responsibility for learning → Teachers can’t really control how much a student is learning, only learners can do that. If a student can define the purpose of their learning and accept that they have a responsibility, they will always do better.
Be willing to try, even if it sometimes doesn’t work → Students who believe their talents can be developed (through hard work, good strategies, and input from others, even when things go wrong or the going gets tough, will achieve more than those who give up.
Share → Working as part of a team is crucial in the working world and this is a skill that students need to develop while at school because like all skills, it requires practice.
How to be a success?
“Do what you can, with what you’ve got, where you are.”
Want to share your thoughts on this story, or do you have something you’d like to add? Email me at principal@scas.nsw.edu.au