FPSP – Fremantle Public Schools Partnership

Dear Parents & Guardians I am pleased to inform you that after many months of negotiation our school is a part of an exciting collaboration that will increase the experiences and resources your child is able to access through their enrolment at our school. Public schools across Western Australia, particularly high schools, are being supported by the Department of Education to explore innovative ways of working together to ensure our students are provided with every opportunity to enjoy success in the programs of their choice as they move into Years 11 and 12. There are many successful examples of schools working collaboratively and where communities have come together to strengthen and support local schools and families. This allows their children to enjoy more educational experiences and resources than those available at their own school site. On your behalf, the three school principals have been working with their staff to plan for this exciting partnership and are keen for you to learn about the benefits of this collaborative work. North Lake Senior Campus, Hamilton Senior High School and South Fremantle Senior High Schools have joined together to ensure that every student in all of our schools is able to access an even broader range of courses, with a great number of quality teachers and increased access to shared resources. Over time your child will have the opportunity to access the best teachers who will teach a subject shared by the partnership. Where greater opportunities exist, school facilities and resources from another school will be available to your child. Your child may select to become a member of a partnership class with students from all three schools. This means your child will have access to more subjects, a greater range of resources and potentially more like-minded students offering greater academic challenge and competition. At this stage we are pleased to offer our senior students the opportunity to engage in a small number of subjects as a member of the partnership working with a merit selected teacher to achieve their best in 2011. Teachers from the three schools demonstrating a history of success have applied to a selection panel to teach a shared course. Already for 2011, the best teachers from across the three schools have won the opportunity to teach specific Stage 2 and 3 Courses of Study in Physics, English Literature, Modern History and high level Mathematics. Only students studying these specific subjects will be involved in the partnership classes. All other subjects will be provided at our school. Students may attend a partnership class at our school or it may run on another campus. The timetable developed by the three schools and an extensive pastoral care plan will ensure all students are able to safely attend all their classes. Should your child be in Year 10 or 11 and select to be a part of this exciting initiative in 2011 you will be invited to attend an information session. We are working hard to ensure that any issues and concerns identified by parents and students about the partnership are addressed. We know that your child has unique needs and it is our shared responsibility to ensure that they are fully supported to find the education and training combination that is right for them. If you have any questions or require further information please contact me on telephone 9314 0314 or email the school at Hamilton.shs@det.wa.edu.au Yours sincerely, Donna McDonald Principal