I firmly believe that the Carey community is stronger for the diversity which exists within it. Diversity is especially important in the context of a school. One of our crucial roles is supporting every student in our care to find themselves and unearth their talents, and it is only in an environment where diversity and inclusion are valued that this can fully be realised.
The theme this year for International Women’s Day is, ‘An equal world is an enabled world’. International Women’s Day reminds us that every day we need to ensure women in the broader community have equal opportunity, equal recognition and an equal voice. Female voices, ideas and approaches are critical to ensuring we are fulfilling our potential as a school, community and country. Without equal representation, we are halving our talent pool and limiting our capacity to solve problems, create and maximise our collective potential.
One of my priorities as the Principal of a co-educational school is to embrace equally the talent of all students within our school, regardless of gender, ethnicity, or faith. In turn, this creates an environment where individuality flourishes and we can support our students to develop the skills to collaborate with each other and learn how to work in environments where there is a sense of difference they can positively acknowledge in others. In order to do this, we will all need to approach each situation with an open heart and an open mind and be more attuned to each other’s and our own vulnerability. As one of the Year 12 boys said to me last week, ‘we are here to learn how to be better humans’.
Carey is hosting an International Women’s Day breakfast on the morning of Friday 6 March. A light breakfast will be served in the Quad from 7.15am, followed by an address by Old Carey Grammarian Her Honour Judge Samantha Marks (1981), who will speak to us about her journey since leaving Carey. Register your attendance here.
Student ShadowingI was delighted to undertake a shadowing exercise last week, where I accompanied Charlie in Year 9 to several of his classes, starting with mentor group briefing in the morning, then off to French, Science and Mathematics. It provided me with a great insight into the learning experience from the student’s perspective, and what a delight it was to see our teachers and students at work together, developing language skills, undertaking experiments and mastering surds! I look forward to undertaking the same exercise in the Senior School and Junior Schools as a way to building my understanding of our school, the programs in place and the possibilities for the future of learning at Carey.
Jonathan Walter
Principal
