Policies
Code of Behaviour
General Information for Students
Behaviour Management Policy
Unacceptible Behaviour
Anti-Bullying Policy
Internet / Intranet and Email Policy
Homework Policy
Assessment Procedures Policy
Discipline Procedures Policy
Admission / Enrolment Policy
Everyone in the school community i.e. students, teachers, parents and administrative staff have the responsibility to respect the rights of others. This will ensure that the reputation of the school and its members are enhanced and maintained. In order to act responsibly and respectfully towards others, the following codes of behaviour are a guide:
- Be thoughtful, courteous and considerate to others at all times.
- Allow others to learn without disturbance or interruptions.
- Be peaceful and non-violent. Speak and act without hurting others.
- Respect colleagues, staff and personal property and school property.
- Be prepared and on time for classes and learning sessions.
- Use common sense, stop and think before you act. Take responsibility for your own behavior and actions.
- Strive for positive behaviour and values, for example, give praise not "put-downs", share games with others, care for others' feelings.
GENERAL INFORMATION FOR STUDENTS
All students are expected to have their school diary with them for each lesson. They are to record homework, assignments and any other relevant information given in each of their classes. Diaries are also used to monitor the behaviour and effort of certain students.
Diaries are also a means of communication between staff and parents. Diaries are not for students' personal information, other than which directly relates to the school.
Parents are encouraged to write a response to teachers' comments to ensure both home and school support can be provided to assist the students.
Playground Supervision
The school playground is supervised by teachers on call each morning from 8.20am until school begins at 8.45am. Children should NOT be left at school before 8.20am nor left at school after3.30pm.
Items Not Permitted at the School
• Chewing Gum/Bubble Gum
• Nail Polish, Makeup and Hair gel
• Jewellery
• Marker pens and Liquid Paper
• Walkmans, Discmans, cassette players etc
• Mobile phones
• Toys
• Knives and all weapons
Toys at School
Children are discouraged from bringing their own toys to school, except when it is a special 'news' item.
If children do bring toys from home for any reason the school cannot accept any responsibility if they are lost, stolen or damaged in any way.
Money at School
The school is concerned about the relatively large amounts of money some children bring to school. Parents are discouraged from giving their children large sums of money, unless absolutely necessary for the payment of excursions, fees etc.
Rationale
- To create and maintain a safe, harmonious and supportive environment for learning and a positive school culture.
- To maximise the potential for development of the school milieu.
- To value and respect all members of the school community.
- To actively and consistently implement this Behaviour Management Policy.
Aims:
- To create a whole school approach to maintain acceptable and positive behaviour within the school.
- To identify and establish the rights, responsibilitie
s and rules (The 3 R's) within the school community.
Objectives:
- To ensure all members of the school community feel safe, valued and supported.
- To promote and encourage self-discipline and positive behaviour.
- To ensure that all members of the school community understand and practise the three ‘R's'.
- To ensure students take responsibility and accept the consequences of negative behaviour.
- To maintain a positive learning environment to foster the highest quality education.
- To create a supportive environment to enhance self-esteem.
Strategies:
- To ensure that all members of the school community are aware of and understand the Behaviour Management Policy through:
- New staff induction workshops.
- Parent and caregiver information day program.
- Student workshops on empowerment to deal with negative behaviour (eg. peer pressure, bullying).
- Assist students to develop their networks (class or school prefects, student representative council (SRC), special student groups).
- Arrange workshops for teachers to equip them with strategies to manage behaviour of students.
The use of corporal punishment, in any form, is prohibited and has no place in the behaviour management policy and practices at this school.
Monitoring and Review:
- The Behaviour Management Plan should be reviewed at the beginning of each year.
- Actively monitored throughout the year.
Responsibilitie
- The Deputy Principal responsible for student welfare and discipline should organise the review.
- Students, Parents/Caregiv
ers and Staff should report to the Principal, Deputy Principal or the Chairperson of the Disciplinary Committee regarding inconsistencies or problems with implementing the plan.
The Al-Faisal College Behaviour Management Policy is about leading, guiding, encouraging and instructing children within a framework of the three R's....
Rights
Rules and,
Responsibilities
that apply to all of us at this school......
staff, students and parents, so that a positive school culture is created and maintained.
MINOR AND SERIOUS MISDEMEANOURS AND CONSEQUENCES
Examples of Minor Misdemeanours:
- Diary not signed
- Late to school/class*
- Improper uniform
- Not paying attention
- Excessive talking during lessons
- Shouting answers
- Classwork or homework not finished
- Not on task
- Continuously not remaining in seat
- Out of class without a note or diary with relevant entry
- No diary
- Littering
- Diary not handed in when and where required
- Failure to bring appropriate equipment to class
- Failure to complete homework
- Minor disobedience
- Minor instance of inappropriate language
- Minor act of rudeness
- Minor acts of defacing property belonging to others or the school
- Chewing gum
Consequences
- Praise those who do the right things
- Reminder of school rules and responsibilitie
s of students - Verbal reprimand - clear, calmly given, explicit and unambiguous
- Impositions: writing of an explanation or an apology
- Lunch time detention (Primary)
- Verbal reprimand - clear, calmly given, explicit and unambiguous
- In-class detention
- Time out in own class or another class
- Note in the diary
- Chewing gum and three times late to school will result in after school detention.
Examples of Serious Misdemeanours:
- Bullying in any form - verbal, psychological or physical
- Physical fights and causing injuries to others
- Racist, bigoted, intolerant or hurtful remarks or actions
- Deliberately hurting or endangering others
- Deliberately damaging or interfering with the property of others
- Theft, dishonesty, including cheating or lying
- Interferance with the rights of others to teach or learn
- Violent, insolent or threatening behaviour
- Uncontrolled and repeated disruptive classroom behaviour
- Being in possession of a weapon
- Being in possession of cigarettes, alcohol, or any illegal substance
- Incurring too many lunch detentions within a specific time period
- Truancy, including leaving college grounds without permission
- Fighting
- Damaging property
- Forging a note requiring parent signature
- Continued failure to complete homework or bring required equipment to school
- Argumentative behaviour
- Blatant rudeness or insolence
- Coninuous disruptive behaviour
Consequences
- Impositions
- Temporary Demotion
- After school detentions
- Withdrawal of privileges
- Restitution-for damage of property
- Meeting with parents
- Suspension
- Exclusion
Schools exist in a society where intimidation and harassment occur. Bullying must be taken seriously and is not acceptable in any form. Students attend school to participate in quality education and have the right to expect that they will spend the school day free from the fear of bullying, harassment and intimidation. Teachers, students, parents and caregivers have a responsibility to work together to address bullying.
Bullying can be defined as intentional, repeated behaviour by an individual or group of individuals that causes distress, hurt or undue pressure.
Bullying behaviour can be:
- verbal (name calling, teasing, abuse, insults, threats)
- physical (hitting, punching, kicking, scratching)
- social (ignoring, excluding, alienating, making inappropriate gestures)
- psychological (spreading rumours, dirty looks, hiding or damaging possessions)
Students can expect to:
- know that their concerns will be responded to by school staff
- be provided with appropriate support
- take part in learning experiences that address key understandings and skills relating to positive relationships, safety, gender equity, discrimination, bullying and harassment. These experiences will be guided by the Personal Development, Health and Physical Education syllabuses and other Key Learning Areas.
Students have a responsibility to:
- behave appropriately, respecting individual differences and diversity
- follow the school Anti-bullying plan
- respond to incidents of bullying according to the school anti-bullying plan
Parents and caregivers have a responsibility to:
- support their children in all aspects of their learning
- be aware of the school Anti-bullying plan and assist their children in understanding bullying behaviour
- support their children in developing positive responses to incidents of bullying
- support all students of the school to deal effectively with bullying through the strategies of the Anti-bullying plan
School has a responsibility to:
- develop an Anti-bullying plan which clearly identifies both the behaviours that are unacceptable and the strategies for dealing with bullying in the classroom and playground
- inform students, parents and caregivers about the School discipline policy and Anti-bullying plan
- provide students with strategies to respond positively to incidents of bullying behaviour, including responsibilitie
s as bystanders or observers - provide parents, caregivers and students with clear information on strategies that promote appropriate behaviour, and the consequences for inappropriate behaviour
- communicate to parents and caregivers that they have an important role to play in resolving incidents of bullying behaviour involving their children
- follow up complaints of bullying, harassment and intimidation
Teachers have a responsibility to:
- respect and support students in all aspects of their learning
- model appropriate behaviour
- respond in an appropriate and timely manner to incidents of bullying according to the school Anti-bullying plan
Strategies to prevent bullying:
- Class or supervising teacher to deal with minor issues
- Teachers and parents work with students to look at underlying problems and seek solutions
- All cases reported and investigated
- Bullying may be dealt with in specific social skills lessons
- Counselling made available where necessary
- Principal informed of serious or continuous incidents of bullying
- Strategies for dealing with bullying must be linked to School Welfare Policy and encompass a range of options available to deal with unacceptable behaviours, including demotion, suspension and expulsion
- Evaluation of anti-bullying plan on a regular basis
INTERNET / INTRANET AND EMAIL POLICY
Rationale
All students will have access to computer resources. Students will be entitled to use these resources for educational purposes, to facilitate communication, to provide access to information and to assist in the preparation of assignments, projects or assessments. Users are to be responsible for their actions and be aware that access may be reduced, stopped or may result in expulsion, or legal action as a consequence of misuse of the system.
Email Policy
The purpose of this policy is to ensure the proper use of Al-Faisal College's email system and make users aware of what Al-Faisal College deems as acceptable and unacceptable use of its email system. Al-Faisal College reserves the right to amend this policy at its discretion. In case of amendments, users will be informed appropriately.
Legal Risks
Email is a business communication tool and users are obliged to use this tool in a responsible, effective and lawful manner. Although by its nature email seems to be less formal than other written communication, the same laws apply. Therefore, it is important that users are aware of the legal risks of email:
- If you send emails with any libellous, defamatory, offensive, racist, obscene remarks, threatening or sexist, you and Al-Faisal College can be held liable.
- If you forward emails with any libellous, defamatory, offensive, racist, obscene remarks, threatening or sexist, you and Al-Faisal College can be held liable.
- If you unlawfully forward confidential information, including photographs, you and Al-Faisal College can be held liable.
- If you unlawfully forward or copy messages without permission, you and Al-Faisal College can be held liable for copyright infringement or liable.
- If you send an attachment that contains a virus, you and Al-Faisal College can be held liable.
By following the guidelines in this policy, the email user can minimise the legal risks involved in the use of email. If any user disregards the rules set out in this Email Policy, the user will be fully liable and Al-Faisal College will disassociate itself from the user as far as legally possible.
Legal Requirements
The following rules are required by law and are to be strictly adhered to. It is prohibited to:
- Send or forward emails containing libellous, defamatory, offensive, racist, obscene remarks, threatening or sexist. If you receive an email of this nature, you must promptly notify your Network Administrator or Principal.
- Forward a message without acquiring permission from the sender first.
- Send unsolicited email messages.
- Disguise or attempt to disguise your identity when sending mail.
- Send email messages using another person's email account.
- Copy a message or attachment belonging to another user without permission of the originator.
Best Practices
Al-Faisal College considers email as an important means of communication and recognises the importance of proper email content and speedy replies in conveying a professional image and delivering good educational service. Users should take the same care in drafting an email as they would for any other communication. Therefore Al-Faisal College wishes users to adhere to the following guidelines:
Internet/Intran
Internet Access
- All students will have access to Internet/Intran
et resources through the school's network. - Students will have email access only under direct teacher supervision, using the school's email account.
- Students are to be supervised at all times when accessing the Internet.
Unacceptable Uses
The following uses are considered unacceptable:
1. Personal Safety
Students will not post personal contact information about themselves or other people. Personal contact information includes name, surname, address, telephone, etc.
Illegal Activities
Students will not attempt to gain unauthorised access to any other computer system through or go beyond the school authorised access account. This includes attempting to log in through another person's account or access another person's files. These actions are illegal, even if only for the purpose of "browsing".
2. System Security
Students are not to download programs or files without seeking permission from School Administration.
3. Inappropriate Language
Restrictions against Inappropriate Language apply to public messages, private messages, and material posted on web pages.
- Students will not use obscene, profane, lewd, vulgar, rude, inflammatory, threatening, or disrespectful language.
- Students will not post information that could cause damage to the system or a danger of disrupting the system.
- Students will not engage in personal attacks, including prejudicial or discriminatory attacks.
- Students will not harass another person. Harassment is persistently acting in a manner that distresses or annoys another person. If you are told by a person to stop sending them messages, you must stop.
4. Plagiarism and Copyright Infringement
Students need to be aware of copyright laws with regards to information on the World Wide Web. Teachers will enforce these laws with regard to student material taken from the web.
Aim of Our website (Internet / Intranet)
- To inform parents, teachers, students and others of the activities that take place at Al-Faisal College.
- To promote the school and the services it offers.
- To promote the work and activities conducted by the students of Al-Faisal College.
- To allow students to follow up on work missed.
To achieve this, we recognise the importance of publishing students work and the school newsletter on the Internet/intran
Issues
1. Plagiarism
A. In an effort to publicise the activities undertaken at Al-Faisal College, we believe that opportunities should be given for all students to have their work published on the Internet/Intran
B. All work to be submitted for publication must be the original work of the student.
C. In the case of student work being in the form of research assignments, projects or essays, all sources used within must be fully acknowledged and a complete bibliography to be published with the work. This includes any digital sources located on the Internet/intran
D. Any photographs included in the work to be submitted must belong to the student and not infringe copyright in any way.
E. Material that has been photocopied from printed texts will not be accepted for publication. These include:
i) Maps;
ii) Pictures or graphics from books, magazines, newspapers or journals;
iii) Diagrams, timetables etc.
F. The following cannot be published unless the student has permission from the copyright owner:
i) Logos and company trademarks;
ii) Recorded music and sound clips;
iii) Images from other Internet Web sites (unless exempted).Copyr
G. The plagiarism of a published work is an infringement of copyright.
H. By submitting work that contains any of the items listed in point 1 above, the student could be infringing copyright and therefore will not have their work published on the Internet/Intran
2. Student Identities
A. The school has an obligation to the parents to protect their child(ren). Though the Internet provides many opportunities for our students in the areas of research and publication, there are, however, several concerns related to the publication of student work and their identity on the internet/intran
B. To protect the privacy and identity of our students, the following will not be published on the Internet/Intran
i) The surname of the student;
ii) The address of the student;
iii) The phone number and age of the student;
iv) An individual photo or written description of the student;
v) All photographs that do not have parental consent.
3. Publication of Photographs
A. All members of our school will be encouraged to submit photographs for publication. These photographs should be used in such a way to highlight the activities that students are engaged in while at school.
B. With the publication of photographs, the following points are important:
i) No photograph of an individual student will be published on the Internet/Intran
ii) In the case of a photograph showing a group of students, the following will apply:
a. The teacher or student submitting the photograph for publication will identify, by writing, the name and year of every student in the photograph;
b. Parents of those students identified in the photograph will be notified that their child(ren) is/are in a photograph that is to be published on the Internet/Intran
c. For the photograph to be published, all parents of the students in the photograph must agree to its publication.
d. Students in the photograph will be notified in writing and their written consent for publication will also be sought.
iii) Photographs will be removed from the Internet/Intran
a. When written notification from the parents is received requesting removal of the photograph;
b. When written notification from the student or teacher that submitted the photograph is received requesting removal of the photograph;
c. Parents will be notified when the photograph of their child(ren) is removed.
4. Publication of the School Newsletter
A. The newsletter plays an important role in the communication of news to parents.
B. An internet edition of the newsletter will be produced. This special edition will involve the removal of the following:
i) All personal details regarding students and their families;
ii) All photographs that do not have parental consent.
All children in the school are given homework, to support and reinforce learning. This begins with a minimal amount in Kindergarten. Homework increases as the child progresses through his/her schooling. Please encourage your child to talk about school happenings and to read as much as possible. Make sure that your child has a quiet place to do his/her homework, and show your interest and support.
To be meaningful, homework must be seen as a valid part of the learning process. It should assist and reinforce learning, not frustrate it or make it unenjoyable in the eyes of students.
The nature and amount of homework will vary, according to such factors as the age and learning stage of the students, the subject area and/or topic being studied, the time of year, the ability levels of the students and the teaching/learni
Teachers are responsible for:
- setting homework that is reasonable, appropriate and conducive to effective learning.
- marking/correct
ing homework diligently, promptly and accurately, and giving helpful feedback to students, and, where judged necessary, to parents.
Students are responsible for:
- noting set homework accurately in their diaries.
- showing the diary and homework to parents/caregiv
ers. - doing the homework to the best of their ability, with due conscientiousne
ss and on time. - correcting and/or learning from their homework.
Parents are responsible for:
- monitoring, checking-off their child's homework (entries and work).
- assisting their child where possible.
- supervising homework being done in appropriate conditions and on time.
- supporting the school in inculcating good study and learning habits.
Homework may be READING, WRITING, LEARNING, RECITING, PRACTISING or a combination of activities.
As a general guide, after-school or evening homework should involve approximately:
- 30 minutes for students: K-2
- 30-60 minutes for students: Years 3-6
- 90-120 minutes for students: Years 7-10
- 90-180+ minutes for students: Years 11-12
Some students will complete their homework more efficiently and effectively than will others.
The School has in place assessment procedures which will ensure fairness to all students and will follow the Board of Studies guidelines. Parents should follow these procedures:
- If your son/daughter is sick and he/she is to hand in an assignment, then the assignment must be delivered to the school that day, or it can be faxed to school. (emails not acceptable)
- If your son/daughter is sick on the day of an assessment it is important that you ring the school and inform the teacher, who set the task, or leave a message at the office for the teacher.
- When your son/daughter returns to school he/she must take a doctor's certificate straight to the teacher concerned and make arrangements to complete the task that day, where possible.
- If the student misses an assignment because of personal trauma, then a note from the parent indicating the general nature of the problem should be presented to the teacher.
- If your son/daughter is unable to attend an examination the Class Teacher and/or Faculty Coordinator should be contacted by telephone on the morning of the examination and the reason given.
- Computer or printer failure is an unacceptable excuse for not completing the task. All work should be backed up on disk.
- Any indication of malpractice (for example copying, cheating, plagiarising) will result in a zero mark.
- Assessment tasks should be handed in during class time.
- If an assessment task is late by one day it loses 10%of the mark awarded. (For example, an assessment task which is awarded a mark of 70% but which was submitted a day late, must lose 10% of 70, ending up as a mark of 63%.)
- If an assessment task is late by two days it loses 20% of the mark awarded.
- If an assessment task is late by three days it loses 30% of the mark awarded.
- Assessments which are submitted four or more days late receive zero, but must nevertheless be completed to a satisfactory standard.
In Stage 5 (Years 9 and 10) and Stage 6 (Years 11 and 12), failure to undertake the above procedures can result in your son/daughter being given an "N" (non-compliance
Please be aware that it is the obligation of the School to recommend a School Certificate / Higher School Certificate only where the conditions set down by the Board of studies have been fulfilled. Failure of your son/daughter to undertake the correct procedures itemised above could result in the School Certificate / Higher School Certificate not being awarded.
Discipline procedures for behavioural misdemeanours
1. Initial Warning: Initial warning for minor misdemeanour.
2. Verbal Reprimand: Ideally by the teacher actually observing the (minor) misdemeanour, and at the
time of its happening, or as soon as possible thereafter.
3. Time Out in Classroom: There are circumstances in which merely removing a student from the
immediate environment in which unacceptable behaviour is occurring is enough to calm the student
and situation down. When a student is given Time Out, the misdemeanour must be noted in his/
her diary and parents must be informed. This may also include placing a student on an individual
management plan.
4. Lunch Time/Recess Detention: Individual students, or, whenjudged appropriate, groups or classes,
may be detained under certain circumstances. The student(s) must be directly supervised by the
teacher concerned, or by another teacher, by arrangement.
5. Warning Letter: May be issued if a continuous pattern of failure to follow school rules becomes
evident.
6. After-School Detention: After school detentions are held for ah hour after school, from 3:35 to
4:35pm. Primary detentions are held on Tuesday afternoons, and High school detentions are held on
Wednesday afternoons. Detentions may be issued by teaching staff, with the approval of Co-ordinators
and the Deputy Principal. After school detention forms are issued to students. These forms must be
signed by parents and returned to school as soon as possible. Students cannot attend after school
detention without parent consent. Failure to attend after school detention may result in suspension
from school. A Behaviour Card may also be issued to students.
7. Meeting with Parents: It may form part of a welfare/behavio
the parent(s) of a particular student. Such a meeting can:
- Reinforce the seriousness with which the teacher views the behaviour
- Add the parents' support to help bring about improvement
- Clarify reasons for the behaviour, which may not previously have been understood
- Give formal warning of more serious consequences ifthe behaviour does not improve
8. Suspension: Suspension from school is the penultimate sanction which can be imposed.
Suspension may be imposed only by the Principal and/or Deputy Principal. It will normally follow
consultation with the teacher(s), student and parents.
9. Expulsion: Expulsion is the ultimate sanction. Once expelled, a student is no longer a member of
the College community and cannot be re-enrolled at any future date.
Discipline procedures for academic misdemeanours
The following disciplinary procedures will be undertaken in dealing with academic misdemeanours:
1. If a student fails to comply with homework commitments a comment is written in the Student Diary followed by a detention, initially during lunchtime.
2. If a student fails to comply with homework commitments a second time, a comment is written in the Student Diary followed by a detention, initially during recess/lunchtim
3. If it occurs regularly then it will become an afternoon detention.
4. If the student shows no willingness to comply then a Monitoring/Prog
5. If the student still shows no willingness to comply then the Co-ordinator and class teacher will request an interview with the parents.
6. If the student still shows no willingness to comply then the Principal will request an interview with the parents.
7. Failure to complete an acceptable level/amount of work may jeopardise the student's ability to progress onto the next Year level. In the case of high school students, it may also place their School Certificate/Hig
ADMISSIONS / ENROLMENT POLICY
All students seeking enrolment at Al-Faisal College and their parents are expected to support the religious, academic and cultural aims and goals of the College. Parents will be informed whether their children have been successful in gaining continued enrolment. Enrolment admissions are allocated on a yearly basis and include the following requirements:
School Fees:
- Must be paid prior to the end of the previous school term.
- Any extension of payment time must be requested from the Principal in writing.
Enrolment:
- All student admissions are allocated on a yearly basis.
- Enrolment will comply with the Disability Discrimination Act.
Continued Enrolment:
- Parents will be required to complete and sign a ‘Re-appli
cation of Enrolment' form at the end of each academic year if they wish for their children to return to school the following year. - Pre-requisites for continued enrolment includes satisfactory:
- Academic performance (class work, homework and assessment) in all Key Learning Areas, and in the National Assessment Program (Years 3, 5, 7, 9) and School Certificate (Year 10).
- Behaviour, appearance, attendance and use of college facilities and resources.
- Payment of school fees by due date.
- If a parent withdraws a child to attend another school without the Principal's approval, other siblings will lose their places at our College.
Please note: Failure to meet the above mentioned expectations may lead to suspension or termination of enrolment.