Being Transformational

Sometimes as parents, we feel so familiar with our own children that it takes a while to stop and realise that they are growing and maturing in ways that can be obvious or almost imperceptible.

I have heard friends talk about the sense that ‘one day they turn around and their child had grown up’. What they mean, of course, is that they have suddenly realised that all of those incremental changes have transformed their child.

As parents, my wife and I have always recorded the annual growth in stature of each of our children, measuring their height at each birthday and recording the information. They love to see how they have grown and to compare their own height to each of their siblings at the same age (and looked forward to overtaking their parents). Somehow, for children, the idea of growth and change is a given, whereas as parents, we often get the sense that it has ‘crept up on us’. For both my children and me, it is something to celebrate.

How have your children grown and developed over the course of this year or the last few years? In what ways are you beginning to see transformations in their lives, big or small?

If you have visited our website recently, you may have noticed the Christian Schools Tasmania wide vision adopted this year, “to be a transformational Christian learning community”. The word ‘transformational’ is a key element of this vision as we both see and plan for learning and growing opportunities that will transform our students, staff and school communities. In its deepest sense, this transformation is part of the work of God in our lives, ‘conforming’ us to the person of Jesus in such a way that it transforms our lives, hopes, and perspectives, increasingly reflecting Him.

“At a school level, we actively plan for opportunities to bring about growth and change that we pray will ultimately be transformative. ”

At a school level, we actively plan for opportunities to bring about growth and change that we pray will ultimately be transformative. This is part of the promise and hope of Christian Education, that we will, in partnership with parents and recognising the work of God, prepare our children academically, socially, physically and spiritually and that they ultimately will be engaging with our society and culture in ways that transform our communities. Luke 2:52 records the growth of the boy Jesus in exactly these terms, “and Jesus grew in wisdom and stature and in favour with God and man” and he ultimately transformed and continues to transform our world.

Scott Ambrose — Principal

In the midst of busyness...

Do you ever get the sense that time is passing faster? Term 3 feels very much like that, not least because of the busyness of the Oliebollen Festival.

For many of our Year 11 and 12 students, it is now the countdown towards exams, another period of intense time when preparing for what is to come is forefront in many of their minds. For others, it may be the impending break or the conclusion of the football season that is at the forefront of their minds.

In the midst of busyness, it can be hard to slow down to re-focus our minds on what really matters and perhaps to prayerful consider our decision-making. And yet, taking time to re-centre ourselves on the relationships and things that truly matter is a healthy thing to do, emotionally, spiritually and physically. Jesus showed the way in this respect and the Bible records a number of moments when he withdraws to spend time in quiet prayer and relationship with God the Father.

“... taking time to re-centre ourselves on the relationships and things that truly matter is a healthy thing to do, emotionally, spiritually and physically. ”

Recently, we have had reason to stop and to consider. Our Oliebollen team have been taking time to celebrate the successes of a challenging COVID-era Oliebollen and to think about how we build and improve on this event. Our senior leadership have also been taking time to review the feedback from our ‘community health audit’ results from the term 2 survey that many of you would have participated in.

One of the common threads that came through our parent surveys was a strong sense of community and connection. 93% of the parents who responded reported feeling welcomed at Calvin (above the national average for this survey) and 96% would recommend the School to other parents. Comments like: “The staff are always friendly and welcoming. You feel like part of a family”, were great reminders that relationship matters. Equally, there was opportunity to consider areas where we need to improve and we are particularly interested to probe those areas where we can do more to build our community and to serve the educational needs of our students.

From a survey that considered parents, staff, local business owners, and students in Years 6, 10 and 12, our parents identified that Calvin Christian School is recognised in our community as:

• Well-regarded

• High Academic Standards

• Christian

• Inclusive

As we head into the school holidays at the end of this week, we will be continuing to reflect on what we can learn from our experience and community responses. In the middle of a busy season, we are also aware of the need to maintain our focus on the things that matter, a community and individuals centred on God, partnering with parents in the education of their children.

Scott Ambrose - Principal

Looking to the Future

As the Kingborough area continues to thrive, we have an opportunity for Calvin Christian School to expand and provide education to more families within our community.

Since 2018, the Primary School has grown from around 180 students to nearly 250 students. The Secondary School has had a similar level of growth over this time.

“Welcoming a student by their name, or dealing with an issue with an understanding of a child’s needs is an essential component of what we want to continue to offer at Calvin.”

The past two years we have double streamed our Kinder classes and are planning to do the same in 2022. A basic mathematician would be able to figure out that we are quickly running out of classrooms to continue doing this! We have plans in place to be able to run the 12 Primary School classrooms required in 2022, maintaining appropriate learning areas for each class and grade group. There are also plans in place for future building to ensure we can continue to cater for our new and current families within the Calvin community. 

As we look to the future, we need to ensure that we are proactively planning for this growth, ensuring it is not at the expense of the present or the past. When I tour families in the Primary School, I talk about the fact that we are a medium sized school which gives students access to a wide range of opportunities, whilst still feeling ‘known’ within their school community. Welcoming a student by their name, or dealing with an issue with an understanding of a child’s needs is an essential component of what we want to continue to offer at Calvin Christian School.  

“As we look to the future, we need to ensure that we are proactively planning for this growth, ensuring it is not at the expense of the present or the past.”

During this growth we also want to maintain our culture and identity, which has been purposely built over many years. Teaching from a Christian worldview and maintaining Christian values is an essential element of this and is a key reason that the school was initially formed. It is important that we are aware of other cultures and beliefs, and accepting of all who enter into our school community. Jesus demonstrated this acceptance and inclusion of all, whilst modelling behaviour that leads others into relationship with His Father. 

We continue to trust in God as we provide quality Christian education to our local community, understanding that if we seek first His Kingdom, He will continue to provide our needs.

Matthew 6:33 – “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”

Andrew Nash — Head of Primary