Shine Magazine, Issue 1, February 2010 - Department of Education ...

School neWSIndigenousprincipalat the helm ofMildura Primaryphotos by Rhett HammertonDennis Mitchell has already improved the literacy and numeracy levels of students atMildura Primary School since he took up the role as first Indigenous principal last year.Dennis Mitchell has been at thehelm of Mildura Primary since mid-waythrough 2009. As a local, he says hefound it easy to slot into life at theschool of 320 students, one third of whichare Koorie.“I am Mildura born and bred, so I amvery connected to the community here,”Mr Mithell says. “I know a lot of the kidsand their families and as a Koorie who isa teacher I think I have an advantage.”In the past, Mildura Primary has had ahistory of low academic achievement interms of literacy and numeracy but MrMitchell says there has been a significantshift over the last 12 months. “We haveworked very hard to turn this schoolinto a great school,” he says. “We havechanged the whole ethos of how theschool feels; it is calm, the groundsare stunning and the kids are learningquickly. Getting it right for this particularschool in this town is absolutely crucial;we need to give these kids a head start.The main job is about teaching thestudents to learn and during 2009 wemade huge inroads in that we gainedabout 18-months’ growth in one year inreading and numeracy,” he says.“Our key focus is to boost the teachers’ability to improve the outcomes ofour kids. Last year we implementedindividual learning plans for everystudent in the school, those plans werereviewed every five weeks and thiscommitment will continue throughout2010. These student assessments givethe kids an understanding of theirlearning, of where they are and whatthey can improve – it gives them a bitof ownership and the response has beenextremely positive.“Secondly, we plan to move beyondtraditional paper newsletters and startnetworking and communicating with ourparents via the internet and by utilisingthe Ultranet. Lastly, we want to developa wider understanding of the curriculumand ensure that it is inclusive of thecultural needs of all of the students.“I am Mildura born andbred. I know a lot of thekids and their familiesand as a Koorie who isa teacher I think I havean advantage.”“We have extremely committed teachershere and they are very committed to theschool, the kids and the community. Ithink we are on the right track, improvedresults, increased community awarenessand school connectedness indicate thatwe are, and I am very proud of what weare doing and of what we can achieve.” S28 Shine Feb 2010