INDEX

 

THE PASTORAL INFRASTRUCTURE

The pastoral infrastructure at HKUGAC has been designed to give maximum support to the students so that they gain optimum benefit from their academic study and social interaction at the school.

1. THE ROLE OF THE PASTORAL TUTOR

Each student is allocated to a particular TUTOR group under the care of two PASTORAL TUTORS. The tutor groups will be identified by an amalgam of the two tutors’ initials: thus, 2SH would be the tutor group, say, of Emily Shum (ES) and Julian Harniess (JH).

Where possible, male and female tutors have been appointed so that students have a point of gender reference if they have any concerns or worries about school work and relationships with other students or staff.

The pastoral tutors are responsible for:

Administration

  • Marking the register and collecting absence notes
  • Following up lateness
  • Conducting D.E.A.R. and pastoral sessions
  • Contacting parents after a 3-day student absence
  • Reading any notices attached to registers
  • Collecting any return slips
  • Checking the appropriate wearing of school uniform
  • Checking diary use and signing accordingly

Other responsibilities

They:

  • are the first point of contact with students, teachers and parents
  • follow up issues raised by parents and attend appropriate parents’ evenings
  • provide help and guidance to students in both pastoral and academic matters
  • deal with individual student problems relating to academic and pastoral concern
  • liaise with Head of Year and, if necessary, Discipline Coordinator and Pastoral Head concerning any serious student pastoral and academic problems
  • keep a record of student misdemeanours 
  • indicate where a student may need professional counselling
  • provide ways of motivating and praising students for good work done in class and around the school
  • induct new students in to the tutor group and school
  • monitor each student’s academic and pastoral profile by conducting one-to-one academic monitoring and assisting students to set SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant,Time-related) targets to aid academic and pastoral progress
  • assist in the Life Education programme

The principal contact with parents is through the telephone or school diary. In these ways, parents and teachers can communicate with each other to voice concerns, or to set up other meetings.

The diary is also used by the students to note down homework tasks.

Academic monitoring and one-to-one tutoring

In order to monitor student progress, there is the academic tutoring system in place. This system enables the tutor to know exactly how well each student is doing in each subject by gathering academic information from subject teachers and by talking to students on a one-to-one monitoring basis.

Equally, it is important that students are able to assess their own academic progress and before the one-to-one meeting, they fill out a self-assessment sheet on each of the subjects they study and this is referred to in the one-to-one meeting.

Academic tutoring takes place once a year - at the end of the autumn term – followed by an end-of-year review in June.

2. THE ROLE OF THE HEAD OF YEAR

The role of the Head of Year is responsible for the welfare of the tutors and students in that particular year group. S/he will:

  • liaise with the tutors in the year and ensure that the duties of the tutor are adhered to
  • meet regularly with tutors to discuss students concerns and strengths
  • Induct new tutors
  • oversee parents’ evenings
  • keep letters of concern/praise up to date
  • help prepare Life Education units
  • cover for tutors who are away
  • liaise with Pastoral Head and Discipline Coordinator when a student has been referred by pastoral tutor
  • oversee sanctions imposed
  • Oversee one-to-one academic monitoring by tutors

3. THE ROLE OF THE PASTORAL HEAD

The role of the Pastoral Head is to ensure the overall welfare of the form tutors and the student body. S/he will:

  • work closely with the form tutors and HOY to ensure that each student receives the necessary pastoral care
  • where necessary, meet with parents and tutors to discuss individual student’s cases
  • meet regularly with the other Senior Management members to discuss pastoral matters
  • write necessary letters to parents
  • chair case study meetings
  • liaise with Head of Year and Discipline Coordinator in serious behavioural and academic student matters
  • apply and oversee any necessary action decided after consultation
  • keep track on one-to-one monitoring

In consultation with the HOY and DC, the Pastoral Head will decide on any further disciplinary action that may be necessary in breaches of academic and pastoral norms. Such actions may involve:

  • conducting a self-reflection meeting with the student
  • detention
  • writing a letter to parents
  • requesting a meeting with parents
  • putting a student on report or a Behaviour Contract

Data Collection Sheet

In the event of persistent problems either in classes or around the school, it might be necessary to find out how a student is performing academically. The Data Collection Sheet is circulated to all the teachers of the student who then write appropriate comments about the student’s academic performance.

Based on this information, the student might be placed on report for a period of time. This will require each of the student’s teachers writing a brief comment on the Report Sheet according to the designated reasons for giving out the report.

Both the Data Collection Sheet and the Report Sheet will be filed for possible future reference when talking to parents.

There are also certain letters that can be sent out to praise students for positive behaviour.  

4. THE HOMEWORK TIMETABLE

The school is aware that students need to spend evenings with friends and family rather than be doing hours and hours of homework. However, homework is seen as an essential aspect of the curriculum because it encourages independent study, allows students to practise skills learned during the day and to use knowledge gleaned, in a productive manner.

Therefore, there is a homework timetable that sets a maximum of three homework tasks from three different subjects each night. Students are expected to study for a minimum 30 minutes on each task; where longer is needed to complete an assignment, the work will be spread over two or more homework slots.  

Where homework is not completed for a particular legitimate reason, a note should be written by either parent in the diary explaining the circumstances. Incomplete homework for no legitimate reason may result in sanctions being applied.

5. THE REPORTING SYSTEM

Subject and tutor reports will be written in January and June: two a year. Each subject report is carefully constructed so as to provide ample information about student performance in and attitude to each subject.

In addition to the reports, parents are encouraged to make arrangements with individual teachers if they want more information about individual children. The school operates an ‘open door’ policy so that any parent has access to the school, the teaching and classrooms at any time.

6. SCHOOL UNIFORM (see diary)

All students are expected to wear the designated school uniform, according to function, event and season.

There is a casual uniform for winter and summer and a formal uniform for winter and summer.

It is a school policy that the outdoor clothing of the uniform is not worn in the classrooms. Therefore, the windcheater, the fleece and the trench coat should always be removed upon entering any classroom. However, in extremely cold weather and at the discretion of the teacher, students may be permitted to wear the fleece in the classroom.

The jumper is classified as indoor wear and can be worn in the classroom.

The student diary has full details of the uniform

There is a pro-forma letter for uniform violation (see appendix 8)

7. THE HOUSE SYSTEM

The House system has been introduced in order to foster a friendly sports competitive spirit. Each House has a male and female Head of House appointed from the teaching staff and two House Captains – male and female – appointed by and from the student body.

There is a House assembly once a month/term.

The House names, with proposed colours, are:

Lao-zi (blue); Newton (purple); Gandhi (orange); Austen (green); Suu Kyi (yellow); Copland (red).

Points will be awarded for inter-House competitions and there will be a winning House at the end of the Year. That House will win the Inter-House Trophy Competition. The name of the winning House will be engraved on the trophy.

Julian Harniess

August 07.