The Oaks Public School

I went to school there in the 60,s a great little school always remembered lining up to have flavored milk poured into our cups and we did sewing in the headmaster house which his wife taught.And we watched the men land on the moon

Amazing school. Excellent teachers and great playgrounds!

Recently I had the pleasure of visiting The Oaks Public School. What a delight! Step inside any school and you get a feeling of the dynamics that mark that school as a unique, individual, learning centre. The Oaks possesses a feeling of calm, focussed learning supported by a caring staff. The students are well-mannered, happy and wanting to achieve their best. Parents are supportive. Schools are vital centres of communities and The Oaks is right in the centre of its community. Thank you The Oaks Public School for the privilege of spending time with students, staff, parents and grandparents in a centre of excellence.

I wonder what we did wrong to get such a dreadful Principal as we have now. I realise that Mr Angus was a wonderful Principal and his were hard shoes to fill, but we seem to have gone from one extreme to the other.

Already we have lost the best teacher in the school because of her. Mr Hislop left after just one term with her, saying that he was unable to work with such a Principal. My granddaughter was devastated when this happened, and so was the whole class...he has been replaced by someone who seems quite a nice guy but who hasn't got a clue about teaching. Very sad for everyone.

It's quite unbelievable how bad this new Principal is. Several parents have come in to see her about problems their children have in class, and instead of helping them, she has threatened to call the police because they are "trespassing". Surely it's part of her job (very well paid job too) to help sort out problems but no she just kicks them out and threatens them. Of course it's the children who suffer because of all of this bur she really couldn't care less.

There is an elderly gentleman, a Mr Pic, who has been coming to the school for years as a substitute teacher I think. My three grandchildren adore him, as do all the kids it seems, but now he hardly ever comes because she thinks he is too old! Can you believe that! If someone is a good teacher and cares about the kids, what does it matter what age that person may be? Again it's the kids who miss out. A lot of us grandparents were not too impressed when we heard that either.

I am sure that this woman will not last very long in this job, but it does not take long to damage a good school. Already a lot of parents are thinking about other schools and many of the teachers are planning to teach somewhere else. The sooner she leaves, the better it will be for our children and grandchildren.

Alice Britten