In the 2022-2023 year, our students, staff and parents were surveyed about their thoughts regarding our community of Westwind.  Below are the questions that were asked and a summary of main points that were raised.

What makes Westwind a great community?

School pride, our cohesiveness, our active PAC supporting the school, the school is the meeting place/hub for all families, welcoming, supportive, positive vibe, school is close to Steveston and the Fraser River

What makes Westwind a great school?

Our school spirit, caring and skilled staff who have fun, the effective teamwork of parent and staff, communication, strong leadership, spirit days, extra-curricular activities, parent involvement, our new technology (data projectors in every class, iPads and laptops), the @westwindwaves Instagram account, the webpage and school calendar, student leadership opportunities, the addition to our playground.

What would make Westwind a better school?

Fewer student conflicts at recess and lunchtimes, stricter guidelines regarding student use of cell phones, more extra-curricular activities for younger students, more opportunities for parent participation at school events.

What are your hopes for Westwind in the future?

That students are able to more effectively solve problems independently and peacefully at recess and lunchtimes, increased parental involvement, strengthen parent-staff relationships, continue with all the activities we did this year.

In Summary...

• We received lots of positive feedback about the school-wide activities and events that were organized this year which allowed parents and families to be a part of the school community once again.

• We noticed that our learners seem to find it difficult articulating their thoughts and feelings in times of conflict, and more often than not, are resorting to responding physically or using unkind words, rather than using kind words or peaceful ways of resolving conflicts. In response to the effects of the pandemic, including fewer opportunities to socialize, have playdates and participate in group activities, and in order to work towards having the ability to solve social issues peacefully, we see a need to focus on developing Social and Emotional skills and competencies for our learners.    

• For many years, Westwind has used a school-wide Behaviour Support Plan with the acronym "SPIRIT" as its focal point, denoting how we aspire to be at Westwind, and how we ought treat one another, being "Safe, Positive, Inclusive, Respectful, Involved, and a Team Player".  No doubt these are all virtues we all would agree with and hope that our community embraces. Post pandemic, it became clear that initiative has lost some of its luster due to physical distancing, virtual learning etc. Out of an abundance of caution, in the past couple of years, Westwind was a school that did not do a lot of optional post-pandemic activities, and the community is eager to have our community building activities come back.

• Due to the high number of social/emotional issues students are having at recess and lunch, it is clear that students have not been accessing the “SPIRIT” acronym as a guiding tool, and as a staff, we see a need to have a refresh.

• Based on our student, parent and staff surveys, we realized that we need to do two things:

1. We need to continue building back our sense of community.

2. We need to refresh our understanding and implementation regarding school-wide behaviour support.

This will become our focus for the 2023-24 school year.