Principal

On Monday we celebrated our Year 12 formal. They celebrated the completion of their HSC examination and 13 years of formal schooling.

Over the past few weeks as they have been sitting their examinations I have been reflecting on what they achieved, and more broadly what is it that may make them, and other students successful.

Over my time as an educator I have wondered about what makes a student really successful and ready for the world. Is it intelligence, a particular gift, ability in English, Mathematics or another subject?

Every time the answer is clear. While these listed things might be helpful at different stages, they are in no way the consistent indicator for success. As time has gone on, I am more and more convinced that the number one indicator of long-term success is perseverance.

I often tell an anecdote of a study that measured how many attempts people would undertake a new skill or task before giving up. The research indicated that most people would give up after 3 attempts, the committed would push out to 7 attempts. The study then goes on to tell a story of true perseverance, the story of a mathematics professor that was no natural star or innate genius, but rather someone who never, ever gave up on a problem. Someone who would attempt a task 23 or 50 times before she got the right answer, this perseverance meant that over time she improved to the point that she became a tenured Mathematics professor.  It is an inspiring story and one that runs somewhat contrary to the instant success and gratification world we live in.

The bible also has much to say about perseverance, in Romans 5 it says;

Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.

What amazes me about this passage is that perseverance with suffering, and Paul the writer glories in his suffering. He praises God in his suffering because as he writes, suffering produces perseverance, perseverance character and character, hope; and hope, particularly hope in Jesus Christ is the true source of all our successes. In the upside-down world of Jesus we are able to not just celebrate the successes we innately understand to be success – but recognise that even our trials and sufferings, our mistakes and failures can be turned into success as we persevere. It is in fact the success that comes through perseverance that often contributes most strongly to our character.

At Green Point we seek to build perseverance, character and hope in Jesus in all our students through their gifting and natural successes, and through the challenges and trials. In this way we can be confident that in the long term when they find their trust and hope in Jesus they will be truly successful.