Build your team for success

Mr Faga and Ms Phan, Year 9 Advisers - Term 2 fundraiser

I have had a very exciting start to my role as Deputy Principal at Cecil Hills High School. It has been a productive and eventful week seeing our students and staff so actively engage in online learning. Staff have been guiding students to reflect on their study habits to ensure they foster all aspects of their wellbeing and learn to the best of their ability during remote learning. I am very proud of the approach to online learning and commend the vast majority of our students that have been highly engaged, consistent and resilient in their approach.

During Connect sessions, students have been asked to respond to a series of questions through a mentimeter about both their online study habits and wellbeing. Miss Phan and Mr Faga have developed a series of wonderful resources which they have presented to Year 9 in morning Connect Sessions. The findings are outlined below. They have a commendable approach and are incredibly focused on the wellbeing of their students. Stay tuned for more advice in future Connect sessions.

Connect Sessions Mentimeter Feedback

Online learning can certainly be challenging. Our students are certainly facing these challenges head-on, demonstrating their resilience! These are the main issues of concern that our students have expressed:

Lack of sleep, Not seeing mates,

Time management and getting time to complete all work,

Math book checks are hard to keep up with,

Distractions, Organisation and following class instructions,

Helping siblings whilst on class,

How to feel productive after school with hobbies,

How to open up to someone you trust,

Completing practical whilst online learning,

Online learning is overwhelming and weird.

This is an example of some of the questions that Miss Phan and Mr Faga have asked our students to find out about their online study habits.

Where am I learning online?

How organised do I feel about my studies?

How productive do I feel in my learning environment?

What do I want more information and resources on?

Strategies to help students with their online learning are:

Keep trying and don't give up

If you are struggling in all aspects, speak to someone that can help.

You can tackle almost anything!

Break it down in small tasks

Make it achievable and realistic

Explore why you want to ignore it

Build your TEAM and environment for success

You need to be accountable

You need cheerleaders

You aren't alone in your learning

Ensure your family is a part of your learning

Study in a space conducive to learning.

Department of Health research says...

Sleep research suggests that a teenager needs between 8 and 10 hours of sleep every night. Most teenagers only get about 6.5 to 7.5 hours sleep per night. Studies show that teenagers who get less sleep are more apt to get poor grades in school, fall asleep in school, and have school tardiness and absences. Teenagers who put their phones away an hour before bed get an extra 25 minutes of sleep. Inadequate sleep will result in problems with attention, memory, decision making, reaction time and creativity.

Links and resources for studying and productivity

How a student changed her study habits by setting goals and managing time:

Find out here

How to manage your time as a student: