From the Principal

This week, Semester 1 at Girton drew to a close. For our students in Years 7 to 11, it culminated with the satisfaction of completing their end-of-semester examinations after a rewarding revision week. It feels like we commenced the school year just yesterday, so it is surreal to think that we have already reached the midpoint of the year, with students on the cusp of beginning the second semester.

The transition to a new phase of the year always provides a pertinent opportunity for our students to reflect on what they have achieved so far and what they aim to achieve by the year’s end. If we think of the school year as a stretch of road, this is the time for them to pull over, refuel and consider what could be adjusted or refined to help them reach their destination. I use this driving analogy because it aligns with the terminology used within the ‘Continuum of Engagement’, a valuable tool I recently came across that was created by Dr Amy Berry, a research fellow at the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) and honorary fellow at the University of Melbourne.  

Image credit: Dr Amy Berry

Dr Berry’s research is focused on the study of student engagement, which is an area of priority at Girton and, I imagine, every school. Just as our RULER approach provides students with the vocabulary to express their emotions, Dr Berry has endeavoured to create a vocabulary around engagement, represented by six behaviours ranging from active resistance to passive compliance to active engagement. Importantly, she believes that engagement is not simply measured by a student’s attendance at school but rather by the level of effort, interest, curiosity, persistence and risk-taking they choose to invest in their learning. 

While students can passively participate in their learning by attending class, listening to their teacher and doing their work, this doesn’t provide the same benefits in terms of academic progress and well-being that come with being actively engaged in their learning. This is why, at Girton, we encourage our students to be curious, share and discuss their ideas, set goals for their learning, and actively seek feedback and assistance when needed. We want to empower them to drive their learning because this is what will ultimately equip them for success in their lives beyond school.

By talking to a wide range of students, Dr Berry found that one of the most significant barriers to engagement is being afraid to make mistakes due to feelings of embarrassment and discomfort. This is a concern given the important role mistakes play in building our skills and character. In his enlightening book, Hidden Potential, psychologist Adam Grant refers to a study that found students who answered a question incorrectly in a test and were then given the correct answer were more likely to remember the correct answer in future tests than those who answered correctly the first time. This shows that in an environment where we feel safe to make and learn from mistakes, we ultimately end up making fewer of them. 

At Girton, the goal of end-of-semester assessments and examinations is much more than achieving a particular score. They present an opportunity for students to demonstrate their engagement in their learning by challenging themselves, partnering with their teachers and peers, and showing their effort and dedication. It is crucial that students do not view mistakes made on assessment tasks as a source of embarrassment but as opportunities to refine, adjust, and grow as learners. 

While we are on the topic of assessment, I wanted to let you know that our Assessment Procedures will be available by the end of the Term and will be made available on Astra for families and students to reference. This fundamental document details Girton’s recently adopted assessment framework, which we continue to implement throughout 2024 and beyond after its initial application late last year. It aims to guide teacher practice and provide students and families with a clear understanding of Girton’s assessment procedures and the rationale behind them. This represents the culmination of an enormous body of work by Ms Jinari Mountain, and we are deeply grateful to her for the significant time and effort she has dedicated to implementing a school-wide approach to assessment that not only measures but strengthens our students’ learning outcomes. 

I would like to congratulate all our students for successfully navigating Semester 1 at Girton and our parents and carers for your efforts to support them. Wishing you a wonderful long weekend.

Dr Emma O'Rielly 

Principal