SENIOR PATHWAYS

Congratulations to all senior students, parents/carers and staff who continue to manage the difficult tasks of learning, teaching and working online. Much educational research shows that the relationship between students, parents and schools improves the academic outcomes of students. As Senior School Leaders we appreciate our school community for the support they show our College and staff, but also the support you show your children/students. Not all schools are so blessed. We continue to be challenged by the COVID world but if we continue to work together we can provide our students with the best chance of academic success as we can.

The beginning of term 3 has been extremely eventful in the Senior Pathways Program. Students and families have been working with our Careers Practitioner, Leanne Paterson, and Leadership Team to investigate career and tertiary pathways, as well as participate in course counselling interviews to select subject preferences for the 2022 school year. Leanne has also been working with our year 12 students to begin VTAC applications. We thank Leanne for her continued hard work in supporting our students and families.

The Victorian government finally made an announcement that the GAT has once again been postponed but a date has not yet been provided. For further information, please read the media release from the Department of Education. We will provide families with further updates as soon as we receive information.

https://www.premier.vic.gov.au/gat-be-rescheduled-keep-school-communities-safe

In response to the recent lockdowns, we have adjusted the college’s internal assessment timeline structure to the best of our ability to give both students and staff ample breathing space to administer and complete their final assessments, and prepare for their official exams. Lockdowns have also forced the College to pursue with School Based Assessment through a remote capacity as we did in 2020. Students have embraced the implementation of remote assessment with extreme maturity and should be commended. Our Unit 3 and 4 students have been given the opportunity to complete practice exams that will be marked by VCAA assessors in the first two days of the holidays. It has been pleasing to see so many of our Unit 3 and 4 students take advantage of this opportunity to further enhance their exam preparation. A timetable will be released to families later in week 5.

Over the past few weeks senior students have been completing self-reflective tasks during CONNECT. They were asked to reflect on their performance in Units 1 and 3 and identify areas to improve in Units 2 and 4 in preparation for exams. Like teachers, we encourage families to have conversations with their child/student around these reflections to ensure that students are able to adjust their study habits and continue to work towards success in Unit 4 and the VCAA exams. These reflections are also paramount in our year 11s preparing for success in 2022.

With government announcements confirming an extension of the Victorian COVID-19 lockdown 6.0, it’s important that we continue to help our children manage their mental health, with strategies such as maintaining healthy sleep and physical activity routines.

SLEEP

‘Sleep research suggests that a teenager needs between eight and 10 hours of sleep every night. This is more than the amount a child or an adult needs. Yet most adolescents only get about 6.5 – 7.5 hours sleep per night, and some get less. Regularly not getting enough sleep leads to chronic sleep deprivation. This can have dramatic effects on a teenager’s life, impacting their mental wellbeing, increasing their risk of depression, anxiety and low self-esteem. It can also affect academic performance at school.’

Source: https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/healthyliving/teenagers-and-sleep#bhc-content

Without the normal routine of sport, work and school, some families may find that their children (and themselves) may be struggling to stick to a healthy sleep routine. Strategies such as going to bed at the same time each night and waking up at the same time each day, and staying off devices such as a mobile phone for a period of time before bed time may help students and families manage healthy sleep routines. For more information on how to help your children sleep for longer and more soundly please go to Teenagers and Sleep – Better Health Channel. Another very informative source for how sleep can impact our lives is TED Talk by Sleep Scientist Matt Walker.

PHYSICAL ACTIVITY

Regular physical activity is an important part of our daily routine in maintaining physical, social, intellectual and mental health in a pre-COVID world, but during an extension of the current lockdown it’s even more relevant. The Australian Physical Activity and Exercise Guidelines for Young Australians state that young people should complete at least 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity that makes the heart beat faster every day. The 60 minutes doesn’t have to be completed all at once, several shorter sessions throughout the day have the same health benefits. Additionally, at least 3 days per week, children and young people should incorporate vigorous activities that elevate the heart rate and involve activities that strengthen muscle and bone in the daily 60 minutes. Families are under large amounts of stress but as parents and carers, we must continue to help our children to get outside and maintain their physical activity during lockdown. More information can be found on the link at health.gov.au.

BUSTING PROCRASTINATION STUDY HABITS WEBINAR

There is an exciting opportunity for year 12 students to attend a FREE webinar run by Monash University Scholars to help year 12 students prepare for their exams. This webinar aims to provide students with practical advice and strategies to support them during Year 12 and with their upcoming exams.

The workshop will be facilitated by Dr Richard Chambers, a clinical psychologist and internationally recognised expert in mindfulness. He’s heavily involved in mindfulness research, including the development of the mindfulness app, The Smiling Mind. He also has worked with many educational institutions to support students in using mindfulness to improve wellbeing and performance.

The workshop will focus on:

• why we procrastinate

• strategies on overcoming procrastination, especially in the lead up to Year 12 exams

• the benefits of mindfulness.

Date: Tuesday 7th September

Time: 5-6pm

Registration: Link Here

We are so proud of our school community for the continued quick adaptations to teaching and learning environments, hang in there and keep up the great work you are all doing. We are always here to support families so please don’t hesitate to contact us if you have any queries. Amy Leonard and Ashleigh Bell

Senior Pathway Leaders