Teaching & Learning in the Senior School 

Year 12 commences with big shoes to fill

It was a pleasure to welcome our Year 12 students back last week to commence their final year of high-school; to see them with big dreams and with big intentions to make their year count.  They follow in the footsteps of a very successful Class of 2020, whose HSC results serve as a great testament to the hard work of those students, and of their teachers.  As someone who has had the privilege of working with HSC students for many years, I offered my advice to our new Year 12’s (whether they wanted it or not!).  I presented them with a simple mnemonic for reminding themselves of the best ways to get the most out of this year:

I wish our Class of 2021 a fulfilling and productive year ahead.

‘Responsibility’ is our buzz word

Our St Greg’s community aims to contribute to the development of our students as people who will one day graduate from the College as happy, healthy and fulfilled members of society who can respond to the world with agility and positivity. In our classrooms we are fostering five important attributes that will support that development; we call them the 5 R’s. We believe that for our students to be AGILE in their learning (for now and in their future lives), they need to be:

• Resilient
• Relational
• Reflective
• Resourceful
• Responsible

This term, we’re starting off with BEING RESPONSIBLE as our key attribute for successful learning.  To be responsible in learning is to show up prepared for work.  We act responsibly when we:

• take responsibility for our learning, recognising that learning is an active thing;
• are well-prepared and present to the opportunities we have to learn something new;
• know that we need to learn how to learn without teacher direction; to act independently and with initiative;
• are aware of others in our classrooms, and respectful of their right to learn without interruption; and
• think before we act, and take responsibility for our own failures.

Our teachers look forward to working with our young men in developing these qualities.  We hope that what we do at the College complements what parents do at home as well; that way, the message to our young men will be clear.

Mrs Louise Millar

Director of Teaching and Learning