Principal's Report 

Vermont Secondary College 2023 VCE Results

Vermont Secondary College is extremely pleased with our students VCE/ATAR results for the 2023 academic year. In an excellent year of results, following 3 years of major disruption to the educational program, Vermont Secondary College’s highlights include -

• Congratulations to our Dux, Reuben Andrade, with an ATAR of 99.75 closely followed by our second ranked student with a 99.55 and third ranking with a 99.3. In total six students scored over 99, with 28 students scoring 95 and above.
• 64 students of a cohort of 236, received an ATAR of 90 and above, placing them in the top 10% of the state. This is 27.12% of our student cohort.
• 122 students of a cohort of 236, received an ATAR of 80 and above, placing them in the top 20% of the state. This is 51.69% of our student cohort.
• 166 students of a cohort of 236, received an ATAR of 70 and above, placing them in the top 30% of the state. This is 70.34% of our student cohort.
• 209 students of a cohort of 236, received an ATAR of 60 and above, placing them in the top 40% of the state. This is 88.56% of our student cohort.

VCE Class of 2023 

I would also like to acknowledge the Year 12 students who chose to stay with us in their final year to complete a non-ATAR scored VCE.  Congratulations on successfully completing your final year of secondary schooling and receiving a VCE Certificate of Completion. Best wishes into the future.

“An outstanding result from our 2023 VCE cohort and staff in light of their Year 10 and 11 classes being taught predominantly via remote learning and significant disruptions this year through ongoing COVID related staff and student illness. Well done and congratulations to the class of 2023!”

Tony Jacobs – Principal 

Vermont Secondary College

2023 The Age

This year, 57,601 students graduate with their VCE, a completion rate of 97.4 per cent.

That number includes 51,214 who completed traditional VCE and 6387 VCE Vocational Major students – 11.1 per cent of the total.

Here are some other interesting numbers of the day:

· 3048 students will be awarded the VCE Baccalaureate

· 246,470 study scores have been issued to students

· 21,754 study scores were 40 or above (8.8 per cent)

· 656 study scores were the maximum 50 (0.3 per cent)

· 93.6 per cent of students met the literacy and numeracy standards in the General Achievement Test (GAT)

· Another 6400 students were VCE vocational major graduates.

Education Minister Ben Carroll congratulated all VCE students.

“Getting through year 12 is not for the faint-hearted – but it’s important to remember that this is only one step in your life journey,” he said.

“There have never been more choices available such as university, TAFE, traineeships, and work.”

ICAS

Vermont Secondary College would like to congratulate Aarav S and Aarij K on their outstanding performance in the 2023 ICAS Writing Competition. Hundreds of thousands of students participate annually in this prestigious global competition with only the strongest participants in each region awarded a medal. This year, the college is pleased to recognise the achievement of Aarav and Aarij in attaining a medal. It is a significant academic accomplishment and the VSC community commends them for their commitment to excellence.

The college would also like to take this opportunity to publicly acknowledge Emily M, Ruixi W (Yr7) and Arjan S (Yr.10) for achieving High Distinctions in Writing and Spelling, putting them in the top 1% of their age groups.

All students who attained a Distinction or High Distinction in any of the Literacy Dimensions will receive their certificates in a House Assembly at the end of the year.

ORIENTATION DAY FOR YEAR 6 STUDENTS

On Tuesday 12th of December, we welcomed our incoming cohort of ‘Year 7s’ to the college on the state-wide Orientation Day. The approximately 275 students (11 classes in 2024), is one less than this year however given our building/site capacity the largest Year 7 cohort the college has ever had. The new students spent the day getting to know their way around the school as well as being introduced to their staff, their house team, our library and most importantly the canteen!

We trust the students enjoyed the day and that they are excited about joining our wonderful learning community in 2024. We wish them well for the next six years on their secondary journey and look forward to seeing their growth. A huge thank you to Jeremy Shannon, Cara Macfarlane and Kelly Stals, as well as all other staff involved in supporting the students and program, leading up to, and on the day.

THANK YOU!

As Principal of Vermont Secondary College, I would like to take this opportunity to warmly thank our students, staff (teaching & education support), parents and guardians for their ongoing commitment to our academic program and to the numerous co-curricular programs that have been highlighted in the newsletter throughout 2023. This year has been more settled in terms of staff and student absences due to COVID related illnesses however we have seen an upsurge in recent weeks so please be aware of this.

Aligned with our current four-year College Strategic Plan (2020 - 2024) available on the College website) and the newly written 2024 Annual Implementation Plan (AIP), we will continue to review our learning and teaching approaches to ensure that our students have maximum opportunities to achieve to the best of their ability. Our planning is always centred on further improvement in learning outcomes for students. The school continues to gain in popularity and in 2024 our student numbers will be just under 1600.

In relation to the 2024 school year the college has the upcoming School Review in Term Two 2024. Preliminary work has already begun on this review in writing the PRSE (Pre-review Self-evaluation) which is a reflective piece, looking at data of the school’s performance over the last 4-year Strategic Plan.

The school review model supports each school to differentiate its improvement journey by building on current strengths and assisting it to respond to challenges. It emphasises continuous improvement and affirms that every student, no matter their background or circumstances, has a right to learn in a school committed to improvement. It maintains that every school can improve.

The review model:

• welcomes school community participation in the review.
• embraces the input of experts from both within and beyond the school.
• forges links between evidence, school review, and strategic and annual planning
• obtains insights from a differentiated method for understanding school performance.
• seeks multiple perspectives, engagement with the whole school community and openness to challenge for improvement.
• celebrates strengths and achievements.

 From this School Review process, we will develop the next four-year Strategic Plan (2024 – 2028). More information will become available as we move further into the review model.

I would like to sincerely thank the parents, staff and student representatives on College Council for all their support throughout 2023 as well as all other parent volunteers for their ongoing involvement. Thank you also to the college community for their ongoing support of such a large educational establishment.

For the Year 12 class of 2023, I wish you all the best with your future endeavours while we warmly welcome the students starting their journey with us next year.

On behalf of the Principal team – Suzanne Plant, Mike Stevens, Aidan Message, and myself, I would like to wish all our students, parents/guardians and staff members a very happy, relaxing and enjoyable festive season and an enriching and safe New Year!  Stay safe.

VERMONT COLLEGE NEWS FOR 2023

Thank you to all our contributors to our fortnightly newsletter for the 2023 school year. The college newsletter is a vital link with students, parents and staff to ensure that the community is well informed about college events. The newsletter is essential in ensuring that the many activities and events involving our students are publicised, celebrated and forecast. 

We encourage you to let us know of any newsworthy events particularly where students have achieved outside of the school as well as within the college. Finally, a special thank you to Khristian Mizzi and Suzanne Plant for all their work throughout the year in getting the fortnightly newsletter completed and distributed to the college community!