Middle School Report

Message from the Director of Learning

- Mr. Tom Tahos

Year 9 and 10 students have been involved in various learning programs in and outside their classroom. We are very proud of how the middle school students conduct themselves at various programs run by external providers. We have received positive feedback about our students. Well done!!

Keep checking compass for upcoming events and news feeds. This is the main means of communication within our school community.  

Students, please continue to be vigilant with your learning. This means your attendance needs to be over 90%. Be organised (bring correct equipment), be punctual and engage with all your class tasks. 

All students should be clear about the school’s expectation regarding school uniform. Students should be in their summer school uniform in Term 4.

Monash University - 'Access Champions Leaders' Program

Select Year 9 and Year 10 students have been working with Monash University Mentors throughout the year, in designing and implementing a program to support students at Westall Secondary College with their learning and pathways.

The student leaders began their journey by attending a leadership-training day, which was followed by fortnightly meetings with their mentors, to further develop their programs.

The Monash Access Leaders then ran their programs to target groups within our school.

The final part of the program was to present their experiences and outcomes at Monash University, to all the participating schools and mentors involved. Our students were outstanding and demonstrated great leadership and teamwork attributes throughout the program.

Sports Ambassadors Program

The Sports Academy Elective class was involved in the Kingston Youth Services ‘Sports Ambassadors’ program. This program is looking at key aspects of being a leader, such as communication, empathy and teamwork. The program also focuses on cultural inclusion, cultural understanding, as well as critical and creative thinking.

At each session, students were involved in icebreaker activities and brainstorming sessions based on traits of an effective leader, and how we can be inclusive. There were further activities which were designed to develop and highlight these skills. These sessions also looked at how sport is an ideal way of promoting inclusion and acceptance.

Our students are currently working in groups to deliver a leadership session.

The Ambassadors program will continue in Term 4, where the group will work with the National Rugby League, to implement and get involved in a touch rugby tournament focusing on cultural inclusion.

Westall Primary School Visit

Westall Primary School Year 5 and 6 students have been working together with our Year 9/10 Literacy Intervention class in the kitchen cooking pizza, damper and some other healthy treats. Our students guide the primary school students through safe food preparation and are developing relationships for the future, when the primary students will join us here. Next term, we will be making chicken nuggets – the healthy way - and some other exciting dishes.

Ms. Julie Armstrong

Year 9 Coordinator/Arts & Tech Coordinator

Financial Literacy Excursion - 3rd September

The Financial Literacy students recently visited the Parliament of Victoria, the State Library and were lucky enough to view several court cases held in the Melbourne Magistrates Court.

The students had a very interesting tour of Parliament House where they could sit in both the Legislative Assembly and Council. They were reminded of the importance to vote, and were informed of a Victorian election coming up in November. 

We also visited the State Library of Victoria, where some of us saw Ned Kelly's armour, as well as an amazing view from the 6th level, looking down on the old reading room. The students were certainly impressed by this building.

After some lunch in Melbourne Central where we were lucky enough to see the famous clock chiming midday, we all went to the Melbourne Magistrates Court to observe some courtrooms. It is possible to move in and out of the courts to observe different cases and the students very quickly learnt about the correct etiquette of bowing to the Magistrate as they arrived and left the courtroom. They also observed a fairly intensive cross examination of a witness via video link, regarding the defendant who was sitting in the courtroom. It was hands on learning at its best!

Some of the students remarked:

“I have learnt that Parliament may look easy but it needs a lot of hard work and we need to look at all points of view in order to make a new law.”

“Each courtroom had a different story and victim, it was great to explore each one and see how the system works”

“The architecture of the Parliament was very unique and one of its kind”

Ms. Sue Stenning

Humanities Coordinator

‘My Vote, My Voice’ excursion on female leadership

Speaking on the floor of Victoria’s Legislative Council was an inspiring experience for two of our Year 10 students, on Friday the 31st of August. Yvonne Hoang and Gloria Mautairi spoke passionately about the importance of diversity as part of the National Council of Women Victoria’s annual speech day at Victoria’s Parliament House.

In the lead up to the event, our students conducted research on the topic of diversity in community organisations. Students Arnetta Wijaya, Jenny Gu, Yiting Zhong, Kaylar Imaitum, along with Gloria Mautairi, Yvonne Hoang and Monique Rima, chose two organisations to study – the Cook Island Oz Tag Association and our school. They conducted interviews with leaders, including Ms Simadri, to discover more about the levels of diversity within these organisations and why this is important for decision-making and representation.

We heard from speakers at fifteen different schools on a range of topics related to diversity, from interviews with political and business leaders to statistics about the nature of leaders within Australia. The most powerful were personal stories about experiences of discrimination and advocacy.

A panel of prominent female leaders - comprised of Barbara Abley AM, past Mayor of Geelong Council, Cuc Lam, Mayor of Maribyrnong, and the Honourable Samantha Dunn, MLC Eastern Metropolitan Region – provided feedback to the speakers. Their public speaking advice included the need to use humour, vary tone and pitch and end a speech with a strong point.

Our students commented:

• “It was a good learning experience, as diversity is a broad topic and we got to hear really different perspectives on it,” (Kaylar).
• “Interviewing Ms Simadri taught us about the skills of leadership and her own personal experiences” (Jenny).
• “It was a good opportunity to practice my public speaking and receive feedback to improve in the future,” (Yvonne).

It was a great day and we were very thankful to the National Council of Women Victoria for organising this opportunity, as well as Ms Simadri for giving up her time for an interview. I commend our students on their enthusiastic participation, articulate speeches and high-quality research.  

Ms Good

Global Literacy Teacher