From the 

Leader of Year 11 Wellbeing

We are now well past the midpoint of Term 1 of Year 11 and the first Assessment Block (Friday, 5 April to Friday, 12 April) is fast approaching. Students have received their Task Notifications for each subject and they should be fully aware of the requirements and expectations for each of their subjects. Some tasks are Hand-In and others are Exams. 

Students only need to attend school when they have a task and the term conveniently ends on the last day of the assessment block. The usual rules around uniform and grooming still apply and it is each individual student’s responsibility to know the date and time of each task. Ignorance is not an excuse - the timetable is on Compass. This will be the first experience, for our young men and women, of a senior style Assessment experience and I urge all students to put in their personal best effort and work with diligence over the next three weeks towards achieving their academic goals.

In other news, I would like to congratulate the large number of Year 11 students who are participating in Grade and Representative Sport across a wide range of sports. St Aloysius students are achieving outstanding results in swimming particularly but also in many other team and individual sports, both for our school teams and individual endeavours outside of school requiring hours of dedication and training each week. These young men and women were celebrated at our recent Whole School Assembly.

In addition to sport, we had a great start to Peer Support with Year 7, with a wonderful team of eighteen Year 11’s showing initiative and leadership in acting as mentors for our new, much younger students. Other extra-curricular opportunities such as our Catechists and LYL’s demonstrate the depth of participation and commitment in this year group, which bodes well for Term 3 when we will be seeking to appoint a new Student Leadership Team for 2024/5. Last week I also met with our Year 12/2025 Jersey Committee who are tasked with designing the first St Aloysius College Cronulla official jersey and jacket which our students will be able to order in late Term 2 and wear from the beginning of Term 4 (commencement of HSC). 

The Year 11 Information Night last week was a great success and included presentations from our Principal, Mr Mahoney, about the importance of ‘competing‘ in everything our students undertake, Mrs Hughes (Dean of Mission) on the College Mission and Learning Framework, Mrs Slater (Leader of Learning) on Assessment, Mrs Kennedy (Pathways and Partnerships) on Careers and VET options and myself on Pastoral Care and Student Welfare. Thank you to the many parents who attended and please feel free to reach out at any time should you have any further questions or concerns.

In conclusion, Year 11 is travelling reasonably well at this stage of proceedings but they now need to step up a gear as this first Assessment Block nears. Unless students are organised, up to date and treating their senior education as a ‘ full-time job ‘, things can rapidly spin out of control. Students need to take responsibility for their own learning- there is a lot happening at school but the main priority must be a focus on academic progress and working towards a goal. Even if the goal(s) is not clear at this point, it is crucial to develop good study habits and skills. Last week, Year 11 had a ‘ Study Techniques ‘ presentation during their Tuesday afternoon “ Thrive “ session and it is important to understand that study is not just homework or finishing any incomplete work. Many students may benefit from a Study Timetable and this is something that we will explore moving forward in our Pastoral lessons.

A happy and holy Easter to all our Year 11 families.