Senior School Report
Ms Helen Ifandis
Westall Secondary College
Message from the
Director of Learning
Senior School
Ms Helen Ifandis
As we approach the final stretch I the VCE academic year, the focus intensifies on supporting our students prepare for their final exams, and the transition to life beyond secondary school.
The weeks leading up to the end of the academic year are critical, not just for academic performance, but also for managing stress, and maintaining a balanced approach to learning.
EXAM PREPARATION AND REVIEW - VCE
In this final phase, students will be completing their last School-Assessed Coursework, (SACs) and engaging in rigorous exam preparation. FREE exam revision online lectures are made available to students by ACCESS EDUCATION. ACCESS EDUCATION aims to provide students with programs and products, to help them achieve their personal best.
VCE students are working in focused group in preparation for their end of year Examination period, during their Study Space time every Wednesday. Study Space is an intervention program where students focus explicitly on targeted needs areas in the VCE curriculum.
VCE TRIAL EXAMS commence during Week 1 of the Term 3 Holidays. Students are strongly encouraged to attend the trial exam period scheduled to support students in consolidating their knowledge and fine-tuning their exam techniques. Teachers are working closely with students to identify areas for improvement and to provide personalised feedback.
VTAC and SEAS APPLICATIONS
Ms Borgonha and Ms Vasilakis have been working very hard to ensure every year 12 student has completed their VTAC and SEAS registrations. The Victorian Tertiary Admissions Centre (VTAC) is an independent service that facilitates student access to tertiary education. Students are eligible to apply for tertiary entrance assistance, if they have experienced circumstances that have affected their study.
VCE students are provided with a special consideration application via VTAC’s Special Entry Access Scheme (SEAS). SEAS is designed to make sure institutions get a sense of students’ full potential. It enables institutions to consider the circumstance experienced by the student and the impact it may have upon studies when making their final selection decisions.• SEAS helps institutions understand students’ full potential by considering the circumstances they have experienced.• SEAS allows institutions to grant special consideration for course entry.• SEAS does not exempt students from meeting the institutional and course requirements.
VOCATIONAL MAJOR - VCE
Vocational Major students are working very hard to complete VET hours and certificates and coursework as they transition into varied pathways in the workforce. The Vocational Major students are completing offsite and well as onsite courses, including VET Carpentry at Westall Secondary College.
Recently the Vocational Major students attended SELLEN, South-East Local Learning Network, who hosted ‘lunch with the Winners’. This is a community managed regional network, made up of local organisations in Melbourne’s South-East. The network membership includes approximately 250 members, including organisations such as schools, TAFE’s, local businesses and youth welfare agencies, as well as individuals. SELLEN IS working to give Secondary Students opportunities to successfully move through the education system to employment. A big thank you to Ms Borgonha, Ms Yuan, Mr Roberts and Ms Karayiannis for making this event possible.
STUDENT WELL-BEING
The end of the VCE year can be trying emotionally and mentally for students. In addition to academic support, the school is placing significant emphasis on student well-being. Counselling services, stress management workshops, and mindfulness activities, are being provided to support students manage the pressures of final exams, and transition to the next stage of their academic or professional journeys.
The Year 12 Mentor Program has been a strong focus this year where Mentor and mentee come together informally to discuss VCE life. Year 12 teachers meet their student mentee ton a regular basis to consolidate, as well as build a trusting, and safe space where support is provided throughout the course of the VCE year.
REFLECTION AND CELEBRATION
The final part of the VCE academic year is also a time for reflection and celebration. The students are currently planning and coordinating their celebration dinner dance – FORMAL, to be held on Friday the 20th of September, at Merrimu Receptions, Chadstone.
The theme for the evening is ‘STARS’! Students and teachers are looking forward to an amazing night of dancing, photographs and an exquisite menu. Congratulations to Ms Vasilakis and the FORMAL committee for making this event possible. Graduation Ceremony is also underway for the 28th of November, at the venue: Church of Christ, Clayton.
The students are working very hard in preparing for this grand event, groups of students are busy rehearsing for some serious cultural dancing, a big shout out to Cyril Nuqui for organising and directing the photoshoot sessions. Cyril has ensured beautiful portraits are captured of the year 12 in their graduation gowns, which will be used for the stage presentations on Graduation night. Emily Duncan and Zoi Spiliopoulou have created an incredible VCE days countdown wall in the Senior Learning Centre. It is exciting to watch daily the numbers decrease and very sweet polaroid portraits go up of each student. The year 12 students are really looking forward to the colour powder activity to commence as part of the Arts Festival.
Lastly the Final Year12 School Assembly will signify the finish for these amazing individuals of 2024!“We can’t wait to see you all graduate, each of you in a gown, mortarboard and certificate in hand. You will definitely make us all proud”
MOORABBIN POLICE – ‘STAY SAFE WORKSHOP’
The local Victorian Police visited Westall Secondary College this term to inform the students of a government initiative program called 'share if you care’. The Moorabbin Police provided students with significant information, scenarios and case studies of how to keep safe in the community.
The key message was If you see something that’s not right, you need to report it. Keeping teenagers and other members of the community safe was the take-away message. The VCE students were immersed in the Crime stoppers Victoria initiative, by asking lots of questions to the police, based on a range of scenarios. The Police provided great feedback when answering their questions, answers were informative and insightful.
VCE ART MAKING AND EXHIBITING EXCURSION
The Year 12 Art Making and Exhibiting students attended the Grace Crowley and Ralph Balson Workshop at the Ian Potter Centre this term, as part of their Unit 4 area of study – Conservation and Care. Instrumental in the development of abstract art in Australia, Grace Crowley and Ralph Balson were extraordinary artists whose collaborative practice resulted in two of the most compelling bodies of work in Australian art history.
The student workshop was led by an education officer from the Ian Potter Centre, who provided the students with insight into the curation, design, presentation, care and conservation of the Grace Crowley and Ralph Balson Exhibition. The students build knowledge on the gallery techniques and processes used to display and care for work on the gallery floor, as well as show artworks are cared for in storage, and the storage techniques used for longevity of the artworks.
VCE ART MAKING AND EXHIBITING EXCURSION – ‘PHARAOH’
The Year 11 and 12 Art Making and Exhibiting students visited the amazing PHARAOH exhibition at the National Gallery of Victoria this term. The NGV has partnered with the British Museum to present Pharaoh, a landmark exhibition that celebrates three thousand years of ancient Egyptian art and culture.
Through more than 500 objects, including monumental sculpture, architecture, temple statuary, exquisite jewellery, papyri, coffins and a rich array of funerary objects, the exhibition unpacks the phenomenon of pharaoh.
The VCE students presented case studies as part of their Unit 2 and 4 coursework, where they unpacked conservation and care of the artifacts displayed. Students explored promotion of the exhibition, curatorial design, as well as targeted audiences.
UNIOPOLY – YEAR 11
UNIOPOLY a blend of Monopoly and University pathway questions thanks to ACCESS Monash - the Year 11 VCE students took part in teams of about six in an interactive game related to university. The teams took turns rolling a large colourful dice, each colour representing different set of questions about university life. The question categories included: surviving VCE, SEAS, transitioning and applying to University, the costs involved with post-school study and other random questions.
The Access Monash Mentors assisted with the workshop, including our very own student Michael Ung from 2020. The workshop provided the Year 11 students with some insight into the university path that might lie ahead for them. The Year 11 students thoroughly enjoyed the UNIOPOLY workshop run by Access Monash. The UNIOPOLY team created a fun and inviting atmosphere for the year 11 students where they were played career pathways games. The great news is the POLICE team were the Winners! Lucas Nagliati, Beka Ado, Ayub Gatkuoth and Luke Slinchenko. A great effort indeed!
Ms Helen Ifandis
Director of Learning - Senior School