Dean of Senior Years 

Academic Excellence Assembly: Semester 1, 2024

Last week we celebrated the success of students at the College who excelled in their academic achievements in Semester 2, 2023. We acknowledged those students at this College, by awarding Bronze, Silver and Gold Certificates for Academic Achievement. To be awarded a Bronze certificate, students must have achieved a GPA of between 12.5 and 12.9 based on their Semester 2 results. To achieve a Silver, students must have achieved a GPA between a 13 – 13.4 based on their Semester 2 results. To achieve a Gold, students must have achieved a 13.5 or above based on their Semester 2 results. 

We congratulate the 144 students who received an achievement award last week. We are extremely proud of the drive and dedication they put into their studies throughout Semester 2 in 2023.

We also had an opportunity to acknowledge our 2023 Year 12 Seniors who achieved outstanding ATAR results, having been awarded ATARs 90 and over. From the 47 students who achieved an ATAR of 90 and over, there were 20 students who also achieved 6 x A’s across their general subjects. This is an outstanding achievement, and we congratulate them all and wish them all the best in their next venture.

Our assembly concluded with the announcement of our College Duces, Sophia Nielsen and Isabella Vos, and Proxime Accessits, Amelia Kreis and Ava Paddison. 

We are very proud of the achievements of our 2023 Seniors. It was great to have these past students and their families with us on this occasion.

As we start 2024, we hope all students reflect on the success of their peers and the stories of others to support their individual learning journey in achieving their personal best this year.

Study Support – Academic Mentoring

This week sees Year 7 and 8 Homework support and Year 9-12 Academic Mentoring resume, commencing 13 February. 

Year 7 and 8 Homework support will be hosted in A103 and is supervised by teachers or aides. Students are expected to be signed in by 3.15pm, and may sign out at 4.30p.m. Support for Year 7 and 8 is available Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday afternoons.

Year 9-12 Academic Mentoring will be hosted in the College iCentre and is supervised by Academic Mentors who are returning seniors. On an occasional basis, teachers may also be in attendance at Academic Mentoring to provide assistance. Students are expected to sign in between 3 and 3.15 p.m. and may sign out at 5.00pm. Support for Year 9-12 is available Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday afternoons. 

The schedule for this program, noting start and end times each term, is available in the MyMtA Academic Tile. Please note, the program will not run in the first or last week of each term. Neither will support be available on Public Holidays or gazetted pupil free days. 

Building a culture of academic strive

Building a culture of academic strive is what we aspire to here at Mount Alvernia College. We aim to achieve this by establishing a clear vision for academic excellence and working in partnership with parents, students, and staff to create a positive culture of learning. Our staff set high expectations and provide support for students to achieve academic success through quality teaching and learning. We encourage students to foster a growth mindset, set challenging yet attainable learning goals, and promote a culture of motivation to excel. Students are encouraged to be active participants in their learning, commit to ongoing improvement and engage in feedback to progress their own learning. 

Our Learning Framework which is available in the Student Planner provides several High Impact Learning and Teaching Strategies which we embed in our teaching and learning programs and encourage students to engage with as they aspire to success. 

At Mount Alvernia College, we endeavour to foster strong partnerships between the school, parents, and the community by ensuring regular and open communication, and collaboratively work with parents and students to contribute to a supportive learning environment for all. By incorporating these key elements, we aim to cultivate an environment where academic excellence is not only expected but actively pursued.