Magis report 

College Public Speaking Grand Final

Over the past two weeks, students from Years 7 to 12 have been taking part in the heats for the College Public Speaking Competition. Students were charged with speaking for three minutes on a topic of their choice. Students spoke passionately on a broad range of topics, some with a serious undertone, whilst others were exceeding humorous. Topics ranged from the multi-universe to immigration and everything in between. Suffice to say, the standard was exceptionally high, and we would like to commend all students who took part. Public Speaking is a valuable skill to have and to hone, and I would strongly encourage all participants to take on board the feedback they have received.  I would like to take this opportunity to thank Mr Morris (Head of HASS) and Ms Gray (English Department) for their assistance in adjudicating the heats.

We are excited to announce our 2024 College Public Speaking Grand Finalists

The Grand Final of the 2024 College Public Speaking Competition will be held on Thursday 6 June (Week 17) at 6:30pm in the Gonzaga Barry Lecture Theatre (GBLT). Invitations have been sent to the parents and guardians of our grand finalists, but we would like to extend the invitation to the wider College Community. It is sure to be a wonderful evening with the extraordinary talents of our students on display. We are excited to have a panel of esteemed Magis Alumni, who will have the difficult task of deciding the top public speaker from each year group. 

Update: World Scholars Cup

Next week our World Scholar Teams will compete in the 2024 Perth Regional Round of the World Scholars Cup. This is an international academic competition with students participating from over 65 countries every year. The Perth Regional Round will be held over two days: students will attend Aquinas College on the Friday and Sacred Heart College on the Saturday. The competition consists of four main events: the Scholar’s Challenge, Collaborative Writing, Debating, and the Scholar’s Bowl – with students tested across a range of subject areas including history, social studies, art and music, literature and media, science and technology, and a special area. Our teams will receive questions that require critical thinking skills as well as their basic knowledge to come to a conclusion rather than focusing on memorization. Below is a copy of the schedule of events. We wish all our teams the very best of luck!

Update:  Debating

Our debating students are preparing for Round 4, which will be held this Tuesday 28 May (Week 16) at Christ Church Grammar School (CCGS) - with debates commencing at 5:15pm, 6:15pm or 7:15pm. As this round is an impromptu debate, teams will be required to arrive at the venue an hour and 15 minutes before their scheduled debate time. Below is a copy of our team fixtures, which students have access to through Teams. Students have decided on their Round 4 speaker order. Parents can also find a copy of the full SDC draw on the WADL website. We wish all our debating teams the best of luck with their Round 4 debates.

What’s happening next week?

Next week is HASS Week, and in celebration of all things humanities, we will be holding an academic challenge that will test student knowledge of Humanities, Art, Languages and Literature. Years 7 to 10 Homerooms have put forward representatives who will take part in the quiz. The results of this academic challenge go towards the awarding of the overall College House Sheild. Meetings and training sessions will continue for Debating and World Scholars, ahead of their respective competition dates.

MAGIS: OPPORTUNITIES TO DO MORE!

Creative Edge Thinking  

The Creative Edge Problem Solving Challenge is an innovative educational competition providing students with motivating challenges that will develop both critical and creative thinking skills. Students compete in teams to solve an open-ended challenge in one of the following disciplines: Literature and Communication or Society and Environment (HASS). This year’s regional final will be held at Curtin University. For more information, please see the Head of Magis. Expressions of interest are due by Friday 23 August (Week 16). 

Tournament of Minds 

Tournament of Minds (TOM) is an international problem-solving program for teams of students. TOM’s aim is to enhance the potential of our youth by developing diverse skills, enterprise, time management, and the discipline to work collaboratively within a challenging and competitive environment. Teams will be required to solve demanding, open-ended challenges in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) discipline. Regional and State Finals are to be held at Edith Cowan University in September, with the International Final to be held in Sydney in November. For more information, please see the Head of Magis. Expressions of interest are due by Friday 23 August (Week 16). 

The Global Voices Fellowship

Attention Year 12 students – applications are now open for the Global Voices Fellowship. This life-changing program aims to upskill and develop the next generation of Australian leaders to contribute to domestic and global decision-making. This is a fully funded scholarship, with all domestic and international flights, accommodations, breakfasts, visas, insurance, and registration fees covered. For more information click here or speak with the Head of Magis.

Term 2 Calendar

You can keep up to date with Magis events by following the Term 2 calendar, which can be accessed by clicking on the link below. 

Daisy Farley

Head of Magis - Gifted & Talented Program