Magis Report 

Our College hosted the State Semi-Finals of the British Parliamentary Debating Competition last Monday. Luke Nicol and Zachary Sartorello (Year 8) debated the government’s position on The Children (Social Media Safety) Bill 2024, a proposed federal Australian law which would ban access to social media under 14 and require parental consent for the use of social media by children under 16. Luke and Zachary made a number of compelling arguments including that the law would make it the responsibility of social media companies for making sure minors in these age ranges didn’t access their social media platforms, and that if Meta did not make a reasonable attempt to prevent this, they would face financial penalties. We are excited to announce that Luke and Zachary won their debate and will compete in the grand final to be held on Monday 28 October at Perth Modern School.  We wish both Luke and Zachary the best of luck.

Our Year 12 students received their Service Awards at the Day of Invitation yesterday. I would like to acknowledge the enormous part these students have played in the development of the Magis program. It would take too long to list all the competitions these students have been involved in, but collectively, they have represented their House, their College, their state and country in over 40 different competitions. To our Magis Class of 2024, thank you for your outstanding commitment and leadership over the past five years. May the philosophy of Magis continue to guide you on your academic journey. 

• Amber Armstrong
• Gemma Bailey
• Meg Cleary
• Jacob Davila (Faith and Misson Captain)
• Meg Derbyshire
• Felix Frichot (Drama Captain)
• Hunter Giles-Shanley
• Xavier Jeffery (Music Captain)
• Hannah Johnson
• Sarah Macfarlane
• Maya Mintz (Wellbeing Captain)
• Asha Paton
• Sky Pineda Beasley
• Thomas Syminton (Magis Captain)
• Massimo Torre

What’s happening next week?

Next week is a VERY big week for Magis. Our annual Shakespeare Incursion is scheduled for Monday, 21 October. A key aspect of our GATE program is providing opportunities for our students to learn 'more'. All Years 7 and 8 Magis students will be in attendance, as well as selective students across other year groups. Our annual Magis Awards Breakfast will be held on Thursday, 24 October at 7:30am in the Thomas More Exhibition Centre. This provides us with a wonderful opportunity to recognise our Magis graduating Class of 2024, announce the winners of the 2024 Magis Academic Cup, as well as celebrate the success of our students across the Magis Elective Course and within Magis Co-Curricular. And on Friday 25 October some of our Years 7 to 9 students will depart for our annual Magis Camp. 

MAGIS: OPPORTUNITIES TO DO MORE!

StarGirls STEM Camp

Are you interested in pursuing astronomy, engineering, or data science as a career path? Join high school girls for a free Astronomy Day Camp hosted by the International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR). This camp is open to all high school students in Years 9-12 whose gender identities are underrepresented in astronomy, engineering, or data science. Highlights include: 

• Meet and talk with women who have made their careers in astrophysics, engineering and data science; 
• Use research-grade telescopes to take and process your own deep space images and take part in a night-time stargazing event; and 
• Visit leading space research centres, including our Curtin and UWA ICRAR campuses, along with a visit to the Pawsey Supercomputer Research Centre. 

The next Stargirls+ camp will be held during the week of 27 January 2025. Stargirls+ is hosted at ICRAR in Perth, Western Australia, at  UWA and Curtin locations. This is a day camp, which will require transport to and from the site each day. Food will be provided throughout the event. Places are limited, so early applications are encouraged. What’s it like to do the Stargirls+ STEM Camp? Click on the link here for a video. Further information, including the application form, can be found here. Please note applications will close on Sunday 1 December 2024. Please notify the Head of Magis once you have submitted your application.

Chevron Nature in Focus Photography Competition 

Entries are now open for the 2024 Chevron Nature in Focus Photography Competition – so grab a camera, get outdoors, and start photographing Australia’s natural wonders and unique biodiversity. It could be as simple as some spring wildflowers or capturing a native lizard having a crawl. Include a short caption with your photo and submit it online – under one of the following categories: Oceans, Wetlands and Rivers; Sustainability; or Species and Habitats. For further details please visit Chevron Nature in Focus Photography Competition! - Conservation Volunteers Australia. 

Photographs must be submitted in digital format and should not be digitally altered beyond standard optimisation (e.g., colour correction, cropping). The competition closes at midnight on 1 November 2024, AEST. There’s over $10,000 worth of prizes up for grabs across five age categories – head to the website for details of prizes on offer for students and their schools. 

Ethics Olympiad Case Writing Competition

Ethics Olympiad are holding a case writing competition with prize money to be won. Submissions should follow the general format for Ethics Olympiad cases: a scenario, between 400 and 800 words long, which highlights a clear moral issue and is appropriate for middle or high-school students and is written in a way that encourages civil discourse. The scenario should be framed so the central issue is clearly moral and not simply or primarily legal or professional. Knowledge of the structure of the Ethics Olympiad competition is important, and it is for that reason that we would recommend the case writing competition to students who have previously participated in an Ethics Olympiad. For more information, please click on the link here or view the flyer below.

Harvard Crimson

The Harvard Crimson Global Essay Competition provides a platform for young, ambitious high school students to exercise their writing skills and compete with students from all over the world. This competition encourages students to challenge themselves and explore different writing styles to ultimately strengthen their writing skills. The competition features two key rounds, the regional qualifiers held throughout five regions, followed by the global finals. To compete in the global round, participants must go head-to-head with local participants and place in the top 15 of the regional qualifiers. The top 12 submissions of the final 75, will be recognised in the global final and will win awesome prizes. As Harvard registration opens 1 October 2024 and closes 31 January 2025, we asked that students (aged 13-18) submit their expression of interest to the Head of Magis by Monday, 9 September 2024. This will be followed by a series of meetings and training seminars in preparation for the competition. Regional qualifiers will be held in February 2025, with Globals held in March 2025. For more information, please click the link below or speak with the Head of Magis. 

Daisy Farley

Head of Learning Areas – HASS & Magis