Curriculum and Learning

With five weeks to go to the commencement of the HSC written examinations, parents/carers and boys of Year 12 are reminded about the following HSC matters:

Year 12 Academic Reports

By the end of this week, Year 12 final academic reports will be issued online via the TASS Parent Lounge.

It is worth noting a few key features of the final report include:

Co-curricular Involvement to date, as applicable.
Attendance at key College events since the Semester 1 Report such as Founder’s Day and Year 12 Spirituality Day.
Attendance Record from Tuesday 2 April up to and including Friday 30 August.
The homeroom teacher’s Pastoral Profile which describes the student’s general school and homeroom practices associated with grooming and uniform, co-operation, manner, punctuality, responsibility, initiative and contribution to Mission. These Profile elements are described as Consistently, Usually, Occasionally or Rarely.
A percentage Trial HSC Examination Mark, the Trial HSC Examination Rank and the HSC Course Rank. It is important to note that it is a NESA requirement that schools are not permitted to issue the HSC Course Assessment Mark on reports.
Achievement in one or more Learning Areas or descriptors expressed by one of the following indicators: Excellent, Good, Satisfactory, Elementary or Limited. Each indicator indicates the level of performance achieved by the student, similar to the Common Grade Scale as the Scale is generally well understood.
Achievement in a number of Learning Practices, such as application, conduct and commitment to study indicated as either Consistently, Usually, Occasionally or Rarely.

The issuing of the reports is an important time for parents/carers to constructively assess their sons’ academic progress and make the necessary adjustments, with the view of making determined improvements over the remaining weeks leading to the HSC written examinations.

Preparation for the HSC Written Examinations

As mentioned in No. 25 - 21 August 2024 issue of the Especean, HSC students must use the remaining time well as they prepare for the HSC written examinations, to maintain their health and wellbeing as well as undertake a thorough revision regimen.

The next few weeks are very important for HSC students to step up their study regime in the realisation that in terms of marks, “it’s only half-time – the game is not over yet”. There’s still 50% of the HSC Mark to work for. In fact, NESA’s statistical moderation of the school-based assessment mark to that of the HSC examination mark puts greater weight on the HSC examination in determining the final HSC Mark.

Although the remainder of term will be an eventful time for the Class of 2024 as they celebrate the end of their schooling, they must not lose focus from the main task ahead – the HSC written examinations which commence Tuesday 15 October with the English Standard and Advanced Paper 1 in the morning and conclude for our students, Thursday 7 November with the Physics paper in the afternoon session.

Thorough revision of the syllabus points and practise using past papers under self-imposed examination conditions are essential to sharpen preparation for the examinations at this stage.

HSC Resources

Over the course of the year, teachers have drawn attention to readily accessible resources on the internet to assist Year 12 students with their study and revision.

Below are a few NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA) approved HSC resources.

The Sydney Morning Herald 2024 HSC Study Guide

Each year NESA works with Fairfax Media to publish the HSC Study Guide now available at: HSC Study Guide 2024 (smh.com.au).

The Guide has a good range of NESA endorsed resources.

Stay Healthy HSC Hub

The Stay Healthy HSC Hub provides resources and advice for students, parents/carers and teachers to help support HSC students to maintain their health and wellbeing as they prepare for and undertake their HSC examinations.

The Hub is available at: Stay healthy HSC (nsw.gov.au)

The NESA website

Home | NSW Education Standards HSC examination rules and procedures, syllabuses, past examination papers and notes from the marking centre, 2024 HSC examination timetable and Students Online.

ARC: School-based assessment in New South Wales (nesa.nsw.edu.au) Syllabuses, past examination papers and notes from the marking centre, standards packages and online multiple-choice.

I strongly recommend that all Year 12 students engage the above sites as part of their preparation for the HSC examinations.

HSC Students Online

NSW Students Online (nesa.nsw.edu.au) provides students with their:

personal details
enrolment details
personalised HSC examination timetable
personalised Advice Line schedule
Assessment Rank Order Notice
HSC results.

It is important that Students Online is accessed and checked. Should parents/carers or students have further questions about the Students Online service or concerns about the information therein, please do not hesitate to contact Mr Cutrupi at the College.

During the HSC, Students Online and the NESA website will continue to be an important source of information about the HSC. NESA will also continue to provide assistance for any HSC related matters.

HSC Illness/Misadventure

In the event of illness or misadventure during the HSC examinations, it is imperative that the HSC Presiding Officer, Mrs Saric, is immediately notified. The College, through either Mr Herro or Mr Cutrupi, must also be notified. An appeal form, which covers each affected examination, will be issued. The completed form must be returned to Mr Cutrupi for the Principal’s signature and submission to the NESA by no later than Friday 8 November.

More information regarding the illness / misadventure process during the HSC examinations may be found at: Illness and misadventure | NSW Education Standards.

HSC Assessment Rank Order Notices

These may be accessed and printed from home via the Students Online facility after 12:30 PM on Friday 8 November. Appeals concerning rank order must be submitted to Mr Cutrupi, in writing, by no later than 3:30 PM, Monday 11 November.

Release of Higher School Certificate Results

NESA will make the 2024 HSC results available to students via Students Online on Wednesday 18 December.

Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR)

The Universities Admissions Centre issues a different PIN to that of Students Online to enable access to the ATAR, also released on Wednesday 18 December.

Michael Cutrupi

Director of Curriculum

Marco Polo Award for Excellence in Italian Language and Culture 2024

We are fortunate to have a remarkable group of dedicated Italian students at our College.

This year, many of them have been nominated for the Marco Polo Award for Excellence in Italian Language and Culture, an external accolade established by the Marco Polo Italian School of Sydney. This award recognises students for their commitment, passion, and diligence in their study of Italian.

The following students were nominated by their teachers for their outstanding achievements:

Year 8: James Regina, Giordano Galtieri, Aidan Bohl and Julian Minadeo
Year 9: Elio Alessi
Year 10: Simon Nadile
Year 11: Valentino Romeo, Damian Laggis and Massimo Vanin

As part of the nomination process, teachers submitted comments supporting each student’s application, and the students themselves penned heartfelt reflections on "il mio amore per l’italiano"—their love for Italian. Here are some highlights:

Elio Alessi (Year 9)
My love for Italian dawns with a little boy sweeping in a barbershop, in a littoral town, the only town he ever understood. As the waves granulate unto the shoreline, he became infatuated with his trade. It starts with a young man heartbreakingly venturing across the seas to establish the foundations of a newborn life. It starts with my Nonno raising my family. My affinity stretches beyond the bounds of the language or the nouvelle cuisine, its origins are a piece of art which I am intrinsic to and have permanently been ingrained into the roots of who I really am and my morals as a person. My adoration for Italian is in an alleviating town on the coast of Sicily. The sunset illuminates the sky with a tapestry of colours, each shade serving as a testament to my undying love for being Italian. Its where the homely sun disperses to radiate the sultry embrace of the night. My fidelity to the culture is merely a locution that surpasses words, my love for Italian is where my family is and where my family are from.

Elio Alessi (Year 9)

My love for Italian dawns with a little boy sweeping in a barbershop, in a littoral town, the only town he ever understood. As the waves granulate unto the shoreline, he became infatuated with his trade. It starts with a young man heartbreakingly venturing across the seas to establish the foundations of a newborn life. It starts with my Nonno raising my family. My affinity stretches beyond the bounds of the language or the nouvelle cuisine, its origins are a piece of art which I am intrinsic to and have permanently been ingrained into the roots of who I really am and my morals as a person. My adoration for Italian is in an alleviating town on the coast of Sicily. The sunset illuminates the sky with a tapestry of colours, each shade serving as a testament to my undying love for being Italian. Its where the homely sun disperses to radiate the sultry embrace of the night. My fidelity to the culture is merely a locution that surpasses words, my love for Italian is where my family is and where my family are from.

Massimo Vanin (Year 11)
"il mio amore per l'italiano" - "my love for Italian", really hits home for me. This beautiful language has shown me a side of myself that I did not appreciate as much as I should have when I was younger. Italian is half of my cultural background, from my father, who was a funny, tender, nurturing and big-hearted man. Although he has passed away, my love for Italian continues to flourish the more I immerse myself in the Italian culture and language and strive to make my dad proud. Italian has opened many pathways for me, one being able to speak with my father’s side of the family, who live in Italy, and cannot speak English. Being able to communicate with them has reshaped my understanding of my family’s origins. They are the remaining part left of my Dad that I can now express fully, which allow me to show my love of Italian and in turn - make my father proud."

Massimo Vanin (Year 11)

"il mio amore per l'italiano" - "my love for Italian", really hits home for me. This beautiful language has shown me a side of myself that I did not appreciate as much as I should have when I was younger. Italian is half of my cultural background, from my father, who was a funny, tender, nurturing and big-hearted man. Although he has passed away, my love for Italian continues to flourish the more I immerse myself in the Italian culture and language and strive to make my dad proud. Italian has opened many pathways for me, one being able to speak with my father’s side of the family, who live in Italy, and cannot speak English. Being able to communicate with them has reshaped my understanding of my family’s origins. They are the remaining part left of my Dad that I can now express fully, which allow me to show my love of Italian and in turn - make my father proud."

Valentino Romeo (Year 11)
Il mio amore per l’italiano e’ piu di solo un amore per la lingua, ma e’ un amore per la mia cultura e famiglia. Imparare l’italiano mi collega alla mia cultura ogni giorno, quando parlo con mio papa su che imparo in classe d’italiano, lui e’ molto oroglioso. Posso parlare anche un po’ con mio nonno, che mi rende molto felice. Potere di capire un po’ degli conversazioni fra la mia famiglia italiana significa il mondo per me. Particolarmente, quando i miei cugini visitano d’Italia. So che il mio italiano non è perfetto, ma tutti i miei cugini sono molto disponibili e felice che provo. Spero che le mie capacite puo aiutarmi quando sono abbastanza fortunato per andare in italia!

My love for Italian is more than a love for the language but it is a love for the culture and my family. Learning Italian connects me to my culture every day, when I speak Italian with my dad or when I learn it in class. He is very proud. I can also speak with my grandfather which makes me very happy. Being able to understand conversations in my family means the world to me. Particularly when my cousins come from Italy. I know that my Italian is not perfect, but my cousins are very helpful and happy that I try. I hope that my abilities will help me when I am lucky enough to go to Italy.

The Languages Department is incredibly proud of our students and their deep connection to Italian language and culture. We eagerly await the announcement of the winners and celebrate the achievements of all our nominees. In bocca al lupo ragazzi!

Stephanie D'Arcangeli

Head of Languages

Celebrating Teacher Aides

"Our fingerprints don’t fade from the lives we touch." Judy Blume, American writer.

Teacher aides’ dedication to students and staff is priceless.

We are fortunate to have a range of caring and skilled teacher aides at St Patrick’s College, Strathfield. To mark Teacher Aide Appreciation Week last week, we formally celebrated our teacher aides, acknowledging the incredible work they do in so many different capacities, and the impact this work has on student outcomes.

On any given day you can find a teacher aide (or Learning Support Officer) assisting in traditional classrooms, in labs, Visual Arts, Food Technology and TAS spaces, on the sporting fields and by the pool, coaching and mentoring, creating scaffolds and learning resources, accompanying students on excursions and reflection days, organising and assisting with assessments, cheering at sports carnivals, and even dressing up for Book Week.

Our learning support officers are employed to support students of all ages with their learning. This means that they need the skills and knowledge to work across many different curriculum areas and at different stages of child development. Our learning support officers also possess skills in supporting students with organisation, goal setting and behaviour management, and in leading students with disability in the use of assistive technology, and personal care.

The teacher aide role has evolved to that of a paraprofessional, one who strives to learn and improve their practice. It may surprise you that many of our teacher aides have a range of qualifications, professional experiences and achievements gained from previous careers and have skills and talents which are of great benefit to the school community.

The most important way in which they make a difference, however, is to our students.

Their support of the mental health and wellbeing of our students is critical. Many boys see teacher aides as someone they can trust, who will listen to them, who they can go to with a problem or a success story, and who will advocate for their needs. At staff morning tea this week, I spoke about how our learning support officers bring the personal to this very student-centred, relational work – how they bring their heart to their work, each day, and what a difference this makes.

"The Learning Support officers go above and beyond to help us when we need it. They are friendly and caring. Nothing is too much trouble, but they will also let us know when we aren't putting in the effort. We don't thank them enough."

(Year 10 Students)

Our valued and high-performing team consists of:

Jacinta Moses and Laurel Coorey who have dedicated many years of service to our school. Experts in supporting learners, they are a constant in a sea of change for our boys, a cheerful, familiar face as boys’ transition through the school.

Dianne Khoury and Lenny Tanuwidjaja also bring experience and skill in teaching and learning to their work – Dianne assisting with Years 9 and 10 and Lenny sharing her expertise in Numeracy support, and across Years 11 and 12.

Elma Dib, Albert Jenson, William Halloran, Remy Robertson, Dianne Khoury and Lenny Tanuwidjaja

Elma Dib, a calm, reassuring presence, has years of teaching experience and great wisdom to share in her work with students and teachers, alike. Elma has become a highly valued support for Year 8 this year.

Remy Robertson joined us this year. Her gentle care for the students and skills in TAS has added real value to the work we do.

We recently welcomed Old Boy Albert Jenson (’14) to the team, where his poise and understanding of students’ needs has already made a difference across the school. We also have Old Boy William Halloran (’18) who assists teachers and supports students primarily in Years 5 and 6, as well as coaching sport as he develops his skills and experience in Learning Support.

We honour and applaud the work of these individuals and acknowledge the vital role they play in the work of our school.

Amanda Metua

Head of Diverse Learning