Principal Team Report

Welcome to our first edition of Links for Semester Two (and Term 3!).

We have much to look back on and celebrate, and much to look forward to and anticipate, and in the meantime, our regular schedule rolls on. Our Year 12s have settled into their final full term of schooling and have already completed a range of School Assessed Coursework (SACs). At our recent Senior School assembly, we urged them to step up their efforts in study groups, seeking teacher feedback and so on, to best prepare them for the VCAA exams in Term 4 – we wish them well!

Semester One awards assembly

Last Thursday, we held our awards assembly to recognise and celebrate all of our High Achievers and also to acknowledge and thank our Year 10 Peer Support Leaders for their work in smoothing the transition of our Year 7 students over their first semester at MC. The assembly was opened and closed by our MC Rock Band ‘Ignition Theory’!

An excerpt from the principal’s speech:

Looking forward, I hope all students are excited by your current process of course selection for 2024. Invest careful thought in this process and follow the advice of your teachers and course counsellors in interviews. It is all about you, your opportunities, your passions, your pathway, your future – don’t let yourself down. Make the necessary adjustments based on the feedback from your teachers in class and in your assessments and in the recent Semester One reports.

You may not be at the top of your class, but you can still excel in your own right by doing your very best work at all times. Your award is improvement and growth and the extra options that come because of the improved grades and acknowledgement. This is especially relevant to all students undertaking Unit 3 and 4 subjects, especially our Year 12s. You have one semester of learning and preparation before the final exams; now is the time to take it up another notch, in your own work in class and study at home, in study groups with peers, and in lessons and discussions with your teachers.

Finally, to our students being recognised for your academic achievements in Semester One, I say be proud of what you have achieved in the first semester and celebrate it. You have achieved outstanding results and excelled in our core business of learning. But do not rest on your laurels now because the job is only half done! Reflect on your outcomes, take on board the feedback, engage with your teachers, and strive to excel again in the second half of the year. In encouraging you to commit yourself to continuing to do your best, I also encourage you to look around you now, acknowledge your peers, and commit to supporting and encouraging each other. You are the learning role models – do not underestimate the positive impact you can have in your classrooms and among your peers. You are part of a community, so have the courage and the curiosity to ask your teachers the extra question, seek the extra idea or response that you need or want, extend yourself through engaging with additional concepts and tasks, and have the community spirit to step up and support others – set the tone and lift them too.

We have added two categories this year: firstly, we will be presenting those Year 9 students who have received certificates for their ‘exceeding’ results in the NAPLAN; and secondly, among the subject awards are recipients from our first ever Year 11 VCE Vocational Major course.

I wish all of you the very best for Semester Two and I look forward to celebrating your next achievements at the end of the year!

Looking forward to 2024

Year 6-7 Transition planning is in full swing, as this annual process gathers pace towards its culmination (for this year) on the State-wide Orientation day on Tuesday 12th December. Our course counselling team continues to engage with students and parents as they make their subject selections for 2024. Many factors need to be taken into account when making these decisions, especially for senior school subjects: passions and interests, strengths and abilities, pathways plans and career goals, prerequisites for VCE and tertiary study, just to name a few. We are excited to be able to offer VCE Computing in 2024, and are looking to offer Literature at Year 10 and 11 in 2025.

Sport

Over recent weeks, Mullauna has been, or soon will be, represented in a variety of sports and at many levels. This has recently included intermediate teams in basketball and table tennis and there are numerous teams preparing to go out in the weeks to come for Year 7 and Year 8 Sport. Please check the school Facebook page for all results and photos.

School Events

Mullauna College has an ‘Excursion and Incursion Policy’ which states the following:

All parental consent and medical forms must be completed on Compass, or hard copies signed and returned by the approval date stated on the event. This approval date is set as three (3) school days prior to the actual event for school and event organisational reasons. Permission to participate will not be granted on the day of the event. All families must be given sufficient time to make payments for excursions/incursions. Parents are to be provided with permission forms and excursion information, via the Compass Event, clearly stating payment finalisation dates. Payment must be completed 10 days prior to departure. Children whose payment has not been finalised by the published deadline will not be allowed to attend the event. The college has a strict ‘no pay, no go’ policy.Staff have been advised that no student is to be taken on an excursion unless s/he has parental permission granted on the Compass Event or returned a completed Parent Consent Form and paid for the event according to the published deadline. Students who do not have permission will be removed from the event, so that they will appear on their normal class roll.

VCE Practice Exams – Week 2 of the September break

A reminder to all Unit 3-4 students that the college will again run compulsory practice exams in the second week of the September break. Penny Nevill will publish more details soon.

It is critical that all students participate, in order to gain valuable practice and to receive vital feedback for improvement from their teachers.

The 2023 Parent / Caregiver / Guardian Opinion Survey (PCGOS) - Open since Monday 7th August

WE WANT OUR PARENTS / CAREGIVERS / GUARDIANS TO TELL US WHAT THEY THINK!

All Mullauna families have received an individual link and PIN (the Family A member) last Monday 7th August to this annual survey. The PCGOS is designed to assist schools in gaining an understanding of families’ perceptions of school climate, student behaviour, and student engagement. Our school will use the survey results to help inform and direct future school planning and improvement strategies, and will be presented to and discussed at: staff and leadership team meetings, school council and no doubt our new Parent Association (watch this space!). All families are strongly encouraged to participate in the survey.

This year, we would like to surpass last year’s participation rate of 129 families. I’m sure we can do better than that! The percentages per year level in 2022 were: Year 7: 18% ; Year 8: 22% ; Year 9: 22% ; Year 10: 16% ; Year 11: 14% ; Year 12: 8%

Currently, we are sitting at 48 responses, or about 11% - a good start but we still have work to do!!

The Parent / Caregiver / Guardian Opinion Survey will be open from Monday 7 August to Friday 8 September 2023.

The survey will be conducted online, only takes 20 minutes to complete, and can be accessed at any convenient time within the survey period on desktop computers, laptops, tablets or smartphones. The online survey will be available in English and 10 other languages including Arabic, Greek, Hakha Chin, Hindi, Japanese, Punjabi, Simplified Chinese, Somali, Turkish, and Vietnamese.

Please call the college and ask to speak to a member of the principal team if you would like more information.

Interim Progress Reports and Learning Conferences

Interim Progress Reports are soon to be prepared and will be published in early September. These reports will give parents and caregivers feedback on the learning progress and work habits that each student has displayed throughout the term.

On Thursday 14 September, we will conduct learning conferences to enable further discussion and elaboration on the feedback provided in the interim progress report. The details for the Learning Conferences will be provided with the Interim Progress Reports.

Senior School Social events coming

We are excited to announce that we have 2 social events in planning for the first time since 2019.

The Year 11 Social will occur on Friday 8 September at the Box Hill pavilion.

The Year 10 Social will occur on Friday 6 October also at the Box Hill pavilion.

Keep an eye on your Compass event notifications for details about the events and placing a deposit to secure your spot. If you have any questions, students are advised to reach out to their YLC

Jeff McMillin, Michael Bray & Harry Ruff

the MC Principal Team

Recommended Reads

August 2023

Books! Reading!