Faculty News

Mathematics 

The Year 7 Commercial Mathematics project for Term 1 2019 was to create arcade games using cardboard boxes, sticky tape, glue guns and a lot of paint. Students were very creative with their ‘Arcade Games’ and some even experienced engineering issues to get their games to work successfully. It was amazing to watch students troubleshoot issues they faced while building their games, and succeeding in achieving the desired outcome. All groups of students successfully created a creative and fun Arcade Game.

The three Year 7 classes got together last week to play with the Arcade Games and experience the games created by all the student groups. The entire cohort put in an amazing effort into creating those games, and engineering them exactly as they had planned. It was a pleasure to watch students explain how their games worked, and it was a delight to see their reactions when students enjoyed playing their games.

PDHPE (Personal Development, Health and Physical Education)

Term 1 and the start of Term 2 have been exciting and productive in the PDHPE Faculty! A new curriculum for Years 7 and 9 is being implemented for the first time and programming is underway in preparation for the implementation of the new Year 8 and 10 PDHPE and Stage 5 PASS Syllabuses in 2020. In this newsletter article we would like to focus on what Year 7-10 students have been doing in their classes.

Year 7 PDHPE:

Students have been learning about Changes and Challenges, as well as Relationships. They have participated in activities, such as researching organisations they can turn to for help in a difficult situation. Students have also been engaged in a Wellbeing unit, where they have learned about Choice Theory. In practical lessons students have been participating in challenge based games, athletics and catching and passing games and were assessed in Long Jump and Shot Put. They will be completing a theory assessment this term.

Year 8 PDHPE:

Students have been learning about Relationships, including connectedness, bullying and harassment and power. They participated in and were assessed on Softball and Cricket in Term 1 and will be assessed on Volleyball in Term 3. Next term, students will also complete an assessment that combines the outcomes from PDHPE and Mathematics to ensure links are drawn and understood across different Key Learning Areas.

Year 9 PDHPE:

Students have been learning about Relationships and Keeping Themselves and Others Safe. They have created brochures on health promotion and have analysed video clips as a part of their learning. In practical lessons, students have been engaged in Tennis and Athletics and were assessed on their ability to perform a Tennis forehand, backhand and serve. Students will complete their Half-Yearly Examination this term.

Year 10 PDHPE:

Students have been learning about Health Consumerism and Factors Influencing Access to Health. They have evaluated health services and have researched ethical health issues and alternative health services. In practical lessons, students were engaged and assessed in the sport of European Handball. This term, they will complete their Half-Yearly Examination and will also complete a theory-based assessment task.

Year 9 and 10 PASS:

In this elective, students have been learning about Body Systems and Energy for Physical Activity, as well as Techniques and Strategies to Enhance Performance. Students completed an assessment task where they researched the bones, joint actions, muscles and types of contractions that occur during the performance of a particular skill. They were also assessed practically on their ability to use equipment and move into space during a game of Vortex Endzone, as well as their ability to demonstrate fair play and team work. They will complete their Half-Yearly Examination this term.

Middle School (Years 7 and 8)

In 2018 a new and innovative middle-schooling model was introduced in Year 7 classes. Following a comprehensive review of the 2018 progress and achievement of students, this model was extended into 2019. While basing the model on the latest educational research and models of best practice observed at other schools, the model implemented at Evans High School is contextualised to ensure student needs are being accounted for, hence maximising the opportunities for students to experience success.

Funds were used to create engaging and flexible learning spaces, where students have been able to partake in project-based learning experiences in a new and exciting way. Not only do these environments support student engagement during academic work, they allow for students to interact more productively, assisting with the development of key social skills, as well as developing the skills to engage in problem solving, critical thinking and teamwork. Students have been able to develop the ability to connect curriculum activities with real-life situations, making learning more meaningful.

The middle-schooling model has also seen an increase in the technology available to Year 7 students with the ratio of 1:1 through the use of Chromebooks to support learning activities, and again support the development of key skills, which assists students when they encounter online testing platforms, such as NAPLAN online. These skills are transferable to a variety of environments, and have allowed staff to utilise resources such as Google Classroom to provide regular and ongoing feedback to students about work submitted.

The implementation of the middle-schooling model has seen changes to the timetabling of Year 7. A reduced number of teachers has allowed for both students and staff to develop a greater rapport, and staff are able to assess student achievement more accurately and have a deeper knowledge of individual learning styles. To support the reduction in the number of teachers assigned to each class, has also been the allocation of ‘home-rooms’ which are similar to a primary school setting, however has been adapted for high school curriculum needs. This structure has also been put in place to assist with the transition from the primary school to high school setting, which can be daunting and a source of anxiety for some students. 

Check out some of the projects Year 7 have been working on this year: