Learning and Teaching News

Did You Know?

The library has practice exams available on the ATAR Preparation Research Guide.

Year 5-11 Academic Awards

Last week the Years 5-10 Semester 1 and Year 11 Unit 1 Head of College and Academic Achievement Awards were presented assembly. These awards acknowledge students for outstanding efforts in learning behaviours (Head of College Awards) and outstanding achievement in academic results (Academic Achievement Awards). Unfortunately, due to a system error, several students who should have been acknowledged were left off the list. This week we will present these students to the community at the College assembly. We apologise for this error.

Congratulations to the following students for their outstanding achievements across Semester 1 and Unit 1 of 2022.

Head of College Awardees

Academic Awards

Optimus Bronze

Optimus Silver

Year 12 Mock Exam Block and Year 10 – 11 Exam Block 

As per the College calendar, the Year 12 Mock Exam block commenced last Wednesday 24th August and will run through to this Thursday 1st September. Timetabled classes resume as normal on Monday 5th September. 

Year 10 and 11 Exam Block is held from next Monday 5th September through until next Friday 9th September. A copy of the Exam Block is on the portal and has been sent to students. 

Students who have exam clashes should have received an email outlining their re-scheduled exam details. If your son has a clash and hasn’t received a rescheduled email please contact curriculum@marash.qld.edu.au  as soon as possible. 

As with previous exams blocks, the College expectations for this period are as follows:

1. All normal College rules apply.
2. Boys must arrive to and from school in full school uniform (including blazers and bags) and sign in using the QR codes posted at The Tower, Student Administration, The Champagnat Centre and The Cyprian.  They are to sign out using these QR codes when they are leaving the College grounds.
3. Boys are to travel directly to and from school without congregating at shops, outside other schools etc.
4. Boys must arrive at the exam room at least 15 minutes prior to the scheduled start time.
5. Boys must bring all required equipment (calculator, pens, highlighters etc) in a transparent container or plastic sleeve. Water bottles must also be transparent.  This is in line with the requirements for external exams.
6. Boys must adhere to the exam coordinators’ instructions at all times.

If a student is unwell and cannot attend an exam, please contact the school to explain the absence. Students will then be required to sit a make-up exam/s either later in the exam block or when they return. They will receive email notification about the rescheduling of the exam/s so please ensure emails are checked regularly.

Year 10 and 11 Exam Block

The block provides senior students with the opportunity to study for their exams from home when they are not required on campus for exams. This exam block privilege is provided to students who are up-to-date with assessment for all subjects (including their VET courses and Work Skills modules). If your son has not submitted assessment or completed the tasks to a reasonable standard, he will be required to remain at school over this exam block in order to catch up on this work. You will be contacted before the commencement of exam block via email if this applies to your son. If you have any questions about this process, please do not hesitate to contact the Secondary Learning Leader, Mrs Tara Franklin, at franklint@marash.qld.edu.au.

Year 7, 8 and 9 – Missing exams through Illness or Misadventure

If any student in Years 7, 8, or 9 misses an exam, the normal absentee process applies. Teachers will contact students to organise make-up exams for any exams missed in exam block. Medical certificates can be sent to curriculum@marash.qld.edu.au. 

Requesting Extended Leave from School

A reminder that if a student requires three or more school days off for any reason, that a Leave Request/Reasonable Adjustments Form be completed. This can be obtained through the Parent Lounge under the “Curriculum Forms” tile or by contacting curriculum@marash.qld.edu.au. It is important that this is completed a minimum of three days prior to leave. This will allow students to understand clearly the work they will be required to catch up on.

Year 12 Night Study Sessions

The weekly session is available to all Year 12 students who wish to work in collaboration with their peers for assessment, revision, classwork or external exam preparation. The Science Centre is open and supervised from 5:00-8:00pm; students can arrive and leave as required. Normal student behaviour expectations apply; if these cannot be met, boys will be prohibited from returning to future sessions.  

Upcoming Year 12 Night Study Session schedule  

Science Centre from 5:00-8:00pm  

Year 12 Masterclasses

In order to prepare students sitting External Exams, the College has developed a Masterclass timetable which allows targeted revision in a class of each student’s choosing. Masterclasses will run from Week 1 – Week 3 in Term 4. The Masterclass timetable will be presented to Year 12 students during Week 9 where they will also select their class preferences online. 

The Masterclass timetable provides students two session per day, one starting at 8:50am (period 1) and the other at 12:20pm (period 4). Students are only required to attend these classes (not Pastoral Group) and can leave once their class has finished. For students who complete less than six General subjects, this will mean they may leave the campus after the morning session or not arrive onto campus until the afternoon session.

For all Masterclasses, students will need to be dressed in full school uniform and ensure they have all required equipment for their subjects (e.g. calculators). Rooms where each of the Masterclasses will be held will be emailed to each of the boys at the start of next term.

The External Exam block runs from Monday 24th October to Tuesday 15th November. The External Exam block schedule, as well as the required equipment lists are available on the Marist portal and on the QCAA website.

For boys who are not enrolled in any General classes and therefore, will not be required at General subject Masterclasses, the College is running VOC classes across weeks 1-3 of Term 4. These classes are designed around the concept of life skills required after school. While these classes are designed for students not completing General subject Masterclasses, if your son has a break in his Masterclass schedule he is welcome to attend. Further information about VOC Masterclasses will also be presented to Year 12 students in Week 9.

QCAA Invigilator Roles 2022

Applications from Queensland community members for invigilator roles are now open. Invigilators are appointed as casual employees under the Education (Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority) Act 2014. 

Role summary 

Invigilator duties and eligibility requirements are detailed in the External Assessment invigilator: Position description located at www.qcaa.qld.edu.au/senior/assessment/externalassessment/qcaa-invigilators. Invigilators are required to attend allocated assessment sessions at assessment venues to observe the administration of assessments. Invigilators report their observations to the QCAA after each assessment session by completing an online Invigilator report. 

Eligibility 

To be eligible to apply for a QCAA invigilator role, community members must hold a current, paid blue card / exemption card from Blue Card Services or for teachers, a current Queensland College of Teachers (QCT) registration. Applicants must be at least 18 years old and eligible to work in Australia. They must possess personal attributes of discretion, tact, attention to detail, and an ability to maintain confidentiality, as well as meeting straightforward requirements for identification and access to technology. Anyone who worked as an invigilator in 2021 that they need to reapply for 2022. 

Prospective Applicants 

1. Read the attached External assessment invigilator: Position description and the frequently asked questions, available on the QCAA website at: www.qcaa.qld.edu.au/senior/assessment/external-assessment/external-assessmentinvigilators/external-assessment-invigilators-faqs  
2. Obtain your paid blue card / exemption card from Blue Card Services or for teachers, hold a current QCT registration. If necessary, register for a QCAA Portal account, following the instructions on the QCAA Invigilator webpage at: www.qcaa.qld.edu.au/senior/assessment/externalassessment/external-assessment-invigilators 
3. Submit your application for a QCAA invigilator role via the Assessor Jobs application in the QCAA Portal. 

Finding out more

• Please email externalassessment@qcaa.qld.edu.au or phone 1300 239 227.

Elevate Education Webinar for Parents  

RE: Upcoming Webinar for Parents - How to Help Your Child Get Ready for the Exam Room

We’re excited to announce that parents of our school have exclusive access to Elevate Education’s Parent Webinar Series this year. Elevate works with our students, delivering high-impact workshops on study skills, motivation, well-being, and exam preparation. By tuning into their webinar series, you will learn how to better support your children at home by reinforcing the skills they learn at school.   

Wednesday 7th September @ 6:30pm (AEST) 

How to Help Your Child Get Ready for the Exam Room  

Register for free here

Here's what Elevate will be covering:  

• What your child should be doing in the final week before any test or assessment 
• How to establish a good routine for the night before 
• How to optimise exam-room performance 

The webinar is run live online from 6:30 - 7:30pm (AEST) where the presenter will share Elevate’s key research and skills, and will conduct a live Q&A so you can ask them questions directly.If you are unable to make the webinar, don't worry! If you sign up to attend, you'll receive the webinar recording on Thursday morning:

Register for free here

Should you have questions or would like to contact Elevate directly, their details are listed below.📞 1300 667 945

✉️ aucoaching@elevateeducation.com

💻 https://go.elevateeducation.com/e/891981/au-schoolwebinar/8w651/263854098?h=ghzbr9TAnOfjA0AAIac44yXIwauYtrADpEI83XcsKzQ

Study Hall – All Year Levels 

Every Tuesday and Thursday morning the teacher librarians in the senior library offer study hall sessions from 7:45 am to 8:30 am. These are designed to build the student’s capacity to study independently by teaching them key skills for the first 15mins of the sessions and then offering independent supported study for the remainder of the time. 

Please find below the outline for the Study Hall for Term 3.  

Accessing LMS for Task-Specific Feedback 

At the completion of each drafting stage and final completion of the assessment (both written and exam), your son will receive task-specific feedback from his teachers. It is important that your son/s access this feedback, so they are aware of their strengths and limitations. Parents are also encouraged to access this information.

Please follow these steps to access task-specific feedback.

1 - Open Parent Portal and click on “Parent Lounge”

2 - On the left-hand tab select “Curricular Activities Due” and select “view all activities” on the top right-hand side of the page. 

This will take you to a screen that lists of your son/s assessment to complete, or has been completed.

3 - Click on a subject to view feedback. 

4 - Once you click on the subject you will be able to find the following information:

1. Task sheet for assessment – this will outline what your son needs to do to complete the task successfully
2. Draft due dates and due dates
3. Criteria sheet
4. Feedback
5. Result

How to access Academic Reports – Parent Lounge

Please follow these steps to access academic reports

1 - Open Parent Portal and click on “Parent Lounge”

2 - Academic Reports are accessible via the link on the left-hand side of the page, or at the bottom of the main screen. Click on the academic report you would like to see.