Leader of Teaching & Learning
Year 12 Trial HSC
The Year 12 Trial HSC Timetable has been emailed to all students along with the Instructions for Examinations and useful support materials from NESA. Examinations will take place in Week 5 and 6 of this term with students returning to the College on Monday 23 August.
All students must attend their exam at the published time. In the event of illness, it is essential to phone the school before an exam, a medical certificate must be provided when returning to the College and an Application for Consideration of an Assessment Task (blue form) filled in and submitted to Mrs Maxworthy.
Year 12 students made every effort to take the opportunity to revise over the break, thanks to the generosity of teachers who hosted study sessions. The Trial examination is a significant proportion of the final school based assessment mark. A reminder to students that it is never too late to study and preparing well is an antidote to stress.
We keep in our thoughts student colleagues across the state in an online learning environment. The latest updates and advice relating to COVID - 19 are available on the NESA website. Our examinations will observe protocols for safety, including the use of assigned seating and regular sanitising. Linked below is a copy of the Trial HSC Timetable and Instructions for Students.
I extend our best wishes to all Year 12 students for these examinations.
Year 10 HSC Minimum Standards Testing
The HSC Minimum Standards are tests designed to ensure all students have the requisite literacy and numeracy skills to function effectively in society. Last Semester Year 10 students undertook these tests and results have been sent to students via their Students Online Accounts. We will be working to support students yet to demonstrate the standard this Semester.
Year 10 Subject Selection for Year 11 2022
Year 10 students have spent time with Mrs Barrett considering career choices and engaging with a range of digital tools and quizzes designed to stimulate their investigations of possible pathways.
Students will be selecting their subjects for Year 11 2022 this term. Parents and students in Year 10 will be sent a link to a recording of our Subject Selection Information Session in Week 3, including a PDF copy of the Course Selection Guide Stage 6 which outlines our course offerings in 2022. Regrettably due to restrictions for Covid-19 this year we are unable to host the evening on site.
Students will have the chance to listen to a series of talks from Leaders of Learning during school in Week 4 with faculty specific information. Students are encouraged to ask questions and take advantage of the classroom visits and lunch times where we will be accessible for individual advice. This is an opportunity to hear about the requirements of both Year 11 and Year 12 and to make some important decisions about entering into senior school. It is a time to ask questions, find out factual information and make confident choices that will enable further study and pathways post school. For many students choosing a broad range of subjects that they enjoy and are interested in, is the key to senior success.
In Week 6, we will schedule interviews with Middle Leaders for Year 10 students and parents/carers after our subject selection processes have taken place. The purpose of these interviews is to determine the suitability and eligibility for students to enter Stage 6 here at McCarthy. Mr Whelan advised in his previous newsletter that a number of Year 10 students will need to lift their game and care for others in 2021 before being accepted into Year 11. We know the majority will be highly suited to Stage 6. A compass notification and information regarding those bookings will be forthcoming.
Any student interested in Vocational Training: TVET courses or School Based Apprenticeships and Traineeships should seek information from Mrs Julie Kellahan immediately as there are timeframes that need to be met with School and TAFE application processes.
Vocational Education And Training (VET)
The time has come for Year 10 students to think about their subjects for 2022 commencing Year 11. Vocational Training courses (TAFE) can be a part of this journey. Any students interested in completing a Vocational Training course (TVET or SBAT) as part of their HSC pathway should join the following classroom :
- 2022 VET, class code: gyeogvy
This classroom will have information, documents and details on the process for making a vocational course part of your HSC.
A year meeting for Year 10 was held to give students information on TVET/SBAT courses and information will be posted on the classroom as it becomes available. Mrs Kellahan will be available in the C2 classroom on the following days at second break for any students who wish to have a conversation or receive information about a TVET/SBAT course. Day 1, 2, 7 and 8 from 1:30 pm to 2:00 pm
Application Forms can be obtained from Mrs Kellahan and are due back to the school office by Friday 30 July, no late applications can be accepted due to TAFE deadlines.
Any questions regarding TVET/SBAT courses can be directed to Mrs Julie Kellahan through email jkellahan@arm.catholic.edu.au.
STUDY SKILLS TIP FOR JULY: Evaluating Areas to Improve
Over the mid-year break it is easy to put all thoughts of school out of your mind and just enjoy the holidays. This is not a bad thing, it is important to have a good break and clear your mind. When you return to school, it is important to take some time to evaluate your approach in key areas, writing down the changes you will make this semester so you can really focus on them.
Review of last semester:
Use of Classtime
How well did you use your time in class? Who did you sit next to? Did you work well together? Did you listen to teachers and fellow students when they were speaking? Did you participate and contribute in your lessons? What are the main changes you need to make in this area?
Asking for Help
If you didn’t understand something in class did you ask a question about it? If you were unsure about an assignment or assessment did you check in with your teacher? If you were struggling with a topic did you ask for help? What are the main changes you need to make in this area?
Time Management
Did you do enough schoolwork each afternoon? Did you plan out a timeline to do the work for your assessments? When you were working at home did you remove all distractions so you could focus? What are the main changes you need to make in this area?
Preparing for Tests
Did you ensure that you were always clear on what you were being tested on? Did you make study notes along the way so you had them ready for test time? Did you test yourself on the content as you were learning it to see if it was in your memory? Did you do lots of questions to practice the skills of the subject?What are the main changes you need to make in this area?
Our College login details are:
username: mccarthycc
password: 77success
Leaders of Learning:
English - Mrs Heather Burke hburke1@arm.catholic.edu.au
Mathematics - Mr Tim Godden tgodden@arm.catholic.edu.au
Science - Mr James Vella jvella@arm.catholic.edu.au
HSIE - Mrs Louise Vella lvella@arm.catholic.edu.au
TAS - Mrs Chloe Bushell cbushell@arm.catholic.edu.au
PDHPE - Mrs Ashleigh Jones ajones1@arm.catholic.edu.au
Creative Arts - Mrs Donna Swan dswan@arm.catholic.edu.au
Mrs Raelene Maxworthy - Leader of Teaching & Learning