Student Voice
Student Leadership in 2020
South Oakleigh College's Student Leadership Team have been working very hard across Term 4 to host regular events, empower student voice, continue to establish their presence and plan for next year, despite the challenges of remote learning throughout 2020. I am immensely proud of all the hard work and dedication our leaders have shown and look forward to hearing about their accomplishments in future years.
It has been an honour and a privilege to work with the committed and enthusiastic students and staff who have helped to make Student Leadership as successful as it is today.
I would like to thank all 2020 Leaders for their service and wish the South Oakleigh College community a safe and restful break on behalf of the team.
Below you will find recounts of various initiatives and activities that Student Leaders have taken part of, to end the year - in the best possible way.
Andrew Leap
2020 College Captain
2020 Student Representative Council Wrap-Up
South Oakleigh College's Student Representative Council (S.R.C.) has had a very successful year hosting regular events, empowering student voice and continuing to establish their presence within the College Community. Despite the impact of remote learning on the progress of the council, our Representatives have been working very hard across the year to give back to the school community. The S.R.C. continued to meet and plan online, to ensure that their initiatives could run when we returned to face-to-face learning.
Throughout 2020, our Campaigns Portfolio has hosted numerous fundraising events, including our annual Harmony Day and Wellfest Week. The team have also organised the Cancer Council's Biggest Morning Tea, Jeans for Genes Day, White Ribbon Day and a Welcome to Summer Day. These activities not only raise a significant amount of money for their respective causes and promote awareness but also notably increase student and staff morale; these are the main reasons why the Council believes it's so important to host these fundraisers.
The Student Voice Portfolio designed surveys to obtain feedback on events, to encourage improvement for future initiatives. Additionally, they have researched what the school community would like to see, to ensure that the events remain current according to the students’ interests. The group has also discussed activities that could incorporate careers into the curriculum and create more awareness regarding various professions.
Meanwhile, our Sustainability Portfolio has been working behind the scenes to plan a garden that can be incorporated into the curriculum; for example, use of produce in food technology. Our team’s vision is to embed sustainability into everything the College does. We are looking forward to finalising the outline and implementing it next year. This will allow the College to do its part in reducing greenhouse-gas emissions and promote biodiversity.
The Enrichment Portfolio has continued to refine the Club System, planning to implement Club Captains to facilitate each club. They are also designing a process that enables students to begin their own club, according to their interests. This will provide more students with leadership opportunities that allow them to learn various skills, such as organisation and communication. It also encourages students to collaborate on activities that they have a similar interest in.
Further, our Communications Portfolio has identified the need to establish more effective avenues of communication to continue to update the community on important announcements and progress from Student Leadership. The team has discussed this with the Council and look forward to implementing strategies that effectively remind the College community of upcoming events.
Regardless of the Portfolio they join, Representatives learn various essential 'soft-skills' such as communication, problem solving and creative & critical thinking. They also have the opportunity to regularly put them into practice in their portfolio. As already seen, the S.R.C. also have the scope to help shape the direction of the College, which is why empowering student voice & agency is so critical at South Oakleigh.
I am immensely proud of all the hard work and dedication the Representatives have committed to making the 2020 Student Representative Council the best thus far and cannot wait to see the possibilities come to life in 2021.
Esther Walker
President
2021 Student Representative Council
Salvation Army Food & Toy Drive
The Salvation Army’s Food and Toy Drive was hosted throughout Term 4 to help support families in need, particularly during the season of hope. The College Community has graciously brought items such as non-perishables like canned foods, toys and books, with an increasing amount compared to last year. The winning Mentor Group for this initiative is Waratah 4, who will be awarded Canteen Vouchers early next year. Additionally, all donations have been awarded House Points.
On behalf of the Student Representative Council, I would like to thank the community for your donations and wish you a Merry Christmas.
David Mao
Campaigns Representative
ABC 7:30 Segment – Finishing Year 12 during the Pandemic
This year has been an unforgettable year for many reasons. For the Class of 2020, it will be the year where we never had the opportunity to have a formal, have our last House Athletics Carnival and treasure all the memories that other cohorts had the chance to make. However, it’s also been a year where we’ve taken a step back and reflected on who we are as individuals and tested our resilience to prepare us for anything the world may continue to throw at us.
Over the past few weeks, I’ve had the opportunity to share my experiences as a Year 12 student finishing the pandemic alongside two other students on ABC’s 7:30 Program.
If you’d like to have a look at the segment, you can go to https://www.abc.net.au/7.30/finishing-year-12-during-the-pandemic/12983216
Andrew Leap
2020 College Captain
2021 Leadership Training & Induction
The leadership training day was a phenomenal experience for everyone. We had activities that were run by Ylead, which helped us identify our strongest qualities – and how we can use them in different situations. In some of the activities, we had to use our teamwork and creative skills to successfully complete the task. Amazing morning tea and lunches were provided for everyone, which fuelled us for the next session. Andrew Leap, one of our outstanding 2020 School Captains ran the last session and taught us about what we should aim to be like as leaders whilst being true to ourselves and our values. We learnt that we need to take action even if we’re the only ones stepping forward and that we shouldn’t be afraid of judgement from others.
I found the leadership training impactful on how I should view leaders/ be as a leader. There was a lot of content covered, but we learned it through fun activities which made it engaging for everyone! Looking ahead, this training will help me be a better leader next year as I’ve learnt to stay true to my values and to build upon both my strongest and developing qualities. I’m really grateful for this experience and I’m excited to take my first step in my leadership journey!
Gabriel Lopez
Leading Health & Wellbeing Representative
2021 Student Representative Council
On Wednesday the 9th of December, all the 2021 Student Leaders participated in a training session which guided us and gave us advice on how to be successful, make the most of our roles and come out with ideas and insights that we will take on board next year as Leaders. The first half of our session was with an external organisation called ‘YLead’. I really enjoyed how it was run, and I walked away feeling more confident. All the Leaders were put into different groups, which was good because it gave me a chance to work with people who I am not familiar with and usually don’t speak to. We were given a scenario and we had to work together as a team to come up with a solution and different ways to campaign our ideas and then later present them to everyone.
The next team building activity we did was my favourite. All the different leaders were given a number and we had to find others who had the same number as you. We had 5 rounds of this game where each group had a tennis ball and we had to all touch the ball while a timer was on. This was quite fun and a great exercise because it required teamwork, good communication and working with other people. Everyone all came up with different strategies on what we could do to ensure that their group was the fastest. Communication was a key factor in this activity because everyone had to speak to one another to make sure they all understood what was going on. We went through our character strengths and how we can use these and apply them to different situations and we discussed the meaning of leadership and what words are associated with leadership.
The last session we had was with Andrew and Ms Kantzas. Andrew went through a PowerPoint which included the expectations of a Student Leader at South Oakleigh, getting to know your team members and other students in leadership, knowing how to run a Breakfast Club session and planning for next year. Ms Kantzas gave a really lovely speech about what it means to be a leader at South Oakleigh and how we can be successful and make the most of our role.
Andrew played us a YouTube video on the Bystander effect, which was about testing the science of empathy. It tested different scenarios of someone requiring assistance and just how long it would take people to offer help to someone who was struggling in front of them. A discussion followed around how could you use the message in the video as a leader. The video showed that people in a group took longer to offer assistance because they were waiting for someone else to help compared to a single person on their own who offered assistance almost immediately. The overall message from the video that we can apply to our roles as leaders is that if someone needs assistance don’t rely on others in a group to do it, step up and offer assistance if you feel it is needed.
One of the final activities to conclude our training day was an action plan sheet that all the leaders in their groups filled out. We were given some time to talk to each other about any concerns, organise meeting dates and brainstorm ideas for next year’s events such as the House Swimming Carnival and House Cross Country. To end off our day the leaders gave feedback on the training session and we answered a question about student leadership and what word comes into your mind when you think about it. Everyone had a different and good way of describing it.
Overall the training session was very beneficial and well put together. We were also provided with lots of delicious food which helped with our energy. A huge thank you to Andrew, Ms Kantzas, Ms Pel and the organisation ‘YLead’ for a very successful training day. I enjoyed it and I walked away feeling more confident in myself that I can become a successful leader. I definitely took a lot out of the training session and I felt grateful that I got to attend it because I learnt a lot of new things and I will carry it with me and apply it to my role as a leader.
Markella Antonoulis
2021 Banksia House Captain
My peers and I recently participated in the Leadership Training Day. The whole day gave us an idea on what the next year will entail as leaders. It gave us all an opportunity to meet and get to know our fellow peers as we worked together in various activities to build our skills and relationships. We all learned valuable lessons, enjoyed the experience, and we are thankful that we had the opportunity to experience it.
Alex Chapman
2021 Grevillea House Captain
On the 9th of December, the 2021 Student Leadership Team had a Training Day. The first part of the day was led by the amazing group, YLead. Although it was online, it was still interesting and overall an amazing and well-thought-through activity. Through engaging activities, we got to know each other and learned what kinds of leaders we want to be.
The second part of the day was led by Andrew, our wonderful school captain. We learned a lot about our expectations as leaders at our school. We got a good understanding of our responsibilities and how we come across to others. The last part of the day was dedicated to planning 2021 and meeting our team.
Overall it has been an incredible experience and I truly recommend applying for a leadership position and gaining experience, because it is worth it.
Shyli Barak
Enrichment Secretary
2021 Student Representative Council
2020 Children and Student Voice Conference
On Wednesday the 9th of December, I was invited to be a panellist for the virtual 2020 Children and Student Voice Conference where I shared my thoughts and experiences around student voice, agency and partnerships in high school, particularly throughout remote learning. The panel talked about the effect of mental health on student outcomes, ways to ensure all students have the opportunity for their voices to be heard and how the curriculum can become more restrictive to exercise student voice and agency as you progress in the educational realm. I look forward to discussing the key takeaways from the conference with my 2021 Student Leadership counterparts.
I’d like to thank the Conference Committee at the Australian Association for Research in Education for the opportunity and the other panellists and attendees for sharing their insight.
Andrew Leap
2020 College Captain
Frank Facey Student Award
“The annual Frank Facey Student Award recognises persistence, effort and improvement in VCE studies. It encourages young people to strive to be the leaders of tomorrow through dedication to their studies.”
In early December, I had the privilege of being nominated as a Frank Facey Student Award finalist through a virtual award ceremony. I would like to thank Facey Property for their consideration of my application and for the $100 Officeworks gift card prize.
Andrew Leap
2020 College Captain
2020 Peer Support End of Year Celebratory Function
On Tuesday the 1st of December a Celebratory Lunch was held where the 2020 Peer Support Leaders and Peer Support staff gathered to acknowledge the tough but rewarding year we experienced. While reflecting on challenges we overcame during the period of being online, we were all able to enjoy a delicious lunch provided by the canteen. All Peer Support Leaders also cheerfully participated in a Secret Santa, requiring each of us to purchase a under $10 gift for another randomly chosen Leader. We're incredibly sad that this year's Peer Support Program has come to an end, however we can't wait to see what 2021's program has in store for us.
Maple La
2020 Peer Support Leader
2021 Peer Support Leader Training & Induction
The Peer Support Leader Training Day was an excellent experience for everyone. Students had activities that were run by Y-lead, which helped identify student qualities and how these can be used within the role of Peer Support Leader. Students used teamwork and creative skills to successfully complete different tasks. They also learnt how to demonstrate leadership skills within their role. Students learnt how to be proactive and were shown how to initiate tasks and run them successfully. They discussed how to problem-solve and looked at what makes an amazing leader. All these skills are extremely important when Peer Support Leaders begin working with our Year 7 Students.
All students found the Peer Support Training very useful and the start to their role of Peer Support Leader. Working together and getting to know one another was important as they begin their journey in leadership.
Stavroula Kantzas
Facilitating Teacher
Student Leadership
