St Bede's College News

Teaching & Learning

Teaching and Learning News

A warm welcome to all new and returning members of the St Bede’s Community.  The first half of Term 1 has been eventful for all of our teaching staff who are continuing the good work begun in Flying Start.   We have commenced 2018 by continuing our focus on collaborative professional learning for continuous improvement.  Our Day 6 sessions will focus on areas such as principles and practices of effective feedback, as well as moderation, which is when teachers compare student work from different classes to ensure that judgements are fair and accurate.  

We are also mindful of the need to include experts in our learning when required.  In week 3 VCE teachers attended a session provided by VCAA on how subject scores are calculated.  This was a source of great discussion and took some of the mystique out of the process.  In week 4 Learning Area Leaders spent some time with Bronwyn Ryrie Jones, a developmental assessment specialist from the University of Melbourne.  Bronwyn will return in Week 9 to run curriculum specific workshops with the Learning Area Leaders. 

Parent, Student and Teacher Interviews

Bookings for the first round of interviews for the year will open on Monday 19 March.  These sessions will take place in the first two weeks of Term 2 on the following dates:

  • Monday 16 April
  • Thursday 19  April
  • Tuesday 24 April

Study Skills – Advanced notice

I’m pleased to confirm that Dr Prue Salter will attend St Bede’s College once again to deliver her popular study skills sessions. Prue will facilitate a workshop with students in Years 9, 10, and 11 during the school day on Monday 23 April.  A very popular aspect of Prue’s annual visit is her Year 7 and 8 parent and student sessions.  We are delighted to be hosting this again in the Auditorium at 7:00 pm on the same evening.  Further details and booking information will be available closer to the time.  Please note that this date is also in the same week as the third round of Parent and Student Teacher Interviews.

Year 7 – Organisational Skills

This year one of our Year 12 college leaders, Darcy Tilbrook, is helping to develop a program to improve the organisational skills (so-called ‘soft skills’) of our Year 7 students.  Every Tuesday a Year 12 Leader will attend a Year 7 classroom to discuss upcoming assessment tasks, class homework and other matters.  Often the jump from primary to secondary school can be daunting for our students, and we hope that this study mentor approach will aid in the transition.  If you have any queries please contact Mr Justin Eke, Teaching and Learning Leader, Years 7-9.

PAM Upload 1

The results and feedback for assessment tasks completed during Term 1 will be uploaded to the Parent Access Module (PAM) on Monday 26 March.  The due dates for some tasks may be extended due to unforeseen events which impact on time in the classroom.  If you require assistance accessing PAM please do not hesitate to contact our ICT staff.

VCE Acceleration

During subject selection time we are often asked about our VCE Acceleration policy.This refers to students who wish to complete a VCE subject a year before they ordinarily would.For example a Year 10 student who wants to study a Unit 1 & 2 VCE subject.While there are many benefits to acceleration, it is not for every student, nor is it available for every subject.Many students benefit more from developing their skills in subjects at their own level.However, for those students who are thinking of acceleration (particularly in Years 9 and 10) the policy on acceleration is very clear on the academic and other requirements.

 

 

There are several reasons for this policy, including:

  • Evidence that students need to have developed sound skills in literacy to manage the jump in difficulty from Year 9 to Year 11 work.
  • Our experience tells us that some students are better off with another year of knowledge and skill attainment at their level
  • Students can still strive to meet the acceleration requirement in Year 10, to study a Unit 3 & 4 subject in Year 11.
  • High demand for places in Unit 1-2 subjects from Year 11 students, Year 11 students must be given preference.

 

This policy has also been reproduced as an appendix.  While subject selection period doesn’t begin until early Term 3, it is important that current Year 9s and 10s understand what is required of them,

 

If you have any queries regarding this policy please do not hesitate to contact the College.

 

Maria Haggett

Deputy Principal (Teaching and Learning)

Appendix 2

Appendix 2 (Subject Selection Handbook)

 

Acceleration Requirements

Year 9 students may apply to take one Unit 1-2 sequence, in place of two elective subjects. 

In order to be eligible to undertake a Unit 1-2 sequence in a subject in Year 10, students must meet the following criteria:

 

1.      80% or above in English

           80% or above in two other core subjects, (one of which must be the subject directly related to   

           your choice – e.g. acceleration into Unit 1-2 Environmental Science would require 80% or 

           above in Year 9 Science)

2.       A letter of support from a parent/guardian

3.       Completion of the appropriate application form including provision of Year 9 report and   

            parent/guardian letter of support.

 

NOTE

  • Not all VCE subjects are available for acceleration.
  • Applications not meeting the above criteria will not be considered.
  • Where approval has been granted to undertake an accelerated course of study, students should be aware that priority for places in subjects is given to Year 11 students.

Students who have NOT completed Units 1-2 in Year 10

Students may apply to take one Unit 3-4 sequence in place of one of the Unit 1-2 studies. 

In order to be eligible to undertake a Unit 3-4 sequence in a subject for which they have NOT completed the Unit 1-2 sequence, students must meet the following criteria:

 

1.     80% or above in English

         80% or above in two other core subjects, (one of which must be the subject directly related to 

         your choice – e.g. acceleration into Unit 3-4 Environmental Science would require 80% or                         above  in Year 10 Science)

2.     A letter of support from a parent/guardian

3.     Completion of the appropriate application form, including provision of Year 10 report.

4.     Interview with Mr Fordham or Mr Eke.