ISSUE ONE

Principal's News

Dear Families,

Last weekend the Sunday Age reported on the front page, an article “Numbers Game – Trailblazing school ditches ATAR". The story was in fact not about ditching the ATAR, it was about the very real pressures that the VCE and our society has placed on adolescents in Years 11 and 12. The closure of Technical Colleges by the Kennett Government in Victoria left a large cohort of students with fewer options in school. The scored competition of the Victorian Certificate of Education is not a one size fits all and should never be seen as a pathway for all students. It is not.

Having had the absolute honour to have served for the past ten years as the Principal of Catholic Regional College Sydenham, I have met far too many of our students who have experienced hopelessness, a loss of self worth, dignity and respect all because of a number. None of us should ever be defined by one number. Yet as a society we seem to passively accept that for the majority of Year 12 students, it is essential that they work towards achieving a number, the highest number they possibly can and we place an enormous emphasis on this number. In doing so we also place significant pressure on our young people. Sadly, we have seen too many young people for whom this pressure has been crippling.

Each year, on a Sunday evening in December I download a table of results, our VCE results for the year. Students receive these results the very next morning on the Monday. When I receive the report I obviously look to the highest score so as to learn who the VCE Dux is for that year. I also look at all of the results for students who achieve an ATAR of 90 and above. Many might think that I would then proceed to the scores in the 80’s and so on. In fact I do not. I go to the other end of the table of results so as to see who we as a school, as a community and as Principal, I failed. Failed to adequately support and guide because they have an ATAR that they will never actually use and will never be of any use.

I lament each and every student who has had to go through the factory model of education, working through the year, experiencing difficulties, often struggling who receive a score that will not assist them in their future or in a meaningful pathway. This score does not define them. They will always know of and have that score though. Why would we do that to any young person?

 

Every Student – Every Pathway.

A number of years ago this slogan or catchphrase was coined for the College. It is not our College motto yet it is often referred to. Our crest features the actual motto which is attributed to Saint Anselm- Faith seeking Understanding. 'Every student, every pathway' actually describes the type of school we aspire to be, the type of community that supports each and every student in realising their hopes, their dreams and their aspirations for a hope filled future.

We value all pathways. For those who wish to go onto university to undertake a degree that requires an ATAR score to gain entry, we provide a pathway. The world has changed though. University is not a destination for every young person and we should never place more importance on one pathway over another. Doing so devalues the hopes, dreams and aspirations of every other young person whose chosen pathway is different. I am proud that I come from a family of trades people. My grandfather was a butcher, my father trained as a butcher before he joined Victoria Police. I had a grandmother who was a milliner and my mother was a nurse who undertook her nursing training on the job in hospitals in a model that was akin to undertaking an apprenticeship. I have an uncle who is a plumber and a very successful plumber too. I have cousins who are builders and auctioneers. I was one of the first in my family to choose a university pathway in fact and it was probably because I was never afforded the opportunity to undertake the Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning.

VCAL was introduced in Victoria as a result of a State Government review into student engagement, outcomes and youth unemployment around the year 2000. It was and remains one of the best decisions any government in Australia has made in education to meet the needs of young people. The introduction of VCAL recognised that an entire cohort of young people’s educational needs were not being adequately met. The findings of the review that recommended the introduction of VCAL detailed serious disengagement and alienation of a proportion of young people who had either dropped out of school or had become so disenfranchised with the one size fits all model of scored academic senior secondary education being offered.

VCAL in many respects is a much more difficult undertaking than the VCE. We expect VCAL students to be more mature and more responsible than VCE students as they are required to undertake structured workplace training as a part of their course. We actually expect them to be work ready and to be able to go into a workplace with adults and demonstrate competencies that their new boss and colleagues will find acceptable. We require our VCAL students to do what many of us do each and every day and possibly could not have done when we were sixteen ourselves. We also expect that they will be able to manage their time, master skills and undertake an additional industry recognised certificate qualification in addition to the VCAL senior secondary certificate being undertaken at the College. This is not the wrote learning for an end of year exam that the VCE has become, this is dealing with real people, customers, colleagues, employers while at the same time juggling all of the requirements of school.

So what was the report in The Age about last Sunday? There is a growing understanding and acceptance that young people need many options when it comes to their post school pathway. No school would actually ditch the ATAR. To do so would be to close off one important pathway choice for students and if the closure of Technical Colleges in Victoria taught us anything, it is that we should be providing more opportunities and pathway options for young people as opposed to limiting them.

 

A number of years ago, Catholic Regional College identified and developed four pathway choices for students enrolled at the College.

  1. Scored VCE for students who need to achieve an ATAR in order to gain entry into a tertiary course;
  2. Unscored VCE program for students who may require a VCE certificate for a course post Year 12 where the actual course does not require an ATAR score to gain entry. Our UVP (Unscored VCE Program) has been very successful and continues to develop, so as to provide our students with additional qualifications and opportunities that provide greater choices for each student. Our Careers and Pathways Team do an exceptional job with this program and have developed what I believe to be one of the best programs in the State. This is what happens when we employ the best people though!
  3. VCAL for students who are considering TAFE, Apprenticeships, Traineeships or employment or who are ready for the world of work and are mature enough to be able to apply themselves to achieve in a more adult world.
  4. Integrated VCAL program. This is a new program where Year 12 students spend the majority of their time developing skills embedded in one of the many College businesses. This includes MANNA, The Bakery etc. The program looks to deliver the skills that each of the various industries value and are looking for in the people they employ or sign up as an apprentice. Our students have a competitive advantage and are being highly sought after in industry because it is widely recognised that a graduate form CRC who has undertaken a program in Year 12 such as this will have a greater level of workplace employability skills and technical knowledge coming into the industry than most other recruits across the State. It has been suggested that our students are able to demonstrate the skills of a young person commencing their second year of their apprenticeship due to the quality of the training they have experienced on site at the College.

 

EVERY STUDENT – EVERY PATHWAY: it is simply what we do every day at Catholic Regional College.

 

Brendan J Watson OAM

Principal