The Girton eLink

From the Head of Senior School

Part of growing up is about learning from experiences, and in particular, mistakes. Teenagers can learn many lessons from the mistakes they make, such as the responsibility that increases with age and how to manage negative feelings as part of their coping skills. When teenagers make mistakes, they discover their ability to deal with difficult situations and adapt to the unexpected. Their capacity to adjust, improvise, compromise, and accommodate to changing scenarios is vital in the current world of unprecedented change. 

 

If I need to speak with a student about their behaviour in School, the conversation focuses on the following key elements:

  1. What happened, and what was the reason for their behaviour?
  2. Who was affected, and in what way?
  3. What actions or better choices will the student consider to avoid repeating the undesired behaviour?
  4. What will they do or say to people affected by their behaviour?
  5. What outcome do they want to see moving forward, and what agreement will they make to ensure the behaviour does not re-occur?

Students may often make mistakes in the classroom, outside the classroom with their behaviour, or in their studies, and reflection and time to think provide opportunities to unpack scenarios and discuss how better choices can be made. I encourage all students to ensure that they stop, pause, and seek adult assistance or feedback when faced with a confronting situation. They should make a plan about what they will do next time (or what they would have done in hindsight). Acting on feedback is a valuable and efficient part of the learning process. Feedback on mistakes often involves more work for the receiver, but this is their opportunity to learn and improve.

 

Despite the many floods in the region, the Year 12s finished their final day of celebrations with a smile and some tears, but most importantly, making memories with their friends, teachers, and the School. During the last two weeks, Senior School students have been adapting to room changes due to the refurbishment of the Morey Building. We have seen a steady flow of Year 12s returning to complete further revision or meet with their teachers for additional guidance in the lead-up to their final VCE examinations. 

 

It is a challenging time for some of our nearby local communities who have been impacted by the severe weather events and floods in parts of the Greater Bendigo region. If your child is in Year 12 and has been significantly impacted by the floods, they will be eligible for Derived Examination Scores (DES). If it is possible, and your child feels able to attend their examination, we encourage them to do so. The DES means that significantly flood-affected students sitting examinations have a back-up if their examination results differ markedly from what would otherwise have been expected. Furthermore, students unable to complete final VET units of competency due to the floods are eligible for unspecified credit. The VCAA will consult directly with the School to obtain details of eligible students. A dedicated VCAA hotline for further support and information is available for parents and students on 1800 717 588.

 

The first VCE examinations began this week with Year 11 and Year 12s preparing for:

 

Wednesday 26th October: English.

 

Thursday 27th October: Visual Communication Design, Theatre Studies, VET Information and Communications Technology, VET Integrated Technologies, English Language, Japanese First Language.

 

Friday 28th October: Biology, Further Mathematics Examination 1.

 

Below are some tips for students on how to study effectively the day before the examination:

  1. Make sure you are mentally focused. If you are thinking about other things while trying to read your notes, you will only end up wasting time and deceiving yourself.
     
  2. Eat wisely by avoiding foods containing a lot of starch and carbohydrates, as these foods can make you feel dizzy and tired. Eat healthy snacks and drink plenty of water. 
     
  3. Use acronyms while reading your notes. These help you memorise complex statements. The first letters of words are used to form a new word. This new word might or might not make sense. Use the acronym with interests with which you are familiar. For instance, if you like soccer and you want to remember the acronym RSACAT, you could rephrase it as “Rooney Scored Against Chelsea, Arsenal, and Tottenham.”
     
  4. The use of highlighters promotes visual learning. Use different colours to highlight important points, whereby the colours help the student identify specific aspects of a note or text. For example, red could be used for crucial concepts, green for statistical data, and blue for definitions.
     
  5. Try to fit what you read into a story or happenings around you that you can easily remember during an examination. The brain has a natural tendency to remember stories more easily, which is why you can remember clearly good or bad events which occur in your lifetime.

This week I have reminded all students via e-mail about our uniform and personal presentation policy. I encourage parents to remind their children of the standards we expect them to adhere to. In particular, the main areas below require constant reminders and incur the most infringements:

 

HAIR:

  • Hair should be clean, well-groomed, and neat. 
  • No faddish styles are permitted. 
  • No hair dye is permitted. 
  • All hair must be behind the ears and off the face. If hair is of a length that touches the bottom of the shirt collar, dress collar, or longer, it should be tied back so that it is secured behind the ears and off the face. 
  • Only plain, understated burgundy or navy hair accessories such as hair ribbons, hair ties, or narrow headbands (no bandannas) may be worn. 
  • Students should not have facial hair (without religious exemption).

JEWELLERY:

  • A maximum of one small plain (e.g., gold, silver, pearl - not novelty) stud earring or hoop in one or each earlobe is permitted. 
  • Hoops should be no larger than 10mm in diameter. 
  • Piercings may not be worn in the upper ear. 
  • No facial or other visible piercings or jewellery is permitted apart from a wristwatch. 
  • Only approved school badges are to be worn on the blazer lapels

NAILS:

  • Nails must be clean and trimmed. 
  • Coloured nail polish is not permitted. 
  • False nails are not permitted.

MAKEUP:

  • No visible makeup is permitted. 
  • False eyelashes/eyelash extensions are not permitted.

Finally, I would like to wish all Year 11 and Year 12 students the best of success in their upcoming examinations during the next few weeks.

 

 

Ms Dawn Davis

Head of Senior School