Vision for Teaching and Learning at St Mary MacKillop College - a statement that drives the development of a high performance learning culture at SMMC

At St Mary MacKillop College we have high expectations of our students as we equip them with the knowledge, skills and dispositions for lifelong learning. We pursue excellence through a teaching and learning environment that is inclusive, engaging and encourages growth. We value collaboration, innovation and building strong relationships.

Term 1 is now in full swing and our students have settled in well to the new school year. In my report for this fortnight I have included some information on the different activities and events that will take place over the next few weeks.

2023 Parent/Teacher/Student Interviews

We believe education is a partnership between teachers, parents and students, and we encourage communication between all parties. Parent/Teacher/Student interviews are an integral part of the ongoing school-home relationship, and we value the very important conversations we have about your child’s learning.

Year 7 TA Interviews

Each term students in Year 7 to 12 meet with their homeroom teacher and talk about the progress they are making in their studies, their learning habits, the goals they have set for themselves and any support they require. We call this our TA (Teacher Advisor) interview process.

Our interviews for 2023 commence with the Year 7 TA interviews on Monday 6 March. Parents and guardians of Year 7 students and invited to attend with your child their first TA interview. Interviews are for 20 minutes with your child’s Homeroom teacher and will be held from 3:45pm to 5:30pm. Bookings can be made through the Parent Access Module (PAM) and interviews will be held in your child’s Homeroom. We believe attending your child’s first TA interview is an opportunity to develop a positive relationship between the family and their homeroom teacher, and to assist you in developing a better understanding of the benefits of the TA program. The interview will involve feedback from both the homeroom teacher as well as from the child on how they have settled into St Mary MacKillop College. Students will discuss their interests and learning needs as well as set goals, discuss learning habits and address any questions they may have. If you are unable to attend, your child will still have their TA interview with their homeroom teacher during regular school hours. For further information, please refer to the information included in this newsletter.

VCE/VCE VM/VPC/VETVCAL Interviews

Parents and students are invited to attend the VCE/VCE VM/VPC/VET/VCAL Parent/Teacher/Student Interview evening on Thursday 23rd March from 4:00pm to 8:00pm. These interviews include any Year 10 student studying a Year 11 VCE Unit 1 Subject. Please refer to the information included in this newsletter.

2023 NAPLAN

Students in Year 7 and 9 will complete NAPLAN tests from Wednesday 15th March to Friday 17th March, with makeup tests on Tuesday 21st March if they have been absent.

Below is the schedule, mandated dates and proposed times. We ask that parents and guardians avoid making appointments for their child during the NAPLAN testing times.

Wed 15th March	Thurs 16th March	Fri 17th March	Fri 17th March	Tues 21st March
Writing: 42 mins	Reading: 65 mins	Conventions of language: 45 mins	Numeracy: 65 mins	Catch-up tests
Lesson 3	Lesson 3	Lesson 1	Lesson 3	Lesson 1

The NAPLAN tests will be conducted online. Students must bring their MacBook fully charged to all tests. They must also bring a pen or pencil and headphones for the writing, conventions of language and numeracy tests. Please remind your child of these requirements. Parents and guardians will receive a NAPLAN report by the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (VCAA) later in the year showing their child’s achievements against the national standards.

If you would like to help your child prepare for NAPLAN, please read the attached information and go to https://nap.edu.au/naplan/public-demonstration-site for practice questions.

A catch up session will run in Lesson 2 on Tuesday 21st March to ensure all students in Year 7 and 9 have the opportunity to participate.

Please click here for translations of the information contained in the brochure.

We wish our students all the best as they complete this year’s NAPLAN tests. Should you have any questions, please contact me.

ChatGPT and Academic Integrity

There has been a lot of talk in the media recently about ChatGPT and other Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools. As educators, we are trying to develop an understanding of the benefits and challenges of these emerging AI technologies. This will help inform the decisions we make around their use.

It is important to remind our students and community that none of us may pass off the work of someone else as our own. By doing so, this would be a breach of academic integrity, and would unfairly disadvantage others.

A few reminders:

It is not appropriate for students to use ChatGPT or any other emerging AI tools to complete their work.
It is not appropriate for a student to have a friend, someone in their family or a tutor complete their work.
It is not appropriate for students to copy work directly from another source and submit it as their own work, even if minimal changes have been made.

Integrity is mentioned in our College values. When we act with integrity, digital tools such as ChatGPT will offer more potential for good than for harm.

Celebrating Academic Excellence from 2022

At last week’s assembly I had the pleasure to acknowledge the duces from each year level in 2022. We hope by acknowledging the hard work, determination and success of our students will inspire all students in our community to continue pursuing their goals and achieving their personal best in their learning. We congratulate the following students on the academic performance in 2022.

Year 7 Lily Scott and Benjamin Nelson

Year 8 Ava Crow and Mitchell Anderson

Year 9 Montana Davies and Tarkyn Doyle

Year 10 Grace Doherty and William Gilchrist

Year 11 Ava Cummins and Dustin Holmes

Year 12 Isabella Gilchrist

In my speech at our assembly I mentioned that while the students we recognise today have achieved outstanding academic results, we know others in our community will excel in a wide range of areas throughout their schooling. You should seize every opportunity presented to you during your school days and strive for personal excellence in all your endeavours.

International Women’s Day – Wednesday 8th March

Wednesday 8th March is International Women’s Day. It is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. This year’s theme is ‘Embrace Equity’. The following is from the International Women’s Day website:

For International Women's Day and beyond, let's all fully #EmbraceEquity.

Equity isn't just a nice-to-have, it's a must-have.

A focus on gender equity needs to be part of every society's DNA.

And it's critical to understand the difference between equity and equality.

The IWD 2023 campaign theme drives worldwide understanding why Equal opportunities aren't enough!

Read more about this here.

I pray for all the women in our College community. May we all help to create a gender equal world.

It seems like yesterday I was enjoying Christmas and now the season of Lent is upon us and I see Easter eggs and hot cross buns in the supermarkets. The Lenten season offers us a wonderful opportunity for spiritual renewal. I hope during this season through prayer, fasting and almsgiving you are brought closer to God.

Meet Your Academic Captains:

Grace Doherty

1. What are the key responsibilities of your portfolio?

As an academic leader, some of my responsibilities include supporting students, improving our school and finding ways to achieve academic recognition within our school.

2. What is your vision as the leader of the Academic Committee in 2023?

As Academic Committee Leader, my vision for 2023 involves increasing our school’s recognition of students' achievements, through programs such as the weekly academic and endeavour recognition on the school board.

3. Name one person whom you would like to share a meal with and why?

I would like to share a meal with Jennifer Lawrence because she seems like an interesting person to have a conversation with.

4. What are your interests outside of school?

Outside of school, I enjoy playing netball and drawing.

Tyson Hayes

1. What are the key responsibilities of your portfolio?

As an Academic Committee Captain the responsibilities in which I hold, supporting students from an Academic aspect, gathering feedback from students in regard to possible improvements to help promote and maintain Academic Excellence and a high level of Endeavour. I also hold the responsibility of being one of the leading voices of our Committee who presents any proposals made by the committee to the Staff leadership team.

2. What is your vision as the leader of the Academic Committee in 2023?

My Vision for the Academic Committee for 2023 is to be able to draw more attention to all the Student Achievements In or Out of school, primarily from an Academic aspect. I plan to initially start by promoting Academic and Endeavour achievements within the School for the early parts of the year and then move to promote Outside of School Achievements after we finalise ideas later in the year.

3. Name one person whom you would like to share a meal with and why?

I would love to have a meal with Daniel Ricciardo. He has been an Idol of mine for a long time. I love his personality and his ability to not let anything affect his contagious smile.

4. What are your interests outside of school?

As some may know I am heavily involved with our local Australian Air Force Cadets Squadron (411SQN), ever since I joined in 2019 I have built my way up through the ranks and now hold the rank of Cadet Sergeant (CSGT) with DUX Honors from my SNCO course in January of this year. Outside of school I also have been going for my RPC Pilot’s Licence, I also love competing in Karting competitions and also enjoy a bit of Basketball on the side also.

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