Message from the Head
of Teaching & Learning

Mrs Serena Lewis

In learning you will teach and in teaching you will learn!

It has long been established that the most effective from of learning or studying is to have a go at teaching the material to somebody else. In the run up to the HSC, Year 12 students are reminded about the importance of active study as opposed to passive reading. The former can be achieved through ‘practising’ and ‘doing’. For example, in preparation for an English examination, the best thing to do is to write essays in timed condition. The best form of revision and study is to actually do what is required of you in the exam. This is why completing past papers is so essential. Students often make the mistake of believing that simply reading through notes and highlighting key points equates to ‘revision’ or ‘learning’.

According to the diagram above, teaching others knowledge or a skill will help a student to retain more of the knowledge than any other form of learning. Einstein said, if you can’t explain it simply, you don’t understand it well enough. This is a good rule of thought – a good way of testing whether or not you fully understand something is by seeing if you can explain it clearly to someone who does not know about it. If you can make the point clearly and you are fully understood, you must have a good grasp of the knowledge or skill yourself. [1]

Economics – A Case Study in how teaching you will learn at KWS – Ms Natasha Terry-Armstrong

During Week 3, Mrs Gavin’s Year 12 Economics students facilitated mini Economics lessons as a round-robin to Ms Terry-Armstrong’s Year 9 Commerce students. The HSC Economics class prepared their 5 minute lessons based on key concepts in the new Stage 5 Commerce syllabus topic “Business and Economic Environment”. This included market theory (supply & demand), the business cycle, the impact of current events like COVID-19 on the Australian economy as well as the issue of market failure and government intervention.

Not only did this lesson engage our Year 9 students in some tough economic ideas, it also gave the HSC students an opportunity to refine their ability to articulate their own knowledge and understanding - which will help improve their essay writing too! Students were given the opportunity to engage in a good economic chat and it was a great exercise in mentoring and relationship development. The Year 9 students thank the HSC Economics experts for their time and wish them well for their upcoming Trial Examinations.