Senior School Report
Message from the Director of Learning
- Ms. Hari Nikolaou
CLASS OF 2018
Awards and Graduation night provided us with an opportunity to acknowledge and celebrate the graduating class of 2018 and our high achievers in the senior school. As 2018 comes to a close, l would like to acknowledge the journey that our students have undertaken this year. This has required commitment from students, teachers and families to ensure that we are all working together for the best possible result. As students, the job that you have been tasked with, is to develop the skills and knowledge required to be successful. Your time with the college has come to a close and now you must transition to the next chapter of your life, university or TAFE, an apprenticeship or even work. It is a time to create your new future, to own the outcomes and to review the strategy.
To the class of 2018, as you await your results on Friday 14th December, we wish you the absolute best in life. We hope that you have achieved the results that you require to make a successful transition into your chosen career path. This is an opportunity to remind you that the ATAR score does not “define you”; it only determines the starting point for the journey ahead.
Students who may require assistance after receiving their results are to contact the school to organise an appointment. Staff will be available from Friday 14th December to Thursday 20th December 2019. Staff will be able to provide students with their undivided attention.
For students returning in 2019
We hope that you have a wonderful summer break. During the Headstart week program, students have begun their studies for 2019. Your classroom teachers have provided holiday homework, and the expectation is that you will have completed it before returning to school in the new year.
The senior school will be very busy supporting the development of all students. Camp programs have been organised for all students, both VCE and VCAL. The focus of each camp program is to ensure that students have the skills, knowledge and mindset, to venture into the year ahead. All students are expected to attend the camps, and as such, there will be no classes running at school.
CAMPS
Date: 4th – 6th February 2019
Programs will run in the following locations.
- Year 11 students will be at Monash University – Clayton campus
- Year 12 students will be at a residential camp in the city
According to George Bernard Shaw “Life isn’t about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself”. The camp program is about students owning and creating the world that they, as young people, want to live in. They need to take responsibility for their learning and create their own opportunities. As parents and educators, we want the best for young people. This requires us all to continue to work together.
On behalf of the teachers in the senior school, we wish you all a safe holiday, and look forward to highly successful and productive 2019.
Ms. Hari Nikolaou
VCAL Headstart Week
An example of one Head start activity for VCAL
During the VCAL Head Start week, the new Intermediate students spent the day completing the BEACON Perform program. Students started the day looking at the different personality types that they may find in their workplaces, and then completed a test to see what personality characteristics they connected with. They gained insight into themselves before their mentors, from various local businesses, came in to join them for a working lunch. During this time, students asked mentors about their qualifications, challenges they had faced through their career, and what made them choose their chosen career pathway. In addition, students were asked to share their own experiences in a “speed dating” style lunch activity.
This will give our students a great start to their Structured Work Placements and School based apprenticeships when they begin next year.
Mrs. Rochelle Travitz
VCAL Coordinator