DEPUTY PRINCIPAL'S REPORT

Teaching, Learning and Innovation

Building Momentum at the End of the Year

This week saw the start of a very important two weeks for our Year 10 cohort. Whilst things can start to wind down as we enter the last two weeks of school, the message to Year 10 has been that we need to start embracing Stage 6 studies and what it looks like to be a successful student in the last two years of school. 

The program has been evolving over several years and looks to embrace the self-evident truth (and College wide vision) that academic and wellbeing success are two sides of the same coin. Over the next fortnight Year 10 will:

• Complete the mandatory All My Own Work Program from NESA. All students need to complete this course on academic practice and malpractice to be registered in the Year 11 HSC or IB courses
• Complete the mandatory Minimum Standards Testing from NESA. Both IB and HSC students need to meet these literacy and numeracy standards to qualify for their respective qualifications 
• Engage with introductory lessons for the subjects they have selected for Stage 6 HSC and International Baccalaureate courses. These lessons are designed to introduce our students to the features and challenges of the actual HSC and IB courses. Teachers are encouraged to set further reading and preparation that students can undertake over the Christmas Holidays in preparation for Year 11. For my IB Language and Literature class two years ago this included reading the core texts and providing a brief reflection on each. Our prospective Year 11 students can and must have a break, as must we all. At this same time, this preparatory work is designed to see our students ready to roll for 2022 and beyond. 
• Engage with a reflection on how their work experience went through the prism of the Approaches to Learning we utilise to report on students. These capabilities include communication, social, thinking, self-management and research skills. These are vital for success not just in Stage 6, but in fact life itself, and it was interesting to see our students make these important links as the real world awaits
• Receive advice regarding job readiness, interview preparation and applications, academic wellbeing, respectful relationships, nutrition and diet, car maintenance, financial preparedness, life skills and relaxation and exercise skills.

Even typing all of this is exhausting…

A huge thankyou to the senior school staff for dedicating their time and effort to providing these opportunities to our soon to be Year 11 students. I also thank Year 10 for their willingness to embrace the many opportunities provided over the fortnight. 

Anthony Heffer | Deputy Principal - Teaching, Learning and Innovation