Curriculum

Enhancement Program Coming in 2019

Mentone Girls’ Secondary College will soon open applications for its 2019 Enhancement Program, which is designed to offer enhanced studies in English, Mathematics, Science and Humanities. The program will begin at Year 7 in 2019 and will expand through to Year 9 in 2021. There will be a Q&A session at the Open Night on Tuesday 24th April. More information will be available through the website soon. Please contact enhancement@mgsc.vic.edu.au with any queries.

Mr Sam Haines

Director of Curriculum & Enhancement

Science

Australian Brain Bee Challenge

Students may be interested in participating in the 2018 Australian Brain Bee Challenge. Our school has participated in this program since 2010 and the students have always loved the experience.

Steps involved:

1. Read material related to neuroscience.
2. Complete Round 1 online quiz during Brain Awareness week (Term 1 week 7 at MGSC in S4 at lunchtime).
3. If you score well you progress to Round 2 which is a fun-filled day at the Brain Centre in Melbourne, where (apart from the free lunch and morning tea) you go on tours, listen to guest speakers and participate in more quizzes. In past years our students have even won prizes.

If students would like more information, they can use the link provided in the email that was sent or see Mr Shillabeer. Expressions of interest in being part of the 2018 Australian Brain Bee Challenge will be accepted up until and including Friday 16th February . Students should reply via email so I can complete the registration details for them.

Mr David Shillabeer

Science Competitions Coordinator

National Youth Science Forum (NYSF)

During January, four VCE students attended the National Youth Science Forum (NYSF) on three different sessions. NYSF is a 12 day residential program aimed at students going into Year 12 with a passion for STEM. Olivia and I attended the Canberra sessions at ANU, and Kate and Sally attended the Brisbane session at the University of Queensland.

Throughout the program, we attended several social events, lectures and workshops. We learnt about the various courses each university offers and how we could get more involved in science. We stayed in the student accommodation on campus, which provided a better insight to what university life will be like. Many of the students found that NYSF helped them figure out what they wanted to do in the future, either as a career or at university.

We met many amazing and influential people working in science, such as the 2017 Australian of the Year who talked about his research in stem cells, an astrophysicist who was involved in creating the largest 3D map of the universe, and the 2018 Senior Australian of the Year who talked about biophysics. Some of the places we visited included Australia's largest supercomputer, NASA’S deep space centre and an altitude chamber, as well as many more.

NYSF was one of the greatest experiences of our lives. It was an amazing opportunity to meet leading scientists and to be exposed to real world STEM. The friendships that we made were one of the highlights, because we met like-minded people, all interested in varying areas of STEM, from all around Australia. If you are in Year 11 and interested in STEM, check out the NYSF website for more information https://www.nysf.edu.au

Margaret Bradbury, Year 12

English

Year 12 English students attended an incursion on their first text Extinction on Wednesday 14th February. This was an invaluable opportunity for the girls to be presented with further insights into the play and learn something about stagecraft and live performances, which are essential in terms of preparation for writing about this genre.

The English Domain leaders will be appointed shortly.

Ms Anne Gamble

English Domain Leader