Head of Secondary
Mobile Phones in Secondary School- A great improvement!
At the start of Term 2 this year, the College placed a ban on the use of mobile phones during school time for Secondary students Years 7 - 10. The reason for this ban was to encourage students to engage in conversation, connect with each other, exercise and look up at the world around them, rather than relying on their phones for connection and entertainment.
Whilst incidents of students using their phones has reduced significantly, we still have a small number of repeat offenders. If a phone is seen in use between 8:45am and 3:15pm, including break times, it will be confiscated for the remainder of the day. If the phone is confiscated a second time, it must be handed in at the student window every day, for five days. In both instances parents will be notified and a pastoral care entry will be made. For additional breaches more significant consequences will result.
Year 9 Camp
This week our Year 9 students braved the cold to camp out at Galston. They participated in many team building activities, including a hike, camping under the stars, challenge by choice and an indoor rope challenge. Huge thanks to Mr Oppel, Mr Masters, Mr Smith, Mrs Kirk, Mrs James and Mr Leonard who accompanied the group.
Year 10 Commerce - Mock Trial
Students in Year 10 Commerce have engaged in the Legal System this week by running a Mock Trial in the classroom. Students were assigned different roles within the courtroom and eagerly studied the case materials. The Prosecution prepared convincing opening arguments and called eyewitnesses to the reckless driving incident. The Defence Lawyers conducted a thorough cross-examination of the witnesses and interviewed their own expert witness on traffic laws and regulations. The courtroom was complete with a judge, bailiff swearing in the witnesses, jury and a media reporter taking notes on the case. The students had an excellent time, and we are eagerly awaiting the jury's verdict as they continue to deliberate.
Australia Day by Siena P
This is the third instalment in our spotlight on the HSC Aboriginal Studies Major Projects. If you missed the last two, please look back at week 3 & 4 Messenger publications – they are worth it!
Siena P explored the discourse around Australia Day. Through a series of consultative interviews with Aboriginal community and an extensive school survey she gained a broad understanding of the key feelings towards Australia Day and why they exist. Siena presented her project as a speech.
Siena began her speech with an acknowledgement: “I would like to acknowledge and pay respects to the elders, past, present and future. I would like to acknowledge the Darkinjung, Awabakal, Guringai and every other First Nations person’s Country in which I live and study upon.”
Tensions around this public holiday expressed the colonial history of Australia. Siena explains…”the different opinions (run) on the themes of celebration, survival, invasion and change the date…” After her research Siena expressed that colonisation, being “an act of invasion”… is seen as something that happened so long ago, non-Aboriginal people tend to ignore or deny the long-term impacts, like intergenerational trauma and disadvantage. Lack of awareness and understanding around the issue results in lack of momentum for change.
This aligns with our studies of the human rights and social justice movement in the HSC course. Well done, Siena!
Mrs Amber Erasmus
Secondary LIFE Groups
