From the Senior Years
As Unit 1 and Unit 3 course content draws to the final stage of learning – summative assessment – students will no doubt be thinking ahead to their exams and preparations. Whether this is internal Unit 1 (Year 11) examinations or the longer term goal of external VCAA Unit 3-4 examinations, putting in place a revision routine in May is an important strategic move for long term success.
Students have several supports for their revision as part of a focus on revision through the College. This includes their one timetabled period of study support as part of Year 11 – 12 Success Advisor Session (SAS).
Additionally, students can elect to attend Academic Consolidation for Everyone (ACE) that is an ‘opt in’ session run on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons in the DTIC from 3:30-4:30pm. The onus here is on the student to contact teachers to arrange. An ideal situation could involve a small group consolidation session with a particular teacher on an area of the VCE Study Design that a group of peers have a similar challenge with or need clarification. Students can organize to access the support and skillset of experienced VCE teachers, many of whom are past examiners – invaluable expertise.
Moreover, on 2 June, Year 11 students will have supports through their Wellbeing program from recent VCE graduates as part of their Elevate Education sessions that are specifically targeted to examination revision strategies.
Finally, the College also offers access to parental supports to help their child navigate the revision process. This can be accessed for free through live VCE parenting webinars through Elevate Education. The upcoming webinar on Wednesday 4 June offers insights in how parents might best support their child in the final run-up to an exam - what their child should be doing in the last few days, right up to the night before, and handy tips for building a good pre-exam routine.
Wellbeing Program Incursion
On Monday 19 May, as part of the Senior Wellbeing program Monash Street Law, facilitated by the Monash Law Students Society, will present to all Year 11-12 students on key topics of interest to VCE students that address important areas of interest where students can gain greater clarity about their rights and responsibilities. The focus includes:
- Workplace laws affecting young people, including part-time and casual work obligations
- Consumer law affecting young people
- Driving and updated road rules for young people
A student reflection below summarises important student learning:
On Monday the 26th of May, during our Pastoral Seminar period, the year 11 and 12 cohort had a wellbeing incursion from Monash Street Law, run by the Monash University Student Law Society. They touched on topics about workplace and road laws for young people which was beneficial for us. I personally was quite surprised about how strict our Victorian road laws are about mobile phones and learnt about how annual and personal leave works in the work environment. Towards the end there was an opportunity for questions which was a great time for extra knowledge and understanding. Overall, it was a great presentation and I'm glad we had the opportunity to listen and learn!
Jacqui P, Year 11
Senior Years Co-curricular Success
Congratulations to two Senior Years Aloysians on their recent achievements and success in the VCAA Plain English Speaking Award (PESA). Below is a report on their achievements from English Learning Leader, Mr Adam Valladares:
On Wednesday, July 21st, Sofia Jorquera (12A) and Fadzai Bako (11A) Uber'd to Bayside College, Newport, to compete in the heats of the VCAA Plain English Speaking Award (PESA). The competition requires VCE students deliver a six-minute prepared speech on a topic of their choice, followed by the impromptu section, where students are given four minutes to prepare a three-minute speech.
Sofia spoke eloquently on Reading in the Modern Age. She argued that elitism in reading should be challenged in favour of a more accepting view of all books. Fadzai's chosen topic was, Hustle Culture - Friend or Foe? She claimed that society needs to be more focused on meaningful purpose, rather than the desire for money and status.
After some light refreshments (various lunchmeat sandwiches) both students were required to respond to the topic: Home is where the Heart is.
We are pleased to report that our Aloysians finished in first and second place. As the winner, Fadzai will now compete in the semi-finals of the competition, to be held later this term. Congratulations to both Fadzai (bottom left) and Sofia (bottom right) on their efforts and great results.
Additionally recently, Fadzai Bako (Year 11), Keona O’Brien and Nina Cutuli (Year 10), represented St Aloysius College at the Rotary Club of Woodend Model United Nations General Assembly. The two-day event took place across Saturday 24 and Sunday 25 May. The team took on the role as United Nations delegates from Brazil which involved responding to several ‘mock’ United Nations resolutions on trade, national security, regional borders, humanitarian concerns and an unknown ‘emergency crisis’, which in this case was a disease control epidemic of measles.
Fadzai, Keona and Nina took on the task of becoming experts in Brazilian domestic and foreign policy, its stance on international trade tariffs, its humanitarian intake of refugees (a surprising 16% of the national population) and on its perhaps somewhat challenging environmental record with increased pressure on the Amazonian ecosystem.
Both days served as a memorable and educational experience for these students. The experience learning of the Model United deepened students understanding of the structure of formal debates in the United Nations, alongside its rules and regulations and expanded student knowledge and understanding of the issues facing different countries.
Commendations for the team effort which saw the team being awarded runner-up in the Diplomacy Award.
Reflecting on the experience, Keona writes:
As our first introduction to a MUNA competition I can wholeheartedly say that I am extremely proud of our efforts both in the lengthy planning process and during the debate. We had the opportunity to observe experienced debaters and how they conducted themselves with such passion and elegance. Our favourite countries whose flawless speeches and confident persona had as all convinced were the delegates of Mexico and Saudi Arabia. As delegates adopted the view of their country on certain matters enthusiastic debates sparked especially during caucus and the topics of ‘Equitable regulation of Tariff Structures for Sustainable Global Trade’ and my personal favourite the emergency crisis issue, which resulted in heated debates and fiery speeches. From my personal experience, a challenge for reaching resolutions was achieving ⅔ of the countries to agree, often resulting in resolutions, and amendments to clauses being unable to pass. Overall, this was an amazing experience and I’m already counting the days until returning next year!
I thoroughly enjoyed this weekend. While it was slightly overwhelming at first, by the end of the weekend I found myself asking P.O.I’s (Points of interest), challenging amendments and fighting for the recognition and acceptance of resolutions. I would undoubtedly recommend this experience to those who enjoy politics, debate or even someone who is up for a good argument.
All delegates and members of the chair were extremely accepting and welcoming to newcomers, such as myself. I would love to take part in a MUNA competition again next year. I can’t recommend the experience enough and I’m grateful to Mr Crowle and Ms Norris-King for supporting our preparation and to Mr Taylor, Me Peters and Ms Norris-King for their support over the weekend.
Fadzai writes:
I had the amazing opportunity to represent Brazil at the Model United Nations Assembly (MUNA), and I’m proud to share that our team was awarded runner-up for the Diplomacy Award. It was such a rewarding experience to work together, negotiate, and present our country’s views while respecting others' perspectives.
A key learning for me was an appreciation of how difficult it is for the United Nations to reach a resolution. With so many different opinions and national interests, even the smallest issues became complex. Certain countries like had particularly strong stances that challenged everyone to think deeper and argue smarter.
We communicated well, stayed calm under international pressure and negotiated tactfully with all nations represented on the day. Overall, it was a fun, eye-opening day and I can't wait for next year as well. Thank you to the Rotary Club of Woodend for facilitating and hosting and for the teachers who supported us to prepare before the event and who were there on the day to cheer us on!
Tom Crowle
Senior Years Leader