Curriculum News
CURRICULUM NEWS
We are very much looking forward to having all students return to regular classes next week (Week 5). We would like to congratulate the efforts of the vast majority of students who have undertaken the process of remote learning with great enthusiasm and also recognise the efforts of parents and carers in supporting these students during this time as well.
HSC Update
A number of changes have been made regarding this years HSC and requirements for certain subjects - in particular practical subjects. Year 12 students have been emailed a summary flyer outlining these changes.
New Timetable
Students are returning with a new school timetable in place. This timetable sees the school moving to double lessons for all subjects (Yrs 7-12), in some cases new teachers for Years 7-10 and more flexible attendance options for seniors to assist in the completion of major projects, catching up on missed work etc. Students will be issued paper copies of their timetable next week when they return. The new timetable can already be viewed on Compass (Student Schedules).
Changes to Assessment
Due to remote learning, schools have been given the provision to make changes to student assessment schedules where required. We are currently in the process of updating our assessment schedules for Years 7-12 and will publish these as soon as possible.
Plagiarism
We have noticed an increase in use of plagiarism for formal assessment tasks. According to Wikipedia "Plagiarism is the representation of another author's language, thoughts, ideas, or expressions as one's own original work". In its basic form it is copying someone else's work eg: copy from a website, and paste it into your own task and submit as your work. It is unethical and does not assist in determining the students understanding of a particular topic. We are reviewing our approach towards this matter but in the meantime, it may be worthwhile discussing this matter with your child and look at their approaches towards completing formal assessments and other allocated class tasks.
Communication between Teachers, Students and Parents
With the switch to remote learning, students have become more aware of the need to regularly check their email accounts in order to communicate effectively with their teachers and to receive updates around school processes etc. In saying this, we are aware that there are a number of students, and in some cases, parents, who have not accessed their emails or replied to teacher concerns about issues such as completion of work. Communication between all parties is a vital part of the education process and we would strongly encourage students and their parents to get into the habit of regularly checking their emails to stay up to date with communications from the class teacher. Also, a reminder to please ensure the school office has updated contact details including home phone, mobile and email addresses and please ensure you have access to the Compass app.
Subject Selection 2021
We are currently in the beginning stages of putting selection processes and information together for students entering Year 11 2021, as well as electives in Year 9 and Year 10 2021. Due to current social distancing restrictions, we are looking to move to an entirely online process this year. We hope to have this finalised before the end of the term. Please continue to read Compass notifications and emails for updates.
Any questions or emails regarding curriculum matters, please feel free to contact the Curriculum Office at any time.
Mr Brett Moran
Curriculum Coordinator