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Over the last three days, I attended the Australian Catholic School Principal’s (ACSP) conference in Wollongong. This biennual conference brings NSW school leaders together to hear from educational experts from around the world (and domestically) about the latest developments and areas for future focus in schools.
As I listened to the subject matter surrounding the theme of “New Hope, New Growth. A Celebration of Catholic Educational Leadership”, I felt very heartened to know that what we have already established at St Francis Catholic College is already a “Good News story”. While new to the College, when I see so many committed and talented staff, I am thrilled to know that the young people in our care have compassionate educators who are determined to nurture every child. Brother David Hall spoke about how even the idea of “nurturing” is very much Catholic and how, ‘by helping young people have a sense of purpose and a sense of belonging - it will ultimately bring flourish’. And, in a world that can be so sceptical, it is through such a lens that our young people will develop a sense of transcendence and connection to God and the cosmos.
When I attend conferences, I sometimes concur with Marie Antoinette who once stated that: “nothing is new only that which is forgotten”. Indeed, when themes like love and hope are unpacked we have to be careful not to try and “reinvent the wheel”. Sometimes the best strategies are often the simplest, yet I do wish to speak briefly about the importance of critical thinking.
I’ve read recent commentators speaking about how the current ‘new’ move to Artificial Intelligence (AI) will change us forever. Well, I don’t disagree but for me, it is very much a ‘slow burn’. In 2018 a draft paper was tabled at the OECD Conference Centre in Paris, France by three Australian academics.
This paper, written by Ruben Laukkonen, Hannah Biddel and Regan Gallagher from the University of Queensland, was entitled:
“Future of Education and Skills 2030: Curriculum Analysis
Preparing humanity for change and artificial intelligence: Learning to learn as a safeguard against volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity (VUCA)”. Although somewhat of a mouthful, their summation was incredibly accurate:
“The world was once like an ocean on a calm day—the movements were still difficult to predict but the waves of change were slower and less dramatic. Today, technology, globalisation, and population growth contribute to increasingly stormy seas. It is good fortune then, that humans are endowed with a certain plasticity that makes them adaptable to change through learning. In a VUCA world, this may be their greatest asset. While uncertainty has its perils for humans, it is the machines that are not yet sufficiently advanced to deal with the ambiguity and the volatility of modern life. When equipped with meta-learning strategies—and access to teachers and mentors—humans may very well be in a position to thrive, as lifelong learners, in the same circumstances where machines blunder. Training meta-learning strategies can also provide individuals with a tool—and a valuable sense of agency—to embrace uncertainty as an opportunity for learning.”
This was written just over 5 years ago, and without doubt, while the means of AI is developing incredibly rapidly, the idea of VUCA has been around at least since the 1980s when it was created in the military as a way of summarising constant threats and how to deal with them. But let’s face it, the world is constantly changeable. I’m sure the Ancient Egyptians or the Ancient Romans would have felt constant volatility with geopolitical and technological changes coming towards them at incredible speeds. We are not suddenly in a time when things are incredibly complex and/or ambiguous. Yes COVID has precipitated a reflection on how to deal with new realities but I must admit I get surprised when people are surprised by change. For me, this is one of the few constants in life, and so anyone suggesting that VUCA is new is misguided, and there will be even more volatility and change in the world of the future.
Therefore one of the most important learnings is that preparing our young people for changeable situations is essential. To be ready for this ever-changing landscape, students need to be able to tackle unseen situations and be able to apply critical thinking and problem-solving skills in an automatic manner. Keynote speaker Andy Hargraves reminded us all at the conference that “hope is not a wish” and that we actually have to plan to get what we want. As he told a captive audience: “growth doesn’t happen on its own”. And here is where I felt very at ease knowing that at St Francis we already have in action a focus on critical thought and a future plan to embed this even more in our K-12 curriculum. When Hargreaves spoke of his friend, Michael Fullan, and his exceptional work on “New Pedagogies for Deep Learning”, I felt very heartened as this is exactly where our College is moving in the future with a comprehensive focus on students being skilled up and having numerous opportunities for activating their minds and embracing a mind-frame that thrives on challenge and overcoming the seemingly almost too difficult.
So, I will return from the conference extremely confident in what we are doing, with feelings of being blessed by our staff. I look forward to sharing my sense of hopefulness with the College community later this term.
Mother’s Day
I would like to thank all staff involved in making Mother’s Day liturgy, afternoon tea and the Mother’s Day activities so special. It was great to have so many mothers, grandmothers, and maternal figures attend the college to be celebrated and reminded of their incredible efforts and gifts. Mrs Khoury and the junior choir sang beautifully on the day and there was a great deal of love and joy in the Hall that afternoon.
Prayer
In this fortnight’s newsletter, my prayer is a simple one surrounding joy and hope.
The following two short quotes, from James and Paul’s letter to the Romans, respectively remind us of the need for perspective:
“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” — Romans 15:13
“Consider it all joy, my brothers, when you encounter various trials, for you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.” — James 1:2-3
May we stay joy-filled and resolute confident in the knowledge that trials and tribulations are not fixed.
May we all stay confident in the compassionate hand of Christ and may the Lord strengthen us when challenges come our way.
May the Lord be with us constantly and help us direct our energies in the most expedient and successful manner.
May we recognise that it is through Christ that we can be our best selves and help others also reach their potential.
Through Christ our Lord – Amen
Mr Matthew McMahon
College Principal
This week Dr. Prue Salter from Enhanced Learning Educational Services (www.enhanced-learning.net) ran a study skills session with Year 11. The session focused on helping students identify changes and improvements they could make to their approach to their studies to maximise their results in their final years of school. The main areas covered with Year 11 were working effectively in the evenings and dealing with distractions, managing time efficiently, planning for assessments, making brain-friendly study notes regularly, and using a wide variety of active study techniques to suit individual learning preferences. Year 11 parents are encouraged to review the handout from the session with their child and discuss the main areas identified where changes need to be made. Parents can also find additional study skills tips on the following website: http://studyskillstoptipsparents.com/.
I would like to take this opportunity to wish our Year 10 students the very best as they undertake their half-yearly exam block and National Minimum Standards Examinations next week. This examination block will provide students with valuable experience in examination preparation and study techniques. A reminder to parents of Year 10 students that it is an expectation that all students attend school during the examination period. Should your child be absent, an Illness/Misadventure Form including supporting documentation, for instance a doctor’s certificate, must be provided to the College as per the College Assessment Policy.
I encourage all students to seek out the support of their teachers and prepare thoroughly for the exams. The exams provide valuable insight into learning growth for both students and teachers, ensuring the appropriate level of support and challenge is in place to ensure development for every student.
Mrs Agostino
Assistant Principal - Teaching and Learning
Bronze Awards
Congratulations to the following students who received their Bronze Award recently:
JYL
Year 1
Brianna M
Freyr V
Alexander B
Bastian S
Noah G
Ahlea K
Ezekiel W
Nirthik K
Rhea K
Year 2
Krish P
Year 4
Chaitra P
MYL
Year 6
Amara C
Year 8
Geet B
Evan D
David S
Jeevan R
Tabitha M
Silver Awards
Congratulations to the following students who received their Silver Award recently:
JYL
Year 2
Daniel J
Penelope S
Lindsay H
Chloe K
Year 3
Victoria M
Brynelle D
Jordan J
Jaxon P
MYL
Year 6
Justin E
Ekisha P
Gold Awards
Congratulations to the following students who received their Gold Award recently:
JYL
Aerin T, Martin D, Jovan J, Juna Y, Shreya A, Saul V, Amelia I
MYL
Amara C, Joshua I, Anmol B, Manya K
MYL Medallion
Congratulations to Joshua E who received his Medallion recently.
JYL Gold Awards
On Wednesday 3rd of May, students from Kindergarten to Year 6 travelled to Campbelltown Athletics Centre.
It is here that all students were able to participate in a range of activities such as discuss, shot put, long jump, relays, skipping, ball races, hurdles and much, much more.
Throughout the day, we were able to share our skills and earn house points for our participation.
Our most favourite event was the running races. It was here that we could push ourselves as we raced our friends to the finish line.
The crowd was going wild during these running races!
They were cheering so loud that Santa Claus could have heard us!
Written by Joshua A, Christian L and Lexi N
This week students in Middle Years Learning competed in the Da Vinci Decathlon.
The Da Vinci Decathlon is an academic competition that places an emphasis on higher order thinking skills, problem solving and creativity designed to challenge and stimulate the minds of school students.
Students compete in teams of eight, across 10 disciplines:
Engineering, Mathematics and Chess, Code-breaking, Art and Poetry, Science, English, Ideation, Creative Production, Cartography and General Knowledge.
The results of the day:
Year 5: 2nd Cartography
Year 6: 2nd Engineering
Year 7: 1st Cartography, 1st Engineering, 2nd Legacy, 3rd Mathematics, 3rd Art and Poetry
Year 8: 3rd Engineering
Our Year 7 team won the Year 7 Competition and received the Illawarra Regional Trophy.
They will now progress to the state competition to be held at Knox Grammar in Sydney.
CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL
BEST OF LUCK TO OUR YEAR 7 TEAM AT THE STATE COMPETITION!!!
