Principal Update – Much to celebrate in the School’s achievements

Informed by a number of student surveys during the COVID lockdown period last year, our Senior girls expressed a strong desire for greater ownership and flexibility to be applied to their learning, enabling an improved sense of purpose and self-agency to emerge. Undoubtedly, if students know what their goal is and trust their teacher is going to allow them to move through their chosen path to the goal while providing expert feedback, students are more invested in their own growth.

Our focus this year on improving voice, agency and leadership represents different aspects of student empowerment. Each aspect relies on a student’s belief that they are both supported and empowered, in ways that help them to develop their knowledge, skills and dispositions in the classroom, school and community. This requires a deliberate, planned and coherent approach to embedding voice, agency and leadership within a positive climate for learning.

In the Senior School this semester, we have implemented, under the guidance of Mrs Ceri Lloyd, the Senior Years Learning Model for the Years 10 and 11 cohorts, complemented by Flexi-Tutes and a suite of Masterclasses to strengthen subject specific content knowledge and preparedness for VCE through building study skills lifted by a level of independence, self-discipline and motivation. In addition to this, the VOICE Leadership project, led by Mr James Brown, has recreated our Senior School Assembly and breathed life into the Student Representative Council across Years 7-12.

Over the past week, I have been thrilled to read the Student Reflections that will be incorporated in each House Tutor Report, enclosed with the Semester One, Academic Transcript. The authenticity of the girls’ voices in the Reflections is refreshingly honest and detail the very genuine troughs and peaks of adolescence today. Also evident is their emerging sense of agency and feeling of being able to influence their progress at school by managing their engagement and establishing clear goals to strive for across the year. I encourage parents to read with interest their daughter’s semester reflections when the Semester One reports are released on the Portal on Monday, 28 June. Some of the Year 10 students’ reflections are shared below:

I have learned that my greatest strengths are my independence, determination and resilience to get going with a task or challenge, and my biggest area for improvement is to develop social connections with others. I enjoy opportunities where I can seek peace; quiet and down times to be mindful. This is something that I have taken from the challenges of 2020. I am most grateful for my teachers who understand and can help me with my troubles if I need any support.

At the beginning of the year, I set a goal to complete the Bronze Duke of Edinburgh Award. During Semester 1, I had to overcome the procrastination involved with completing the task, logging all my activities after the date I had completed them, using Strava and photos to prove that I had done the activities. I have now moved on to the Gold Duke of Edinburgh and I will make sure to log all my activities as I complete them to avoid the frustration of having to log them at the end.

Moreover, I have been able to try out different study techniques for my exams and tests in Semester 1, so that I feel more relaxed and confident for every assessment. Challenges or hurdles I have encountered when pursuing these goals have been the lack of time due to commitments to other co-curricular activities such as Rowing, Orchestra and preparing for my Associate Violin exam. I am continuing to meet these challenges by planning out the tasks I have to complete that day and staying productive in the ILTs.

I am also grateful for the resources and activities such as Wellbeing Camp and ILTs that the school has provided for us to help us transition back into school after last year.

I am grateful for my friends from all walks of life with whom I can have fun and laugh, and whom I can turn to in tough times, as well as the staff of St Catherine’s School who do what they can to assist me to reach my full potential. Above all, I am most grateful for my family who always try to make time to accommodate the needs of all of us, including supporting me on my journey through my secondary school education at St Catherine’s School.

The School Values – Empathy, Gratitude, Curiosity, Perseverance and Integrity – are expressed in each and every Student Reflection that I have had the opportunity to read. Indeed, it is heartening to know the impact a school climate and culture has in raising good citizens that openly express their thirst for learning with an abundance of gratitude for the opportunity provided by firstly, their family and in conjunction with their teachers.

This week, the girls have returned with enthusiasm, despite for many the ‘hard slog’ of an examination week. Yet, each day they bound through the Heyington Gates, happy to be with friends and teachers.

Over the course of the semester, we have again enjoyed many examples of stunning student achievement. Most notably, the opportunity to represent one’s country was a highlight for four students who relished wearing the green and gold rowing zootie last weekend: Zara Bongiorno (Year 11), Sarah Marriott (Year 11), Bronte Cullen (Year 11) and Chloe Cooper (Year 12) are to be congratulated for their selection in the Australian Junior Rowing Crew. This was a representative journey in sport that one could only have imagined when the four girls first commenced rowing as a young student in Year 8. Selection in both the Victorian Crew and, most excitedly, the Australian Junior Crew reflects their sheer determination and resolve to persist with a challenging training program.

In recent weeks, Rhea Werner (Year 9) was selected in the 2021 cohort as a World Science Scholar. The World Science Scholars are selected as a small group of international high school students with extraordinary mathematical talent. The program will provide Rhea with an unparalleled opportunity to apply her mathematical abilities to a range unexplored disciplines – particle physics, computational thinking, neuroscience, and astrobiology. Guided by world-renowned experts, Scholars such as Rhea examine the ways that advanced mathematics skills can be applied to solve complex challenges in a wide range of multidisciplinary fields.

Year 11 student, Olivia Nigido-Scott was recently shortlisted in Australia’s prestigious Peter Cowan Short Story Competition (Youth). Liv’s writing explored ‘love, loss and bereavement in a poignant tale that is as timeless as the cycle of life’. This was a wonderful literary achievement for Liv, the second of her published works with the first work, ‘Karma’ released last year in an anthology dedicated to one of Australia’s finest colonial writers, Ada Cambridge.

And finally, after many years representing the School in both Debating and Public Speaking, Allegra Dennison in Year 12, is to be congratulated for making the Final in the renowned Rotary: Ainger Peck Public Speaking Award. Most notably, since Year 7, Allegra has embraced every opportunity offered to her through our internal and external public speaking competitions, in an effort to refine her skills; making it to this Final in her last year of school is a real feather in her cap and a wonderful demonstration of persistence. She has also been in the Finals of other competitions throughout her time at St Catherine’s, making her a real all rounder as a speaker.

As a school, we also maintain a close connection with our Old Girl community and I take this opportunity to congratulate Professor Jane Halliday (Wettenhall ’66) who was awarded an AM in the Order of Australia Queen’s Birthday Honours list this week. Dr Halliday was recognised for her significant service to medicine, and to reproductive epidemiology. She remains an inspiration for every St Catherine’s girl aspiring to a career in Science and Medicine.

In addition, I also recognise the following St Catherine’s School Foundation members who also received Queen’s Birthday Honours:

  • Mr Ian Hicks AO – For distinguished service to the community through philanthropic support for the arts, education and social welfare bodies.
  • Mr Philip Cornish AM – For significant service to the telecommunications sector, and to the community.
  • Mr Andrew Guy OAM – For service to the community through a range of organisations.
  • Roger Poole OAM – for service to Architecture and the community.

There is much to celebrate in the School’s achievements this semester and I remain incredibly proud of all the students as they continue to manage the impact a global pandemic has on their learning journey. I wish all community members a safe and happy mid-year break and trust the well-deserved holidays for our students will enable some rest and relaxation.

Mrs Michelle Carroll, Principal