Year 10 and the Cadet Program

One of the great things about being in Year 10 is being able to experience as many aspects of our co-curricular program as possible before the demands of senior study. One such activity is our cadet group in Year 10. Briar (Year 10) and Madison (Year 10) have given us a unique insight into the program in 2020 under the guidance of Esther Maling as Cadet Coordinator.

‘The cadet unit at Newington College has a long history and has been running since 1869. This year MLC School was given the amazing opportunity to become a part of this program.

We took the opportunity to be a part of history in being the first MLC School students to be a part of the Newington College Cadet Unit (NCCU). This has been an experience which has taught us so much. Not only has this given us an opportunity to develop our leadership skills but also a chance to learn things we wouldn’t necessarily learn in school. For example, throughout the year we have learnt how to communicate through radio transmission, navigation and mapping, First Aid, unit organisation and more.

Being part of a program like this has given us many unforgettable experiences and opportunities. One highlight of the year was the NCCU Final Parade. It was amazing to be a part of something so big, the pride you get marching on the parade ground and the atmosphere created is like no other. This is the feeling of what it is like to be a part of cadets. Every fortnight when we travel to Newington for Home Training there is a sense of excitement as we don’t know what we will do that day but we know it will be amazing.

Another, more recent highlight has been Promotions Camp, which was when we went to Newington on the last two days of the holidays. Unfortunately due to COVID-19 we weren’t able to go to the normal camp location, so they had to adapt the camp to be held at Newington. However, this didn’t impact our overall experience, as we were still able to challenge ourselves, be put into unfamiliar environments and enhance the skills needed to be promoted from Cadet and/or Lance Corporal to Sergeant. There were many components to the camp designed to test and improve a wide range of our abilities, such as teamwork, public speaking, management and leadership. And we couldn’t be more grateful for this experience, we have learnt so much not only about ourselves and our capabilities, but also life skills that are not only beneficial for cadets, but also in everyday life.

Cadets has been a very rewarding experience that we highly suggest to anyone who is interested to give it a try because there is nothing to lose, only new experiences to gain and memories to share.’

– Sharon Connolly
Head of Year 10