From the Head of Senior School

As we round out the second week of term, it’s pleasing to report that most girls appear to have settled into a new term, making a positive start to their classes. One of the many positives that come from working at our School is witnessing the endless energy in girls across a multitude of activities throughout each day.

Our Vice-Captains, Maya Simpson and Ana Trigg launched into their roles with a sense of confidence and fun as they led the Middle Years and Senior Years assemblies on Wednesday morning. The leadership teams work hard in maintaining a strong student focus in all that they do, so it was pleasing to see so many smiles and laughs as girls engaged in activities, despite the continuation of virtual assemblies. I had the pleasure of announcing the new Middle Years Leaders for 2021 and look forward to seeing them develop throughout the year under the guidance of Maya and Ms Carmel Cordaro. Congratulations to the following girls:

  • Sienna Marriott – Abbeythorpe 
  • Riley Chantler – Booralee
  • Vishaalini Ravichandra – Churunga
  • Tiana Roins – Leawarra
  • Ava Dean – Lester
  • Bariah Khaznadar – Mooramoora
  • Georgie Roediger – Prescott
  • Anikah Sanan – Sutton
  • Sarah Furlan – Wade
  • Catherine Kong – Whitley

With normal routines back, I’d like to remind all girls of the importance of being great role models and representatives of MLC School when out in the general public. We are constantly under scrutiny when wearing school uniform, particularly when travelling on public transport each day. The daily commute for many of our students also doubles as vital times for social interaction with friends, often from other schools. For many generations, MLC School has held a strong reputation within the community and, like me, I’m sure you’re all keen for this to continue. With that in mind, I ask that all students are constantly aware of their manners while using public transport. Some particular attention directed towards the following:

  • Avoiding standing in doorways on trains
  • Making way for less able commuters
  • Keeping bags and personal belongings out of the way and off seats
  • Giving up a seat for other commuters, especially during peak times
  • Keeping conversations kind and respectful

While many of these may seem like ‘old fashioned’ approaches, they are so important in maintaining our standards and acknowledging our rich history. Nancy Friday puts it so well when she says ‘I think the thing I miss most in our age is our manners. It sounds so old-fashioned in a way. But even bad people had good manners in the old days, and manners hold a community together, and manners hold a family together; in a way, they hold the world together.’

I’m pleased to report that our Year 12 HSC girls have commenced their final exams inside ‘the bubble.’ They have been in great spirits this week and I know we wish them all the best as they continue with their  exams and the IB girls, as they await the start of their exam block. I admire the way they are approaching each exam and continuing to stay focused with revision and specific exam preparation. There are many traits to all girls as they approach their final exams and I thought I’d list a few commonly shared characteristics of good learners:

  1. They ask questions – teachers love it when students take the lead and challenge their thinking and questions are a great way of demonstrating they understand
  2. They’re hard workers – while intelligence is a great bonus to have, it’s genuine hard work that’s required to hone that intelligence
  3. They’re involved – this is rarely an issue with an MLC School girl, there’s an abundance of co-curricular activities available that are great outlets for physical health and also allow budding leaders to develop and team work to flourish
  4. They’re leaders – this can be seen in and out of the classroom and, as we often hear, ‘you don’t need a badge to lead’
  5. They’re motivated – the motivation to succeed is a huge advantage, but not nearly as important as the motivation to learn
  6. They’re problem solvers – not just to be used in a mathematics lesson, the ability to solve problems is often the key to success
  7. They seize opportunities – there’s an abundance of these at school, but one of the greatest is seizing and valuing education
  8. They’re solid citizens – valuing and demonstrating self-discipline will often reduce other ‘noise’ in a student’s life, allowing for greater focus on the things that matter
  9. They have a support system – in all honesty, success at school always comes down to the team around us. Never be afraid to use it!
  10. They’re trustworthy – the foundation of all good relationships is trust. It allows us to form strong bonds with teachers and friends

There’s no better time than the present to start working through the checklist of characteristics. How many do you possess? Which ones need some attention? Why not start some conversations at home about these characteristics. There’s always plenty of help at hand for girls looking to develop some of these traits.

I’d like to wish all our Basketball, Volleyball, Water Polo and Touch Football teams good luck as they continue with sport this weekend. It’s been so encouraging having so many girls involved in sport this term and involving themselves with early morning training sessions. A reminder to all teams to be in correct uniform, be on time and play well!

– Neil Scotney
Head of Senior School