Deputy Principal – Academic

Deputy Principal – Academic

Amy Byrnes

 

Week 4 is the half way mark of Term 4.  It is always a fast paced term and it is important that students are organised and ready for upcoming assessment. The College Assessment Calendar is a useful starting point for planning the remaining weeks of term. 

 

 

Special provisions

If students are away on an assessment due date or have been away prior to the due date of an exam or assessment they may be entitled to special provisions.  It is important that students are meeting all due dates, but at times, there are circumstances that prevent this from occurring and this is when special provisions are put in place. Students must make an appointment to see myself if they have an application for special provisions.  Further information relating to Special Provisions can be found in the College diary on page 114. 

If a student is in Year 11 and is absent for an assessment they must contact myself to ensure it meets the Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority (QCAA) Access Arrangements and Reasonable Adjustments (AARA) requirements.

Exam Block Timetable

Years 7 to 11 will all have an Exam Block at the end of Term 4.  This timetable will be distributed very soon.  It is compulsory for all students in these Year levels to attend these exams.  The Exam Block will be emailed to all students and once published, will also be found on the College website.

A reminder that students must attend all exams in their full Academic College uniform.  Only Year 10 and 11 students are permitted to complete individual study at home or in the Boarding School during Exam Block.  If a Year 10 or 11 student does not have exams during Exam Block or only one exam on a particular day, they are permitted to complete individual study at home, however, the parent must advise the College by 9am on the day of these arrangements.  Year 10 and 11 boarding students will be permitted to return to the Boarding School for individual study,

Year 7, 8 and 9 students must complete study in the assigned classrooms.  If students are absent for any exams they are reminded that they must request special provisions and if it is for medical purposes, provide a medical certificate.

Some helpful hints to prepare for Exam Block:

  • Start Early – don’t leave your study until the week before the Exam Block
  • Plan a Study Timetable – this will ensure a certain amount of time each day is allocated to study
  • Find a place that’s quiet and not distracting
  • Turn off social media, text messages and phone calls to avoid interruptions

If parents/guardians or students have any further questions in relation to the Term 4 Exam Block Timetable, please contact me via email abyrnes@stpatscollege.qld.edu.au.  

Year 12

Our Year 12 students are currently in the midst of External Assessment.  This is the first group of Year 12 students in the new Queensland Certificate of Education (QCE) system who are experiencing external exams for 17 days across the final four weeks of Year 12 in Term 4.  Our Year 12 students are to be commended on being the first cohort in this new system and we wish them the best of luck with these exams.

Please find below some important dates for Year 12 students:

  • Friday, 20 November – Final day for Year 12 students in Queensland.
  • Saturday, 19 December:
    • Final subject results released to students via the QCAA Student Portal.  Year 12 students must ensure they have accessed this site before this date to ensure they can login.  Students will need their LUI to access this portal.
    • Queensland Certificate of Education (QCE), Senior Statements and Statement of Results available from the QCAA Student Portal.  Please note that these certificates will not be mailed in 2020 and are only available electronically.
    • Release of ATARs via the QTAC ATAR Portal for students that are ATAR eligible. 

Year 12 students will not receive a report card from the College at the end of the year as all of their results are provided in the documents provided by QCAA.

2021 Subjects

Students in Years 7, 8, 9 and 10 have submitted their 2021 subject selection forms.  A reminder that if students want to change any of their preferences for 2021 they are encouraged to contact myself.

End of Year Report Card

Term 4 Report Cards will be distributed in the holidays via email to all parents/guardians of students in Years 7 to 10.  The Year 7 to 10 Term 4 Report will include an overview of academic achievement, behaviour and work ethic in each subject throughout Term 4, 2020.

The Year 11 Report will be a Unit Three Interim Report.  As Year 11’s have just received a report card, the report card issued will indicate how your daughter is progressing behaviourally and in her work ethic across her subjects. 

If your contact details have changed, please contact the College Office to update your details before the reports are distributed.

Be the Difference 

The College is participating in the Be the Difference (Australia) program run through Engaging Education, with our Year 11 College Captains and Prefects.  The program aims to empower girls by examining and evaluating the impact of the challenges they face.  At the end of the program, the students will deliver their perspective on what it means to Be the Difference in the face of challenges.  Content specifically in this program looks at:

  • Women in STEM
  • Women in Leadership
  • Imposter Syndrome
  • Social Media Feed
  • Financial Security
  • Diversity and Inclusion

At the end of the program the girls will be required to submit a 4 – 5 minute recorded TED Talk.  This video will then be judged and all videos will be shared on International Women’s Day – 8 March 2021.

The College has been sponsored by Silver Chain.org to participate in this program.

Constitutional Convention (General)

On Wednesday 31 October, Charlotte Merrit, Alexia Hennell, Grace McKinley, Evon Tulele, Kanako Weightman, Emily Black, Johanne Nona, Samara Gela and Jowinah Mipari all participated in the Queensland Schools Constitutional Convention (General).  The theme was Federalism: the Constitution and Australia’s Water.  We heard from Key Note speakers about Federalism, and Historically how Australia dealt with water issues.  The girls also voted on a referenda.  School delegates delivered a speech on the topic and the top delegates were elected to attend the National Convention in Canberra next year.  Charlotte Merrit was our school delegate and she spoke eloquently, representing our school extremely well.  Charlotte was successful in being elected as a delegate to head off to the National Convention in Canberra next year.  Congratulations Charlotte!