Deputy Principal Teaching and Learning

The end of Term 3 is almost here. The Year 12 students have started reminiscing over their journey at the school. We commemorated some of these students’ work in Design and Technology, HSC and IB Visual Arts, History Extension, English Extension, and IB Diploma Extended Essays on Wednesday evening. Seeing such diverse works showcasing their interests, passions, and perspectives was fascinating. I would also like to recognise the Music and Textiles students whose work was exhibited and performed for parents earlier this term. The sustained practice and motivation required for project work will undoubtedly set them up for future endeavours. Our Year 12 students have another week of events to celebrate their time at the College before they embark on a tight study routine in the lead-up to the examinations. The teachers continue to run holiday workshops to ensure they are match-fit for the final examinations in October.

Year 11 students have completed their examinations, marking the end of the Preliminary Course for the HSC and a continuation of formative feedback for our IB Diploma students. The teachers are now working through the marking and feedback process for the students. 

Year 10 students have chosen their pattern of study for the Senior Years. This year, we are introducing final Year 10 examinations in Term 4. We often hear students hit exams in Year 11 with anxiety and stress as they did not know what to expect. We cannot control the final HSC or IB examination timeline, and students do have multiple examinations within a day and on consecutive days. So we will start in Stage 5 with examination blocks supporting students with study preparation and examination techniques. 

At Santa, our academic program is about more than just examinations, and I would like to recognise the excellent learning opportunities that have occurred since my last VV article. 

On Thursday afternoon last week, I helped our Year 2 students as they experienced their first Camp with Tallong at Del Monte. Camps are part of our academic programs, addressing outcomes in many curriculum areas such as PDHPE, Science and HSIE. This was an excellent entry point into the Outdoor Education program at Santa Sabina for our younger members of the College. There were times when some students were nervous about sleeping away from home, but the familiarity of the Del Monte Campus and being with friends helped alleviate these feelings. 

Over the last few weeks, I attended the Year 9 and Year 10 Music Recitals after school to hear the repertoire, the students have been working on in the Music Elective course. Unfortunately, I do not get to go on all the experiences, but hearing from the students on their return is a joy. These have included the Year 12 Legal Studies trip to Canberra to the High Court and Question Time at Parliament House, Year 10 BStreetsmart excursion about road safety, Year 12 Chemistry students experiencing a virtual Spectroscopy Workshop run by Sydney University PhD students, Year 8 Geography students exploring Strathfield for their unit on Places and Livability, the Year 9 Students also studying the Urban environment travelling to Barangaroo and Newtown, Year 12 Geography field trip to Green Square and Bicentennial Park and the Year 11 IBDP Spanish students’ cultural evening at Mas Tinto Restaurant. I would like to recognise the teachers who have made these events successful. I wish the students, teachers and our families a safe and restful term break. 

Finally, I am pleased to include below the report of our Action Research Coordinator Kate Corcoran on the professional learning showcases our teachers presented to their peers this month.

Jacqueline Pugh
Deputy Principal Teaching and Learning

Action Research Showcases

Our Action Research Groups gathered during our professional learning time last Thursday to deliver another round of impressive project showcases. As teams shared their experience of using research, evidence and innovation to tackle a problem of practice, we were reminded about the dedication, creativity and determination of our teachers in their quest to improve the learning outcomes of their students. In sharing both the challenges and successes of their research, the audience was provided with a snapshot of what can be achieved when teachers work together to gather evidence and seek better ways of engaging and responding to the needs of our students. The broad and varied range of research topics included: Improving Reading Engagement in Years 5-12, Developing Academic Resilience in Maths, Building Competent Writers in Years 3-4, Strategies for Reading Extension in Years K-2, Building Confident Speakers in Languages and Building Scientific Skills in Years 7-10. A special thanks to all of the groups who presented and to the enthusiastic and supportive audience members whose questions and insights during the closing discussions will be valuable in building on and transferring this knowledge to other areas of learning across the College. 

Kate Corcoran
Action Research Coordinator