Senior School Report

by Director of the Senior School, Mr Hamish McCrum

Term 3 has certainly had its challenges.  While teaching at school we were always conscious that we might move into remote learning at any time, and when in remote learning we were sometimes allowed back to school when we did not expect it.  I commend all of you who have been able to just roll with the punches, accepting those constraints which you had no control over, and who have just kept doing the best that you could under the circumstances.  If you have done this most of the time, you will come out of this better than OK.

It was great to see our Year 12s and some of our Year 11s back onsite even if it was just for four days.  This served as a great pick-me-up for many of them, as well as making the submission of various folios for assessment much easier than it otherwise would have been.  Our Year 12s will now switch their focus to exam preparation.  This is not all holidays for them.  This year they will be completing their practice exams at home and doing other exam preparation.  Many have made a significant start on this already.  It is also important for our Year 12s to get some rest so as to freshen-up for Term 4.  The exam period is intense and they need to sustain a high level of output.  We also hope to see all of our Year 10s and 11s back onsite in Term 4.  If they have not completed work they should have, they now have the opportunity to take some of the stress off next term by devoting some of this break to catching-up.  Good Year 12 results start much earlier than in Year 12.  You can grow your abilities very significantly over a long period of time.

The GAT is now scheduled for Tuesday, October 5 (Week 1, Term 4). Some more information regarding this will be sent over the break.

Year 12s are reminded that VTAC preferences should now be in; timely applications close 5pm September 30.  SEAS applications close 5pm October 8, and students should do these, as most of our students will gain some consideration if they tick the applicable rural/remote box.  (Start SEAS applications now because some categories require documentation from a number of sources including medical).

For the first time since this pandemic began, we have the start of an outbreak in Ballarat. Hopefully it will fade quickly, but it only takes one person to be careless to cause an increase in the spread of this virus.  Please take the hygiene and distancing measures seriously, and if not vaccinated, arrange this unless your doctor tells you otherwise.  I feel we are nearly out of this, but it would be a terrible shame if the virus numbers surged when we were so close.

Take care and God Bless,

Mr Hamish McCrum