Telephone: 9488 1900 • Fax: 9481 6135 •
info@fitzroyhs.vic.edu.au • Falconer Street NORTH FITZROY 3068
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Telephone: 9488 1900 • Fax: 9481 6135 •
info@fitzroyhs.vic.edu.au • Falconer Street NORTH FITZROY 3068
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School Email and Bulletin Board |
August - October 2009Click on the following links to access:
OctoberVideo Education Australasia filming at FHSOn Thursday, October 8th, a small film crew from Video Education Australasia spent the day filming at Fitzroy High School. We worked with students from Year 7 and 8, who were supervised by teacher/filmmaker Georgina Harper. We were shooting for two short educational films about how to write particular types of text, specifically persuasive texts and information reports. The films were short comedies following the journey of our protagonist, Pip, as she picks up the skills needed to write in a persuasive, and then an informative, way. It was a pleasure filming at Fitzroy High – the students were creative, friendly, patient (!) and always up for a challenge. They were extras in a classroom scene, playground scene, canteen scene and some of them were very persuasive activists in an anti-whaling protest scene as well. I’d like to extend a huge thanks to Fran Mullins who helped us to co-ordinate the filming, Georgina whose supervision and assistance on the day was really helpful and Jenny and the crew from the tuck shop - for letting us invade their space with lights and fill their bain maries with unappetizing food completely at odds with their normal menu! I’d also like to thank Annie from the library for her kind assistance and most importantly - the students themselves for being so much fun to work with, and also for making our visiting actor, Lani, and our crew feel so welcome. I’ll send all the students a copy of the films once they’ve been completed, and then they’ll be able to join the dots and see how the various random things we shot fits into the bigger picture! Thanks again, SeptemberPrincipal’s Report - 11 September 2009Much has been written about what makes a ‘good’ school, what makes a ‘good’ student. Academic performance is often the prime indicator used to define success and indeed it should not be ignored. All students should be provided with opportunities and support to achieve their best academically. But I know there is so much more to success than scores. From its earliest classical origins, education's real purpose was to build 'character' so graduates could take up their role in their society and contribute to the good of everyone. In the past 2 weeks I have been lucky enough to have been involved with students in a range of activities that are not generally defined as academic. I think that the depth of skill and understanding shown by students, the risks and challenges they undertook, reinforce the idea that academic achievement is just one part of the equation of what makes a ‘good’ school, what makes a ‘good’ student. I went on ski camp with 15 students who demonstrated a range of qualities that will sustain them through the range of life experiences they will face in the coming years. The weather one day was awful - rain and fog limiting visibility to a short distance, it was cold, uncomfortable…the students showed amazing resilience and determination in dealing with this. Many of the students faced a new and demanding physical experience. They coped with grace and humour. They helped and encouraged each other, watched out for and protected each other. Later in the week I saw the school production of Cosi. What an amazing spectacle - full of words, colour, energy and sound. The students not only convincingly acted their characters, they carried the audience along with their characters’ words, actions, emotions for close to two hours. They danced, acted, sang. They engaged the audience in what was at times a challenging, thought provoking play about love and fidelity, sanity and madness. To play such roles convincingly means to understand the character and their context - a challenge in such a sophisticated play that the students met with excellence. On the weekend I went to the School for Leadership, Snowy River Campus where six of our Year 9 students have been staying during term 3. You will have read of their exploits in recent newsletters. They have been living remotely in a small community of students and teachers away from family and friends, testing themselves in different physical experiences, and working in groups on their Community Learning Project. It was not difficult to see the growth of students - they were confident and outgoing, thoughtful and reflective, enthusiastic and engaged with their surroundings and their learning. Academic performance may be the widely accepted measure of a school’s and a student’s success, but without providing opportunities to expand horizons, push boundaries and challenge ideas and accepted practices, we cannot support the whole growth of an individual. I am proud that Fitzroy High School provides students with a range of opportunities to excel and to achieve their own personal goals in such rich and varied ways. News from School CouncilAt its last meeting, the school council passed a resolution of thanks to Dean Lombard and Madeleine Oakes for their significant contributions to School Council. Both have resigned from school council recently. Dean joined council in 2008 and has been convenor of the Communications Committee. Madeleine has been on council since 2008 and has been convenor of the Participation Committee. We are extremely grateful for their time and efforts over recent years. Many thanks from School Council and the school community. Pauline Rice Parent Forum - Cybersavvy - family life in a digital ageOn Wednesday August 26 the second of the Families@Fitzroy’s 2009 parent forums, ‘Cybersavvy- family life in a digital age’, was presented at our school. Although attendance was small the evening was successful in addressing issues of on-line communication and cybersafety. Keynote speakers were Jackie Van Vugt, General Manager, Cybersafety, Allanah and Madeline Foundation, Matthew Nieuwenhuizen, Multi-media Teacher, Fitzroy High School and Anna Radonic, Lawyer, Youth Law, Victoria. The evening was interactive and highlighted the growing movement towards social networking and issues related to safe practice when using technology. Tracey Callander facilitated the evening with her usual inclusive style. Parent responses to the program were positive and constructive. The evening was seen to be stimulating and not at all condescending. Matt and Jackie’s presentations were found to be informative and engaging. Parents stated clearly that they would like to be given links to on-line information to develop their knowledge. Parents found that the program was informative, with good content. The legal issues associated with the use of technology were seen to need further discussion. Interest was shown in the general issue of bullying and the relationship between cyber bullying and the “Code of Conduct”. The protection of children from inappropriate content was at the heart of responses. Madeline Oakes considered the broader issues involved in the presentations:
“Going forward it would be great for school council/education policy committee to give some thoughts to how we can ensure that our students are engaged in the process of becoming good citizens, able to make safe and just decisions whether it is in the real or virtual worlds. I would really like to see the school to ensure that this is not left to chance.” The ideas of the program have had a second life within the school. Matt will be working on a Blog to incorporate information and resources for parents, teachers and students. Luigi Borelli, a teacher at FHS, is preparing to examine material related to being smart on-line with Year 9 girls. He is consulting with Jackie and Matt to this end. The school is considering the “e-smart” initiative, auspiced by the Allanah and Madeline Foundation with funding from the Federal Government. Julian Couzins AugustPrincipal’s report - 7 August 2009Recently I have been reading ‘Breakthrough’ by Michael Fullan, Peter Hill and Carmel Crevola. The book discusses improving classroom practice on a large scale. The authors make the point that for societies to thrive in the complex world of the 21st century learning must be about more than literacy and numeracy scores - it is about learning to learn, about becoming independent thinkers and learners, about putting students in control of their own learning. It is the authors’ view that three critical elements need to be in place to achieve this - personalisation, precision and professional learning. Personalisation in education puts the learner at the centre and provides an education that is tailored to the students’ learning and motivational needs at any given time. While personalisation is about individuals, it involves the teacher, the student, the home and the school. Precision refers to the need to be accurate to the learning needs of the individual. Explicitly, the learner must have a standard or goal to aim for, be able to compare their current level of performance to the goal and engage in appropriate action to close the gap. For this to work, the learner must have access to their level of performance and receive feedback to improve their learning. There must be a link between data and instruction. Professional learning refers to focused, ongoing learning for every teacher. Professional learning works best when it is school based and embedded in teachers’ daily work. One of the most powerful opportunities for teachers to engage in continuous and sustained learning is by observing and being observed by their colleagues in their own classrooms. Many studies point to three factors which explain student achievement:
Reading such a book, confirms my view that what we do at this school is aligned to current research in education. Our vision states that Fitzroy High School values children as individuals, learners and contributors. Fitzroy students will become lifelong learners, reflective and creative thinkers, responsible and active citizens. Our intent is that students will be autonomous, self-motivated learners. We have deliberately designed organisational structures and curriculum programs to achieve this. We recognise the importance of knowing our students well and providing opportunities for them to achieve their goals as identified in their Personal Learning Plans. We continually strive to improve our practice in all facets of the school for the benefit all students. Pauline Rice
Click on the following links to access our news archive: June - July 2009September - 2008 |
Telephone:
9488 1900 • Fax: 9481 6135 • info@fitzroyhs.vic.edu.au •
Falconer Street NORTH FITZROY 3068 |