Issue 19

29 November, 2019

www.gleneagles.vic.edu.au | Reema Boulevard, Endeavour Hills VIC 3802 | T: 9708 1319 | F: 9708 1324

PRINCIPAL NEWS In a recent Parent Newsletter I informed the Gleneagles Community that from Term 1, 2020 there will be a new mobile phone policy for all government schools. I also provided research that shows the mobile phone ban will help students be more engaged in learning and protect them from the more negative aspects of social media.

This Monday the College Council reviewed our Mobile Phone Policy and gave its full support. The Mobile Phone Policy is included at the end of this Newsletter.

OUR NEW SUB-SCHOOL STRUCTURE

This is a busy time as we prepare our structures and staffing for 2020. Since arriving in July I have had an opportunity to review our structures and I am pleased to announce that next year we will have three sub-schools;

Junior Years Sub-School – Years 7 and 8

Middle Years Sub-School – Years 9 and 10

Senior Years Sub-School – Years 11 and 12

Each Sub-School will have a Senior Leader, two Team Leaders and administrative support. The new sub-school structure will further strengthen our already excellent student engagement and wellbeing work.

The new structure will also better meet the needs of students at different points in their learning journey with us; as we know the needs of a 12 year old are different to those of a 15 year old or 18 year old. Each sub-school will have the same Gleneagles expectations and Values but will be able to tailor the student experience to the learners’ stage and age.

I look forward to providing you with further updates as we complete our preparations for next year.

Simon Sherlock | Principal

END OF YEAR CELEBRATION PROGRAM

Our exciting End of Year Celebration Program will operate Thursday 12, Friday 13 and Monday 16 December for all Year 7, 8 & 9 students. This program provides students with the opportunity to enjoy a variety of learning experiences different to those provided in the regular day to day timetable. These are compulsory school days and attendance is expected.

The program will involve the following days and activities:

• Thursday 12 December & Friday 13 December - a number of exciting and interesting education-based activities.

• Monday 16 December – All students will have a chance to participate in Pop Up Sports, activities include Bubble Soccer, Archery Warz, Mini Golf, as well as Soccer, Wipe-out & Bungee run on 2 giant inflatables (all supervised by qualified instructors) as well as other school based activities.

All students have been given the relevant permission/preference forms, which need to be completed and returned, with payment, to the Bursar by Friday 6 December

Please note: some activities have limited numbers so will be allocated on first in first served basis.

If you have any queries please do not hesitate to contact the school TEL: 9708 1319

YEAR 7, 2020 - INFORMATION NIGHT This week we held our annual Year 7 Information Night for parents and students who are joining us in 2020. This was the first time we have held the meeting in our new Performing Arts Space also known fondly as ‘the Shed’. Nearly 350 people attended the night which was an indication of the support and partnership our community has with Gleneagles Secondary College.

When greeting our new students and families outside the Shed, there were many nervous grade 6/year 7 students and I dare say quite a few parents and guardians who were feeling the same. Moving from the secure and well known primary school environment into the unknown secondary world is often a little daunting, creating some anxiety. However, when the official welcome from our Principal Simon Sherlock commenced everyone in the room looked far more relaxed as they become part of the Gleneagles Secondary College community.

Reflecting on the event, I felt that conversations between staff and parents at Gleneagles Secondary College were both positive and successful in bringing our community together. On behalf of myself and the Year 7 transition team (Assistant Principals Andrew Barker, Kathie Toth, Junior Sub-school Leader Sophie Sykes and Zohra Salehi) I want to particularly thank the student helpers who helped present and model uniforms, Hailey Chapman, Presha Rajavel, Thehasna Nanayakkara and Jack Carter. Special mention to Yr 8 student Andrew Pajvanic for manning the sound booth and Jessica Fitzgerald and Josh Davis for their engaging everyone else involved for making the night the best information night I have attended at Gleneagles Secondary College.

Kevin McCall | Year 7 Team Leader

JUNIOR DEBATING A huge well done to our junior debating students from years 7 and 8 for their dedication and hard work this season.

Our teams competed in three debates at Haileybury College in Keysborough - winning a fair few! A special mention to Abinesh Baskaran, Sanidi Mallawaarachchi, Kai Xuan Tee and Shalisa Harry who were recognised as top scoring speakers for the competition - out of over 30 students! Well done to all debating participants, it has been fantastic to see you all developing your public speaking skills this semester.

Katrina Wood | Debating Teacher

MUSIC NEWS VOCAL CONCERT

On Thursday 28 November, the library was filled with sweet harmonies with the voices of our talented vocal students at Gleneagles. Families and friends had the opportunity of attending a concert which featured soloists, small groups and the school choir. The students sung under the guidance of Sally McKenzie, their singing teacher and our choir director. Students were encouraged to perform in a range of styles so the night was filled with excerpts from a variety of musicals to contemporary songs which were performed in a relaxed and welcoming environment. Though many of our students are seasoned performers some had the opportunity to perform for the first time. Students have worked hard throughout the year in their lessons where they have developed their confidence and individual skills and have also had the opportunity to learn to harmonise in duets and larger ensembles accompanied by Sally while others chose to sing and showcase their instrumental skills on guitar and ukulele. All students should be very proud of their achievements. The night was a perfect opportunity for the students to share their passion for singing and performing with all who attended. It was wonderful to see so many parents, extended family and friends attend the night to support the students in their performances and the supportive faces of Kirsty Letts and Sue Schueler. A very special thank you to Sally who always challenges the students with new music and brings out the best in them. We look forward to sharing more musical moments with the Gleneagles community in future. Zorana Horvat | Music Director

WOODWIND PERFORMANCE

On Monday 26 November, a few of the Gleneagles woodwind students went on an excursion to the Endeavour Hills Shopping Centre which was organised by their teacher Nicole McAlister.

Students performed a variety of music and Christmas carols in the centre to entertain local shoppers. Their family and friends also came to support them at their performance. Overall, a wonderful experience for the students and a display of the talent we have here at Gleneagles.

Nicole McAlister | Instrumental Music Teacher

Zorana Horvat | Music Director

ARTS & TECHNOLOGY NEWS ART SHOW This week the College celebrated the successes of the students in years 7- 12 in the areas of Visual Art and Technology. With the opening of the Annual Art/ Technology exhibition held in the Library on Monday afternoon, parents, friends, staff and students enjoyed light refreshments and viewing the range of the students works. This was followed by classes having the opportunity to visit the exhibition on Tuesday and most of Wednesday before the exhibition closed. It was great to see the students gain recognition and take pride in work that in some cases taken quite a long time to see through to completion and share these achievements with those close to them.

This and other recent events such as the Media Showcase, VCE Pop- Up exhibition at MUMA last month and more recently the Dandenong Show, demonstrate the strengths, creativity, dedication, passion and skill in the areas of Art, Design and Technology that the college has and constantly strives to improve and develop.

Jess Kinnersley | Domain Leader Art & Technology

DANDENONG SHOW On 10 and 11 November the 148th annual Dandenong Agricultural Show was run, and Gleneagles students work was on display in the Art Craft pavilion at the showgrounds. Our students had entries in the Visual Art, Ceramics, Metalwork, Woodwork and Textiles competitions. In these competitions judged by the Show officials, our student’s work may be awarded a 1st. 2nd or 3rd Highly Commended or Commended certificate for the category they entered, for example, The first prize for Y7 Painting any medium.

Competitors across all year levels could be awarded a Champion Rosette and a Trophy if their work was voted the best in category. A Reserve Champion Rosette was awarded to the 2nd best.

Again our students did us proud by producing work worthy of being entered in the show. It was delightful, to see the work on display in the pavilion and have so many people comment favourably on the standard of work our school produced.

The students named below had their work on display and were awarded the following:

CATEGORY NAME HG CERTIFICATE ROSETTE TROPHY Y7 Painting Ali Akbari 7I 1st Y7 Painting Thehasna Nanayakkara 7D 2nd Y7 Painting Annie Koutroupis-Karas 7A 3rd Y7 Painting Dulsana Rodrigo 7E Highly Commended Y7 Painting Caroline ZHENG 7A Highly Commended Y7 & 8 mixed Media Luke Saxon 7E 2nd Y7 & 8 mixed Media Jody Yong 7E 3rd Y7 & 8 mixed Media Luka Katalina 7L Commended Y7 & 8 mixed Media Navin Kuniyil 7E Commended Y7 Drawing Alessa Halamai 7D 1st Champion Y7 Drawing Molly Griffiths 7M 2nd Y7 Textiles Emre Haydar 7H 1st Champion Champion Y7 Textiles Sameera Murtaza 7E 2nd Y7 Textiles Eliza Rodan 7D 3rd Y7 Textiles Hedyeh Alipoor 7D Highly Commended Y7 Woodwork Asma HOSSAINI 7M 3rd Y7 Woodwork Isira EKANAYAKE 7D Highly Commended Y8 Drawing Carmen Ng 7E 1st Reserve Champion Y8 Drawing Navin Kuniyil 7E 2nd Y8 Drawing Rivith Senaratne 7E Commended Y8 Woodwork Paige Micallef 8B 1st Reserve Champion Y8 Woodwork Jazzmine Pasnin 8I 2nd Y8 Woodwork Kaylah Hancock 8I Highly Commended Yr 8 Ceramics (Work entered from 2018)

Nathan Ly 8E 1st Champion Champion

Yr 8 Ceramics (Work entered from 2018)

Tania Temple 8F 2nd

Yr 8 Ceramics (Work entered from 2018)

Ella Ryan 8A 3rd

Yr 9 Drawing Jessica Beckett 9E 3rd Yr 9 Drawing Jordan Coates 9A Highly Commended Yr 9 Drawing Laura Cobelli 9J Highly Commended Yr 9 Drawing mixed media Amelie Lew 9K Highly Commended Yr 9 Drawing mixed media Ebru Altay 9D Highly Commended Y9 /10 Metalwork Baron Grant 10G 1st Champion Champion Y9 Metal work- Drawing Emily Kuok 9D 2nd Y9 Metal work- Drawing Jade Christitis 9I 3rd Y9 Machine Sewing Laura Hancock 9D 1st Reserve Champion Y9 Machine Sewing Arnela Haisila 9E 2nd Y9 Machine Sewing Paige Sykes 9D 3rd Y9 Machine Sewing Tiffany Wong 9D Commended

Y9 Woodwork Jake Goodes, Jesse Naylor, Jay Arthurson

1st Champion

Y9 Woodwork Milad Hassan, Jordan Thanushka

2nd

Y10 Woodwork Connar Adams 10E Highly Commended Y10 sculpture Caleb Brown 10I Commended

YEAR 9 OUTDOOR ED – WILSON’S PROM CAMP It’s that time of year again! Year 9 Outdoor ED camp!

Weather Forecast: Cold and wet (But it was great!)

Activities: Surfing, bush walking and beach games

Meals: students to cook their own

Accommodation: Tents

Wildlife spotting: lots of birds - rosellas, lorikeets, galahs, kookaburras (some of the biggest kookaburras we’ve ever seen), possums and wombats

The year 9’s embarked on a wonderful two-day journey to the beautiful Wilson’s Prom National Park situated in the Gippsland region. While Melbourne was graced with wet windy weather, we were greeted with a beautiful sunny sky and light showers. However, this did not deter the student’s enthusiasm walking to squeaky beach playing beach games and exploring the wonders of this awe-inspiring place.

The first night was a night the students will not forget! After a glorious dinner of either noodles or spaghetti Ms Maudsley led the students through a night walk without lights or noise. This sensory activity enabled students to trust in their peers to lead them through a dark maze only stopping for the odd laugh, moving shadow or students wandering light at the back. Once out on the beach the sky opened up a gorgeous star-lit night full of shooting stars and glowing planets! After a frosty night, students awoke to the sky cracking open and producing one hell of a rain STORM! With a mammoth pack up after breakfast we met with our surf instructor Ash. It is hard not to share his infectious smile or love of the waves. Braving the chilly water the students were off like a frog in a sock, naturals in the art of surfing!

All-in-all it was a wonderful trip!

Tim Hooper | Outdoor Ed Coordinator

YEAR 7 BOYS STATE VOLLEYBALL After winning at division and winning the regional final earlier in the year, on Friday 15th of November, Jad Hanna, JV Vela, David Joseph, Joseph Maroge, Waka-Hakopa Brown-Rapana-Edwards and Zulfiqar Ali represented the College at the Year 7 boys State volleyball finals.

In the group stage, the boys beat Galen Catholic College and Daylesford Secondary but had a tough 3-set loss to Drouin Secondary, which meant we finished 2nd in group B.

In the semi-final, the boys came up against 1st placed in group A, Rowville Secondary (a volleyball academy school). Despite their best effort, the boys lost to Rowville in a close 2-set, hard-fought match.

The boys played exceptionally well all day and proudly represented the College and finished 3rd placed in the State overall, an excellent result. Well done boys!

Kellie Fallon | PE Teacher

PREMIERS’ READING CHALLENGE AWARDS CEREMONY & CELEBRATION I would like to congratulate the 76 students who successfully completed the Premiers’ Reading Challenge. The awards ceremony was an exclusive event and only the students who completed the challenge were invited!

This year, between January and August, students at Gleneagles Secondary College (that includes people who did and did not complete the challenge) read 3060 books! The majority of those books were read by the students who successfully completed the Premiers’ Reading Challenge, reading 2228 books! An amazing effort, well done.

There are many benefits to reading: reading reduces stress levels, anxiety and depression. Reading increases our knowledge, improves our memory and increases our vocabulary. It improves our ability to focus and concentrate and it allows us to exercise our analytical thinking skills. Reading gives us better imagination and writing skills and as we age, it can prevent memory and thinking diseases like Dementia and Alzheimer’s Disease AND… if you borrow your books from a library, it’s free!!!

Every student who completed the Premiers’ Reading Challenge was presented with a certificate and received a small prize in addition to a free lunch!

The first group of 21 students to be presented with their certificates read 15 or 16 books.

Ricky WONG Andrew STUBBS Zakir SARWARI Mohamed SABAWI Tarkyn RODEN Jonathan LIM Layla HYNES Muzghan HUSSAINI Shalisa HARRY Ali AKBARI Deshan RATHNAYAKA MUDIYANSELAGE Ajanthan MULLAIKKUMARAN Gihein MAHAGAMAGE Dulansa RODRIGO Toby WILSON Alecia TURVEY Thamadie PERERA Sadad NASRAT Jyotsna JAYESH Hamid HUSSAINI Manaakitia BECKHAM

The following 14 students read 17, 18 or 19 books.

Leah YAWNOU Lachlan SOCCIO Sameera MURTAZA Annie KOUTROUPIS-KARAS Haleema FAHIMI Anna BYELAN Rico BARCLAY Badreldin ADAM Sienna HASTINGS Savindi ATHUKORALALAGE DON Devesh KUMAR Jack CARTER Jordano VOLPE Latisha BOURKE

The following 20 students read between 20 – 29 books

Shiffa ASAD Kylie ANDERSON Navin KUNIYIL Manahil HAMEED Nadia AKRAM Isira EKANAYAKE Nadeeja RAJAKARUNA Zaineb AYDIN Sara TARIQ Savannah IRELAND Aarib EHSAN Oliver STONE Zac WILSON Lesley FAINGA'A Amra RIZWAN Zarin HUSSAINI Sara KAZEMI Carmen NG

The following 13 students read between 30 and 49 books.

Albert YOUNG Abigail COOPER Amy WILLIAMS Thomas NGUYEN Hafiz KAZEMI Somaya SARWARI Jemila SIMPSON Emma CALABRIA Stella CHANG Jenny MAYES Christy ALLSOPP Lucas NGUYEN Caitlyn TOPLIS

The following 4 students read between 55 - 65 books!

Raazin KANWAR Nargis MOZAFARI Teagan BATTY Visal PERERA

The following 3 students are amazing readers and read between 71 and 89 books.

Emily HILL Kuhu SHARMA Jason LAMB

Would you believe that these four students have read over 100 books! That’s over 100 books that they have read between January and August this year. These kids are simply super stars! The number of books they have read is jaw dropping! And they should be very proud of themselves.

Sahil YUSUF Rivith SENARATNE Naweed POPAL Nimisha KULKARNI

The following students were selected by their English teachers to receive a very special Premiers’ Reading Challenge Champion pin because the number of books they read was a challenge for them and they tried very hard. Well done!

Raazin KANWAR Stella CHANG Abigail COOPER Kuhu SHARMA Kylie ANDERSON Albert YOUNG Nimisha KULKARNI Zaineb AYDIN Anna BYELAN Caitlyn TOPLIS Lesley FAINGA'A Jordano VOLPE

The following students are our top 10 Year 7 readers and they each received a box of chocolates.

Naweed POPAL Rivith SENARATNE Sahil YUSUF Jason LAMB Emily HILL Visal PERERA Teagan BATTY Nargis MOZAFARI Lucas NGUYEN Christy ALLSOPP

IMPORTANT DATES

Tuesday 3 December Yr 7 2020 – SEAL Orientation Day Yr 9 Exams Begin

Friday 6 December Yr 9 Exams Finish Yr 10 > 11 Transition Finishes Yr 11 > 12 Transition Finishes

Monday 9 December Yr 9 More Than A Score Program Yr 7 Summer Concert Leadership Coaching Day 1

Tuesday 10 December Yr 9 More Than A Score Program Yr 7 Large Feeder Schools Orientation Day

Wednesday 11 December Yr 9 More Than A Score Program Strings Festival in conjunction with Bendigo Secondary College Leadership Coaching Day 2

Thursday 12 December Yr 9 More Than A Score Program End of Year Activities

Friday 13 December End of Year Activities

Monday 16 December End of Year Activities – Celebration Day Presentation Night

Tuesday 17 December Special Programs

Wednesday 18 December Special Programs

Thursday 19 December Special Programs

Friday 20 December Special Programs

SCHOOL HOLIDAYS

GLENEAGLES SECONDARY COLLEGE MOBILE PHONE POLICY

Purpose

To explain to our school community the Victorian Department of Education and Gleneagles Secondary Colleges’ policy requirements and expectations relating to students’ use of mobile phones during school hours.

Scope

This policy applies to:

1. All students at Gleneagles Secondary College and,

2. Students’ personal mobile phones brought onto school premises during school hours, including recess and lunchtime.

Definition: A mobile phone is a telephone with access to a cellular (telecommunication) system, with or without a physical connection to a network.

Policy

Gleneagles Secondary College understands that students may bring a personal mobile phone to school, particularly if they are travelling independently to and from school.

At Gleneagles Secondary College:

• Students who choose to bring mobile phones to school must have them switched off and securely stored during school hours

• Exceptions to this policy may be applied if certain conditions are met (see below for further information)

• When emergencies occur, parents or carers should reach their child by calling the school’s office.

Personal mobile phone use

In accordance with the Department’s Mobile Phones Policy issued by the Minister for Education, personal mobile phones must not be used at Gleneagles Secondary College during school hours, including lunchtime and recess, unless an exception has been granted.

Where a student has been granted an exception, the student must use their mobile phone for the purpose for which the exception was granted, and in a safe, ethical and responsible manner.

Secure storage

Mobile phones owned by students at Gleneagles Secondary College are considered valuable items and are brought to school at the owner’s (student’s or parent/carer’s) risk. Students are encouraged not to bring a mobile phone to school unless there is a compelling reason to do so. Please note that Gleneagles Secondary College does not have accident insurance for accidental property damage or theft. Students and their parents/carers are encouraged to obtain appropriate insurance for valuable items. Refer to the Gleneagles Secondary College Personal Property Policy and/or the Department’s Personal Goods policy.

Where students bring a mobile phone to school, Gleneagles Secondary College will provide secure storage. Secure storage is storage that cannot be readily accessed by those without permission to do so. At Gleneagles Secondary College students are required to store their phones in their lockers or handed into the school administration office to be placed in a lockable cupboard.

Enforcement

Students who use their personal mobile phones inappropriately at Gleneagles Secondary College will have it confiscated and securely stored within the relevant Sub School office and may be issued with consequences consistent with our school’s existing student wellbeing and engagement policy.

At Gleneagles Secondary College inappropriate use of mobile phones is any use during school hours, unless an exception has been granted, and particularly use of a mobile phone:

• in any way that disrupts the learning of others

• to send inappropriate, harassing or threatening messages or phone calls

• to engage in inappropriate social media use including cyber bullying

• to capture video or images of people, including students, teachers and members of the school community without their permission

• to capture video or images in the school toilets, changing rooms, swimming pools and gyms

• during exams and assessments

Exceptions

Exceptions to the policy:

• may be applied during school hours if certain conditions are met, specifically,

o Health and wellbeing-related exceptions; and

o Exceptions related to managing risk when students are offsite.

• can be granted by the principal, or by the teacher for that class, in accordance with the Department’s Mobile Phones Policy.

The three categories of exceptions allowed under the Department’s Mobile Phones Policy are:

1. Learning-related exceptions

Specific exception Documentation

For specific learning activities (class-based exception) Gleneagles Secondary College will not be permitting the use of mobile phones for specific learning activities

For students for whom a reasonable adjustment to a learning program is needed because of a disability or learning difficulty

Individual Learning Plan, Individual Education Plan

2. Health and wellbeing-related exceptions

Specific exception Documentation

Students with a health condition Student Health Management Plan, Student Safety Plan or Individual Education Plan

Students who are Young Carers Compass Student Profile

3. Exceptions related to managing risk when students are offsite

Specific exception Documentation

Travelling to and from excursions Risk assessment planning documentation and / or consent forms

Students on excursions and camps Risk assessment planning documentation and / or consent forms

When students are offsite (not on school grounds) and unsupervised with parental permission

Risk assessment planning documentation and / or consent forms

Students with a dual enrolment or who need to undertake intercampus travel

Risk assessment planning documentation and / or consent forms

Where an exception is granted, the student can only use the mobile phone for the purpose for which it was granted.

Camps, excursions and extracurricular activities

Gleneagles Secondary College will provide students and their parents and carers with information about items that can or cannot be brought to camps, excursions, special activities and events, including personal mobile phones.

Exclusions

This policy does not apply to

• Out-of-school-hours events

• Travelling to and from school

• Students undertaking workplace learning activities, e.g. work experience

• Students when undertaking VET off-site

Related policies and resources

• Gleneagles Secondary College Student Wellbeing and Engagement Policy

• Mobile Phones – Department Policy

• Ban, Search and Seize Harmful Items – Department Policy

• Personal Goods – Department policy

Review period

This policy was last updated in November 2019 and is scheduled for review in October/2022.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding the Policy please contact me here at the College.