Month: August 2021

As Term 3 progresses, we enter a phase in which students in Yrs. 9-12 begin to select courses of study for next year and beyond. Subject selection advice and career counselling are pushed to the forefront of school activities. It is an unusual phase in which students begin to look to their future studies whilst having to remain grounded in the work requiring completion today.

In particular, students in Yr. 12 are making career-defining decisions about their post-school destination. It is a period during which many discussions between students, parents and teachers turn to choices around career aspirations.

In the last decade the workplace has undergone significant changes. It is increasingly digital and mobile, as well, there has been a significant shift to working from home. Many traditional jobs have transitioned to automation and digital integration. Increasingly, career pathways are adaptable and fluid. In the recent McCrindle Report on the “Future of Education” it was observed that “with an average tenure of two years and nine months, it is projected that today’s students will have 18 jobs across six careers in their lifetime.”

The challenge for schools is evident. How do educational institutions prepare students for unknown careers? What are the ‘essentials’ we should be developing in our students to ensure success?

In recent years, educational institutions have begun to talk about the balance required between core competencies and character qualities. In discussions around equipping students for success, schools must keep their focus on core competencies such as literacy, numeracy and digital skills, as well as character traits such as initiative, adaptability and persistence. There is a tension between skills development and character development. What is more important for success, skills or character? The answer is: both are of utmost importance.

How is this balance achieved? For students, the task remains the same: focus on classroom work and the development of sound academic skills; and connect with one or more of the co-curricular opportunities on offer (sport teams, drama productions, debating, Service Learning). In the middle of discussions around subject combinations and career options, doing the basic job in front of you is the best way to success.

Stephen Meagher (Deputy Head of Secondary)

YEAR 12 GEOGRAPHY FIELDWORK

The Year 12 Geography class (minus a couple who couldn’t make the trip) took part in some fieldwork last week. We explored Subiaco and  Joondalup as part of their study of Transit Oriented Developments and also visited Suez’s Resource Recovery Facility in Neerabup where they got to see the behind the scenes process of sorting organic material from the actual rubbish that finds its way into landfill. As you can see from some of the pics, some of the components are very large.

Mark Batten

HAVE SUM FUN MATHS COMPETITION

Once again, St Stephen’s School Carramar hosted the Frank Drysdale Secondary Interschool Numero® Challenge Northern heats. The competition involves competing against schools across the Perth and Bunbury region in the problem solving game of Numero. The game Numero involves using all sorts of mathematical operations (including fractions and indices) to create a chosen number and win as many cards as possible. The competition ranges from completing a best take (getting the most cards) individually and as a team, then includes some very intense one on one games. The competition ends with a ‘Scramble’ which involves completing a top take move but also tag teaming to run and get their moves on the board for everyone to see. Our students smashed the heats, with St Stephen’s School Carramar qualifying two teams (The max we are allowed). Even though we didn’t win the finals, the students had a ball and were complemented highly on their attitudes and manners. Well done to all involved!

Mrs Ashley Bell

LOST PROPERTY

If your child has LOST a jacket, jumper, water bottle or any other item, please ask them to check each of the House lost property areas and the Gym.

Note: if their belongings are not labelled they could be in any of the lost property locations so please ask them to check all areas.

Please LABEL their belongings especially all UNIFORM items.

Dear Parents and Carers,

You would be aware that, as a School, we have committed to becoming more culturally aware regarding indigenous culture and history and are being quite strategic over the coming months as to how we address this in our 2022 – 2024 Strategic Plan. As Sharon Davis, an aboriginal woman from both Bardi and Kija peoples of the Kimberley, comments:

“With many of today’s youth growing up to be tomorrow’s health workers, politicians, law makers, educators and policy architects, a racially literate and culturally responsive education is crucial for both Indigenous and non-Indigenous children”.

 As part of this, we put a special focus on our NAIDOC Week celebrations and activities last week and enjoyed many events and learning opportunities which were communicated to each other in our assembly on Friday. Commencing with a P – 12 ‘Welcome to Country’ delivered by Maitland Hill, an aboriginal elder with whom the School has developed a partnership with, over the next four days the students at the various year levels learnt about such things as:

• The 6 Noongar seasons
• Constitutional Recognition
• Indigenous symbols
• Understanding native plant life
• Contemporary aboriginal art
• Stories from the Dreamtime
• Cooking with native herbs
• Famous sports people like Lionel Rose, Cathy Freeman and the Ella brothers

Thank you to all staff for their enthusiasm and commitment to the week and the plans for the future.

God bless

Brett Roberts

Head of Campus – Carramar

YEAR 11 & 12 THRIFT BALL

On Friday night, Year 11’s and 12’s attended the ‘Thrift Ball’. Students were tasked with coming in clothes purchased from the Salvos/Vinnies and to keep the spend to a minimum. It was a great night and included playing lots of retro games. Money from the event was raised for our Kimberley Service Learning partners.

Mark Batten

SENIOR GIRLS NETBALL

Our Senior girls netball team played off in the round of 16 final of the ACC competition today against Sacred Heart. The girls put in a fantastic effort but Sacred Heart were just a but too strong for us today. The future looks very bright for St Stephen’s Carramar as all but 3 of our players were in year 10!!!! Watch this space, there are very good things to come.

Adam Dwyer

DRAMA WORK EXPERIENCE INTENSIVE WITH BLACK SWAN

Five students from Year 11/12 Senior Drama (along with 20 students from other schools) attended a Drama Work Experience Intensive with Black Swan Theatre that ran over two days in the holidays.

Activities included; A tour of His Majesty’s Theatre, hearing Artistic Director Clare Watson share her journey as Artistic Director and Co-Director of York, Zoë Atkinson shared her process and design for York together with an informative history of design, Literary Director – Polly Low guided students through the process of writing for stage with “stories of place”, which was explored further with devisor Andrew Sutherland on the following day.

The highlight of the two days was attending a matinee performance of York. Set in and around an abandoned hospital in the township of York, on Ballardong Nyoongar country, this epic piece of truth-telling blends humour and horror to uncover the buried histories we have built over.

The students had a fantastic time and feel they learnt a great deal from spending two days with people who are currently working in the Performing Arts Industry.

Ruth Doyle

P.A.R.T.Y PROGRAM

The Prevent Alcohol and Risk-related Trauma in Youth (P.A.R.T.Y) Program is an injury prevention initiative run at Royal Perth Hospital.
The P.A.R.T.Y Program provides useful, relevant information to young people to help them recognise potential injury-causing situations and make informed prevention-oriented choices about activities. It is also designed to help them adopt behaviours and actions that minimise risk.

On Wednesday 28th July we took a group of Year 10 and 11 students to attend the P.A.R.T.Y Program. In order to completely involve the students in the experience of injury and recovery, the group was taken through the common course of injury and treatment of someone involved in a trauma, often due to risk-taking behaviours.

A variety of teaching techniques was used, including interactive lectures, videos, role-play, as well as tours of Intensive Care Unit and a trauma ward. The students also had the chance to meet some injury survivors and see first-hand what it would be like to be injured. Some of the aspects of the day was quite confronting and the students handled this with maturity & respect.

The students were very enthusiastic and involved themselves well in the days activities and we hope the program had a positive impact on them.

Katie Farmer – Nurse

PLANTING FOR THE FUTURE

Year 7 students in Science have been studying Australian plants and how Aboriginal people have utilised many native plants for food or medicine. The Australian bush-tucker project began with Mrs Corrigan’s, Mrs Smoker’s and Mr Hayward’s Year 7 students tasting and sampling a variety of bush tucker plants such as lemon myrtle, wattle seed, lilly-pilly, quandong and saltbush, to name just a few. Students had an excursion to King’s Park where they identified many of these plants growing in the park.

In celebration of NAIDOC Week, Year 7 students teamed up with the Kindy class to plant a bush-tucker garden full of Australian native plants. A great time was had by both the Year 7’s and Kindy students as they got their hands into the soil and planted out the little plants.

With all the good rain, a bit of tender loving care and the survival adaptations of these hardy plants, we hope to see this garden thrive for years to come.

Elizabeth Kirby