McKinnon Secondary College

General Assembly

27 February 2003

1200 students vote to give Mr Newton detention for forgetting to set up the hall for the assembly.

The national anthem

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School Captains, Saul and Carmen start the festivities.

The Senior Stage Band

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Haobo's solo

Mr Lawrence, Principal

Reporting on the year 12 camp at Phillip Island

Mrs Binnion reveals a secret about success. I want to tell you a secret. McKinnon prides itself on the number of Year 12 students who successfully access a tertiary course at University of TAFE. Last year 98% were successful. Despite these excellent results, however, one of the major difficulties faced by students at the VCE level is performance during examinations. - Lack of adequate preparation - Lack of revision Poor work habits in junior years are just some of the reasons contributing to poor performances by some students. There is also a lack of understanding by many students that the effort you put in on a daily basis is of vital importance in terms of your achievements. Some students are very overwhelmed by the amount of work at year 12 and "stress out" as such because they have managed to get by doing only a minimum in the past, but quickly realize this is not possible for their year 12 performance. Minimum work definitely brings about minimum results. Today I would like to impress upon you the importance of consistent hard work, at every year level. Many students become complacent about their studies; their work is disorganised and a personal best is rarely achieved. Many of you would have witnessed some sensational achievements by top sporting personalities. The commitment and investment of time to achieve success is a given by these athletes. The same investment of time is crucial for success in school. It's all about becoming the best you can be and doing the best you can do!! In your diaries there is a statement about homestudy. Each of you needs to recognise that it is essential not only to complete set homework tasks at home but also to invest time in revision and learning of material covered in class. As a guide (minimum) Year 7 & 8 students are expected to spend about 5 hours per week Year 9& 10 approximately 10 hours per week Year 11 2-3 hours each night Year 12 3 hours minimum This time should be for completing set homework, but also: - summarizing notes - reading - learning for tests It is very important that you realise the consequences of not investing this time to your learning. Lack of adequate revision especially for tests and exams remains one of the major problems facing students in each year level and impacting on their achievements. At McKinnon we have compulsory examinations at Year 9, 10, 11 and Year 12. Academic performance at each level impacts on what choices you have the next year. Year 9 - impacts on subject choices and whether you can undertake a VCE Unit while in Year 10. Year 10 - impacts on whether you can study a Year 12 subject while in Year 11. This gives students an advantage for their Year 12 results. It also influences what subjects you do in Year 11. Year 11 - performance determines which subjects can be undertaken for their final year. Year 12 - impacts on the Tertiary course they can get into. It always astounds me during interviews at the end of each year, when we review each students performance of Year 10 & Year 11 and some Year 9s and discuss promotion and course selection, how many students mention they didn't realise how important mid year reports and results were. You need to understand clearly, I am not only talking about academic performance, but also about the reports your teachers write regarding your contribution to the class and your personal qualities. Those are just as important. Reports will be written by the end of Term 2 for each one of you. You can assist to make these a positive reflection of what you have achieved rather than a list of things you have not. How can you make a difference to your learning and achievement: · Recognize you cannot succeed alone you need to work with your teachers. · Use your diaries well and be organised. · Submit all required work on time and in the best quality. · Work co-operatively with others in each class. · Revise at home consistently · Seek assistance if and when you are experiencing difficulties. You need to take responsibility and to prioritise your schooling. Understand very clearly the consequences of a poor attitude and lack of effort. Each and every one of you can achieve success if that is your wish. And that's the secret. It comes down to sheer hard work.

A short address by Ben about his recent athletic successes

Mr Corkill introduces this term's focuses: organisation and reflection Today I would like to talk to you about a program that we are launching this year in partnership with our feeder Primary Schools. The "Learn to Learn" program will be focussed primarily on all of Years 7 to 9, but the themes which will emerge, and the skills which will be taught, can impact equally effectively on the whole College. Many of you last year through your teachers had input into the development of our new learning framework, which our Learn to Learn program is based around. This term we are concentrating on Organisation and Reflection. Organisation is not simply being in the right place at the right time with the right stuff! It is about planning your time to make sure an assessment task due in two weeks actually gets finished, satisfies all the criteria, is the best you can do, and is handed in on time. It is about setting out your workbook to ensure everything is completed, in some sort of logical order, and of best use to you and your teachers when it comes time to revise. Reflection is about being able to think about what you have learnt, or how you have performed in an assessment task or whole unit. What went well? What needs to improve? What could you do differently next time? These skills of METACOGNITION are critical in improving performance in all aspects of learning so I would encourage all students to get behind the activities and initiatives their teachers will introduce.

Senior School Council report

Mrs Keenan introduces...

Orchestra leaders: Gaby and David Symphonic Wind leaders: Corryn and Daniel Choir leaders: Gaby and Andrew

The House Music Captains 2003 Chisholm : Heather & David Flynn: Astrid & Nisbet Gilmore: Amy & Toby Monash: Gaby and Dominic

Mrs Boglis reflects on the swimming sports

Mr Newton ties up proceedings.

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McKinnon Secondary College