Senior School

VCE/VCAL/VET 

Term 3 is an exciting and busy time of the school year for Senior School students. It was wonderful to welcome our Year 11 and Year 12 students back to the College, and they have quickly adapted to the new social distancing and hygiene requirements. While the current restrictions have affected some of our school events, the students have responded well to the adaptations implemented by the school, such as the virtual assemblies at the end of last term, and are enjoying Senior School Home Group.   

 At this stage the GAT will be held on:   

We are working to ensure that there will be sufficient VCAA exam supervisors to ensure social distancing during the exam.  We will keep you up to date with any changes announced by VCAA. 

A reminder that the VCAA exam timetable is available on:  https://www.vcaa.vic.edu.au/administration/Key-dates/Pages/VCE-exam-timetable.aspx 

Year 10 students, whilst still learning remotely, start their Semester 2 elective subjects while VCE students consolidate Unit 2 and 4.  

At this stage the Year 10 exams will not proceed, a decision regarding the Year 11 exams is still pending. 

In Term 3, we will continue with a number of initiatives to maintain co-curricular events which are pivotal to the students’ learning and sense of connectedness. In particular, the process of Course Counselling through TEAMs, leading up to students selecting their 2021 subjects, will continue with virtual versions of the Year 10 Careers Expo. 

 2021 Subject Selection Program 

The process of Subject Selection for 2021 has commenced for Senior School students. The choices that students make at this point in their secondary education can have a great influence on their future education and many factors should be considered during the process. Such factors include career aspirations, aptitude and interest, Year 12 subject and tertiary course prerequisites as well as creating a program which allows for flexibility in future choice. During this time of decision making, it is important that students discuss their aspirations with parents. 

Before selecting their 2021 subjects, it is essential that students gather as much information as possible on subjects on offer in order to make the best possible decisions. All subjects offered at Mooroolbark College are described in the Senior School Handbook which is now available on the Website. Students are also advised to access VCE Study Designs which are available for every VCE study on the VCAA website and the list of tertiary prerequisites available on the VTAC website. 

Following from the Course Counselling of Year 10 and Year 11 students, students will be required to select their 2021 subjects via an online portal. They will then need to print a hard copy of their selections, which will be signed by their parent/guardian. There are many online websites to assist with student course planning. They provide students the opportunity to research university and career pathways and are designed to assist them in making subject choices with a greater understanding of the requirements of future careers and tertiary course prerequisites. 

This term, Year 12 students will begin the selection of their Victorian Tertiary Admissions Council (VTAC) preferences. Applications on the VTAC website will open on Monday 3 August.  Further details specific to each year level will be communicated via Newsfeed and emails. We encourage all students and families to check these regularly and to seek advice early if any questions arise. 

We welcomed back the VCE/VCAL students with a welcome video from staff, which was well received by the students. To our surprise the Year 12 students created a video themselves for the teachers, which was to let us how much they had missed us and valued what we do for them. All in all everyone in Senior School had smiles on their faces. Students on the whole adjusted very well getting back to face to face classes both in VCE and VCAL.

Here are some of our Year 12 students at work:

VET students were still engaging in Remote Learning in most subjects until the end of term. There were some exceptions for providers who have smaller numbers of students and were able to manage the social distancing requirements.

PATHWAYS

Pathways Advisors have begun the Career Action Plan interviews with the Year 10 students. An Insight questionnaire was posted on compass and this forms the basis for future group interviews which have been held via TEAMs (online). The Pathways team is currently revising our planned Year 10 Pathways day. We hope we will be able to interest the students with a range of presenters from various institutions via online in their Work Related Skills classes. A presentation by Jenny Roache on the VCE/VCAL & VET options available in 2021 was given to the students.

Planning is also underway for the Year 9 Pathways Day next term, the method of delivery still to be confirmed.

Follow up interviews are being held with Year 11 students who are reviewing possible changes to their subjects mid-year, as well as those who have applied to move from VCE to VCAL.

Jenny Roache
Senior School & Pathways Leader

 

 

We have entered one of our busiest times of the year for the Pathways Team, with students making some major decisions about their course selection for next year. Pathways sessions, Virtual Information Sessions and Course Counselling sessions are all happening during July and into August. The students should be continuing their conversation with parents, teachers, Pathways advisors and other stakeholders about their career pathways journey.

YEAR 10 PATHWAYS SESSIONS 2020: This year, the Year 10 Pathways Day went online and was held during the Work Related Skills classes at the end of Term 2. We were able to be in the classroom and watch the presentations together, on Microsoft Teams. Mrs Jenny Roache gave the students valuable information about the VCE/VCAL and VET and the upcoming course counselling and selection process. This presentation was recorded on Microsoft STREAM and can be viewed via a link on Compass Newsfeed.The students watched live Teams presentations from Deakin University, Richmond Institute of Sport and Kangan TAFE. They also watched pre-recorded career information videos, including those from the Victorian Police, the Australian Defence Force and from Collarts, formerly AusMusic. The importance of course pre-requisite subjects, for further studies beyond Year 12, was highlighted and we hope the students have already started their career conversation at home, with parents, teachers, Pathways advisors and other stakeholders.

YEAR 9 PATHWAYS SESSIONS 2020: The Year 9 Pathways @ Mooroolbark session was held on Tuesday 21st July. Students joined Microsoft Teams to understand the structure of a Year 10 course and the steps involved in the upcoming course counselling and selection process. A big thank you to Mrs Jenny Roache for presenting the information. We also heard from a past student, Samantha Jacobs, who shared her career journey and gave students some important advice on factors to consider when choosing subjects. She also emphasized the value gathering information from major stakeholders including parents, teachers and pathways advisors. We appreciate Samantha for participating in the session. Post school options was also addressed with viewing a short video on ‘A Day in the Life of a Monash University Student’.The session was recorded and can be accessed on MicroSoft STREAM. Students will also have access to a number of short videos on different occupations. These can be viewed via a link on Compass Newsfeed.The Pathways Team wish to thank Abbie Hansen, who stepped in as Pathways Advisor for Red House, while Mrs Keogh was on maternity leave.

 

THE PATHWAYS TEAM

Eva Woodward, Maria Pisano, Dannielle Keogh, Janet Whitby and Jenny Roache

VCAL

Students in our VCAL program have had a busy start to Term 3. Personal Development Skills focuses heavily on addressing issues in the community and designing innovative solutions. Classes are in the midst of organising a film festival focused on social issues in the community. All VCAL students (Years 11 and 12) have filmed a short video on a chosen social issue. The issues aim to change community perception and inspire change. Students have needed to adapt to the ever changing environment and find new and innovative ways in which they can deliver these films remotely to the wider Mooroolbark College community. Keep your eyes out for these on the College’s Social Media pages in the coming weeks. Students have also been busy learning about social connectedness. They identified that people in the school are feeling mixed emotions during times of uncertainty and are designing and implementing activities to increase morale, build positive relationships and boost student’s sense of belonging. Students are hoping to deliver these activities during morning Homegroup soon.  

Work Related Skills classes have been continuing to work on their Rube Goldberg experiments with great success. Students have demonstrated exemplary teamwork and leadership skills to create their inventions. It has been very pleasing to see students get back into some great hands on activities.  

Mooroolbark students are fortunate to have two senior pathways to select from, VCAL and VCE. VCAL offers a marvellous opportunity to integrate workplace learning with a formal VCAA Senior School Certificate, along with a VET Certificate being recognised Australia wide.

Mooroolbark offers three VCAL levels: Foundation, Intermediate and Senior; and each student participates in the following strands:
1. Literacy and Numeracy Skills
2. Industry Specific Skills
3. Work Related Skills
4. Personal Development Skills.

During this term Year 11 and 12 VCAL students have been working on creating one-minute videos on social issues that they care about such as bullying, racism and mental health. These videos aim to empower and amplify youth voice in an inspiring and engaging way. Students will be sharing these videos next term within the school community, and then entering them into the global competition – Videos for Change. If you would like to know about this exciting project, refer to:
https://www.videosforchange.org/competitions.

Whilst remote learning, Miss Burrows Work Related Skills class created a very clever and collaborative video that featured on the Mooroolbark College Official Facebook page.

Abbie Hansen
VCAL Coordinator