Today’s schools increasingly are being held accountable for things, that in the past we would say, were ‘not our job’.

Most teachers, at some stage in their career, have been asked the question by their supervisors, ‘What do you teach?’ and woe betide the uninitiated who respond with ‘English’ or ‘Biology’ and so on, rather than with the expected response, ‘We teach children’!

Never has the partnership between school and home been so important, as we all try and make sense out of what today’s world throws at us in terms of the healthy development of the young people in our care. And it is so much more than the subject area content covered in the classroom.

Educator, Laura Candler lists key social skills as being at the heart of success in today’s world where team work and relationships are vital. This is her list:

Making the Most of Feedback 
All Year 10, 11 and 12 students have recommenced their classes this week following the examination period. When the students receive their corrected exam papers they will be very focused on the mark they have received. What they should also focus on is making the most of the feedback given by the teacher. This feedback will highlight what they did well and the areas that still need improvement.

To maximise feedback students should:

• Ask for help with areas they still don’t understand.
• Re-do questions they didn’t do well in the exam.
• Re-write essays and re-submit for further feedback.
• Re-do study notes if necessary.
• Consider study techniques and the changes that may be necessary in the way they study for the next exams.
• Talk to students who did really well and find out what they did differently.

Revision Courses
During the July school holidays a number of organisations run revision courses for Year 11 and 12 ATAR subjects. Revision courses give students the opportunity to revise course content, prepare for exams and learn to maximise exam performance and are presented by experienced ATAR subject teachers.

Venues include UWA, Notre Dame, Churchlands Senior High school, Perth College, Perth Modern and Rossmoyne Senior High School. Further information about the courses and how to enrol can be found at the following links: www.academicassociates.com.au www.academictaskforce.com.au http://www.teeconsultants.com.au

Year 11 2019 Information Evening
A reminder that the Information Evening for Year 11 2019 will be held in room 3.5 on Thursday 21 June commencing at 6:00 pm. This evening is for parents and guardians of current Year 10 students. The Subject Selection handbook is available to view under the Documents tab on SEQTA Engage.

The latest statistics tell us that around 940,000 young Australians aged between 13 and 17 years use social media. This is roughly two thirds of young people in that age category. We know from national statistics that about 1 in 5 young people experience cyber-bullying and this is supported by a recent survey of students in WA schools, which found that 1 in 5 students experienced bullying at school, with a majority of cases involving a component of social media use. These figures equate to around 60 St George’s students experiencing issues.

The consequences for children who experience cyber bullying are monumental. They can range from anxiety and social isolation to significant school avoidance, and at its worst, self-harm or suicide. At St George’s, we try to remind our young people as often as we can about the pitfalls of social media and the behaviours that are appropriate or not. Living by the THINK principle when posting is a good start to ensuring we all treat each other with the respect we deserve.