MELBOURNE HIGH SCHOOL ANNUAL REPORT

Transcription

1 MELBOURNE HIGH SCHOOL ANNUAL REPORT 2626

2 School Contact Information Address: Melbourne High School Forrest Hill South Yarra 3141 Principal: Mr Jeremy Ludowyke School Council President: Dr Alan Davies Telephone: (03) Fax: (03) Web site: 2

3 Table of Contents School Overview Context 5 Values 5 Principal s Report 6 School Council President s Report 7 Curriculum 8 - Curriculum overview 8 - Curriculum committee 9 - elearning group 10 - Subject coordinators 11 Years 9 & 10 results 12 - NAPLAN and the VELS 12 - Students achievements in mathematics 15 - Students achievements in English 16 VCE results 19 - VCE comparative ENTER and ATAR results 19 - Five year comparison of median scores for all VCE subjects 21 - Percentage of assessment grades for all VCE subjects 22 - Study scores of 40 and above 22 - Data interpretation of VCE results 23 VET results 24 Student destination data 24 Student Enrolment, Engagement and Wellbeing 26 Student enrolment 26 Attitudes to School survey data years 9 to Parent satisfaction survey 33 Student services 34 Student wellbeing 35 Health and personal development 35 Health centre 35 Careers and work education 36 Student leadership 37 Teaching Staff Report 40 Professional learning and professional contributions 42 Staff opinion survey 44 Teacher qualifications 45 Education Support Staff 45 Library 46 3

4 Facilities 49 The Millgrove Outdoor Education Centre 51 Heritage 52 Year 9 Involvement and Co-curricular programs 52 Music 53 Debating 56 Sport 57 Rowing 58 Army Cadets 59 Air Force Cadets 60 Annual Musical 61 Annual Play 62 Year 10 Community Service Program 63 MHS Old Boys Association 63 MHS Foundation 65 Parents and Friends (P&F) strategic plan 67 Financial Performance 70 Financial position Independent auditor s report 72 4

5 School Overview CONTEXT Melbourne High School traces its history back to 1854 and the establishment of the National Model School. In 1905, the School became the Continuation School, the first State secondary school in Victoria. It is a State-wide provider of broad, academic education for boys in years 9 to 12. The School had 1363 students in 2013, with approximately 340 students in each year level. Admission to the School is by examination with a small discretionary factor. A supplementary intake occurs at years 10 to 12. Students are drawn from a wide cultural and socio-economic background and from across the greater metropolitan and inner country areas. A diverse cultural mix remains a cornerstone of the School's character and success. The School is located in central Melbourne, in the City of Stonnington, and within the Southern Metropolitan Region of the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development. It is located at Forrest Hill, South Yarra, on the corner of Chapel Street and Alexandra Avenue. Melbourne High School provides a broad, stimulating, diverse and challenging educational experience of the highest quality to enhance the vast and varied talents of its selective-entry students, preparing them for academic, vocational, professional and civic leadership, whilst encouraging individual development and happiness. VALUES 1. MHS is committed to excellence by: Recognising and developing intellectual, academic, cultural and sporting excellence Providing inspirational and challenging teaching that is caring of the individual Appreciating its diverse and highly professional staff and their dedication to the expectations of the School 2. MHS is committed to tradition with a vision for the future by: Appreciating and upholding the traditions of the School's rich heritage Developing in students the capacity to adapt quickly to change and embrace innovation Developing in students and staff the capacity to confidently meet the challenges of changing technologies and global societies 3. MHS is committed to the development of the individual within the global society by: Challenging every student to achieve his full potential, often beyond perceived capabilities Promoting creativity, innovation, teamwork and leadership in its students and staff Supporting humour, inquiry, pragmatism, balance, optimism, resilience and lofty aspirations Developing within students their capacity for self management and self determination Honouring the promotion of care for others 4. MHS is committed to an involved and diverse school community by: Providing students, parents and staff with a sense of belonging to a community with clear goals Encouraging and expecting the involvement of all members of the school community Fostering understanding, empathy, cooperation and harmony within a culturally diverse school community Supporting social responsibility in a local, national and international context 5

6 Principal's Report This year has seen the culmination of many key initiatives at Melbourne High School. Every MHS student now utilises an ipad as an essential learning device in class and this has already had a profound impact on teaching and learning practices. Students are reporting higher levels of enthusiasm and engagement in their classroom work. The Class of 2013 is the first cohort to graduate having completed the new Health Program introduced four years ago. The broad focus of this program may explain the significant improvement in student satisfaction with the way in which the School has prepared them for transition to adult life. This expansion of the scope and ambition of a MHS education will be pursued further in coming years. At the same time the Class of 2013 has returned outstanding academic results with a median ATAR of being the equal second highest in the School s history. The acquisition of an adjoining property is a vindication of the efforts put into establishing the MHS Foundation seven years ago. The School is increasingly in a position to chart its own financial destiny in directions that would have been inconceivable a decade earlier. In this context it is worth noting that government funds now constitute less than 30% of School revenues. As a flagship for the public education system, the School is increasingly playing a systemic leadership role. The selective entry schools now constitute a vibrant and supportive network collaborating on a range of activities including joint research and teacher development and also combined student activities. Our special relationship with Mac.Robertson Girls High School has entered a new phase with the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the two schools and the offering of joint co-educational classes for the first time since The School has also formed a new partnership with local like-minded secondary schools. In 2006, the School community developed the MHS 2020 strategic directions statement as a blueprint to guide the School over the next fifteen years. We have now reached the halfway mark of that intended journey and it is pleasing to see that many of our ambitions and intentions have been realised will be a year of review providing the School community with an opportunity to reflect on its direction and progress to date and set new goals and ambitions for the next four years. 6

7 School Council President s Report The exceptional academic attainment of MHS boys and their energetic participation in the School s wide array of cocurricular programs confirmed again the value of MHS s broad-based education program. Highlights of the Council s activities this year include the development of a formal agreement with sister school, Mac.Robertson Girls High, aimed at increasing synergies between the two schools. Key joint activities include shared classes, marketing and promotion, and professional development. The important contribution of past pupils to the school was strengthened by the appointment of Old Boys to key committees of Council. The Melbourne High School Foundation assisted planning for the School s future by purchasing a contiguous property in Chapel Street. The property could potentially provide a home for the proposed state-wide Gifted and Talented Students Academy developed by the School. Council and its committees evaluated and contributed to major new education policy initiatives, including the Strengthening pathways in senior secondary qualifications consultation paper, the Parliamentary inquiry into music education, and the Towards Victoria a Learning Community action plan. Due to the generosity of donors, the school was able to advance key projects, including redevelopment of the library, the acquisition of a new 25 seater bus, and an extension to the Avenue of Sports Champions. Melbourne High School was active in planning for the development of the new rowing shed, improving pedestrian safety in the vicinity of MHS, and advancing the school s interests in relation to neighbouring sites. The School is negotiating involvement in two key educational research projects the Applied Learning project and the International Study of City Youth with the University of Melbourne. Council has approved administrative changes to strengthen the financial security of the school. Starting from 2013, invoices for core charges will now be issued at the end of the preceding year; invoices for co-curricular charges will be issued early in the subject year. The School continues to offer students a large range of sporting and cultural opportunities that play a key role in the long-run career and life success of our sons. This year the School maintained the tradition of working with Mac.Robertson Girls High School, jointly staging the annual Winter Concert and performances of Into the Woods and Androcles and the Lion. Parents make a vital and indispensable contribution to the School. On behalf of Council I would like to express my appreciation of the contribution made by parents through a diverse range of activities to the quality of schooling enjoyed by our sons. Council acknowledges the important work of the MHS Foundation. Boys currently at the school benefit greatly from the generosity of the school community. The School is also fortunate to enjoy a very close and productive relationship with the extensive community of Old Boys. Council recognises their important contribution to the school, particularly through financial contributions but also through activities such as the Mentor Program, Careers Night and their key role on the Board and sub committees of the MHS Foundation. 7

8 I would especially like to thank the Principal and staff of Melbourne High School. The ability of our sons to realise their potential depends to a very large extent on the expertise and hard work of the men and women who teach at MHS. We are fortunate that the School s fine reputation enables it to attract teachers of the highest calibre. The members of Council and its various committees Directions, Finance, Education and Resources also deserve thanks for their hard work over the course of the year. In addition, there are many parents, teachers and students who contribute enormously to the successful operation of Council. The members of Council in 2013 were Dr Alan Davies (President), Mr Ken Loh (Vice President), Mr Jeremy Ludowyke (Executive Officer), Mr Chris Ngyuen (Student Observer), Mr Bill Zhang (Treasurer), Professor Jeff Borland, Mr Jeremy Brand, Ms Jan Devlin, Mr Stefan Janus, Dr Johan Lidberg, Mr Ross Pritchard, Ms Sylvia Rodriguez, Ms Rika Teicher and Ms Annette Travers. I would like to express my appreciation on behalf of Council and the School community for the contribution made by retiring members of Council, Ms Mitzi Gilligan, Mr Krishna Padmanabhan (Student Observer), Ms Jan Tennant, Mr Geoff Watkins and Ms Jenny White. Curriculum Curriculum Overview The Melbourne High School curriculum is based on the expectation that students will have the ability and desire to meet the challenges of a broad education in a stimulating, supportive and competitive environment that caters for students intending to progress to tertiary education. The School is committed to developing intellectual, artistic, ethical and sporting excellence so that every student has the opportunity to reach his full potential and is provided with inspirational and challenging teaching that is considerate of the individual. The P-10 curriculum framework, the Victorian Essential Learning Standards (VELS) provides a framework for the years 9 and 10 core subjects. Unlike some other schools, MHS has chosen to cover all the major disciplines at both years 9 and 10 to provide students with the broadest possible education. In 2012, some preparation was made for the introduction of the Australian Curriculum with the AusVELS (the Victorian version of the required outcomes of the Australian Curriculum) in English, mathematics, science and history. These four subjects implemented AusVELS in 2013, while the other cores subjects continued with the VELS. It is expected that the second phase of subjects will be accredited for 2014 (geography, the arts and languages) and the third phase in 2015 (civics and citizenship, business and economics, health and PE, and technology). Subject disciplines prescribed in the Australian Curriculum are English, mathematics, science, health and physical education, languages, humanities and social sciences (history, geography, civics and citizenship, business and economics), the arts, and technologies (including ICT). In devising a whole school curriculum, the following general capabilities are to be covered: critical and creative thinking; self-management, teamwork and social competence; intercultural understanding; ethical behaviour; literacy; numeracy and ICT, as well as three cross-curriculum priorities: aboriginal cultures and histories; Asia and Australia s engagement with Asia; and sustainability. Melbourne High School continues to give students at years 9 and 10 the opportunity to select semester-length electives. Year 9 students choose two electives for the year from a possible ten. This choice is broader in Year 10: students select four electives, which may include two VCE single unit electives. The years 9 and 10 elective program is designed to enhance and broaden students 8

9 knowledge and skills before specialisation occurs at years 11 and 12. Core subjects in years 9 and 10 continue to provide a solid foundation for students to pursue any VCE units in year 11. Students are encouraged to select electives not associated with career intentions; rather, choices are encouraged to be made on the basis of enrichment and breadth. Other than the regular updating of VCE Study Guides, curriculum arrangements at years 11 and 12 remain unchanged. VET (Vocational Education and Training) continues to be a viable choice for a number of students. Further details about the 2013 VET program appear under VCE Results further in this report. This opportunity for breadth of choice in VCE studies, together with our strong VCE programs in English, languages, music, the humanities, the arts, commerce, mathematics, physical education, information technology and science, are important in giving our students every opportunity to develop their talents and achieve life and career goals. The School continues to review the subjects it offers each year and examine ways to further engage the students with new subject offerings, revised units or further development of the transition programs. Students in years 9, 10 and 11 and all teachers worked with ipads in 2013, purchased with the National Secondary Schools Computer Funding (NSSCF). Both teachers and students continue to explore how the ipads can be most appropriately used to enhance teaching and learning. Our first curriculum day was held on 15 March with the other three select-entry schools: MacRob, Suzanne Cory High School and Nossal High School. It is hoped that this will be an annual event. The focus of the day was catering for the needs of an academically select cohort. The guest speakers were Associate Professor John Munroe and Ian Burrage, executive director at DEECD. These were followed by workshops delivered by teachers from the four select-entry schools. Three of our staff delivered workshops: first Jenny Mill on why academically able students often have difficulty with their mental health and wellbeing ; second, Kerry Smyth on Learning to See: a model for lesson observation ; and third, George Marotous focused on a variety of strategies for beginning faculty coordinators. The second curriculum day was held at MHS on 30 October and was organised by our new leading teacher, Lynne Hamilton, who has been appointed in the role of Curriculum Development. The guest speaker was Ms Terri Campbell and her focus areas were: the use of research-based frameworks for questioning in the secondary school; investigating questioning strategies to improve student learning outcomes; exploring structures to facilitate accountable talk focused around questioning; and setting goals and directions for taking this learning back into the classroom. After the presentation, teachers had the opportunity to work in faculty groups on ways in which Campbell s ideas could be incorporated into our teaching practices. Curriculum Committee Several significant groups and individuals continue to help drive the School s curriculum initiatives and their implementation. The Curriculum Committee discusses and makes recommendations on such matters as VCE changes, VELS, the Australian Curriculum, AusVELS, courses at years 9 & 10, new subject offerings, curriculum days, assessment and reporting and ensuring the MHS curriculum strategic directions are implemented. The aims of the curriculum committee are as follows: - To act as an advisory group to the Principal on curriculum matters - To liaise with teachers and departments on curriculum changes and ideas - To review electives - To recommend ways in which the quality of teaching can be improved - To provide input into professional development - To act as a forum for the discussion of curriculum issues - To review the transition program 9

10 - To advise the curriculum development coordinator, the professional development coordinator, the elearning coordinator and the head of library of curriculum needs - To make recommendations when there are changes to the DEECD (currently VELS at 9 & 10) and VCAA (currently VCE) curriculum guidelines So that the curriculum committee is not a forum for each discipline to promote its own agenda at the expense and to the detriment of others, it is expected that members of the curriculum committee have a comprehensive overview of the curriculum directions of MHS, are familiar with the VELS, AusVELS, VCE, the Australian Curriculum, and changes to these, and have a commitment to work towards the development of the whole school curriculum. CURRICULUM COMMITTEE FOR Principal Jeremy Ludowyke - AP curriculum Janet Prideaux - Curriculum development Lynne Hamilton - Professional learning Allison Jenner (terms 1, 2 & 3) and Pelissa Tsilimidos (term 4) - elearning Adrian Janson (term 1) and Seamus Delaney (terms 2, 3 & 4) - Careers Annette Travers - VCE coordinator Rami Stiglec Heads of department: - English George Marotous - Commerce Joe Marotta - Biology Sonya Mulholland - Chemistry Ute Kreher - Geography Ray Pask - Health/PE David Veale - History (and politics) Michael Connell - Library Tania Sheko - Languages Jatni Rachmat (terms 1 & 2) and Elizabeth Briggs (terms 3 & 4) - Maths John Dovey - Music Steven Bowler - Physics Steven Draper - Psychology Sam Crocket - Science Peter Cogo - Visual and Performing Arts Mihaela Brysha e-learning Group The elearning group has continued its work supporting teachers in the utilization of ICT resources within the School and the continued integration of ICT skills into the curriculum. In 2013, the ipad program entered its second year, and at present all years 9, 10 and 11 have ipads. The funding for these devices was provided by the NSSCF (the National Secondary Schools Computer Fund - also known as the "Rudd funding"), but this source of funding has since ended. A decision had to be made regarding the future of this program. After an extensive survey of students, parents and teachers was completed, a decision was made to continue the 1:1 device program, with the ipad book listed for new students from 2014 onwards. This decision was ratified by the curriculum committee and School Council in August, The elearning group also oversaw a significant upgrade of ICT infrastructure within the school, in terms of hardware within classrooms, and internal and external management programs utilised within MHS. An external company was employed to undertake a review of all programs, with the aim 10

11 of rationalising and organising all the School s management programs into a more manageable format. The review was completed in December 2013, and a report to be considered by the elearning group and the school council will be received in the new year. Subject Coordinators The bulk of the work in relation to the curriculum is done by the subject coordinators, who lead the development, resourcing and establishment of the development of subject courses, assessment processes, and recognition of achievement in faculty courses and programs. The subject coordinators in 2013 were as follows: Art Mihaela Brysha Accounting Josie Belvedere Biology Sonya Mulholland Business Management Joe Marotta Chemistry Ute Kreher Commerce Kristen Hinchliffe Legal Studies Ian Dowling Drama Joan Morgan Economics Mark Kaderle English George Marotous Geography Ray Pask History and politics Michael Connell Information Technology Adrian Janson (term 1) and Paul Drew (terms 2, 3 & 4) Library Tania Sheko Science Peter Cogo Languages Jatni Rachmat (terms 1 & 2) and Elizabeth Briggs (terms 3 & 4) French Michel Loriot Japanese Masaya Fujino Indonesian Jatni Rachmat German Elizabeth Briggs Health and Human Development Olivia Doherty Mathematics John Dovey Media Michael Frencham Music Steven Bowler Physical Education David Veale Philosophy Ross Barham Physics Steven Draper Psychology Sam Crocket Visual Communication and Design Suelyn Watterson The overall role for subject coordinators is to lead the development, resourcing, establishment of assessment processes, and recognition of achievement in faculty courses and programs. They continue to work with passion for their subjects and are constantly striving to develop and enrich their courses. Melbourne High School is grateful for the valuable contributions that the members of the Curriculum Committee and the subject coordinators have made to the maintenance, development and continuous review and evolution of the central focus in the life of the students the curriculum. 11

12 YEARS 9 AND 10 STUDENT RESULTS NAPLAN The National Assessment Program - Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) assesses students at in years 3, 5, 7 and 9. The assessments are conducted in May, with results being made available to schools in late October. The results of these assessments provide a measurement of each student s capability at a particular date, and therefore reflect the cumulative educational experiences of students, of which their experiences at Melbourne High comprise fewer than four months. As Melbourne High School is a selective school, fewer students who are achieving at lower band levels enter the school at Year 9. Students at Melbourne High School are achieving, as to be expected, well above the state mean, particularly in numeracy. How NAPLAN data are used at Melbourne High School The NAPLAN data provide an indication of individual student s performance in specific domains, as well as a student s progress between assessments. As the NAPLAN results are released, the NAPLAN data are reviewed to identify which students would benefit from additional educational experiences to support their learning. Students whose results fall below the typical range at Melbourne High School, or whose progress seems less than the expected trajectory might suggest, are identified for additional support in Year 10, although such identification may have already occurred in the classroom. The Literacy Recovery Program is a resource that at risk students can access to consolidate their learning and receive individual attention, while the mathematics faculty dedicates resources to the Bridging Maths Program, which is designed to assist students with difficulties in mathematics. In addition, the mathematics and English faculties continue to cater for and address specific needs of all students. The National Assessment Program Scale describes the development of student achievement from Year 3 through to Year 9. It has scores that range from 0 to 1000 (called scaled scores), and these are grouped into ten bands (National Assessment Program Band 1 to Band 10). NAPLAN results use a scale that has an average score across all students of 500. The spread of scores has been set so that just over two thirds of students scores lie between 400 and 600. Table 1 below reports the 2013 NAPLAN results of Melbourne High School Year 9 students. 12

13 Table 1 Year: 2013 Below NMS * Band 5 At NMS* Above NMS* (* NMS = national minimum standard) Band Band Band Band Domain Total Students Band 6 Reading (1 abs) % Writing (1 abs) Spelling 305 (1 abs) % % Gram & 305 Pun (1 abs) % Numeracy (1 abs) Above NMS* Total % School Mean State Mean The results reported in Table 1 indicate that most Melbourne High students are achieving results in bands 8 to 10. NAPLAN results for Melbourne High School: comparison of 2011, 2012 and 2013 This section compares the changes in results of Melbourne High school students over the last three years. A comparison of the changes in results in Figure 1 shows the average (mean) results obtained by Melbourne High School students for each domain in 2011, 2012 and Solid lines (and markers) are used for the entire cohort, and dashed lines are used for students with a language background other than English (83% in 2013). Note that the scale used in Figure 1 is chosen to exaggerate the difference between cohorts by having the x-axis positioned at 600, rather than zero. Note that the NAPLAN results are scaled such that one third of students achieve a score over 600, while the national average score is 500. It should be noted that, like most measuring instruments, the NAPLAN assessment is less sensitive at the upper and lower extremes of the assessment where the bulk of these results lie. 13

14 Figure 1 Figure 1 indicates that Melbourne High School students performance in numeracy has risen while performance has remained relatively stable in spelling as well as grammar and punctuation. Reading and writing have seen a decline. However, it would seem from the data that there is little difference, on average, between those students who have a language background other than English and the cohort as a whole. While language background is likely to have at least some impact on individuals, the spread of results evident in Table 1 taken together with the alignment of results shown in Figure 1 suggest that individual differences between students are more important than any differences between the students of different language backgrounds. It is unclear from the data whether how much of this difference is due to natural variation between cohorts, the effect of an increasing number of Victorian selective schools, or changes in the entry testing. It is possible that an increasing number of students who are numerically inclined are choosing to attend Melbourne High School. Whatever the case may be, the NAPLAN data allows monitoring of trends in incoming cohorts. For all NAPLAN domains, the Victorian mean is above the national mean, and the school mean is well above the state mean. The majority of students achieve at Bands 9 and 10, with few students achieving below band 7, as is indicated in Figures 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5. The high level of student 14

15 achievement in NAPLAN supports the approach taken by Melbourne High School to offer a broad and challenging curriculum. A comparison of the results of students for 2013, 2012 and 2011 in each of the domains by band follows. For each domain, the results are first presented in a table. Because a histogram divided by bands would simply show most Melbourne High School students with results in bands 9 and 10, each table is followed by a density plot, which gives a better sense of how the results are distributed among Melbourne High School students. Density plots are an expression of the proportion of students who achieved any particular result, and are scaled so that the area under the curve is equal to one. Numeracy: results by Band of total achievement of students and % of students Table 2 Below NMS At NMS Above NMS Year Total Band Band Band Band Band Band Students % % % Above NMS Total % School Mean State Mean Table 2 shows that the vast majority of students are performing at the highest band level. Figure 2 below shows the band levels, but gives a better indication of the range of student performance as it is based directly on the scores rather than the bands. Figure 2 Figure 2 illustrates the range of performance of Melbourne High School students in NAPLAN that is not apparent by looking only at band level, and suggests a steady improvement in numeracy achievement for each successive cohort. Since numeracy skills are developed over a long period of time, this is likely to reflect a changing cohort rather than changes within Melbourne High School. It 15

16 is interesting to note that the curves shown do not appear to be truncated at the right hand side, suggesting that completing the NAPLAN assessment in the allotted time is a challenge even for very able students. Table 3 below shows the achievement of MHS students in reading over the last three years. Reading: results by Band of total achievement of students and % of students Table 3 Below NMS At NMS Above NMS Year Total Band Band Band Band Band Band Students % % % Above NMS Total % School Mean State Mean Table 3 shows the distribution of reading results across bands. No students were below NMS, and the majority of students were in Band 9 and above. As Figure 1 indicated, the mean score has declined slightly over this time. Figure 3 shows density plots of the reading results, which enables a direct graphical comparison between cohorts. Figure 3 16

17 Figure 3 shows the differences between cohorts in reading outcomes. The differences between cohorts are small, but consistent, and may be due to natural variation. These differences between the cohorts occur mainly in the distribution of scores within Band 9. Table 4 shows the NAPLAN writing outcomes. Writing: results by Band of total achievement of students and % of students Table 4 Below NMS At NMS Above NMS Year Total Band Band Band Band Band Band Students % % % Above NMS Total % School Mean State Mean As Table 4 indicates, in 2013 two students achieved below the National Minimum Standard, a situation that Melbourne High School teachers address through programs as described above. The school mean outcomes for writing have been steadily declining, even as the state mean has been rising. Since writing is a skill that develops over many years rather than over a short term, this is likely to indicate a change in the cohort entering Melbourne High School. Figure 4 17

18 Spelling: results by Band of total achievement of students and % of students Melbourne High School No 8025 Below NMS At NMS Above NMS Year Total Band Band Band Band Band Band Students % % % Above NMS Total % School Mean State Mean As in previous domains, the majority of students achieve within Bands 9 and 10. The number of students achieving at Bands 7 and 8 are small and relatively unchanging. Figure 5 shows the corresponding density plots of the students results. Figure 5 Grammar & Punctuation: results by Band of total achievement of students and % of students Below NMS At NMS Above NMS Year Total Band Band Band Band Band Band Students % % % Above NMS Total % School Mean State Mean

19 Table 5 again shows the majority of students are achieving outcomes at Band 9 and above. Figure 6 shows the corresponding density plots of the students results. Figure 6 Figure 6 shows how small variations in cohorts can affect apparent results. The bumpiness of the plot in the centre areas for 2011 and 2012 is likely to be due to random variations in scores combined with the relatively low numbers of students involved. However, the bumps at the right hand side of the plot are more interesting, as they indicate small numbers of students who are achieving beyond the level of their peers. Summary of NAPLAN results Overall, the NAPLAN results in each domain confirm that Melbourne High School students achieve at high levels, as might be expected from a selective entry school. Comparisons between years show that numeracy outcomes are outstanding and gradually rising. Literacy outcomes are also excellent in comparison to the state, while showing a slight decline in the domains of reading and writing. Differences between cohorts are more likely to reflect changing characteristics of students who elect to come to Melbourne High School and their prior educational experiences than they are likely to reflect teaching practices at Melbourne High School. Over all, the results support the existing approach of Melbourne High School faculties to offer a challenging and diverse curriculum. VCE RESULTS Analysis of VCE Data For each units 3 and 4 subject, a student is awarded a raw study score that ranks all students who have completed that subject in that year. Raw study scores are distributed along a normal distribution curve with the average (mean and median) score being 30. Students ranked in the top 0.03% for that subject are awarded a study score of 50. A raw study score of 37 ranks the student in the top 16% of students; a study score of 40 in the top 9%; and a study score of 44 in the top 2%. 19

20 mean^ median# standard deviation* State results MHS results ^ The mean study score is the average score achieved # The median study score is that in which 50% of study scores are higher than this score, and 50% are lower * The standard deviation is a measure of variation; the lower the figure, the lower the variation between scores The VCE results from 2013 show that the students from Melbourne High School perform significantly better than the state, with much less variation of study scores within the cohort. This data is consistent year-to-year. Scaling of Study Scores The study scores for each subject is scaled, not on how hard or easy the subject is, but on how well the students studying that subject went on their other subjects. If the students studying subject A went well in their other subjects, then subject A is scaled up; if they went poorly in their other subjects, then subject A is scaled down. Because of this, every subject is scaled differently each year. Below is a link to the VTAC scaling report, which outlines how each subject was scaled in 2013: 20

21 Five year comparison of median raw study scores for all VCE subjects studied Median Study Scores VCE Study Accounting Biology Business Management Chemistry Chinese 2nd Language^ Chinese 2nd Language Advanced^ N/A N/A N/A Economics English English (EAL) N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A English Language # # # # 37.0 French Further Mathematics Geography German 33.3 N/A 33.0 N/A 38.0 Global Politics # # # Health and Human Development N/A History (Revolutions) Indonesian 2nd Language N/A 33.5 IT Applications N/A IT Software Development Japanese 2nd Language Legal Studies Literature N/A 38.8 N/A Mathematical Methods (CAS) Media Music Investigation N/A N/A 30.5 N/A # Music Performance # # Philosophy N/A N/A Physical Education Physics Psychology Specialist Mathematics Studio Arts N/A N/A 33.5 N/A N/A Theatre Studies N/A N/A N/A Visual Communication and Design N/A 37.0 N/A N/A 38.5 N/A = class too small to calculate an accurate median (less than ten students) # = subject not offered ^ = external subjects not offered at MHS 21

22 Percentage of Assessment Grades: all VCE Studies (expressed as a percentage of all assessments excluding NA; NA as percentage of all assessments, including NA) Maroon = MHS; Yellow = All Schools School A+ A B+ B C+ C D+ D E+ E UG NA Description All Schools Melbourne High UG = ungraded; awarded to submitted SACs that failed to earn a letter grade NA = not assessed; awarded to SACs that were not submitted for assessment Raw Study Scores of 40 and above: All VCE Studies (expressed as a percentage of all raw study scores*) 22

23 Year All Schools Melbourne High School* Melbourne High School No * Data does not include subjects studied externally by students Data Interpretation of 2013 VCE Results The 2013 median Australian Tertiary Entrance Rank (ATAR) score of was the same as the median score of 2012, and is the School s equal second best median ATAR result. The differences between year-to-year ATAR medians are mostly less than 1 point, and the long-term data shows that Melbourne High School continues to perform well above the state average. The data for percentage of assessed grades shows that 82.3% of all grades awarded to Melbourne High School students in 2012 were B+ or above; almost double that awarded to the state as a whole (42.7%). This data reflects the effort that Melbourne High School students put into their SACs and exams. The data for percentage of raw study scores of 40 or more compares well with recent years. Melbourne High School students achieved 35.6%, whereas the all schools data show only 8.8% of Victoria students attained study scores of 40 or more. The large studies such as English, the mathematics and the sciences are strong contributors to the high overall ATAR mean for Melbourne High School. It is important to note that in the ATAR calculations, many studies undertaken by Melbourne High School students are scaled up, so many of the boys are achieving scaled scores well above 40 which are not reflected in these statistics. Comparing VCE Results across Year Levels 2013 Year 10 Year 11 Year 12 Mean Year 10 Media Year n

24 In 2013, eighteen Year 10 students studied an external units 3 and 4 subject, a figure that has been steadily increasing in the past six years. In this time, two Year 9 students have also studied an external units 3 and 4 subject. This is a worrying trend as both the mean and median results from 2013 show that students achieve higher study scores when completing units 3 and 4 subjects in years 11 and 12 (which is consistent with previous years data). This data support the new School policy of restricting Year 9 students from enrolling in external units 1 and 2 subjects, thus compelling students to complete all their units 3 and 4 subjects in years 11 and 12. VET RESULTS VET (Vocational Education and Training) continues to be a viable choice for a number of students. In 2013, 40 students did the following VET courses: Cert III Acting (screen), Cert III in Allied Health Assistance, Cert III Business, Cert IV Business Administration, Cert II Creative Industries (Media), Cert II Integrated Technologies, Cert II Hospitality (kitchen operations), Cert III Sport & Recreation, Cert III Laboratory Skills, Cert III Media, Cert III Hospitality, Cert III Retail, Cert IV Aviation Operations and Cert III Technical Production. This opportunity for breadth of choice in VCE studies, together with our strong VCE programs in English, languages, music, humanities, the arts, commerce, mathematics, physical education, information technology and science, are important in giving our students every opportunity to develop their talents and achieve life and career goals. Melbourne High School s Vocational Education and Training (VE&T) participation rate has grown steadily from 2.7% in 2007 to 5.9% in Our participation rate compared with the state is very low. Our completion rate, however, is consistently very high ranging from 97.5% in 2013 to 100% in 2011, 2010, 2009, 2007 and 2006 surpassing the state average. The median VCE/VET study score achieved by students in 2013 was 38. Whilst the percentage of students engaged in VET at Melbourne High School is very small, including it in the curriculum adds to the diversity and choice of studies we offer. Those who take a VET study, report that they enjoy the competency-based training and value the skills that it gives them. Very few of the students continue the VET study at a tertiary level, but use it to gain employment to help support them whilst studying a degree course or have their VET as a pathway into a related tertiary course. STUDENT DESTINATION DATA YEAR 12 STUDENTS 2013 What happened to year 12 students on leaving school? This data has been sourced from the On Track survey of year 12 completers conducted in April and May of the year after they completed school. Note that, for example, the 2013 On Track survey which followed up completers in 2012 appears in this report as 2012 data. Also note that as this report is produced in March, and the On Track data is published in May to June, there is a time lag of over 12 months on the data in this report. Definitions of the categories are as follows: University enrolled - the percentage of young people who responded to the survey and were enrolled in a university course. TAFE/VET enrolled - the percentage of young people who responded to the survey and were enrolled in a TAFE/VET course. TAFE/VET courses are vocational education and training courses at a variety of certificate levels, mainly at Certificate IV and above. Apprentice/trainee - the percentage of young people who responded to the survey and are undertaking an apprenticeship or traineeship. Apprenticeships and traineeships combine paid work and relevant training underpinned by a training agreement. 24

25 Employed - the percentage of young people who responded to the survey and are employed either full time or part time that are not undertaking education or training excluding deferrals. Looking for work - the percentage of young people who responded to the survey and are looking for work and are not undertaking education or training excluding deferrals. Deferrals - the percentage of young people who responded to the survey and have deferred a tertiary place and who are employed or looking for work. Institution Number of Accepted Offers Australian Catholic University 2 Deakin University 15 Federation University Australia 1 La Trobe University 12 Monash University 126 RMIT 29 Swinburne Uni. Of Technology 9 University of Melbourne 113 Victoria University 1 MIBT 1 JMC 1 TAFE 1 Interstate Universities: 16 University of Adelaide 1 ANU 4 Curtin University 1 Griffith University 1 International School of Hotel Management 1 University of Queensland 2 University of Southern Queensland 1 James Cook University 5 Overseas Universities: 3 Oxford (UK) 1 Yale (Singapore) 1 NYU (USA) 1 Apprenticeships 1 Employment 2 ADF 1 Other: VCE (2), Brighton Bay Art & Design 3 Total

26 Student Enrolment, Engagement and Wellbeing STUDENT ENROLMENT Melbourne High School continues to attract a geographically and socially diverse range of applicants for entry into all year levels. Admission to the School is by examination with a small discretionary factor. A supplementary intake occurs at years 10 to12. Students apply from the greater metropolitan Melbourne, country Victoria, interstate and overseas. Year 9 remains the main entry level to MHS. In 2013, 308 places were available at year 9. There are four select entry schools in Victoria and for the fifth time the entrance examination was managed by the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development. For the tenth year in a row, the exam was conducted at the Royal Exhibition Buildings and 2800 students sat the entrance examination for 308 places at MHS, 225 places at Mac.Robertson Girls High School, 200 places at Nossal High School and 200 places at Suzanne Cory High School. Of the 2800 students who sat the entrance exam for entry at year 9, 1215 selected MHS as first preference, 990 selected MacRob as first preference, 339 selected Nossal High as first preference, and 648 selected Nossal High as second preference, 256 selected Suzanne Cory High as first preference and 460 selected Suzanne Cory High as second preference. The above data is similar to last year, in which 2918 students sat the entrance examination. Of these, 1357 selected MHS as first preference, 1131 selected MacRob as first preference, 302 selected Nossal High as first preference, and 128 selected Suzanne Cory High as second preference saw the eighth entry of a significant intake at year 10, with 30 students enrolled. This has been a successful process and will continue to see the year 9 enrolment reduced by 28 every second year to accommodate this change. Again, we conducted an academic abilities assessment test at MHS in July for the 197 candidates, who also submitted a written application. Short listing and interviews then took place. The overall School enrolment remains consistent with only slight variations in numbers from year to year. Total enrolments in the five preceding years are as follows: students students students students students students students 26

27 ATTITUDES TO SCHOOL SURVEY DATA (YEARS 9 TO 12) Years 9 to 12 students are asked to complete an attitudes to school survey each year. The following sets of questions are asked on three general areas: wellbeing; teaching and learning; and student relationships. 27

28 As the results below indicate, Melbourne High School is above the State mean in all areas and the trends remain consistent. DATA FOR EACH YEAR LEVEL FROM ATTITUDES TO SCHOOL SURVEY YEAR 9 28

29 DATA FOR EACH YEAR LEVEL FROM ATTITUDES TO SCHOOL SURVEY YEAR 10 Melbourne High School No

30 DATA FOR EACH YEAR LEVEL FROM ATTITUDES TO SCHOOL SURVEY YEAR 11 Melbourne High School No

31 DATA FOR EACH YEAR LEVEL FROM ATTITUDES TO SCHOOL SURVEY YEAR 12 Melbourne High School No

32 32

33 Both the MHS student survey and Attitude to School data continue to show that students are highly engaged in schooling and closely connected to both the School and their own peers. At years 9 and 10, patterns of attendance stand in contrast to state wide patterns of low attendance. At senior levels, the attendance rates are slightly lower than at years 9 and 10, but still higher than state-wide rates. MHS retention data consistently shows extremely low attrition rates. University entrance persists in being the overwhelming aspiration and destination for all students, with the great majority of students gaining places in their preferred field of further study. Our students continue to pursue an unusually diverse range of tertiary courses with Melbourne and Monash Universities remaining the chosen destination for over two-thirds of our students. PARENT SATISFACTION SURVEY In a survey parents are asked to what extent they agree with the statement "Overall, I am satisfied with the education my child receives from their school". The results are shown on a scale where 1 = strongly disagree and 7 = strongly agree. The mean score is reported. Melbourne High School figures continue to indicate a very high level of parent approval in all categories: school improvement, approachability, teacher morale, parent input, stimulating learning, behaviour management, reporting, learning focus, transitions, extra curricula, homework, general satisfaction, student safety, class room behaviour, connectedness to peers, student motivation, social skills and school connectedness. When compared to the State mean, MHS performs above the mean in all of the above areas as shown in the graph below. 33

34 STUDENT SERVICES The personal development of our students is an integral part of their academic success. The student services staff members work in close collaboration with individual teachers, student learning coordinators, assistant principals and the Principal. Student services at Melbourne High School involve a comprehensive variety of support for students: careers counselling, emotional and psychological support, health education care and personal development and goal setting. The student services team includes the student wellbeing coordinator, school nurse, pastoral care coordinator, careers and work experience coordinators, school psychologist and the DEECD educational psychologist. With this talented range of people, the breadth of support we are able to offer is extensive. Our highly experienced careers coordinator, Mrs Annette Travers assisted by Mrs Annabelle Yeaman, encourage our years 10, 11 and 12 students to explore and then determine their career path and future work goals. We thank them for their vital work in making sure that career options are seriously considered and that all details relating to the VCE and course selection are followed. The whole student body is supported in their emotional, social and psychological development by the student services staff: student wellbeing coordinator Mrs Jennifer Mill, personal development coordinator, Mr AJ Masefau, educational psychologist, Ms Harpreet Kaur, and nurse, Ms Lisa Way. In November the school appointed Ms Cecilia Martin, psychologist, to the student services team and we look forward to her involvement with our students over the coming years. The School has continued to offer the services of external psychologists and youth workers, Ms Betty Chetcuti, Mr Noah Ariel and Mr Greg Asher, to the array of counselling providers our students are able to access. The high volume of students who request help from the student services team is testament to the value students and families place on this support. The team enables students to take time to work through their concerns, and then liaise with the individual student learning coordinators, form teachers and 34

35 parents as needed. The work of the student services staff is always done with the highest level of professionalism, empathy and confidentiality. It is reassuring to know our students have the support of such a thorough team. STUDENT WELLBEING Individual and group counselling sessions are provided by the student services department. These confidential sessions, and the associated support provided by student learning coordinators, class and form teachers, are the key to assisting the students. Whilst respecting the students privacy, and working with the young person s permission, staff members enable the young person to set goals and work towards experiencing success. A team approach is vital in supporting students to work towards achieving these goals. Parents and carers are an essential part of the process, and are able to provide the link of consistency and continuity of care between home and school. At all times, student services staff are conscious of 'duty of care' to our students in the exchange of information and the needs for confidentiality. Regular contributions to OURS from the student services team provide information to the School community on a range of wellbeing topics, welfare programs and seminars that are currently available. A wide range of information is provided including, but not limited to: wellbeing tips and advice for students and parents, a wide range of access numbers for support agencies, and promotion of events and information sessions relevant to young people and their parents. To assist families in their transition into MHS, a parent and student transition support pack is provided to each Year 9 family early in Term 1. This contains information on managing academic expectations, networking, school attendances, bullying and cyber issues, child and adolescent mental health information and relevant support agencies and their contact details. The Year 10 HeadSmart program provides students with education and awareness of depression and the importance of developing appropriate help-seeking skills when they feel their wellbeing is compromised. It also aims to promote understanding and reduce stigma associated with mental health issues. Other programs being offered through student services have included study and time management, anxiety and stress awareness and coping strategies, relaxation practice, conflict resolution, grief counselling and personal growth programs. Parent evenings targeting digital technology and ways parents can assist their son in his goals have been presented with the assistance of the department. HEALTH AND PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT AJ Masefau, as the health and personal development coordinator, continues to improve the health and personal development unit taught to the Year 9 students. AJ is responsible for coordinating the annual mother and son night held in Term 3, which was well attended, and many positive responses to the evening have been voiced by both mothers and sons. AJ is involved in providing one on one counselling and life skills coaching with students to assist them in their passage to becoming confident, resilient young men. He works closely with Year 11 mentor students in their liaison with our Year 9 classes to support and encourage them in their development as positive role models for our younger students. HEALTH CENTRE The Health Centre remains a busy part of the School community with many students presenting for assistance each day. Lisa Way as the School s nurse is a vital member of the student services team. Presentations to the health centre cover the breadth of physical and mental health issues, which are either managed within the School or referred to outside practitioners. Reinforcing the team approach adopted by student services, regular referrals are made to the student wellbeing coordinator, School psychologist and student learning coordinators. Duties carried out by the nurse, 35

36 on top of the provision of medical care, include, organizing influenza immunizations and first aid updates for the staff, coordination and assistance with years 9 and 10 immunizations, and, most importantly, being there to listen. CAREERS AND WORK EDUCATION 2013 was a busy year in careers. The careers centre has been well patronised by students keen to find out about careers and courses local, interstate and overseas. The Careers Centre offers students a great range of literature provided by tertiary institutions as well as an opportunity to research information via programs available at school and online. The career education program for Year 10 took place throughout terms 1, 2 and 3. Students had the opportunity to develop greater self-awareness and explore a wide variety of career options. Each student also met with a careers practitioner for a one on one session. This will hopefully enable boys to select VCE subjects based on their abilities and interests, as well as necessary prerequisite subjects for tertiary courses being contemplated. Students developed an electronic careers folder which they used in each term. Year 12 students attended the annual tertiary information service event at the University of Melbourne in May and VTAC briefings were held in Term 3. This year thorough use was made of EBulletins on MHS Connect which proved successful in reaching the students with the latest careers information. All Year 12 students had an individual careers interview as part of their exit procedure. To streamline the booking system the PTO program was used for booking interviews. The work experience program has continued to provide valuable opportunities for students in a variety of work environments, allowing students to learn new skills, become aware of the demands of specific occupations and explore possible career options. Work experience also aims to develop students organisation and planning skills and to improve their communication and interpersonal skills. Every year it is a challenging task to find placements for over 300 students. The smooth running of the program would not have been possible without the excellent administrative assistance from Mrs Annabelle Yeaman. Throughout the year, interested students in years 9 to 12 have had a number of opportunities to attend a variety of industry programs and university industry specific career days. Programs included areas such as business, IT, marketing, health and engineering. These programs offer students an excellent opportunity to explore industries and courses that they are contemplating working in. A highlight of the year is always the Careers Night held in May. The presence of representatives from Victorian and interstate universities, as well as well as the ADF and GAP programs, complemented the information given by the presenters, making the evening jam-packed with worthwhile and current information. The Old Boys Association lunchtime careers talks, which took place in Semester 1, were exceedingly successful this year with 10 seminars on offer. The Old Boys Association also conducted several evening presentations, which were open to the whole school community. We had a greater number of former students, who are currently studying interstate or overseas, return to school to share their experiences with students. There were a number of international university sessions, with NYU and the University of Tokyo making presentations at MHS and others taking place at other schools. Other events, such as, the annual Monash University and University of Melbourne visits, speakers from different industries and universities (including interstate), briefings for the UMAT exam and interviews, have added significantly to the preparation of Melbourne High School students for their futures. 36

37 The Parent As Career Transition Support (PACTS) program for Year 9 parents, consisted of three programs in 2013 with approximately 54 parents participating. PACTS is a series of two workshops developed to provide parents with up-to-date information about career transition. Parents who participated in the program appreciated the opportunity to share their experiences and learn about current career resources. They felt more confident in supporting their sons when making career transition decisions. Thanks are extended to all who have supported the careers and work education program throughout the year. This includes the MHSOBA, staff, tertiary institutions and individuals who have all generously given their time and knowledge to prepare Melbourne High School boys for life beyond school. Student Leadership Many students come to Melbourne High School having been leaders at their previous schools. Leadership often presents one of the early challenges of being a MHS boy, but having to work harder to achieve it. The School therefore places much emphasis on having many leadership positions and experiences available throughout the year. From 2014 we will be tightening up on boys having more than one significant leadership position, to allow more places to be spread throughout the student population. The 2013, senior student leadership team has been an impressive and closely-knit group of boys who have lead from the front. School captain, Aidan Biggar, vice captain Ryan Sambell and the SRC president and vice president duo Peter Le and Neeraj Limaye, maintained all the regular, expected programs while fine-tuning many other to ensure an efficient year. The now annual, joint, student leadership day between MHS and Mac.Rob was successfully held in term 1, with its equally successful follow-up Day 2 held during the term 3 holidays. This program, when put alongside the also now traditional term 4 Year 10 Cup, has added significantly to the links between the two schools students; and both were student initiatives. The Year 10 MHS and MacRob Cup was again held for all Year 10s on the first Wednesday of term 4. Half of each school s Year 10 students went to each school for a morning of friendly competitions covering ten sporting and intellectual activities. Mixed-gender teams were formed based on the shared schools House colours. It was judged another success and fine-tuning is in place for Our School captain and vice captain again organised the annual student leadership camp at Millgrove early in term 2. The senior leadership team, including the SRC cabinet, year level executives and current and previous junior School captains, joined several MHS staff for a weekend of leadership skills, discussion and planning. The SRC Student Voice continues to offer a real voice for the students via the SRC. Every major School Council committee includes SRC Student Voice representatives who are expected to answer directly to the frequent SRC meetings held throughout the year. Over the year, the School captain and vice captain ran five student leader lunches. Such groups as House captains, year level form captains, SRC Cabinet and representatives or cross year level leaders provided valuable insight to the School management about current student issues. The SRC cabinet of Neeraj Limaye (VP), Owen Pethica (treasurer), Philip Tran (assistant treasurer), Krishna Padmanabhan (secretary) and Phillip Luong (assistant secretary) along with the Year 12 37

38 executives (Bernie Chen and Gawesha Weeratunga) provided valued and dependable leadership for such popular and expected student events as the Year 12 Formal, the senior and junior socials, various casual dress days and the annual MacRob and MHS Cup for various competitions between the two schools year 12 students. They all provided much appreciated service to the student body. In 2013, the student body has had increasing input to the management of the IT student network throughout MHS. This work has received energetic drive and knowledge from Year 10 coordinator, Peter Wood, and Year 12 student, Matthew Wong. The MHS ipad app was perhaps the considerable outcome of this work. It has become central to the School s efficient use of the ipad technology, and a concomitant lessening of dependence on daily paper use. A major outcome of this work was the creation of an extra leadership spot for each form group within the School: the form IT rep. So during term two, a further 50 leadership positions within the student body were duly elected. The four Houses offer prized leadership opportunities including House captains, vice captains, House spirit leaders and House age group captains. In November, the four junior School captains for the following year are selected from around 80 who are keen to put up their hand. Once again, the four junior School captains and two Year 10 SRC executives worked with Mr Stewart Keat in the Lord Mayor s Charitable Fund run from the Melbourne City Council chambers. We thank Mr Keat for his voluntary time with this activity. The JSCs and the year 10 SRC executive also helped out with waiter services on a number of parent functions during the year. Each February, one Year 11 student is elected by the SRC as the voting student member on the School Council. This year Christopher Nguyen was elected and worked well as the student link with the Council and with the education sub-council committee. During the year, the Student Wellbeing Action Group (SWAG) organised a number of student support activities and are thanked for their efforts. Their term four one-day seminar with four neighbouring girls schools was a popular (and successful) event. Congratulations to Reece Hooker of year 11 for his work as SWAG president. The largest student leadership group comprises student elected form captains, vice captains and SRC representatives. These boys attend term one leadership training days where they take part in activities run by senior students as well as sessions given by invited commercial leadership training providers. Year 11 students provide two important modes of mentoring as well as gaining leadership skills themselves. Late each year all year 10 students are invited to nominate to be year 11 mentors for Year 9s the following year. In February, 60 are invited to do the day-long training, are assigned to each year 9 form and work closely with this group and Mr AJ Masefau for the rest of the year, centrally in the year 9 health subject. The day before their classes begin each year, another 60 year 11 boys are trained as Millgrove leaders after which each attends one of the Years 9 or 10 Millgrove camps as Year 11 leaders. The Millgrove report highlights the important role these boys play in the camp s programme. The various clubs and societies throughout the School have always allowed many students to pursue particular interests and concerns. Each group also provided leadership positions to help with administration. Examples of the various groups are PIG (Political Interest Group), SWAG (Student Wellbeing Action Group), FIG (Food Interest Group), the Heritage Society, Philsoc (Philosophy Society), Soul Power (break dancing), Rock Club, Baka Anime, GIE (Global Issues Education), SOFA (Same sex Other Friends Alliance), Indonesian Club, Jewish Students Network (Jew Crew), Students Alive, Public Speaking, Sentinel, Stage Crew, Strategy, Competition Writing, Theatre Sports and the 38

39 EAG (Environmental Action Group), Cyber Book Club, Peace in the Middle East group, Economics Club, Film Club, Habitat for Humanity, Reptiles Amphibians and Fish club. The School Army and Air Force Cadets continue to offer year-round practical and theoretical leadership experiences for over 150 students. The annual cadet parade once again provided an emotional and spectacular farewell to our senior cadets was the eighth year of the Ray Willis Leadership Scheme. This year s topic was to investigate the widely recognised topic of Australia in the Asian Century. The opening forum night in March welcomed Old Boy and well know media commentator and author, George Megalogenis. He gave an inspired address examining various aspects of this wide-ranging topic. With voluntary participation, around 18 cross-year-level project groups began six months work on a group project due early in term four. This year, ten groups completed this task and the four prize-winning groups presented their findings in T29 in late October. Each winning group again received $1000 generously donated by an Old Boy group headed by Mr George Pappas was also the eighth year of the MHS Old Boys Association Green Maroon and Black Club s mentoring programme for senior students. Around 50 years 11 and 12 boys were matched with Old Boys who gave them personalised mentoring relevant to the tertiary studies and/or adult occupations to which they aspired. This is another significant annual service offered by the Old Boys. We thank Old Boys Ajai Verma and Colin Green for their management of this program. The GM&B Mentors also host the August seminar. All year 12 students are invited to hear valuable advice from Kwong Lee Dow (former Melbourne University vice-chancellor on the tertiary leap), Steve Pilmore (executive officer of the Commando Welfare Trust on stress and time management), Jack Warhaft (GM&B and former mentor program coordinator on substance and alcohol abuse), Ian Wilcock (former state director, Victoria for the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade on living studying and working in another country), Professor Ian Gust (Department of Microbiology and Immunology in the University of Melbourne on the big picture), Richard Bluck (founding executive director of Leadership Victoria on communication and the importance of listening) and Mr Bruce Hartnett (past president of the School Council who has held varied high level public and private sector rolls on life balance and communication). A list of expected leadership skills would always include an ability to speak in public. Each year over 100 students are active debaters and public speakers was an exceptional year with all four debating levels (A, B, C and D) progressing to the grand final in the inter-schools competition run by the Debating Association of Victoria - something unique in the School s history. The School is fortunate to have teachers and past students willing to oversee these activities, giving up much personal time to ensure the students can maximise theirs. Thanks to staff members Mark Kaderle and Helen Bekos for debating, and Kate Crossley and June Johnston for public speaking saw the launch of the Junior Leadership Model, sponsored by the Old Boys Green, Maroon and Black Patrons Club. Inspirational addresses on leadership were given by Professor Jeffrey Rosenfeld, Mr Ian Wilcock and Brigadier David Saul to all Year 9 students as part of their years 9 to 10 transition program in December. This will then progress to a selected group of Year 10s attending fortnightly leadership sessions during term one. These are to be run by selected Old Boys from the years of During the year, students have the opportunity to attend many outside leadership seminars and events. Some that occurred this year are referred to below. Once again we had a number of senior boys participate in the Lions Club Youth of the Year competition. Students are assigned individually to local Lions clubs and begin what is hoped to be a series of knock-out competitions. An hour-long interview on a weekend afternoon in 39

40 front of a three-person panel, is followed by a mid-week dinner. Here, families can be present to listen to the five minute prepared speech and two two-minute impromptu speeches from the five or so candidates. From a win at this level, about 4-5 more knock-outs ensue to the national final. We had twelve boys participate this year. All students in Year 10 again participated in 3 hours of tin-rattling in the city as part of the annual Red Cross collection week in March. This year the boys again collected more than $30,000 from the city community. There was again strong interest in the various student activities run by the United Nations Youth Association (UNYA). It helps having a number of recent Old Boys in UNYA s management, but our boys remain regular contributors to UNYA s annual state and federal conferences, as well as their annual Thant debating competition. This follows UN style debating in which student pairs promote their allotted country s agenda in a mock UN general assembly. Around 400 pairs compete in the first round of this statewide competition. The annual P&F International Night (8 student waiters) The annual International Women s Day events (6 students) Red Cross School Blood Ambassador training day (6 students) students gave blood to the mobile blood bank visits during each semester The Stonnington City Youth Council once again had MHS representation on their youth council Students attended the weekend camp at the SAILAway camp for refugee immigrants at the Lord Somers Camp, which is run by Old Boy, Nick Tan Whenever leadership programs or opportunities are advertised in the daily bulletin or OURS, it is often the case of first in best served. Our boys have a healthy desire to be involved and to grab every opportunity to improve their leadership skills. It is the School management s aim to continue to be both inventive and proactive in providing as many leadership opportunities as practically possible. Teaching Staff Report An advantage enjoyed by Melbourne High School, which many schools do not have, is that as our student population is stable and predictable, and hence so are our overall staffing needs. Melbourne High School s effective fulltime equivalent teaching during 2013 was 86.8, although this varied from term to term. Similarly, the curriculum needs for staff trained in specific subject areas are also generally predictable. The offering of new elective choices at years 9 and 10, and the fluctuating popularity of the various language choices can cause some staffing difficulties. A strategy being pursued to deal with this is to look for opportunities where teachers have experience in areas other than their main subjects and in which they are willing to teach. For example, in 2013 we made use of the pharmacy experience of our Indonesian teacher, Ms Jatni Rachmat, to enable her to take a year 9 science class. With mentoring assistance from experienced teachers this has proven a great success, and further possibilities will be explored in This enables the school to use up what would otherwise be an under-allotment in a teacher s load, and has the potential to reduce our staffing costs overall. It has the added benefit of promoting cross faculty sharing which has been a focus of this year s professional learning program. Offering new subjects at VCE level, particularly at year 12, is not always so easily dealt with the popularity of the English Language course being a case in point. We were fortunate indeed that Ms Alexandra Grimwade was able to take on responsibility for all year 12 classes. The alternative would 40

41 have been to advertise for an external applicant, which may have resulted in an excess situation arising in English. If the subject continues to grow, any future English positions we advertise will also be tagged English Language to build up our teaching stocks in this area. Provision for part time staff can be a challenge, and the trend towards part time work as a preferred option, especially for staff returning from family leave, continues. It is the expectation of Fair Work Australia that all work places will facilitate family-friendly work arrangements; however, this poses significant problems for schools especially schools that focus solely on the senior levels, as does MHS. As indicated last year, increased class sharing arrangements can be expected; for the last few years experienced teachers of mathematics, Ms Paulette Lester and Ms Lynette Atkinson, have very successfully shared their teaching and form responsibilities, and this model may become more common in the future. The School will investigate ways of maximising the benefits to be had from team-teaching. The effective use of a learning management system (LMS) will be central to this. If, on the one hand, Melbourne High School enjoys the benefits of a relatively stable overall staffing, the very fact that so many teachers are happy to stay at the School for long periods of their careers creates other issues. The Department of Education assumes schools will have a mix of new and experienced teachers, and provides a global budget based on the average cost of a teacher as so many of our teachers are very experienced (which of course provides us with great benefits pedagogically) we are always under budget pressure. A solution to this is to take advantage of the government s provisions for graduate recruitment whenever possible hence the recruitment of Dr Simon Holcombe as graduate to fill a maths and physics position. (Our involvement in the University of Melbourne s MTeach programme has brought many dynamic graduates onto our books.). Another factor to be considered with an experienced staffing profile is that there will be a lot of leave, of a variety of sorts, which needs to be covered. Far from the staffing being set up at the start of the year and running unchanged through to the end, staffing requirements are in a constant state of change staff need to be recruited to fill vacancies, allotments are shuffled to ensure the most experienced teachers are used where they are needed most. Changes to the Department of Education s policy now means that all vacancies need to advertised state-wide and a full panel convened; with a vacancy typically attracting over 50 applications, this is a very time consuming process. The filling of positions is handled by Mr Andrew Sloan, the assistant principal in charge of teaching, while the resulting timetable changes are the responsibility of leading teacher, Ms Jan Devlin. New members of staff welcomed to the school in 2013 were: Mr Chris Moore (art and visual communications), Ms Helene Malavieille (French), and Dr Simon Holcombe (maths, physics). Returning to Melbourne High School from leave or stints elsewhere were: Ms Pelissa Tsilimidos (English, media, drama), Ms Lucy Pring (commerce, psychology), and Mr Evan Watkins (science). As a result of the state-wide advertising of leading teacher positions in 2012, two new staff joined us at the start of 2013: Ms Lyne Hamilton (curriculum development and English), and Ms Allison Jenner (professional learning, history and geography). Leaving at the end of 2012 were Ms Catherine De Boer (art and visual communication), Ms Lucy Smigielski (maths), Ms Noelle Collembet-Sankey (French) and Mr Simon Ryan (MOEC). During 2013, Mr Mike Yarussky (maths) retired, Ms Veronica Hoy (science) was appointed to an assistant principal position at Gladstone Park SC, and Mr Adrian 41

42 Janson (information technology) took up a position in the private school sector. We thank all of them for their contributions to Melbourne High. During 2013 the following staff took leave: Mr David Smyth, Mr Ben Davidson, Ms Di Ruffles, Ms Josie Belvedere, Dr Francoise Hobby, Mr Rob McComb, Ms Paulette Lester, Mr Len Bedier, Ms Annette Travers, Mr George Marotous, Mr Stefan Janus, Ms Libby Briggs, Mr Paul McGann, Mr Steve Huysing, Ms Joan Morgan, Ms Kaye Rawson, Mr Michael Sarbinowski, Ms Mihaela Brysha, Ms Allison Jenner, Ms Suelyn Watterson and Mr Curtis Bayliss. Ms Jan Devlin very ably replaced Mr David Smyth as assistant principal resources during term 2, whilst Mr Michael Connell stepped up to replace her as leading teacher: timetable and daily organisation. When Ms Alison Jenner took leave during term 4, Ms Pelissa Tsilimidos took on the role of leading teacher: professional learning. During term 2, Dr Rami Stiglec replaced Ms Kaye Rawson as Year 12 student learning coordinator, and Mr John Hart was recruited to replace Ms Annette Travers as leading teacher: careers education. The loss of Mr Adrian Janson in the middle of the year left a number of holes to fill. Mr Paul Wright returned from retirement to take his classes, Mr Paul Drew took on the role of faculty head for information technology, and Dr Seamus Delaney and Ms Amanda Carroll shared the role of leading teacher: elearning. Mr Michael Yarussky s retirement at the end of term 1 saw the return of Ms Lucy Smigielski to the maths department after only a short break. Other staff who filled short term positions during the year were: Mr Paul O Loughlin (accounting), Mr Joshua Slocombe (chemistry, science and maths), Ms Vanessa Stevens (French), Ms Josie Stephens (geography), Mr Keith Laing (English), Mr Martin Scheriech (physics, science, maths), Mr Glenn Membrey (P.E.), Mr Richard Edge (theatre studies, English), Ms Jenne King (geography, history), Ms Louise Miller (art), Mr Kevin Kelly (music) and Mr Angus Grant (music). PROFESSIONAL LEARNING AND PROFESSIONAL CONTRIBUTIONS Melbourne High School is committed to on-going professional learning for all staff through external and internal avenues. Staff professional learning plans (PLPs) have become an essential element of professional development for the teachers of Melbourne High School and take the form of an intensive self-reflection, embedded in data made available through on-line student surveys, peer observation of classes - affectionately known as TRIADS - and student outcome data, which now becomes evidentiary documentation for self-evaluation and measurement of teacher performance. In order to centralize all the relevant information relating to professional development, we have now created an internal database, which records all professional learning opportunities undertaken by staff. Each staff member is provided with a completed certificate at the end of the semester, specifying professional development activity. In our professional exchange program the emphasis remains on promoting cross-faculty idea sharing and as our TRIAD program continues to unfold, teachers and students recognize the cross-curricula qualities of the School and the connected bridges of learning. Such processes enable teachers to disseminate across the whole School, material and pedagogical approaches they have observed and put into their own teaching practice. The professional exchange program was also most successfully extended to students, who enthusiastically ran sessions for teachers, which was a most enjoyable venture for all involved. Perhaps one of the most successful and popular professional development procedures put into place has been the professional learning plan (PLP) interviews which enable staff to plan, reflect and offer contributions to teacher pedagogical practice and the School s curriculum planning. The professional 42

43 exchange becomes a valid and productive process. An innovation in 2013 was a two-day intensive professional development program for the leadership team, that is the principal class and the leading teachers. Held off campus, this aimed to create a sense of shared direction among the team, and was an initiative of Ms Allison Jenner in her professional learning role. A number of new directions came out of this successful enterprise. Further to this, Melbourne High School has developed a most effective transition program for new staff, providing a welcome day as well as ongoing support through colleagues, faculty and subject coordinators, leading teachers and administration. A detailed handbook containing an A to Z of the School s machinations also has become a fundamental implementation to allow for an easy and effective transition for all our new staff. Traditionally, Melbourne High School teachers have played a pivotal role in writing and editing text books, serving on executive panels as writers, contributors to, and reviewers of, new VCE study designs, writing papers for subject journals and other educational publications, presenting workshops at conferences and subject association professional development sessions. The teachers of Melbourne High School are also essential contributors to the Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) acting as consultants or researchers, and working with the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (VCAA) on VCE examination panels as chief and assistant chief assessors and markers. Below are just some of the contributions our teachers have made to education this year. Writing or editing of textbooks and articles Dr Simon Holcombe - The American Mathematical Monthly, Vol. 120, No. 8 (October), pp. 705 Mr Ray Pask All About Geography, Physical Geography Pearson, All About Geography, Human Geography Pearson Ms Tania Sheko - Why the fuss about content curation? Embracing social media in the classroom - are we in or out? School Library Association of Victoria Journal, Synergy. VCAA examinations 2013 Dr Seamus Delaney - Assessor (VCE Chemistry) Mr Andrew Sloan Assessor (VCE History Revolutions) Mr Blair Mahoney - Text Selection Advisory Panel (VCE English) Mr Drew Paul Assessor (VCE Further Maths) Mr Mark Kaderle - Assessor (VCE Economics) Mr Nick Fairlie Executive Panel, Assessor Trainer and Assessor (VCE English) Mr Ray Pask - Assessor (VCE Geography) Mr Robert Sette Assessor (VCE Chemistry) Mr Ross Barham - curriculum review panel member (VCE Philosophy) Ms Alexandra Grimwade - Assessor (VCE English Language) Ms Barbara McColl Assessor (VCE English) Ms Kate Crossley Assessor (VCE English) Ms Kaye Rawson - Assessor (VCE Biology) Ms Kristen Hinchliffe Assessor (VCE Legal Studies) Ms Lucy Smigielski Assessor (VCE Maths Methods) 43

44 Ms Sonya Mulholland Assessor (VCE Biology) Dr Ute Kreher Assessor (VCE Chemistry) Ms Yuko Inaba Assessor (VCE Japanese) Presenting at conferences and workshops Mr Ray Pask: Presenter, New to VCE Teachers (GTAV), Presenter, Meet the Examiners (GTAV), Examination Panel VCAA Train New members. Assessors VCAA: Training Assessors Dr Seamus Delaney Presenter, STAV VCE Chemistry annual conference "Teaching Units 3&4 VCE Chemistry, STAV ICT in Science conference "Utilising ICT in Science", CEA November lectures "ICT approaches in Chemistry", Tania Sheko Presenter: ICTEV Using Pinterest to resource the curriculum (Visual Communication Design) Advisory committees Mr Mark Kaderle - member of the Victorian Commercial Teachers Association Economics Advisory Committee Mr Raymond Pask - consultant ACARA Geography, AusVels Geography VCAA, Study Design Panel Writer VCAA, International Program South Africa VCAA Mr David Smyth - ACHPER VCE advisory committee Ms Jatni Rachmat - committee member of Victorian Indonesian Language Teachers Association Dr Seamus Delaney, Chemistry Education Association - committee member MTeach Staff Meeting Presentations and Teacher Candidates Ms Kerry Smyth, a leading teacher at MHS, remains at the forefront of our partnership with the Melbourne University Graduate School of Education, as she coordinates and mentors the many Master of Teaching teacher candidates who complete a placement at Melbourne High School. In 2013 we welcomed 22 teacher candidates as they took an active role in our broad school program, preparing them exceptionally well for a career in education. The teacher candidates were highly engaged in their placements, taking the opportunity to develop their pedagogical skill and experience. Likewise, our teachers were also inspired by the energy, new ideas and academic vigor these teacher candidates contributed to our educational community. It should be noted that many of our current teachers have come through the MTeach program and taken their place as exceptional members of staff, some in leadership positions early in their careers. In addition, the School also receives student teachers from other sources, which are effectively supervised by Mr Ray Pask. Melbourne High School is driven by its commitment to supporting its teachers in the ongoing process of improving pedagogy and the ways in which we engage students in their learning. Again this is achieved through the various internal and external avenues of professional development. Our priority is to further an already talented and skilled staff and continually encourage and nurture excellence in our profession. The teachers and support staff of Melbourne High School are to be congratulated for their dedication, their professionalism and their enormous efforts in providing Melbourne High School students with a challenging, diverse and stimulating education. STAFF OPINION SURVEY Due to industrial action, no staff opinion survey was conducted in

45 TEACHER QUALIFICATIONS All teachers at Melbourne High School are registered with the Victorian Institute of Teaching (VIT), and have, as a minimum, a Bachelor Degree and teacher qualifications. Twenty-three teachers have Master Degrees, six have Doctorates and four teachers are currently completing Doctorates. Education Support Staff The number of non-teaching staff appointed by Melbourne High School for 2013 was sixteen funded by DEECD funds, and twenty-four by the School Council. They gave vital support and assistance to the administration, teachers and students, as well as providing liaison with the wider community. As business manager, Ms Fran Walshe has maintained the School finances and records in a most efficient and effective manner. Ms Walshe has been well supported by administrative officers, Ms Rhonda Miller, Ms Kellie Porter and Ms Judy Maller, who have maintained efficiency and good humour in the face of many demands on their time and talents. Ms Anne Findlay has worked tirelessly developing the student absence system. Ms Rosemary Dickson, as registrar, has provided excellent support to our new intake students and their parents. Mrs Annabelle Yeaman, in the position of assistant to student services, has provided much needed support in this area, especially for the careers and Year 11 work experience program. Thank you to Ms Erandi Rathnasekara for providing professional support to student services during extended long service leave in the administration team. Ms Rhonda Miller, as assistant to the business manager, has provided much appreciated support in all aspects of School financial operations and personnel training. Mrs Linda Gunzburg continues to provide administrative support to the Melbourne High School Foundation. Reception and telephone have been the responsibility of Ms Val Nixon, our ever patient receptionist. Ms Nixon was joined in term four by Mrs Janice Barton, who will share the receptionist position in the future. Ms Naomi Brown has provided support to the principal and three assistant principals, and has undertaken the role of secretary to School Council during the year. Ms Brown will be leaving the school at the end of 2013 and we wish her well in the future. All members of the administration team provide courteous and caring service and support to teachers, staff, parents, students and the wider School community. The library technicians, Ms Denise Beanland and Mrs Jenny Krasnowski, have provided efficient support to all staff and students. Ms Jan Beattie, as part-time laboratory technician and Mr Krishna Kishor as full-time laboratory technician, provided invaluable backup and class preparation in the science faculties. Mr Armitage retired at the end of term two. A special thank you is given to Mr Gary Carbone and Mr Jonathon Gillette for supporting the chemistry department during recent staff illness. In providing much needed support for the maintenance of computer hardware and computer systems, Mr Karun Pathmanathan (network manager), Mr Stephen Dedrick (computer technician), Mr Mitchell Potts (DEECD) and Mr Leju Vallelil (DEECD) have worked tirelessly, developing systems and ensuring the smooth functioning of the network. This team has provided superb support to staff and students. Our systems manager, Mr Wes Stanczyk, has again developed highly sophisticated, customised software to meet the School s needs, providing the students and staff with state of the art systems. The director of sport and all the staff and students involved with the School s extensive sports program were ably supported by Ms Katie Clegg, who not only provided administrative support, but also assisted at many sporting events. Ms Clegg recently resigned to relocate to Tasmania. Ms Lisa Carruthers joins the sports faculty in this capacity. Mr Brett Rushton provided invaluable support as 45

46 the fine arts technician during the year and continues to work with the school to ensure much needed support to the art faculty and the drama and musical production teams at the school. Metropolitan Canteen Management continued their contract to manage the canteen in This company, led by Mr Ray Edwards, with onsite manager Mr Jawwad Ali, has provided professional catering services to the School community, and has been supported by the School s volunteer program, facilitated by Mrs Yeaman. Thank you to all the parents who volunteer in the canteen, thus enabling the School to maintain this essential service and offer a healthy menu for students. Library Just as Melbourne High School is about more than just marks, so is the library more than just books. The library is both physical and virtual - it is a space for events, as well as for ubiquitous information and 21st century skills training. It is an essential part of the mechanism which drives teaching and learning at Melbourne High School. It is a service and resource, both onsite and online; a treasury of literature; a space for private and collaborative study; a social meeting place; a hive of activity including meetings, games and puzzles. The library provides a quiet nook for solitude, a space for spirited debate, for collegial help with homework, a table full of familiar friends, (and the opportunity to make new ones), and an ever-changing range of visual and conceptual displays to broaden reading choices and spark ideas. It holds the collective wisdom and experiences of extraordinary people long gone, and stories from every part of the world throughout history. The energy of the library is evident to all who visit. This has been a year for change on many fronts. The library has developed a new silent study culture - for the first time, VCE students have been given the choice of going to the library for quiet study or the dining hall during their free study periods. We have been pleased to witness a quick adaptation to these changes, and impressed to see how many students have preferred to come to a disciplined, silent space to study despite the alternative choice. The refurbishment of the front of library is almost complete, and amidst temporary changes to entrance and spaces, it has been business as usual without serious interruption to essential services. We look forward to opening the newly refurbished part of the library on the first day of school 2014, with its larger entrance and increased, open space for reading and relaxation, two additional study rooms (and potential to open these up to one larger room using the operable wall). Existing spaces have also been improved. In particular, the Global Learning Centre (GLC), has been modified to create a more effective use of space, with the interactive whiteboard (IWB) mounted on the wall and reconfigured to Apple TV for improved efficiency. We look forward to reclaiming our small discussion room (currently housing furniture) as well as the creation of another discussion room within the GLC. In all, we should be able to provide four study and discussion rooms for students and teachers next year. In keeping with the developments of public libraries, the library strives to move with the times in all aspects of its service, and so we have encouraged students and staff to be independent library users by investing in a self-checkout unit (RFID). We are also in the process of moving to a new library management system (LMS) with improved efficiency and user-friendliness to encourage more students to use our catalogue more effectively in their search for resources and use of databases. As always the library supports reading enrichment, and teacher librarians work with English teachers to broaden the scope and differentiated reading experiences of students. This year, in support of wider reading, we trialled a move from the Premier s Reading Challenge to the social media platform, 46

47 Goodreads ( in order to connect students with each other and to the wider reading community. Goodreads provides options for online connection through private or shared class groups, and enables students to share their virtual bookshelves with each other and their teachers for increased engagement. The importance of real world connections, and studentinitiated discussions, combined with practice of appropriate ethical behaviour online, address the need for students to develop important 21st century skills. Reading breadth and specialisation have been encouraged and applauded, and reading prizes have been awarded in a special Junior assembly to students who excelled in categories of classics enthusiast, graphic novels gourmet, the eclectic reader, the richest online literary discussion and other genre related awards. As always, teacher librarians have worked with teachers to develop programs and projects, to create resources, and teach collaboratively. The library has been flexible, experimenting with varied approaches, and adapting to the needs and preferences of teachers and students. This year, teacher librarians have worked in a more focused way with faculties, following their areas of expertise in order to deepen relationships with staff and enrich their own knowledge base. The 1:1 ipad program in years 9-11 has filled the library with mobile technology which provides students with anywhere and anytime learning. The library has continued to develop its ebooks collection, and so it is a common sight to see students tucked into corners and engrossed in reading on their ipads. Learning and connecting are core needs for all our students and staff, and the library has responded to the digital environment by continuing to develop rich educational content, a revised library website (Libguides with an improved homepage for easier navigation, further developed subject- and skill-related resources, and blogs for specific audiences. Lifelong learning begins in a school whose library staff provide the tools and expertise in guiding students towards understanding the learning process, and, in particular, in the management of information and research in preparation for tertiary studies and life. The library team has successfully integrated the use of Google Drive and Docs into meetings in their team approach to ideas mining and problem solving. Google Drive is a collaborative, flexible and cloud-based suite of applications which allows live, multi-user sharing and editing of documents accessed via sign-in on any device. Google Drive has been the perfect tool for a democratic approach within the library team, an approach which has empowered individuals within the team and deepened collaborative relationships. As many have remarked this year, there is always something happening in the library. The library continues to support interest groups, including Library Assistants, Cyber Book Club and Competition Writing. In Library and Information Week we ran a Book spine poetry competition. In Book Week we ran a number of photography competitions including Bookface and Holding up books for no reason. Our inaugural event, Bookwiz, a literary quiz which included 15 tables of student and teacher teams, was a sell-out event, and featured a talented student jazz quartet for our listening pleasure. Also for the first time, the library organised The Great Book Dominoes event (which was run and filmed by students) and The Great Book Swap, a fundraising initiative for the Indigenous Literacy Foundation. Of course, the traditional Dress as your favourite literary character competition is a favourite event during Book Week, and this was definitely a year to applaud the English teachers efforts, as well as those of the students. In conjunction with the English faculty s concurrent Literature Festival, Book Week has offered an impressive range of literary events. 47

48 This year, the library hosted the launch of Laureate, our student literary magazine, after its 10 year hiatus. This was organised by Mr Sam Bryant and featured special guest, renowned Australian poet, author and educator, Judith Rodriguez. Students have been extremely fortunate to have talented, engaging authors visit the school, including Emilie Zoey Baker, Spoken Word Performer, and author and graphic novel artist and illustrator, Nicki Greenberg. Students were also given the opportunity to be part of the Melbourne Writers Festival at which they attended a Q & A session with Ambelin Kwaymullina about her debut novel, The Interrogation of Ashala Wolf, and enjoyed talks with Alison Croggon, author of Black Spring, Cassandra Golds, author of Pureheart, Justine Larbalestier, author of Team Human, and Myke Bartlett, author of Fire in the Sea. They also attended a session on How to Make a Book, featuring Melissa Keil, author of Life in Outer Space, and Tony Palmer, a cover artist who has collaborated with authors such as Morris Gleitzman and Sonya Hartnett. The session was hosted by Lachlan Carter, creator of 100 Story Building, a social enterprise for young aspiring authors. A group of students also attended the Reading Matters conference organised by the State Library of Victoria. Stonnington Library s Literature Alive festival, with guest presenter, author and illustrator, Kevin Burgemeestre, was a fantastic opportunity for year 9 art students. The library has been involved in transition sessions for year 10 students. Teacher librarians have taught the essential skills of online research (in particular, databases), study skills and digital citizenship, to prepare students for the tertiary environment. Teacher librarians have also contributed to introductory sessions for the Year 9 Melbourne Project, helping students brainstorm ideas to prepare them for their city project. For the first time, students were instructed in the use of Google Drive for collaborative research. Year 10 students have also been supported by teacher librarians in their civics and citizenship research project and, for the first time, an essay which centred on their solution to a real-world problem of their choice. As well as our library website (Libguides), our digital presence resides on the Melbourne High School Library Facebook page which informs the School community (including alumni), as well as the broader community, of library events and literary news, and updates posts from the Melbourne High School blog ( Teacher librarians have also led the way in experimenting with new digital platforms for curation of online resources, including Pinterest and Scoop.it, to mention only a couple. These are interesting and exciting times for school libraries everywhere. The digital revolution has challenged libraries to reconsider how they should remain relevant and engaging to the school community at a time when ubiquitous information requires even more explicit skills development for our students than ever before. Teacher librarians have been involved in continuous professional development in order to prepare students to be informed, critical users of information. The head of library, Tania Sheko, the teacher librarians, the library support staff and the parent volunteers have worked hard to make significant contributions to the library and the School community. 48

49 Facilities At the start of term 3, 2012, Anthony Bilton took over as the School s facilities manager. Having just completed his first full year in the position, it seems he has been here longer. He quickly established a solid overview of the School s facility needs, instituted a number of simple yet efficient systems to manage the plethora of facility management areas, and has impressed many with his easy-going yet methodical, thorough style of management. The School once again relied on volunteer professional advice through its resources committee of School Council. Many thanks to these people who have given their time, energy, expertise and guidance to the School s resources: Michael Fooks, Warren Jensen, Rick Kornhauser, Ken Loh, Jan Tennent, Mary Bitta, John Dodd, Jeremy Brand and Anthony Bilton. We continue to value the ongoing input from our student representatives, George Stuyt and Vaughan Smith of Year 10. The input and advice from this disparate group of professionals is central to the ongoing planning and maintenance of the School s resources. We thank them for giving their valuable time for us. So often people remark on the bowling green like surface we enjoy on our school oval; and then express amazement that we have just the one grounds curator. David Cruikshank is always ready to give the extra hours that are seasonally required to aid the oval s recovery after a weekend s three football games, or roll the cricket pitch for endless hours before games; and this is just part of his job. We can t value his work highly enough. Our part-time School handyman, Peter Stemmer, continues to be of central importance to so many School programs. He has filled in many times when the School has been between facilities managers and his multifarious carpentry skills are always in demand. He also provides essential back-up to our teachers who produce the School s artistic endeavours. There were many major refurbishment works during the year. Two new boilers were acquired to deliver hot water to the Nineties Building. Both boilers installation costs were eased considerably by Icon Constructions allowing the school to use their huge crane on the Alexandra Avenue and Chapel Street building site. The two physics offices were reformatted and fitted, six microwaves were fitted and secured for student use in the dining hall, essential air conditioning was installed to some staff areas, new carpet was laid in three classrooms, several run-down student urinals were upgraded, and improved traffic flow controls within and outside the school grounds were initiated. A generous donation from an Old Boy saw one of the School buses replaced with a brand new Mitsubishi 25 seater. This amazing gesture has given a lot of staff, parents and students peace of mind and made the School s wide co-curricular program more comfortably performed. The extensive library refurbishment finally began in mid-november and will create more open space for the fiction area as well as useful discussion rooms for student group work. The School 10 year painting contract was allowed to run out during 2013 and we will now tender each major job to allow for more competition and therefore cost-savings to the School. Poorly operating exit lights and fire doors remain a concern and their immediate upgrade depends on financial help from the Department. Apartment construction in the Forrest Hill precinct continues apace and it will not be too long until the hockey field is completely surrounded by 50m apartment blocks. We continue to work diligently at establishing early and open lines of communication between bodies corporate and us. The Icon development of the Fridcorp apartment block adjoining the School on the Alexandra Avenue and 49

50 Chapel Street corner will be completed in semester one 2014, and will overshadow the main oval and break the iconic skyline of the Twenties Building. The School community s concern can at least be assuaged by the final tower being 15 stories and not the 29 storeys against which the School community fought so hard a few years ago. The hockey bunker staff change room is now established as a major attraction to staff who are fit and active. That was an offshoot of the good relationship established between the 50 Claremont Street apartment block just outside the School s Claremont gate. Enterprise Services were reappointed as the cleaning company running the School s cleaning programs from April this year. They have been joined by Hunter Industrials who are supplying the cleaning products and some cleaning consumables. We are lucky to have our daily cleaning team of Manuel Acevedo, Ransil Wijayasunghe, Lavelua Paotama, Ivan Paotama, Ripulkumar Patel, Chirag Shah and Nura Asfaw. They are thoughtfully overseen by the Enterprise managers: Francis and Paul Angel. They are to be thanked for their continued efforts to meet our varied demands. Metropolitan Canteens continues to service students daily needs as well as the frequent catering requests from School programs during and outside school hours. Ray Edwards, Jawwad Ali, Dianne Whyley, Trish Munday, David Morin, Bruno Dimaio, Libby Sullivan and Maria Burrios are always ready with competitively priced and varied food. Also, parent volunteers are able to work in the canteen on a daily basis. This is an integral and important aspect of the service the company provides. The South Yarra Sports centre (SYS) has had another busy year in which it continues to run its popular local fitness centre while also assuming many various support roles to the School s sporting programs. Centre manager, John Smith, assistant managers Kasia Malarska and Neroli Nixon, and permanent part-timer, Clayton Dias, head a team of enthusiastic and trained employees who run the centre for the School. Kasia left for maternity and family leave around mid-year and we saw Clayton Dias move up to fill her role. We also welcomed Daniela Accary in a more significant role managing group fitness sessions. SYS is a full-time fitness centre outside school hours with around 400 members who enjoy the expected range of fitness programs and facilities. During school hours, our students are able to make extensive use of modern facilities as well as coaching and mentoring provided by the SYS staff members who represent a valuable adjunct to the School s physical education and sport staff. During 2013, John Smith continued his intermittent commitment with the Army Reserve; with ongoing support from the School. Since the mid 1990s the School s synthetic hockey centre has been a highly popular playing surface for clubs around Melbourne. The Melbourne Cricket Club s Hockey Club continues to be the principal licenced user of the facility under Melbourne High School management via the original agreement sponsored by the Victorian Education Department. During the Christmas break of , courts 3 and 4 received a synthetic resurface that created a multi-purpose venue (MPV) that is proving popular for both hockey warm-ups and five outside soccer competitions. Courts 1 and 2 are now on the to-do list for resurfacing in plexipave. MCC hockey and the MHS Old Boys hockey club share all their required training and game times on a pro-rata basis, with the balance of the peak hockey season going to other VHA teams. The 2003 Hockey Pavilion continues to be an essential resource for the School during school hours while serving as the MCC hockey clubhouse outside hours. 50

51 The four annual working bees once again provided invaluable voluntary working hours for both the Forrest Hill and Millgrove sites. Many thanks to the team of parents, friends and families who gave up their Sundays for the School. Also thanks to the management teams at the School and Millgrove THE MILLGROVE OUTDOOR EDUCATION CENTRE According to Tim Hatten, our manager at Millgrove, 2013 has been another fruitful year at Millgrove. Good rains have enabled the propagation of many friendships and mild temperatures have enhanced the ripening of group achievements. Despite a few hiccups with the AEU dispute early on, the year 9 program went ahead as planned. Students participated in activities such as caving, canoeing and mountain bike riding, all designed to challenge them both in the physical sense and also socially, encouraging them to mix and make new friends as well as having lots of fun. A highlight of the year 9 program was the Back to Basics night at which all the normal creature comforts are traded for a simple meal cooked on a hiking stove followed by an outdoor campfire session and then sleeping out under a tarp with only a sleeping bag and a thin foam mattress. This is a salient reminder to students of how lucky they are to have what they have. In 2013 we experienced one of the worst seasons for snow at Lake Mountain for a long time and only two year 10 groups had a chance to go skiing as part of their expedition. Nevertheless, there were many trips to the Cathedral Ranges State Park to climb Sugarloaf Peak and canoeing trips on the challenging section of the Yarra River at Wonga Park. The emphasis of the year 10 program is on the students managing themselves. They choose the route for their mountain bike day and work in teams to guide themselves through the caves, rather than staff taking them through. Needless to say, the year 10 students worked magnificently in their teams, learning about the part that they as individuals play in helping everyone to reach their goals. The years 9 and 10 programs at Millgrove could not operate without the ongoing assistance of many people at school: The form teachers who attend each week with their groups and help to inspire them to greatness The year 11 mentors who share their knowledge of the program and their friendship with each form The coordinators from years 9 and 10 and Mr Guthrie in year 11 who assist with getting the groups to Millgrove The front office and business office staff who keep things ticking over back at school The MHS principal team who wholeheartedly support the aims of the camps The parents who helped out at working bees, attended the parents weekend and helped their sons to be organized to come to Millgrove Without all of you the show would not go ahead. The School owes much to the staff at Millgrove. Tim Hatten continues as a popular and highly able leader. We continue to marvel at how students always return from their time at Millgrove not being able to wait till their next opportunity to attend. Tim s leadership style creates this magic atmosphere. He has been ably supported since 2010 by Simon Ryan. Simon is leaving us this year to pursue higher level management positions. Simon has been a wonderful assistant coordinator of the Millgrove camp and has added much to the students enriching experiences offered by the camp. We will miss him and wish him the best. The rest of the professional and caring staff team has included 51

52 our cooks, Ann Crunden, Nerine Smith and Kalli Blunt who all year managed to satisfy that most demanding of client: the growing adolescent male. We also enjoyed the services of our annual Millgrove trainee, Danniel Cartledge. The last leadership group that helps at Millgrove is the largest: the Year 11 Millgrove Leaders. Two Year 11 boys attend each Year 9 and 10 camp and offer much in the way of practical and moral support to the junior students. Heritage The MHS Heritage Society continued to serve as an essential conduit for students to explore and discover the School s history, fostering enthusiasm and curiosity for the pursuit of greater knowledge concerning Melbourne High s rich and illustrious past. Housed at the highest point on the Castle On The Hill in the John Elden Heritage Room, the Society attracted over 200 members this year, setting a new club record. The Society continued our progress in the maintenance of existing School artefacts, records and historical documents, as well as facilitating additions in our archiving procedures. In addition, the Society was able to conduct tours of the Heritage Room and School tower, and provide an excursion to the MCG & National Sports Museum in an effort to involve as many members in our activities. In projects this year, the Society was able to investigate the House Water Polo Cup detailing the winners of the event since its inception in This work allowed the replacement of the original trophy missing for a number of years. Additionally, the Society in conjunction with GM&B undertook a new project of the Heritage room s rearrangement in order to create a more structured and organised setting. The Society also worked to support the Shrine of Remembrance in its formation of an exhibit on Keith (Bluey) Truscott. However, the most notable feat this year was the formulation of the redesigned 2014 and 2015 Year 10 Civics and Citizenship Program. This project is undertaken by the School in its commitment to the ANZAC Centenary Program whereby students will be assigned a name of a soldier to create a multimedia presentation. The product of this extensive project will be a launch of an online data base of this unique material. With the continued sick leave absence of archivist Glen Turnbull, the School has been fortunate to have a number of interested Old Boys step in to help. Lead by the ubiquitous luminary, Alan Gregory, Robin Tuckerman and John McIntintosh have added much valuable input to the ANZAC Centenary program proposed for Also to be thanked are the student members of the Heritage Society for their commitment and dedication: Vinura Jayasena, Krishna Padmanabhan, Nisal Wanasinghe, Jason Xue, Thanura Gunathilaka, Geoffrey Tan, Simon Dang, Alan Xue and Spandan Das. Vinura Jayasena has been an outstanding president of the Society. He has given much time, energy, direction and interest to this important area of the Melbourne High legacy. He has left a legacy of his own that following year levels should try to emulate. Year 9 Involvement and Co-Curricular Programs The Year 9 involvement program is a part of the School s extensive co-curricular program and is designed to help students to assimilate into Melbourne High School through meeting students and staff with similar interests, and to enable students to experience the breadth of activities available at 52

53 the School. All Year 9 students are required to participate in a minimum of the activities which are grouped in divisions ranked by time commitment: Division A requiring more than Division B and it more than Division C. It is expected that students will remain involved in the co-curricular program throughout their time at MHS. The vast majority of students become committed to at least one involvement and many commit to several. This is part of MHS s philosophy of More than Just Marks an education of the mind, body and spirit. Participation in involvement activities is recorded and counts towards the awarding of the Melbourne High School Diploma at the end of Year 12. The choice is rich and varied and students form new clubs and involvement activities each year. Some of these are as follows: Division A: air force cadets, army cadets, instrumental music tuition, Singers, Stage Band, Symphony Orchestra, Tattam Band, rowing Division B: debating, Chorale, stage crew, instrumental ensembles, Big Band, Camerata, Davis Band, String Orchestra Division C: Amnesty International, Barbershop quartets, Business Club, Brass Ensemble, breakdance, ceremonial bagpipes, chess, Clarinet Ensemble, competition writing, Composition Ensemble, cross - country skiing, cycling, Economics Club, Environmental Action Group, film making, fitness and health, Flute Ensemble, Food Interest Group, Fun With Food, Global Issues Education, Guitar Ensemble, Heritage Club, Library Assistants, MHS Aikido, MHS Vehicles, outdoor activities, Percussion Ensemble, Philosophy Society, Piano Quartet, Piano Trio, Political Interest Group, public speaking, Reptiles, Amphibians and Fish, Scrabble Club and Strategy Group The teachers who oversee these involvement clubs and activities donate their own time, enthusiasm and expertise to develop new skills and interests in the students to complement and enhance the broad, liberal education that MHS offers. They are to be warmly thanked for their time, energies and much appreciated contributions for they add greatly to the rich educational experience of MHS. Music Music is a moral law. It gives soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and charm and gaiety to life and to everything. Plato Without music, life would be a mistake. Friedrich Nietzsche The efficacy of a musical tradition and its established place in the fabric of society is as old as civilization itself. But, while the benefits of music in society are well known and well documented, we value the study of music in a school setting because it is, in itself, worthwhile and fulfilling. The secret to a rewarding study of music is that we must be active participants; the act of just listening to music is not enough. At Melbourne High School, there are neither passive participants nor passive learners. The classroom music program, massed singing, ensembles and instrumental lessons collectively provide theoretical and practical applications, fostering a philosophy of a liberal education; an education that truly strives to inform and nurture the whole person, so that they may become lifelong, resilient learners and participants. Staff changes for 2013 Mr Curtis Bayliss, the School s director of choral music, took a year s leave from his teaching duties at MHS. In his absence, Mr Angus Grant and Mr Kevin Kelley shared his allotment. Their combined contribution to the vocal teaching, massed singing, vocal ensembles and Speech Night preparation was much appreciated. We wish them well for their respective music careers, as we welcome back Mr Bayliss for the 2014 academic year. 53

54 The classroom music program The classroom music program continues to grow, both in the core Year 9 program and through our Year 10 elective program. There has been considerable redevelopment of the Year 9 program with a focus on the elements of music and the use of research skills and technology for composition. Further changes are envisaged for 2014 and beyond to bring the curriculum in line with the National Curriculum and AusVELS. It is envisaged that additional subjects be reintroduced at the VCE level in the near future. The massed singing program This year has seen a strengthening of the Massed Singing program led by Mr Matthew Brown (director of choral studies for 2013), Mr Angus Grant and Mr Kevin Kelley. Through their leadership, there has been a continuing examination of how the program works and how to improve. Performances have been strong at each of the final junior assemblies, held on the last Friday of each term. The material covered this year spanned from repertoire from Restoration England to modernday musical theatre. We are never starved for variety in our massed singing. The House Music and Choral Competitions, held at Melbourne Town Hall in March, are a highlight each year with all students in the school involved in singing for their House. High levels of dedication and commitment were on display as each House vied for honours - special thanks to all performers, conductors, accompanists, soloists and House coordinators. We were privileged to draw upon the expertise of three outstanding adjudicators: Mr Douglas Heywood OAM, Mr Rodney Marshall and Mr Thomas Heywood. All the adjudicators were impressed with the level of musical prowess but, in the end, Como House stood out in the instrumental section, and Waterloo House took first prize in the choral section. The instrumental and vocal program Our strong instrumental program continues to grow and expand with over 800 boys involved in instrumental lessons and ensembles. The musicians were also kept busy with numerous performances at School and in the wider community. A special thank you goes to all instrumental music teachers, under the leadership of Mr Gareth De Korte (director of instrumental music). They devote many hours, ensuring that our students receive every opportunity. Through their dedication, we have been able to participate in many activities. Below are a few highlights. The year began with rehearsals for the Family Concert as well as preparations for the House Instrumental and Choral Competition. Term 1 finished with most of the larger ensembles presenting for the Family Concert. As the first major concert of the year, it was a great opportunity to share the term s work with the larger ensembles with an appreciative audience. Term 2 proved to be very busy with both School concerts and outside performances. The Tattam Band and the Year 10 cohort once again helped form the musical offering at the annual Legacy Service at the Shrine of Remembrance. Our annual musical this year was Into the Woods and showcased the musical, acting and technical talents of its cast. The Gala Soiree featured our smaller ensembles. The middle of the year brought us together with our sister school, Mac.Robertson Girls High School, for several major events. First, there was the annual Winter Concert at the Dallas Brooke s Centre. This year s concert was a truly combined concert with almost all items bringing together instrumentalists and singers from Orff s 1812 Carmina Burana which combined the orchestras from both schools with over 500 singers. 54

55 In August, a joint string orchestra, comprising students from Mac.Robertson Girls High School and Melbourne High School, had an eventful journey to Ballarat to compete in the Royal South Street Competition. Under the direction of Mr Sonny Chua, the orchestra presented an interesting and beautifully varied program. The adjudicators placed the orchestra as the second-place winners and 50 tired but happy musicians made the trip back to Melbourne that evening. The term finished with an event celebrating our jazz ensembles. A fun evening of music making and impromptu dancing marked this year s annual Jazz Night. Hosted at Melbourne High School, this is a student-run event put together by the student leadership at both MHS and MacRob. It was an occasion for students, family and friends to come together and enjoy fine music and good company. The final term has also been marked by several events. Mr Wallis led the Tattam Band through their paces in the annual cadet s Dress and Drill Competition taking out first place and bringing the trophy to the Music Department. Mr Matthew Brown hosted a Composition Soiree featuring many of our fine composers and writers. This led into the annual Spring Breakfast and Welcome Day. All of our ensembles and many VCE performers were featured, highlighting the depth and brilliance of our fine young musicians. In addition to these major events were a number of master-classes, VCE recitals, a Steinway Concert, a Spicks and Specks evening, external performances by our string quartet and small ensembles. Student leaders The Music Department has always benefited from the hard work of many dedicated students who show leadership and commitment in both formal and informal roles. The Class of 2013 has been particularly active in all ensembles and we would like to thank them for their service. Music captain Wayne Chan and music vice-captain John Glover have provided exemplary leadership and have set a high standard for their successors. Acknowledgements must also be made of the School pianist, Andrew Luu, and the senior and junior pianists, Nahed Elray, Ken Qian and Rahul Lobo. The Friends of Music While the efforts of many teachers and students help to make the Music Department function, this is really only part of the equation. The support and dedication of family and parents ensure that we are able to deliver quality programming. It is through the work of the Friends of Music that we are able to provide extra resources to our students. Their fund-raising has assisted with the purchase and upkeep of instruments as well as other materials that directly impact upon the level of excellence offered in the ensemble program. Special thanks go to Mrs Robyn McRae and the Committee for their many hours of constant dedication and assistance. The Music Department is a large and important part of the School s culture and ethos. As shown, especially at Speech Night, music involves every student at Melbourne High School in one form or another - through massed singing, ensembles, the classroom program or instrumental tuition. All of this is the result of the combined efforts of many dedicated and talented performer-educators. I wish to thank them all for their dedication and support throughout the year, in particular, Mr Steven Bowler in his most successful first year as director of music; Mr Matthew Brown for his assistance and leadership of the choral program with the able assistance of Mr Angus Grant and Mr Kevin Kelley; Mr Gareth de Korte for his leadership of the instrumental music program; and finally, Mr Peter Dumsday for his administrative support and assistance in all facets of the Music Department. Together with the dedicated and talented instrumental staff, their support and ability to fill in the gaps made 2013 another highly successful year for the School s music program. 55

56 Debating 2013 has been a year of significant improvement in the MHS debating program. The school achieved its aims of having increased student participation, entry in a wider variety of competitions, greater success in competitions and more integration with the broader school community. Melbourne High School s debating program centres around the Debaters Association of Victoria s schools competition. This is the largest English language debating competition in the world, with teams entering from almost every public and private school across the state. In 2013, Melbourne High School entered four Year 12 teams (19 students), eight Year 11 teams (40 students), fourteen Year 10 teams (79 students) and seven Year 9 teams (36 students). In total, 174 students participated in this competition, making Melbourne High School one of the most highly represented schools in the state. Melbourne High School also played host to the preliminary rounds of the competition for the South Yarra region. Teams from Mac.Robertson Girls High School, Melbourne Grammar School, Melbourne Girls Grammar School, Melbourne Girls College and Victorian College of the Arts Secondary School came to the school on five Tuesday evenings to debate teams from opposing schools. Melbourne High School has been incredibly successful in this year s schools competition having a team make the final in every year level, an unprecedented feat not just for Melbourne High School, but for any school! The School was crowned state champions in the Year 9 competition. Congratulations to the following students for taking out the state title over 529 teams in the state: Year 9 champions: Oliver Biggar, Eric Ma, Christopher Poermandya, Minul Ratnayake. The school was crowned state runners-up in the Year 12, Year 11 and Year 10 competitions. Congratulations to the following students for this achievement: Year 12 runners-up: Jack Harley, Leon Obrenov, Jack Skeggs, Sameer Sharma and Eric Xie; Year 11 runners-up: Tom Freeman, Reece Hooker, Visai Murugananda and Ryan Stewart; and Year 10 runners-up: Spandan Das, James Hayne, George Stuyt, Kenny Tran and Sean Yip. To finish the Debaters Association of Victoria s schools competition with one state champion and three state runners-up has surpassed any previous success of the MHS debating squad. Congratulations to all of the aforementioned debaters. Their success has been a testament not only to their persuasive speaking skills, but also their impressive work ethic, organisation and teamwork. Congratulations to the MHS 2013 DAV schools competition debating squad for a job well done! The school also entered two teams in the Viewpoint debating competition. This is a competition open to years students, with topics reflecting economic themes. The competition was held at Monash University and adjudicated by panels from the DAV as well as Monash University s Department of Economics. In the end, it was an all-mhs final. In front of an audience of about 200 people, our two teams battled each other for the title. Congratulations to our contingent for representing the school so well: Viewpoint winners: Reece Hooker, Sameer Sharma and Eric Xie; and Viewpoint runners-up: Jack Hughes, Leon Obrenov and Pimal Ranasinghe. The School also participated in the senior and junior British Parliamentary (BP) competitions. BP debating consists of four teams of two speakers per debate, as opposed to two teams of three speakers as per the general Australasian debating format. We had three teams of years 10 to 12 56

57 students represent us valiantly in the senior competition and three teams of Year 9 students participate in the junior competition. In the junior competition, two of the four teams in the final were MHS teams. In the end, the School was able to secure second place in the competition. Congratulations to these boys: Junior BP runners-up: Sunny Hamid and Christopher Poermandya. Debating also featured in exchanges with North Sydney Boys High School, Sydney Boys High School and Adelaide High School, with the School winning out over North Sydney and Adelaide but narrowly going down to Sydney Boys. Melbourne High School also had two students achieve great individual success, with both being selected in the Victorian state debating squad. Congratulations to these students for demonstrating that they are amongst the best individual debaters in Victoria: state squad members: Reece Hooker and Sameer Sharma. Internally, the House debating competition provided an opportunity for allies to become enemies for the title of the School s finest debaters. This year, bragging rights belonged to Forrest in the senior competition and Waterloo in the junior competition. Both were watched by fiercely partisan crowds. MHS debating also participated in exhibition debates at the School, covering themes such as the environment and economics, as a means of involving the broader school community in the debate of current issues relevant to all. The incredible success of the debating program in 2013 would not have been possible without the teachers and students who lead the program. In 2013, the debating coordinator, Mr Mark Kaderle, was joined by a new debating assistant, Ms Helen Bekos. The debating captain was Sameer Sharma, who was supported by vice-captain, Jack Harley. This was a passionate and organised leadership team who provided the framework for the success of the program. It is fitting to conclude by acknowledging the many students who participated in debating at Melbourne High School this year. These students attended coaching sessions after school on Tuesday afternoons for the duration of the competition. They also spent considerable time researching, writing and practising speeches at home. This is a significant commitment on top of their school studies. Well done to all our debating coaches and debaters for supporting and representing the school so well. Sport Through sport we have the capacity to enhance the physical, emotional and social wellbeing of our students. Achieving balance and improving holistic health are of upmost importance to the School. The Melbourne High School s sport program aims to support one of the School s core values, more than just marks by offering an extensive co-curricular and extra-curricular program and therefore catering to the diverse needs and interests of our students. This year, various people have contributed to the success of the sport program: Ms Olivia Doherty, in her role as director of sport, which she does with calm professionalism; Mr Bill Flanagan and Mr Sandro Bisetto for their organisational assistance; Ms Katie Clegg who started with us at the beginning of the year and was exceptional in her role. Katie has been replaced by Ms Lisa Carruthers who has proven a huge asset to our team. As a three time Olympian (Australian Women s Hockey Team) and a dual gold medallist, Lisa s elitism is very much appreciated and respected throughout the Melbourne High School community. Finally, thank you to our House coordinators and captains for their organisation and healthy competitive spirit across the Cock House Competition and to our dedicated sports coaches for their commitment to the physical, emotional and social development of our students. Waterloo made history this year, winning all major Cock House events. Inspired by House coordinator, Mr Mark Goodey, captain, Aneurin Sarson-Lawrence, and vice-captain, Benjamin Steiner, Waterloo s leadership, professionalism, organisation and camaraderie ensured success in the 57

58 House swimming, athletics, chorals, senior basketball, senior football, theatre sports, volleyball and cross country. There were some outstanding individual results in our major House events this year. In the House swimming, Lachlan Wells of Yarra set a new record in the Open 100m Freestyle. James Li of Waterloo set two records, in the 15 and U50m freestyle and 50m backstroke. At the House athletics, Ryan McNamara of Forrest set a new record in the 16s long jump and Vaughan Smith of Yarra set a new record in the 16s age group at the House cross country. Thank you to Mr Matthew Roberts who has successfully coordinated and lead Yarra House for a number of years. Matthew has made many wonderful contributions to Yarra, but is handing the responsibility over to Mr Robert Sette in Melbourne High School has maintained sporting excellence throughout the School Sport Victoria (SSV) competition. This year, over 40 intermediate and senior teams represented the School across various sports. At the time of writing, Melbourne High School s senior teams progressed through to State level in badminton (1 st place), netball (1 st place), cross country (1 st in Open and 17 to 20 age groups), table tennis (2 nd place), soccer (4 th place), squash (4 th place) and swimming (5 th place). The senior water polo team are once again State champions in the Association of Grammar Schools Victoria (AGSV) competition. Thank you to the Melbourne High School staff who coached a team in the SSV competition this year. Our interstate counterparts stepped up to the plate this year and challenged our sporting abilities. We maintained success against North Sydney Boys High School winning 10 from 13 events. However, narrowly losing to Adelaide High School has given our students extra incentive to prepare for the 2014 Prefects Cup against Adelaide on home turf. The Sydney Boys High School exchange expanded again this year, adding cross country, theatre sports and debating to the program. Melbourne High School is home to some remarkable athletes who have excelled in their sport outside the School. Congratulations to Lachlan Edwards, who is currently part of the Australian Men s Open Water Polo Squad. Earlier in the year, Lachlan was outstanding in the water at the Junior World Championship. Congratulations to our Australian rules football rising stars, Jayme Lawson, Julian Eimutis and Michael Manteit, who have all had a successful year in the Transport Accident Commission (TAC) Cup. Clancy McLeod and Finnian Huzzey have dominated in the Victorian Champions Soccer League. Dominic Huang in year 9 has made his mark in table tennis, representing Australian at the Junior World Championships. Tyler Reynolds in year 10 has had success in fencing, representing Australia in the Junior Fencing Team. Finally, congratulations to Kunal Patil in year 10 and Calvin Hua-Ching in year 9 for being selected to compete in the Australian Badminton Championships. Underlining the success of our sport program is the commitment of our students, who despite the arduous demands of their academic studies, continue to represent both their school and their House with great pride and enthusiasm. Congratulations to the students of Melbourne High School for yet another positive year in sport. Finally, the School thanks Ms Olivia Doherty for her commitment and innovative contributions to the sport program and providing our students a platform to develop physically, emotionally and socially. Rowing Rowing at MHS is hopefully looking at a very bright future with fundraising commencing for the new boat shed to be built on the banks of the Yarra. We are a bit unsure of the time frame for this project; hopefully, within the next few years we will see MHS rowing having its own home for the very first time rather than sharing the facilities at Powerhouse. The opportunities for this new 58

59 venture are very exciting. One suggestion has been to make it a hub for all state school rowing. Rowing has always been the domain of the private schools largely due to the funds required to operate the sport (equipment, coaching, rent of facilities). Encouragement of state schools to be involved in the sport would be a very exciting prospect. A couple of major events have set the scene for what appears to be a very promising 2013/ marked 100 years of rowing at MHS, so, to celebrate, a black tie function was held at the Grand Hyatt which was attended by over 200 Old Boys. The highlight of the evening was a panel of Old Boys from various years telling us of their different experiences as MHS rowers. From carrying heavy timber boats from the cadet pavilion over Alexander Parade, through to rowing in the modern lightweight boats of today, the discussion was fascinating. The evening also included significant fundraising via the auctioning of items with all money raised contributing towards the building of the new boat shed. Another significant event was the new world record that was set by a group of years 9 and 10 boys on 24 May. Their mission was to row for 24 hours on an ergometer and complete more than 351,000 metres. They ended up rowing 351,710 metres. The boys singlehandedly organised the entire event. The only role given to the teachers was to monitor their progress throughout the 24 hours. Again, all money raised by the boys was allocated towards the building of the new boat shed. This season we will have 100 boys rowing in years 9 through to 12. A couple of concerns in the rowing program over recent years has been the dropping off of year 12 students in the sport and the lack of parental presence at regattas on the weekend. A number of issues were identified to counteract these. One has been the improved communication with parents via an electronic newsletter called E-Oars, which is sent out weekly through the rowing season and is not only informative to parents but also allows them to reply with any questions they may have. A very dynamic new Rowing Fraternity has recently been elected and its two main focuses are fundraising (with the aim of purchasing a new boat) and encouraging parents to attend regattas. Communication done through E-Oars will let parents know that the Fraternity will have a marquee set up at each regatta with the aim of providing a place for parents and siblings of rowers to congregate and enjoy the racing on the day. Boys will also be encouraged to come back to the marquee between racing to see their parents. Hopefully, with this increased presence of the Fraternity and parents at the river, the boys will feel encouraged that their efforts are being acknowledged. An improved support network for the boys will hopefully translate to improved results on the water and a higher retention of year 12 boys. These senior boys are such an integral part of the program as they are role models for the junior rowers who are new to the sport. Army Cadets The training year started with the School s Open Day in October. The Year 11s stepped up and took responsibility for the organization of the cadet display. With the distribution of over 300 brochures we could have another recruitment bonanza. The December series of promotion camps were once again held at MHS where LCpl Kevin Nguyen, aided by a bevy of MHSOBs, wrangled a large pack of prospective CUOs and NCOs into shape. The NCO and JLC field testing camp was held at the Treetops Scout camp near Riddells Creek. Amongst the kangaroos and cicadas the prospective NCOs were thoroughly tested. After the camp a handful of new CDTLCPLs were created as section commanders for Ramsay (recruit) company. 59

60 In March, training camp was held at Dargile SF near Heathcote. This was the first time we have used this section of the forest and it seems to offer all the advantages of the old pre-fire Mt Disappointment SF. The CUOs rapidly learn how much work needs to be put into a camp and what can go wrong when their plans are implemented in the real world. Term 1 also saw the start of our ceremonial commitments: the Darwin Defenders Service, Waverly RSL service, Shrine Legacy school service, Battle of Fromelles commemoration, as well as ANZAC Day. The number of organisations requesting support from the Unit and/or the band continues to grow; a positive indicator of the esteem in which the two organisations are held. Links have been established with more post WW2 veteran groups which when combined with our long standing commitments requires approximately 50 cadets to volunteer their time for ANZAC Day. In term 2 the training switched to field work with the Unit preparing for bivouac. The Graytown- Rushworth SF has become our mid-year home, the Unit settling in the same section of the Dargile SF. The confidence course was ably constructed by Langley Coy and a successful camp was had by all. The new rotation policy saw the unit go to the Mt Tallarook SF for a survival camp. Survival camp was held amongst the verdant regrowth where Mong hats and strange food was in abundance. The cadets need to relearn some jungle style lesson a la Bear Grylls. Term 3 also saw the return of ceremonial and other activities: Battle for Australia service, Legacy Badge selling, the Dress & Drill competition, Vietnam Veterans Day, all contributing to a very busy lead in period prior to AFX with the 48 hour exercise testing all levels of the Unit. The annual parade was an excellent affair, with the inclement weather holding off while the Unit and Squadron paraded the colours under the gaze of Col Raike, Assistant Commander 4Bde. The thanks of the School are extended to the following officers: Captain S Huysing, Captain S Dedrick; Lieutenants M Roberts, T Jones, T Tnay, D Paul, R Williams; 2Lt J Devlin, LCpl K Nguyen and UA M Stephen as well as the large selection of old boys and old girls who volunteer to help out on every camp. Thanks are also extended to CUO P Li, EJ Tan, C Wang and the RSM WO1 A Hum and the team of NCOs. The dedication of the OOCs, CUOs and NCOs should ensure that change is embraced and that every year provides the utmost opportunity for young people to develop new skills and to thrive and learn. Air Force Cadets 2013 was another successful year for 415 Squadron. It was the 71 st year since the creation of 415 Squadron. Long serving Commanding Officer FLTLT(AAFC) S. Kemp was assisted with new member of staff, civilian J. Slocombe. The 415 Squadron operated in 2013 with seventy-five cadets. The results from the January promotion courses were excellent. CUO Milford attended the CUO course and CWOFF Cheng attended the CWOFF course. The senior squadron structure consisted of CUO, CWOFF Cheng, CFSGT Kirton and CFSGT Bechler. They proved to be a very experienced, enthusiastic, loyal and capable team. An intensive induction training camp was held at RAAF Base Williams February, where cadets studied service knowledge, drill and ceremonial. Also 415SQN attended the Avalon Air Show. In April, the senior cadets participated in a training camp at Millgrove, where they completed ground navigation exercises as part of proficiency field craft. Special thanks for the major contribution made by FLGOFF (AAFC) L. Saunders, PLTOFF (AAFC) D. Robertson and AC (AAFC) R.Cowley. ANZAC Day activities were 60

61 prominent along with participation at the Waverley RSL Service. The Wing Annual Drill Competition and Annual Parade were held at RAAF Williams, Point Cook, at which the Squadron performed well and were runners up. Once again a highlight of the year was the five day bivouac held in June at Riddells Creek due to the bush fire damage at Mt Disappointment State Forest. Staffing was helped by the presence of MHS Old Boys FLTLT Chris Wilson and FLTLT Chris Saunders. The senior cadets put into practice survival skills learnt at the squadron, while the recruits were introduced to field craft in the bush. After this event, the squadron lost the services of FLGOFF (AAFC) Lachlan Saunders, who started employment as an officer in the RAAF. In September, the squadron was invited to compete in the Major JRJ Grigsby Dress and Drill Competition. For the first time in many years a Squadron Dining In night was held for the 70 th Anniversary. Guest speaker was Old Boy Scott Thomas who talked about his combat experience in Afghanistan This year also marked the promotion of PLTOFF (AAFC) Daniel Robertson to Commanding Officer of 417SQN (City of Brighton) - his promotion was richly deserved. FLTLT (AAFC) S. Kemp led the squadron with distinction. They were ably assisted by FLGOFF (AAFC) L Saunders, AC (AAFC) R Cowley, LAC (AAFC) R Parry, PLTOFF (AAFC) D Robertson and LAC(AAFC) L. Evans, and civilians M. Kogan, J. Chan and J. Slocombe. They are to be thanked for their caring leadership and for their immense investment in time to the Squadron, and the School is appreciative of their effort and commitment. Annual Musical This year s Melbourne High School and Mac.Robertson Girls High School combined musical was Into the Woods, the magical, imaginative adventure with a moral and political point of view. The show s creators lead the audience on a journey to the darker side of fairy tales as they explored the pain of growing up, communal responsibility, and the values we pass on to our children. Into the Woods was put together by a dedicated group of staff and students from both schools. Director and vocal director was Ms Belinda Parsons (Mac.Rob), Ms Claire Nicholson (Mac.Rob) was the musical director and Mr George Marotous the production manager (MHS). Mr Edgar Wegner (Mac.Rob) designed the sets, while Mr John Rice and Ms Judy Leech once again cast their magic in the creation of original props. Ms Helen Bekos (MHS) was costume manager and Mr Luke Francis (Mac.Rob) managed make-up and hair while Mr Brett Rushton (MHS) oversaw the student crew. A cast of thirty students from both schools took part in the production which tested their singing, acting and dancing talents and enabled all of them to extend their abilities and performance skills. The skill and tenacity displayed by the twenty-one students in the orchestra in mastering a very taxing score saw them reach extraordinary heights as musicians. An able body of over forty student crew from both schools worked collaboratively and seamlessly, capably managing their assigned responsibilities in rigging, set changing, lighting, sound, costume, make-up and props, demonstrating once again their reliability and proven ability to run an entire production. We thank everyone involved in Into the Woods and their success in delivering a show that was dramatically and musically mature and entertaining. On a final note, we congratulate the following who were awarded a Commendation of Excellence by the Music Theatre Guild of Victoria: Ms Claire Nicholson for Best Musical Direction, Mr John Rice and Mr Luke Francis for Prosthetics and Make-up; 61

62 Holly Donohue and Sophia Avramoudas for Best Junior Female in a Leading Role, and Austin Bond for Best Junior Male in a Supporting Role. Annual Play Androcles and the Lion, written by Nobel laureate George Bernard Shaw, examines the hypocrisy of those that use religion as a tool of oppression. Based on Aesop s fable, this telling is set in ancient Rome where Androcles and his fellow Christians are set to be fed to the lions in the Colosseum. As this production was performed in September during the height of the Melbournian High Holy Days (the AFL finals), the director Dr Rami Stiglec (MHS) decided to extend the analogy of religious persecution to that of our one great religion: AFL football. This show was the first comedy produced by Melbourne High School and The Mac.Robertsons Girls High School in several years, and the School would like to acknowledge the cast and crew for their hard work and dedication in putting on such a wacky and laugh-filled production. Thanks to the director Dr Rami Stiglec for his vision and leadership, and for successfully combining Roman and AFL themes into an enjoyable, and often crazy, show. Further thanks to the production crew from both schools: to Mr Edgar Wegner (Mac.Rob) for production management and his outstandingly vivid set designs; to Ms Judy Leech and Mr Evan Watkins (MHS) for making all the props (including swords and shields to correct historical dimensions); to Ms Helen Bekos (MHS) for managing the costuming, enabling the students to design and construct all the costumes for this show; to Mr Lucas Francis (Mac.Rob) for managing the hair and make-up; to Mr Michael Frencham (MHS) for the sound effects and filming of the show; and to Mr James Stephenson (Mac.Rob) for once again allowing his Year 11 visual communication and design class create the poster used for the production. The School would like to highlight the work done by the student leaders of this production, who have had an unprecedented level of control over the vision of the show the costumes, hair & make-up, poster and lighting were all designed by students (Ella Nicholls, Sandy Young, Chistina Pereira and Jessica Ziada, and Niklas Kreher respectively). The day-to-day running of the production was left to the student stage manager, Elin Teo (Mac.Rob), and the student director, Lee Hilton (MHS), was heavily involved in running the cast rehearsals, including warm-ups and working one-on-one with cast members. The School would like to especially acknowledge Elin and Lee for their dedication to the show. Last, but in no means least, the School would like to thank the wonderful cast of Androcles and the Lion, whose hilarious performances wowed the audiences every time they went on stage. The cast was led by the titular Androcles, Jeremy Trott (MHS), and the romantic leads Meaghan Munro (Mac.Rob) and Aharon Golod (MHS), who showed great maturity in their performances. However, the show was well and truly stolen by Ferrovious, Ryan Stewart (MHS) hysterical attempt to convert the Roman Lentulus, Joe Jackson (MHS), to Christianity. Finally, a special thanks to the administrations from both schools, especially the assistant principals Dr Janet Prideaux (MHS) and Ms Janet McCutcheon (Mac.Rob), for their support for the show. 62

63 Year 10 Community Service Program The community service program was established as part of a compulsory co-curricular activity for all Year 10 students in Students are required to undertake a minimum of 20 hours community service during the year. The program aims to provide valued assistance to the community as well as giving each student the opportunity to develop personally by gaining understanding, compassion and tolerance towards those who are disadvantaged in the community. Students experience a sense of achievement and independence by assisting others and further enhance communication skills and cooperative work skills. The launch of the Annual Red Cross Appeal in the City of Melbourne collected over $31,000 which was the School's best ever collection, and all boys represented Red Cross and the School in an exemplary manner. All students also organized a volunteer placement and participated in activities that involved personal interaction with those in the community who are less advantaged, especially those that may be physically, mentally or health impaired. The community service program was supported and encouraged by the Year 10 student learning coordinators, Mr Peter Wood and Mr Ross Pritchard, and assistant principal, Dr Prideaux. The coordinator of the program during 2013 was Mr Peter Wood, whose outstanding professionalism and commitment to the students means that the program is constantly reviewed, amended and improved. He is to be warmly thanked. The involvement and encouragement of the Year 10 form teachers and form captains, have ensured that students achieve significant benefits through this activity and they, too, are to be thanked for their efforts. MHS Old Boys Association The MHSOBA is an organisation that aims to assist the school and former students. Many of its members give expert advice when called upon; others provide services to the School. Many students have joined the MHSOBA as a student member during the course of this year. MHSOBA encourages all former students who are not student members (up to 30 th birthday) to become members to help ensure that these strong associations with the School are maintained and the provision of quality programs can continue. CAREERS NIGHTS AND SEMINARS Apart from the Careers Night held at the School each year for those still at Melbourne High School, MHSOBA conducts seminars with tertiary students on an occasional basis, which are specific to certain professional categories. They are usually held with a panel of Old Boys who are prominent in their respective fields. There is the opportunity to speak personally to men who know what their profession is really about. This is also a networking opportunity whereby a student can forge strong links with such people for the future. More recently, Melbourne High graduated Old Boys have the opportunity to provide career and course advice through a luncheon seminar program held in the Unicorn Club for years 10, 11 and 12 students during terms 1 and 2. These seminars are free for student life members. WEBSITE The MHSOBA new web site keeps the MHS community world-wide in touch with its many and varied activities. Overseas, interstate and country old boys often send s after seeing something of interest on the MHSOBA site or having received the quarterly newsletter, via e- mail. MHSOBA now has an active Facebook presence which is keeping us in touch with the current generation of students. Like us on The Official MHSOBA. 63

64 PUBLICATIONS A quarterly newsletter is ed to all Old Boys and staff with addresses. The newsletter is now in printable form which enables the OBA to keep members without computers up to date with all the activities within the OBA community. UNDERGRADUATE SCHOLARSHIPS The George Fincham Scholarship is available for MHS Old Boys who are currently tertiary students. This is valued at up to $10,000 and is applicable to a calendar year of study. Applications, available on the web site, are submitted prior to the end of March. The Dr Eric Stock Prize is awarded to a former student who is currently studying an undergraduate course in the faculty of medicine at either the University of Melbourne or Monash University. The Verma Family scholarship is available for students currently studying health science or related courses in any Australian university. The recipient must be at least in his second or subsequent year of study at the time of his application. The scholarship consists of a one off payment of $3000. Recipients of this award are not eligible to apply in subsequent years. One scholarship is granted each year. THE KEITH BLUEY TRUSCOTT SCHOLARSHIPS These scholarships are funded each year by MHSOBA and are sought after prestigious awards for up to two boys in each of Year 11 and Year 12. These are two year scholarships and candidates also receive a medal presented by Dr John Miller AO, the first recipient of the scholarship in TUTORING REGISTER The MHSOBA runs a tutoring register that attempts to link tertiary students who wish to tutor secondary students with those who need a tutor. Tutoring is a great way for university students to make a little extra money while studying. The OBA acts as a facilitator, putting the two parties in contact, and does not receive a fee or take any percentage. This is a free service for members of the OBA. Applications to join the tutoring register can be made at Homecoming Day registration. MENTOR PROGRAM Students interested in being involved in the Mentor Program may be assigned their own Old Boy as a mentor who provides guidance on personal and business development for a six-month or longer period. This program was in its trial year in 2005 and has been expanded further since 2006 through the MHSOB Green, Maroon and Black Patrons Club. Feedback from these programs suggests it is proving to be of great benefit to the students. SOCIAL AND SPORTING FUNCTIONS The MHSOBA conducts a number of social events during the year and the Association assists in fundraising activities for the School and the Old Boys each year. The MHSOBA luncheon club had been running for 30 years, with four luncheons per year with all guest speakers being past MHS students. The MHSOBA also holds winemaker dinners at varying venues around Melbourne and regional dinners and luncheons at various country and interstate venues. For the fitness minded the Breakfast Club is an early morning fitness group which meets on Tuesday and Thursdays at 6.00am; this group has been organised by Ted Goldstein, MHS exit 1966 and running since The group caters for all ages and is not restricted to the participants being past students of MHS. 64

65 Through its sporting clubs, the MHSOBA enables the continued participation in sport undertaken by former students. At this stage the clubs include football, cricket, water polo and hockey. Other clubs may be formed if there is sufficient and genuine interest. The Old Boys Association Annual Dinner in 2013, with guest speaker Mark McConnell, was another annual flagship event that was attended by over 200 former students and staff members. MHS Foundation The Melbourne High School Foundation ( was established in 2007 to support Melbourne High School by raising funds for the education and assistance of past, present and future students and staff. The Foundation acts as Trustee of three School Trusts: The General Trust (donations are not tax deductible) encourages bequests, endowments and donations for MHS for the following: camps and excursions; sports programs, equipment and facilities; vocational training opportunities; and programs and activities which will enrich the educational experience of students and staff. The Scholarship Trust (donations are tax deductible) carries out fundraising to provide money for scholarships, bursaries and prizes. These can be applied to Melbourne High School, similar overseas schools and Australian or overseas tertiary studies. The Arts and Cultural Trust (donations are tax deductible) promotes and raises money to promote the arts within the School and the wider community, particularly music; the literary, visual and performing arts; and Aboriginal arts. In addition, the Foundation manages the Melbourne High School Annual Appeal which encompasses fundraising for the MHS Building Fund and the MHS Library Fund. Donations to the MHS Building Fund go towards upgrading the Castle on the Hill so that the building and its facilities are modern and well maintained. Donations can also be directed towards the future development of the land at 661 Chapel Street. Donations to the MHS Library Fund enable MHS to purchase and maintain study resources for students. Parents and Friends Association (P&F) An increase in the number of parents involved in this year s MHS Parents & Friends Association s activities is to be applauded. Each month the committee gathered to plan and organise events. Even in the cold of winter everyone made the effort to attend the meetings to plan events and to consider how best to raise and distribute funds. There were many events throughout the year at which parents could meet, raise funds, assist in the many activities, such as helping in the canteen, the uniform shop, on working bees, musical events and also with assisting the needs of new parents. The benefit of the class reps was testament to how parents were able to be kept up-to-date with news and promotions. Good communication has been particularly important for this year s committee. Each event was a highlight in itself. Trivia Night proved once again we have some very knowledgeable parents while the Mothers Day brunch was a resounding success with Liz Minter s talk truly inspirational. The team work and dedication displayed by the P&F committee showed once again the talent the school has in the P&F. A real highlight was the International Night Dinner. The organisation behind this event was remarkable, from securing the services of international soprano, 65

66 Shu-Cheen Yu, to having a Shakespearean monologue, to the array of magnificent food from our parents, representing our many cultures, to the displays of colourful national dress. It was a night of nights and demonstrated the dedication of all those who helped organise it. It also showed the loyalty of our parents with 130 tickets sold. The Annual Raffle and Silent Auction once again showed the generosity of our School community and the goodwill and appreciation toward our school from our donors in the local business community - special thanks must go to them. The anecdotes of Neil and Michael Roberts at the Fathers Day lunch were memorable and made the lunch a resounding success. Of course, the purpose of the P&F year of events is to help raise funds for the School s many projects: the library improvements, the upgrade of the rowing facilities, the installation of new airconditioning in the canteen, to name a few. Ms Lin Zhang is to be warmly thanked for her first year as president of the MHS Parents & Friends, which she embraced with enthusiasm, professionalism and commitment. She was able to engage a larger number of parents this year in P&F activities and is particularly grateful for the assistance of Jane Yan, Debra Hilton, Amanda Dunstan-Potter, Mary Bitta, Nanette Gibson, Anna Vayenas, Hazel Saltis, Megan Sarson, Liz Minter, Dona Pirozek, Adrian Poermandya, Rebecca Gray, Deviani Segal and Simon Dale. The School is indeed fortunate to have so many parents who are willing to give their time and talents to improving their sons school experience. 66

67 MHS Strategic Plan Performance Indicators and targets Student Learning Goal: to maximise the potential of each student to attain academic excellence through the delivery of a bolder and more creative curriculum. Target: By 2014 the Stimulating Learning Environment variable in the Student Opinion Survey will increase as follows: Yr 9 from Yr 10 from Yr 11 from Yr 12 from Level Target Av Av Stimulating Learning; My teachers makes the work we do in class interesting My teachers makes learning interesting My teachers are inspiring to listen to My teachers make school work enjoyable Student Engagement and Wellbeing Goal: To ensure that every student is more thoroughly prepared for all aspects of adult life. Target: By 2014 improve exit students perceptions of satisfaction with preparation for adult life from school mean 63% to 75%. How effectively do you feel MHS prepared you for Post-School life more generally? Year Extremely Well Very Well Adequately Not so well Extremely Poorly Satisfaction Rate % 45% 33% 4% 1% 62% % 53% 24% 1% 0% 72% % 46% 22% 2% 2% 74% % 60% 13% 0% 0% 87% Student Pathways and Transitions Goal: To improve the preparation of students for effective transition to tertiary studies. Target: By 2014 improve exit students perceptions of satisfaction with transition to tertiary studies from school mean 72% to 80%. 67

68 How effectively do you feel MHS prepared you for the transition to further study/employment Year Extremely Well Very Well Adequately Not so well Extremely Poorly Satisfaction Rate % 53% 23% 1% 0% 76% % 50% 23% 1% 0% 76% % 50% 20% 2% 0% 78% % 58% 12% 0% 0% 88% STRATEGIC DIRECTION Goals Targets One Year Targets Achievement Engagement Wellbeing Productivity To maximise the potential of each student to attain academic excellence through the delivery of a bolder and more creative curriculum. To ensure that every student is more thoroughly prepared for all aspects of adult life. To improve the preparation of students for effective transition to tertiary studies. To create a professional learning culture that provides greater support, but also higher expectations, of the teaching faculty and is more closely aligned to the priorities of the School By 2014 the Stimulating Learning Environment variable in the Student Opinion Survey will increase as follows: Yr 9 from Yr 10 from Yr 11 from Yr 12 from By 2014 improve exit students perceptions of satisfaction with preparation for adult life from school mean 63% to 75%. By 2014 improve exit students perceptions of satisfaction with transition to tertiary studies from school mean 72% to 80%. By 2014 improve staff perceptions of appraisal and recognition to at least the state mean for secondary schools By 2012 the Stimulating Learning Environment variable in the Student Opinion Survey will increase as follows: Yr 9 from Yr 10 from Yr 11 from Yr 12 from By 2014 to maintain exit students perceptions of satisfaction with preparation for adult life to at least 75%. By 2014 to maintain exit students perceptions of satisfaction with transition to tertiary studies to at least 80%. By 2014 staff perception of appraisal and recognition will increase from 3.2 to

69 IMPEMENTATION Key Improvement Strategies What The activities and programs required to progress the key improvement strategies How The budget, equipment, IT, learning time, learning space Who The individuals or teams responsible for implementation When The date, week, month or term for completion Achievement milestones The changes in practice or behaviours Achievement Undertake School review process and create new strategic plan Staff and professional learning meeting priority Principal and leadership team Undertake selfevaluation by end of term 2 and confirm strategic plan by end of 2014 By 2015 the School will have developed a new strategic plan Engagement Participate in the Select Entry school and MGSE ARCOTS joint research project ARCOTS team and Curriculum Committee priority Assistant principal, curriculum and LT curriculum Complete benchmark phase by the end of term 2 and Phase 2 by end of 2014 By 2015 the School will have completed phase 2 of the ARCOTS project Wellbeing Research and design a student management system e-learning team priority Assistant principal, resources and LT e-learning Recommendation to e-learning team by end of term 2 for implementation by end of 2014 By 2015 the School will have implemented a new student management system Productivity Redesign the School s Performance and Development program to take account of new DEECD guidelines Staff and professional learning meeting priority Assistant principal, teaching and LT professional learning Design, negotiate and implement new program by May 1 By 2015 the School will have implemented a revised P&D program 69

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