Issue 1 2025 - Teaching & Learning

Teaching & Learning

Jessica Lewis

Welcome back to another school year, I hope all students and their families had a fabulous summer holiday and are feeling fresh and inspired to take on another year.

New staff

We are pleased to welcome back Ms Sarah Johnson to the English department and to introduce Mr Peter Riley and Mrs Tia Hughes as our new Math teachers. Tia will also be taking the new Year 10 Business Enterprise unit using her farming and beekeeping expertise to teach students how to be successful in setting up and running a small business.

Assessments

Assessments are well underway in classrooms with progress reports due to be sent out to parents around the end of week 8 in preparation for our first parent-teacher interviews locked in for our teachers (but not students) first day back next term – Monday 28th April. We have decided this would be the most convenient day for parents from further afield to be able to join us in person as they drop their kids off for a Tuesday start, but of course phone calls are always an option at any point in time.

For our newly enrolled Year 10’s, these first assessments may result in some class movements at the start of term 2 as we try to find the best fit for all students. When we place students in classes, we rely on data from previous schools and NAPLAN to make decisions, but of course these are not always reliable. While both Year 10 classes will be sitting the same assessments with the same teacher, one class will be extended to better prepare for an ATAR pathway. We will be getting in touch with students and their parents as these results become available.

Another event on the horizon is the Online Literacy and Numeracy Assessment (OLNA) which encompasses three tests which judge student’s reading, writing and numeracy. These are critical for Year 12 graduation also known as West Australian Certificate of Education (WACE). The first attempt at these will take place in week 2 of term 2 (6th - 8th May) but some of our Year 10’s have already used their first attempt in Year 9, so will not be eligible for this round. We have bought subscriptions to websites for all outstanding Year 11 and 12 students, all should now have the details to start preparing and practicing. I have access to all student quiz results and try to regularly check in to see how much they are using these services and where they are at. Previous students that have engaged with the practice programs have a greater success rate than those who don’t, so now is the time to get started! Please get in touch if you need more details about anything related to OLNA. 

I am still trying to get predicted ATARs for all Year 12 students currently studying 4 or more ATAR subjects, but there is a glitch in the system with the new agricultural units (Agribusiness and Agriculture Science and Technology) as there is no historical data to compare their in-school results with final exams… I have been told this would be fixed a few weeks ago but am still waiting…!

Agricultural Science and Technology

And finally, a personal plug for my classes - thank you to Mr Marshall, Mr York and all the other farm staff who helped to make the new raised beds out of IBC’s next to the gym. The students were very excited to see their first seeds emerge from the soil, a huge improvement on the little pots we tried to work with last year. We are investigating how seed depth effects germination rate for canola, oats, lupins and faba beans. So far, we have a beautiful row of oats that were planted at 25mm deep and 2 lonely lupins, one from 10mm and the other 25mm. The reports are due in 2 weeks, so hopefully there is a lot more action before then.

Also, a big thank you to Mr Skipper for always being so willing to go against all of his training and supply us with the non-edible parts of animals that have been slaughtered. The Year 11’s and I were amazed (and somewhat alarmed!) at the size of a cow’s rumen. While it is difficult to find everything when you have a whole digestive system on the ground, it certainly helps to cement the theory we learn in class. My recommendation before Friday’s Digestion test is to try to teach what you have learnt to someone else – that’s when you truly realise what you understand, or don’t!

Happy learning!

Jessica Lewis
Program Coordinator - Teaching and Learning
WACOA – Denmark