Welcome back and we hope that you all had a great break and a wonderful Easter spent with family and friends. We also hope that it was a time to rest and rejuvenate, ready for all that is ahead. Easter brings with it the hope of the Resurrection. As we embrace our own personal hopes, we are also called to reflect on how we share our hope. We remember those who are struggling to find hope, particularly in the light of recent events in Australia and overseas and pray that they find peace.

Term 2 always presents a busy time for students in the OLMC calendar. The Student Leaders will hold the annual Dare2Donate event. The Athletics Carnival and Senior Production will also happen during the term, adding to the already busy OLMC. Towards the end of the term there will be the Year 7 Camp and Year 12 Retreat, along with the Year 10 Careers Program. Students in Year 10 and 11 will also participate in the exam program and for Year 10s this will be their first exam experience.

The Parents’ Association will hold the annual Mother’s Day event, always so well attended and a fitting celebration of the women in the lives of our students.

Over the first two weeks of this term we are participating in a School Review. This involves a compliance audit to ensure that we are meeting the minimum requirements of the Victorian Registration and Qualifications Authority (VRQA) and the Child Safe Standards outlined in Ministerial Order 1359. Further, we are also reflecting on our Strategic Directions 2020-2023; our successes and next challenges. The review will lead us into the next phase of the development of our Strategic Directions. As outlined previously, this will involve conversations and discernment with all our stakeholders over the coming months. It is an exciting opportunity to determine the needs of students in the future. We hope that you will be able to join us in some of these conversations.

Next week is the first of two Parent/Student/Teacher Interview Evenings. You will find further information about this in the Newsletter. As partners in the education of your child, these interviews are important opportunities to affirm the successes and plan for addressing any challenge areas with you. It is a chance for us to strengthen our partnership and support each other to help each student grow.

As we continue in this great season of Easter, until the feast of Pentecost, we continue to challenge each other to be people of light, love, justice, peace, courage, compassion and joy.

We read in Mark 16:1-8

When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene and Mary, the mother of James and Salome, bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him. And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb. They had been saying to one another, ‘Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb?’ When they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had already been rolled back. As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed. But he said to them, ‘Do not be alarmed; you are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has been raised; he is not here. Look, there is the place they laid him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him, just as he told you’. So, they went out and fled from the tomb, for terror and amazement had seized them, and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.

Reflection

In this passage, the author places the Marys at the tomb of the crucified Jesus. In their grief, the Marys come to honour, mourn and respect Jesus’ broken and mutilated body. To their shock, Jesus is not there! Yet, they are challenged to go and tell the others that Jesus has risen and will meet them again soon. We read they ‘went out and fled the tomb, for terror and amazement had seized them.’ These Greek words are usually interpreted as terror and fear. However, some theologians have interpreted the Greek as awe, which suggests that they will go to proclaim the risen Christ with a renewed sense of wonder. We are the Church in our times and our young Mercy women are challenged to recognise that women are the first to announce the risen Christ.

We might question what they were thinking. How did they experience both terror or awe and amazement or wonder? And we ask ourselves, what might have been our response?

Our world and our lives are filled with blessings and struggles – this is the human experience. But as Jesus people and as Mercy people, we are called by our Baptism, our dying and rising with Christ, to encounter this world with love, hope, joy, courage, compassion, justice and hospitality. We are called to be expressions of gratitude and challenge! And because of this, we are called to be agents of God’s love as we work together to build God’s kingdom.

So, during this great season of Eastertide, we seek these moments of God’s grace present in our lives and our world. How can we be people of wonder and awe for others, especially the poor? How will we, as Mercy people, become a community of difference in our care for our neighbours?

Image from: Reading Acts.com - The First Witness to the Resurrection

In the final week of Term 1, we celebrated our annual Eco Justice Day.

The day was designed to create awareness about the impact of single-use plastics in our world and to encourage and celebrate the adoption of Nude Food as normal practice. We are implored by Pope Francis’ encyclical Laudato Sì to ‘care for our common home’.

We hope that this event will have inspired students and staff to make changes in our daily lives, both at school and at home.

The day was designed and run by the Year 9 Horizon students and supported by the Social Justice Club. A huge thank you to all the students and staff who supported this initiative.

In the morning, every student who brought in Nude Food to morning Pastoral received a token or stamp to present at the Centenary Lawn at lunchtime at the Eco Justice Fair. This year’s stalls included: Eco Lemonade, Eco Biscuits and Rocky Road, Homemade Lip Balm, Chocolate Paper, Fair Trade and Eco Hot Chocolates and so much more!

We also celebrated the efforts of Project Compassion in Term 1, where we set up bins for the recycling of bottles and cans as part of the Victorian Government’s Recycling Scheme. Recyclables were delivered to the Banyule Facility, and the 10c from every item was donated to Caritas Australia for important humanitarian projects.

We will continue to recycle these items at OLMC, so we encourage students to continue to bring in these items and deposit them into the correct bins.

For more information about the Recycling Scheme, please visit : https://cdsvic.org.au/

Lauren Marquet
Social Justice Coordinator

At the end of Term 1, students were busy submitting assessment tasks to teachers. In the first few weeks of Term 2, students will be receiving feedback on these tasks regarding their demonstration of understanding and skill. The feedback can be viewed on PAM. One way to do so is by clicking on the student photo, which will open a new page. Then, via the left-hand menu, select ‘Learning Tasks’. You can then open each subject to view current tasks. You will see listed next to a task what its status is.

If it is overdue, the task is still to be submitted. It a task has the comments that results have been withheld, this may be due to the task currently being marked or when some students in the class who were absent are still to complete the assessment. However, the focus of this article is on the tasks where results have been released.

In Years 7-11, all common assessment tasks are accompanied by a rubric. A rubric communicates to students what the assessment criteria are, and then descriptors for each criterion. Rubrics are an important way to provide feedback on what has been achieved, and the next steps for learning arising from this task.

On PAM you can then view details of the task by clicking on the task itself, the rectangle. This will then open up a new page with information on the task. Once on this page you are able to access the rubric by clicking on the blue tile ‘View All Rubric Details.’

When the rubric opens up, you will see the criteria listed in the left-hand column. This will indicate the knowledge or skill that is being assessed in the row. The descriptors for our rubrics go from the left to right, starting with the knowledge or skill that may be demonstrated at a basic level, and then each descriptor to the right indicating performance of greater complexity or precision. We have been working with external consultants, originally from the University of Melbourne, to support us in making our rubrics ‘developmental’. What this means is that each cell should demonstrate what has been shown, and the cell to the right builds upon the previous cell.

The rubric therefore provides an indication of what the next steps are in their learning.

For example, in a Year 7 creative writing task, students were required to plan, write and edit a short detective story, selecting from a number of prompts provided. This task draws upon their reading of the detective story Friday Barnes.

In this rubric, one area being assessed is ‘Structures of Writing’ and this is then separated into three aspects: Paragraphs, Use of Dialogue and Story Arc.

The Story Arc criterion is reproduced below. The numbers running in the top row indicate the increasing complexity of the expectations of what should be evident in a story written in the detective genre. The cell highlighted below in bold is what the student has been able to demonstrate in their writing, that the story they have written has explored clues to solve the mystery. In order to achieve this, the student has also established the setting and introduced the mystery. The area for growth, for development, is that the student needs to provide a solution to the mystery – a key feature of the genre of a detective story.

The student may reflect that the reason for this was running out of time, or not fully understanding the features (and formula) to this genre of story. The rubric provides the student with feedback as to what was missing, and the next step for their learning.

Another component of the assessment task is a student reflection. At the bottom of the assessment task, beneath the teacher comment, students are to consider what they have done well, and what led them to this success. Further, what will they need to focus on in future? The rubric provides a guide as to what this may be. The reflection should also include the strategies or actions that a student will take to experience growth in their learning, following the feedback on this task.

The student reflection is in the words of the student, and teachers do not correct grammar or spelling. It is a student voice, and through the rubric and the reflection there are opportunities for discussion on learning to be quite rich at home.

We may leap to the grade and be not inclined to look any further. However, there is real power in learning if time is taken to unpack the rubric, and for students to reflect on their success and identify their opportunities for growth. We hope that looking at the assessment results with your child leads to great conversations around the dinner table, or in the car, regarding learning and strategies to improve.

Further information regarding assessment can be found via our Assessment and Reporting Policy via PAM and the Parent Handbook.

Semester One Parent/Student/Teacher Interviews will be occurring Wednesday 24 April and Thursday 2 May. Interviews will be held between 2.00 pm and 8.00 pm, and will be held via Google Meet.

An email communication regarding these interviews was sent on Wednesday 27 March. This communication included instructions as to how to join the Meets and a support number for the day of the interviews. The process for these interviews is the same as was used for Parent/Student/Teacher Interviews in 2023.

Bookings are to be made via PAM. Bookings will close at midday on 23 April. This is to allow time for teachers to prepare for the meetings the following day. The booking system will reopen on Friday 26 April, and then close at midday on Wednesday 1 May.

We look forward to the opportunity to have these conversations about learning over the next fortnight.

Both Wednesday 24 April and Thursday 2 May are student free days.

Our work with Elevate Education includes access to parent webinars. This term Elevate Education are running four parent webinars, as listed below:

The exam webinars may be of particular interest to our parents with students in Years 10-12. Students in Years 10 and 11 will be hearing from Elevate about preparing for exams, and studying like a sensei, on Friday 10 May. The Year 10 and 11 exam period for the end of Semester One is from Wednesday 5 June through to Thursday 13 June.

Each webinar will run for around 60 minutes. If you are interested in attending one or more of the webinars, then please register via the link here.

Andrew Gibson
Curriculum Coordinator

Megan Edwards
Head of Student Wellbeing

On Monday 15 April, I was invited to give a presentation on the Year 9 Horizon Program to the teaching staff at John Paul College. The theme of their Professional Learning Day was ‘Around the World in Education Trends’ and had a focus on what they can learn from other schools. I highlighted the way in which we run the Horizon Program here at OLMC. I discussed the valuable knowledge and skills that our students develop throughout the term and the positive impact it has on student engagement.

The presentation was an opportunity for collaboration and knowledge-sharing. Collaboration among schools allows us to learn from each other's successes and challenges, to exchange ideas and resources, and to collectively empower young minds and shape future leaders. By sharing our best practices, we contribute to a culture of continuous improvement in education. I look forward to exploring opportunities for future collaboration with John Paul College and other schools in our community.

In other Horizon news, our Term 1 Horizon students have come to the end of their time in the program. We have enjoyed helping them become more confident in their learning and developing resilience. They have also been able to experience some new trail days such as the “Find Your Voice” Incursion. This day saw them interviewing a professional about their career before creating a podcast episode using that interview. We were fortunate enough to have a number of OLMC alumni give their time to be interviewed and answer questions about future pathways.

As always, camp has been a highlight of the term with students being able to challenge themselves physically and mentally whilst also connecting with their peers. This group was particularly competitive in our MasterChef Challenge as well as the infamous Commando Course mud pit. It was clear they made some memories that they will treasure.

Gabby Tabban
Horizon Coordinator

One of the most dynamic, invigorating and engaging subjects we offer at OLMC is Units 1-4 Politics. In the nearly former iteration of the Study Design (our Year 12s are currently completing the final year of it) the course was known as Global Politics. In a way, we mourn this retiring name. It made the subject sound encompassing, exciting and planet-enveloping. It drew students in by its very ‘need to know about the world’ type of energy.

The title ‘Politics’ could evoke a musty yawn-fest visual at times. This couldn’t be further from the reality of our political classroom!

Once a week, all Politics students at Years 11 and 12 embark on an exploration of ‘what’s really going on around the globe’ via Media Monday or Newsday Tuesday. The objective of these sessions is for agile political students to present issues in the news, link them to elements of the Study Design and then discuss the ramifications of world events on politics, economics, citizens, statehood and the planet.

It is a fascinating part of our weekly sessions. Individual students take a turn to find one or two news items that have piqued their interest and present this to their classmates. The student introduces the topic, outlines the actors, their perspectives and any events that have occurred as a result of the news item. Questions, conversations, fact-checking and critical thinking can ensue. As teachers, we facilitate the discussion and watch as young minds digest the challenges, implications and infinite ways that politics shapes the rhythm and pattern of life on Earth.

It is one of the joys related to our work. It’s also very satisfying to observe students grapple with misinformation as they seek reliable and reputable sources to share.

I had the pleasure to sit in on the most recent Year 12 Media Monday where Siena presented an article about the situation in Israel and Iran. As imagined, the discussion touched on alliances, weapon supply, sovereignty, statehood, famine, UN responses, Australia’s role, the Iranian embassy in Syria and more.

Importantly, the students listened and conversed and decided that although issues can’t be fixed, it is vital that they are understood. Media Monday and Newsday Tuesday are not spaces for hyperbolic opinion or hot-air debate. They are moments in our Politics lessons where our minds can be grown and blown, and our thinking challenged.

Yes, there may be times in Politics where we read about an MP talking about constituency or the latest bill, but as the world is considered ‘our oyster’ according to that well-known idiom, the Politics class is where we scrape away at that very shell.

Rosemary Jones
Humanities Learning Leader

A group of keen students from Year 8 to 10 are embarking on an exciting extension project this term in the Learning Commons. The ‘Shadow Judging Project’ is an initiative of the Children’s Book Council of Australia (CBCA), which seeks to have student voice feature more prominently in the Book of the Year Awards.

The students from OLMC who have chosen to participate are all keen readers who will need to read the six shortlisted books for the Older Readers Category this term. We will then meet a number of times to discuss the books and critically evaluate them using the same criteria that is used by the adult panel of judges. At the end of the process, the students will deliberate to determine which of these books should receive OLMC’s vote for the Shadow Judging Project. Our vote will be added to those from other schools to show the top pick as decided by students from across Australia.

We thank the students involved in 2024 for their enthusiasm and teamwork as we embark on this 14 week project. You can read more about the project and the books that the students will be reading on the Shadow Judging Project website.

Anna Apfelstedt
Learning Commons Coordinator

It was The Greatest Show!

In 2017 The Greatest Showman was released, starring popular actors Zac Efron, Zendaya and Hugh Jackman. The movie told the story of PJ Barnum and his desire to become a worldwide sensation through his creativity and ideas. The movie also had a special place in the memories of many of our current Year 12 students, who were obsessed with the songs and music from the movie when they began their journey at OLMC. It was therefore fitting that our first concert for 2024 was The Greatest Showman In Concert.

All OLMC music ensembles performed songs as they appear in the movie, with our senior leaders narrating what would have happened in the film between each item. The joy and energy from the 120 performing students was amazing and we have received many comments describing how this enthusiasm was passed on to the audience throughout the evening. For only six weeks of rehearsals, we are all very proud of the work that was achieved by each ensemble and can’t wait to see what they are able to share with us in our Term 3 Celebration Concert, Let’s Go To The Movies.

Jo-Anne Mileto
Instrumental Music Coordinator

In the last week of Term 1, many of our musically talented students performed at The Greatest Showman In Concert. It was such an amazing performance filled with beautiful harmonies and musical notes taking you along the storyline of the classic movie.

As Arts Captain it was such a proud moment to see this idea, one that I had been pondering for about two years, come alive with so much joy and excitement.

A very special thank you to all of the students who put so much time and effort into the performance as well as Ms Mileto and all the ensemble teachers who helped make this night possible. It definitely was ‘The Greatest Show’!

Lillian M (12MCMI)
Arts Captain

The OLMC Parents’ Association invite all students to come along with their Mother, Grandmother or a special person in their lives to a

Mother’s Day Celebration
Thursday 9 May 7.00 pm
in the McAuley Hall, Cape St, Heidelberg.

This is a wonderful opportunity to acknowledge and celebrate the wonderful women in our lives and to get to know others in the OLMC community. The evening will commence with a short liturgy and will be followed by a delicious supper served by the Parents’ Association Committee.

To book a group/table, you can either purchase the whole table in one booking or purchase a ticket on an available table and then notify your guests of the table number they should specify when booking. If you want to rename the table so that your fellow guests can identify the table easily, please contact:

Marie Jenkins E: mjenkins@olmc.vic,edu.au T: 9455 7571

Tables will seat 10 people.

To book individual tickets, purchase the required number on any available table.

Tickets: $15 per person or $40 per family

We hope that you can join us for this very special event.

Marie Jenkins
Community Development Coordinator

For more than 25 years, the Bunnings sausage sizzle has grown to become a valued fundraising avenue for eligible community groups.

The OLMC Parents’ Association will be running the Bunnings sausage sizzle on Sunday 28 April from 9.00 am to 4.00 pm at the Preston Store. Please come along and support us and enjoy a delicious sausage.

We are still seeking some helpers for the day. If you are able to assist for a couple of hours between 10.00 am - 4.30 pm please contact Vanessa Sette, T: 0407 963 476 E: ness81@live.com.au

SIMON Everywhere is a new App for smart phones that allows parents to access all information relating to their daughter such as reports, grades, attendance and much more. It also allows you to update medical information, advise on absences, late and early leave passes, give permission for excursions, access teacher emails and also receive notifications from the College.

During the next few months, it is requested that all parents have the SIMON Everywhere app installed. For parents familiar with PAM, the new App works mostly the same as PAM and you can still access PAM via the web however, the app has additional functionality such as push notifications and the ability to sign in without having to enter your username and password each time.

Instructions for the downloading and installation of the app can be found in the flyer below.

Doug Wright
Digital Strategies Coordinator

Follow the official Our Lady of Mercy College accounts on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn. We’ll be sharing regular news, student achievements and stories from around the College.