Dear Carroll Community,

We have finally arrived at the end of an incredibly busy, but productive third term. We celebrated the graduation of the class of 2023 this week and acknowledged their achievements and accomplishments. Below is a short extract from my introduction speech at the awards ceremony.

Year 12, I would like you to take a breath and be still. Look around you at our beautiful location and your family members who are with you this evening. Take in this moment, as it will be one you will remember for the rest of your lives. 

This graduation ceremony is a pivotal moment, a crossroads where the past meets the future. It is a day of reflection and anticipation, a day when we recognise the dedication, perseverance, and incredible potential that resides within each graduate seated before us.

As we look back on the years that have brought us to this moment, we cannot help but be struck by the growth, not only in height but in character and wisdom, displayed by our graduates. They entered Carroll College as curious and impressionable young minds, and today, they emerge as intelligent, compassionate, and resilient young adults ready to face the world's challenges head-on.

In the face of unprecedented circumstances that have shaped their final years of high school, this class has demonstrated remarkable adaptability, resilience, and an unwavering commitment to their goals. They have not allowed the challenges of the world to deter them from achieving their dreams, and that is a testament to their incredible spirit.

As we send off these graduates into the world, we are confident that they are equipped with the knowledge, skills, and values to make a positive impact on society. They are not just the future; they are the present, and we eagerly anticipate the mark they will leave on the world.

Today is a day of celebration, not just for the graduates but for all of us who have had the privilege of being a part of their journey. It is a day to applaud their achievements, honour their hard work, and acknowledge the bright futures that await them.

Year 12 Reports

Year 12 reports are now available for viewing in the Sentral portal. The final semester report includes, HSC trial examination mark, final course rank, behaviour attributes, and course comments. Can I please encourage students to download a copy of their final report and reflect on the valuable feedback for each course.

Minimum Standards Test Update

The introduction of the Higher School Certificate (HSC) minimum standard policy by the NSW Education Standards Authority means students in NSW need to demonstrate a minimum standard of literacy and numeracy to receive their Higher School Certificate (HSC) credential. Students will sit the HSC minimum standard tests in the three domains of reading, writing and numeracy. Each online test is 45 minutes in length and is structured as follows:

• a multiple-choice test for reading
• a multiple-choice test for numeracy
• a test for writing (up to 500 words) based on a written or visual prompt.

Students need to achieve a Level 3 or 4 in all three testing domains to achieve the HSC minimum standard. This means that students who demonstrate the standard have the basic functional skills used in everyday life, for work and further study. Students have multiple opportunities each year to sit these online tests, from Year 10 until the end of Year 12. There are waiting periods between re-attempting each test of 10 weeks per test.

Students will be supported by the school to meet the HSC minimum standard. There are practice tests available at the college and demonstration questions online on the NESA website:https://educationstandards.nsw.edu.au/wps/portal/nesa/11-12/hsc/hsc-minimum-standard/online-tests

The college will be conducting the HSC minimum standards tests, each term for students that have not reached the benchmark. Please find attached the following resources to provide further assistance regarding the achievement standards:

• Using the Achievement Level Descriptions
• Identifying Borderline Characteristics

Please feel free to contact me if you wish to discuss any concerns.

Year 11 2024 Subject Selections 

Using the information collected from students from the online course selection process, the Year 11 lines for 2024 have now been finalised. In consultation with Mrs Heffernan and the KLA Coordinators, the lines have been devised to best meet the needs of the current Year 10 cohort and every effort has been made to cater to the requests of as many students as possible.

Many students have been placed in all the subjects they selected. Sometimes, a course the students may have selected is now running on the same line as another they chose. This means that these students now need to make additional choices for their program of study. If a student is missing a choice on a line, they now need to re-select a subject from those available on that line.

If you need to make a change, please print and return the slip (attached in my recent email) to Mr Kenneally or Mrs Harris at the front office, ASAP or by Wednesday 25 October. As I receive the forms, I will make class changes. If a course becomes full, no more students can enter that class, so it is essential that you return this form as soon as possible. If you would like to discuss individual courses, please contact the relevant KLA Coordinator, or Ms Kerryn Nicholson and Mrs Amy Dalgleish, the College Careers Advisors. 

Please remember, all students MUST be doing at least 12 units and have one Religious Education course and one English course as part of their package.

If students are not returning to the College in 2024, we request you return the form attached in today’s email indicating this and return it to the front office.

Spotlight on Student Achievement

Erin Drewsen of Year 10 recently wrote an article “A renewal of hope” for the Australian Catholics' magazine. A renewal for hope connects our local community with the tragic effects of climate change, and the urgent need to protect our beautiful landscape. Erin highlights the beauty of regrowth, and the Pentecost message to emphasise the need for genuine, truthful change and action to protect what matters most to us.

A renewal of hope

By Erin Drewsen 

What do 400 megatonnes of Carbon Dioxide, New Year's Eve of 2019, sprouting vegetation, the Holy Spirit and a high school student have in common? Surprisingly, a lot more than you might imagine.

Climate change became all too clear for my beloved community of the Eurobodalla (NSW) during the surreal Summer of 2019. I remember perching on Malua Bay Beach and scanned the familiar sky now marred by flicking embers. Travelling to school, it was confronting to observe the once lush green vista now looking ominous. Ash and blackness obscured the road. 

Experiencing this natural onslaught offered an epiphany: the importance of protecting our environment from destructive climate change is imperative.

The environmental carnage of the Black Summer bushfires was so close to my home. This trauma made me realise our ecology is fragile. The bush, the beach, the birds - they make regional areas feel like home. They influence people to move away from ‘The Big Smoke’. When this comforting, familiar greenery was stripped back, the town felt empty.

The world felt burnt. The world felt dark. The world felt scary and overwhelming.

The big question

Post-bushfires, the environmental devastation prompted me and my friends to ask big questions. What could we possibly do to stop this happening again? Can we make the big decisions? 

After the flames subsided, little green shoots began forcing their way through soil, hope returning. Each day the ground was a little greener. The sprouting vegetation unexpectedly unified the Eurobodalla community. We now appreciated the notion of renewal and realised the importance of how fortunate we are to be surrounded by such a diverse ecosystem. 

The emerging greenery prompted incidental yet positive conversations. Locals were taking comparison photos and eagerly showing their neighbours. People would beam at the sight of a joey kangaroo safe with its mother. The regrowth created hope.

Through shared experience, people found common ground. We knew how crucial it was to support one another. People began to perform random acts of kindness, leaving out food and water for the remaining wildlife, building birdhouses and offering generators to those without power. 

Regrowth

The regrowth helped us understand how the Australian bushland is such an integral part of our identity, particularly in regional areas. Australian forests have over eight types of ecosystems and are brilliantly diverse because of our remote location. Many species of animals, including koalas and platypus, exist only in this country. The Australian environment is unique.

The rebirth of the bush provided much needed hope and motivation to combat climate change. New shoots fuelled a burning need to protect our environment. 

Pentecost message

‘When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly a sound came from heaven like the rush of a mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting, And there appeared to them tongues as of fire, distributed and resting on each one of them’ (Acts 2:1-3).

After Jesus’ death, the disciples felt alone and afraid, unsure how to approach the world after losing their leader. But then, the Holy Spirit descended. ‘All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.’ (Acts 2:4)

The Holy Spirit and the Black Summer bushfires emphasised the need for genuine, truthful change and action to protect what matters most to us. 

Through the sorrow and loss our nation experienced in the Black Summer bushfires, we learned to understand the need to protect our unique environment.

Similarly, despite terrifying the disciples at first, the Holy Spirit taught them to appreciate the gifts and talents needed to instil change in their community, and in the lives of those who embraced the message of Christ.

By Erin Drewsen