Your teachers are very similar to Michael Jordan. They understand that everyone may fail at times, but we always encourage all our students to keep trying each and every day.

Your teachers know how to set goals, that includes, time, effort, sacrifice and hard work. It is important we surround ourselves with successful learners. Your teachers have committed at least 4 years to full time study to be able to teach you this year. Draw from their experience and advice, as they know what is required to be successful learners. 

AI (Artificial Intelligence Applications)
I would like to take this opportunity to make you aware of the increased use by students of AI (Artificial Intelligence Applications) such as ChatGPT to produce answers to questions which are then submitted as a student’s own work.

The use of ChatGPT and other AI Applications to generate answers is not a student’s own work and is therefore considered by Catholic Education and NESA (NSW Education Standards Authority) to be plagiarism (cheating). Taking the ideas, views, the work/words generated by AI Applications is NOT the student’s own work.

I raise your awareness that more and more of what students copy and paste from the internet may have also been AI generated and will therefore also be identified as such by our AI checkers.

The goal of our college is to support students to improve and grow as learners and this can only happen when students submit work that is their own and in ‘their own words’.

We know our students. We know when work is not their own. The onus is on the student to demonstrate that the work is their own, (cite and reference, use quotation marks and in-text reference the work of others) not for us to prove it is not.

If, in the professional judgment of teachers and/or through AI checkers, submitted work has been deemed to have been created by an AI Application or has been AI generated, Carroll Staff will not mark or provide feedback on this work. It will be sent back to the student and a resubmission of work will be requested. Assessment tasks will receive a zero result and in Years 10, 11 and 12 a Non- Completion Warning letter (N warning letter) will be processed and sent to students.

I encourage you, as our supervisors and as partners in your child’s learning, to support students in developing a very clear understanding of what is expected to be a successful learner. I ask that you support us by speaking with your children about their course work and answers, and discouraging student use of applications such as ChatGPT and other AI applications if they are not being used in the correct manner.

Home Learning at Carroll College
Carroll College is a place of authentic learning where students find meaning and purpose in their life through the integration of faith and culture. Our Catholic community has a responsibility to ensure all students find meaning and purpose in their life through experiencing continual growth in faith and improvement in learning. Home Learning at Carroll College is defined as all school-related preparation, tasks and study with which students engage, and attempt to complete outside of normal learning lessons. Informed by current educational research, home learning that leads to learning is:

• Purposeful and relevant to student needs
• Appropriate to the capacity and phase of learning of the students
• Encouraging of student independence as learners
• Varied, challenging and clearly related to learning
• Both aware and allowing of students’ commitment to recreational, employment, family, religious and cultural activities.

Objectives
Home learning has the potential to:

• Provides the opportunity to link knowledge and understanding through reinforcing learning experiences at both school and home
• Foster good study habits and promote lifelong learning
• Help develop self-discipline and concentration
• Provide training for students in research skills, planning and time management
• Help develop a range of skills in identifying and using information sources
• Provides parents/carers with the opportunity to see the progress of their child.

There is also evidence to show that home learning completion can serve to improve the achievement of socially and educationally disadvantaged students as well as provide challenges and stimulus to gifted and talented students.

Types of Home Learning

At Carroll College, there are usually five types of home learning: 

• Set work – completion of set home learning for the next learning session at school
• Formative/Summative Assessment Tasks – ongoing completion of, or preparation for, assessment tasks that are due or set which all count towards their Report (remember all work is assessable and everything counts)
• Study – revision and learning by way of such methods as re-reading and highlighting of key words; executive summaries and/or note-making in forms such as mind-maps, study books, cluster diagrams; traditional headings/subheadings and related points; learning of work completed that day and/or in prior lessons; problem solving, essay introductions/conclusions; correction and learning of correct spelling/glossary key concepts, punctuation and grammar; learning of theorems, equations, formulae and definitions
• Reading – additional research and/or individual interest
• A combination of two or more of the above.

Recording of and communicating about Home Learning

• The student laptop is the primary means of recording and communicating about home learning. If there is no “Set Work” for the next lesson, students are still expected to enter the word “Study”. This is to remind them that there are probably other types of home learning for subjects that need to be addressed or completed.
• Students are expected to note the due date of any home learning, assessment task, class tests or examinations in their personal calendars. Communication to students and parents regarding summative assessment tasks and examinations is also by way of one or more of the following:
  
  
• Assessment Handbook for each Year group
• School Assessment Task Notification Form
• School Website
• School Newsletter

Time on Home Learning
An examination of International and National practices and many individual NSW school home learning policy statements reveals that there are some notional minimum and maximum hours most schools use as guidelines.

At Carroll College, suggested daily home learning hours reflect the research and are as follows:

Suggested home learning hours may fluctuate depending on such things as: the nature of the courses being studied; pending examinations; and times when assignments and assessment tasks are due. Various scenarios may require some hours to be assigned to the completion of home learning on weekends or school holidays.

A golden rule is that whether home learning has been formally set by the class teacher, there is always some other work that can be attempted, for at least some of the suggested time, from one of the other types of home learning outlined above. Furthermore, as stated earlier, some home learning done at regular intervals is better than none at all.

Home Learning and Time Management
The amount of time spent on any one specific type, or combination of types, of home learning may vary from one day to the next. This will be determined by a number of factors but does require effective time management.

Effective time management is a major challenge for most students throughout their school and post-school life. Students at all levels require regular, sometimes daily assistance from both teachers and parents/carers in the development of this skill.

Parental involvement in the completion of Home Learning
Research indicates that most parents expect schools to set home learning. Positive parental involvement in home learning is beneficial to students and is associated with higher levels of student achievement.

The nature of parental involvement in home learning may take a variety of forms that can have beneficial impacts on student achievement. Parents and carers can demonstrate positive involvement in home learning by:

• creating a home learning environment that provides appropriate conditions for learning and encouraging their children to complete home learning tasks
• adopting supportive approaches that help to improve students’ attitudes towards home learning and that reduce home learning-related family conflict
• taking an active interest in their child’s home learning - research shows that interactive approaches to homework completion, particularly in the early years of primary and secondary schooling, have significant positive impact on student levels of achievement
• supporting their child in setting aside time each day for home learning
• providing a dedicated place for home learning and study if possible
• assisting teachers to monitor home learning by signing completed work if requested
• regularly observing home learning entries and teacher comments on Sentral
• being aware of the amount of home learning set and due dates
• communicating with teachers any concerns about the nature of home learning or their child’s approach to home learning
• encouraging their child to read and take an interest in current events
• alerting the school to any domestic circumstances or extra-curricular activities that may need to be taken into consideration when home learning is being set or marked.

Finally, I wish you every success as you begin the term and I’ll leave you with one final quote from Michael Jordan.

“If you run into a wall, don’t turn around and give up. Figure out how to climb it, go through it or work around it”

Warm regards

Mr Andrew Kenneally
Assistant Principal – Curriculum, Learning and Innovation