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High Notes, Vol 23 No 14, May 20 2022

From the Principal

High Talent

Firstly, congratulations to the Sydney High Sailing Team for completing the 2022 School Sailing State Championships against some of the best sailing teams in Australia. Sydney High 1 qualified for the finals and finished 5th in the state, including six straight wins. Well done Sam Ezra (12E), Nathan Cox (12R), Daniel Low (12T), Zhitian Mai (11F), Jacob Jim (9S), Ethan Low (11R) and Liem Tran (11F) on an outstanding performance!

In other sporting news, at rifle shooting training for the Metropolitan District Rifle Association competition last weekend, Jackie Wu (12F) shot a perfect and unbeatable 50, with 10 centres at 800m - the longest distance in which the school competes. This is the first time in our club history that a student achieved that score at any range. Congratulations Jackie on making history, and also to Terry Fong (class of 2014), who ably assisted Jackie as his wind coach.

Congratulations also to Isaac Ayoubi (12F) who has been selected in the NSWCIS basketball team, a fantastic achievement rewarding his ongoing dedication to the sport!

Planned School Works

With regards to school facilities, the school was informed this week that we will be receiving a Solar PV package as part of the Cooler Classrooms Project. These will be installed over the coming 12 months and will be a welcome addition to the school in providing a sustainable and environmentally friendly energy source for the school.

Additional works plans for across the school are also being finalised for the coming months, including a new perimeter fence and surfacing the parking areas along Cutler Drive. These will be a welcome upgrade to our existing facilities and we look forward to their completion. Further information on the date for these works will be provided as these are locked in with our contractors.

Student Meetings

This week I had the pleasure of meeting with the Year 9 students to go through each of their reports. These meetings provided an opportunity for the boys to reflect on their progress and develop a plan for their future growth. The learning behaviours listed for every course provided the boys with an indication their strengths and areas for improvement in each subject, as well as how these approaches to learning are demonstrated across all courses studied.

These learning behaviours are embedded in every report from Year 7 to 12 and are an invaluable source of information for both students and parents to gauge how well the boys are engaging in various aspects of their learning. Students who are consistently applying themselves across all their courses are to be commended and will also have their efforts acknowledged within the Award Scheme.

Year 8 students will be receiving their reports next week when they meet with the Principal, Dr Jaggar. On entering Year 8, the boys had the choice of studying a second language of Classical Greek on the condition that they also study Latin, given the two languages complement each other well. As a consequence, some students complete ten courses this year, while others study nine. The best nine subject results are used to determine the progress of each student. This may advantage some boys given the ability for one course to not be counted. However, with an additional course to study, they are required to master additional concepts and have fewer outside of class hours to do so.

Fluctuations in performance often occur in the early stages of High School as the boys learn how to best balance their studies with other aspects of their lives. This is the time in their educational development for students to reflect on what works for them and refine their approach to study in preparation for the senior school. These fluctuations tend to settle as the boys discover effective study routines including their approach to class activities, completion of homework and assignments and how to undertake effective preparation for assessments.

Every semester the principal sends letters to parents whose son has improved significantly from the previous reporting period. Additionally, the school wellbeing team checks in with students who have big fluctuations to support them as needed in developing an effective approach to their studies.

As the Year 8 boys reflect on their reports, they should start considering their electives for next year which will need to be decided in mid-September. Students will pick up two elective courses, so they should start contemplating what their strengths are and speak with their teachers if they have any questions about courses. A full overview of the subject selection process, including the 2021 presentation, can be found on our website at .
Jamie Kay
Relieving Principal