2014 Annual Report - Victorian Registration and Qualifications

Headmaster’s
Report to the
Community
2014
Headmaster’s
Report to the
Community 2014
It used to be said that a school was only as
good as its teachers but 21st Century learning
involves more than brilliant teachers alone.
take charge of their emotions and I notice less
blame and more accepting of reality which is
extraordinary for young people.
In all organisations, one part is only as good
as the sum of all parts and this is the case at
Girton where everyone contributing their very
best effort has resulted in a school community
this year pretty close to full capacity.
Since implementing the program, there has
been a marked reduction in bullying and
behavioural problems, while academic performance has modestly lifted.
It has been a year where the School Board,
staff, students, Friends Groups and parents
have hummed along together and kept the
Mission and Values that bind us at the centre
of everything that we do.
It has been a year of consolidation of our
RULER approach, of completion of a five year
building phase, of some remarkable student
and teacher achievements and of planning for
the next phase.
Since 2011 when we sent a team of Girton
teachers to Yale University to learn more
about emotional skills and how to teach
them to students, more than 200 teachers
and non-teaching staff have received RULER
training. Dr Marc Brackett, Director of the Yale
Centre for Emotional Intelligence returned
again this year to the school to teach the RULER program to more members of the school
community, making Girton a world leader in
the teaching of emotional intelligence in the
school environment.
My observation over the last 3 years is that
RULER teaches students how to respond
to life, that life is not always fair and that it’s
not always someone’s fault when we don’t
get what we want. Teenagers, in particular,
sometimes play the role of victim when things
don’t work out the way they had hoped. But
RULER seems to have taught our students to
2
Teaching staff this year have all undergone a
thorough appraisal process which has focused
on self-reflection and constructive student
feedback. The provision of excellent teaching
is a priority academic goal at Girton and one
that we will pursue with conviction.
A revived Strategic Plan has been bedded
down for 2014 - 2016 and along with an
updated Mission and Values charter, Girton’s
position as a world leader in the implementation of Emotional Intelligence education is now
better reflected in these documents.
The values that guide Girton have been
unwavering for over 100 years which gives the
School its distinct character. Our core values
are unchanged but the attitudes, behaviours,
character and culture that are shaped by the
values are now framed in a modern context
within the new Mission and Values charter. This
document remains the bedrock on which all
major decisions for the school are made.
Few people have been more devoted to
protecting the value system which helps us
honour the great history and traditions of this
school than Former Chairman, Finance Committee member and current Board member,
Don Naunton.
It was our great honour and privilege earlier
this year to officially open and name our newest building, The Naunton Family Building.
As a former Chairman of the Board in the
early days of Girton Grammar, Don’s influence
was absolutely fundamental to underpinning
the unique culture of this school and setting it
on the growth and achievement trajectory it
has enjoyed for the last 20 years.
The level of investment in this building is
significant for current and future staff and
students and signifies the Board’s commitment
to growth and progress of the school.
The Board, is led splendidly by Chairman
Mr Robert Ketterer. Mr Ketterer has been
on the Board for 15 years and has had two
children attend the school. Stewardship of the
school could not be in better hands under Mr
Ketterer’s prudent and loyal leadership. With
the support of Deputy Chairman, Mr Peter
Ashman, we have a Board with incredible
depth of expertise from a range of fields and
perspectives. I thank the Board for a year of
steadfast endeavour and countless hours of
valuable advice and outstanding service.
Academic results continue to go from strength
to strength with the school aiming to be
the Australian benchmark for excellence in
regional education and the achievements of
our students is the most important measure of
our success. Academic highlights for the 2013
cohort include:
• 4% of 2013 cohort finished in the top 1%
of the State
• 13% of 2013 cohort finished in the top 5%
of the State
• 30% of 2013 cohort finished in the top 10%
of the State
• 52% of 2013 cohort finished in the top 20%
of the State
• The median ATAR was 81
Looking ahead to 2015, the Junior School will
enjoy most of the attention as far as building
improvement goes.
The 1950’s Jean d’Helin building is earmarked
for a full scale refurbishment, giving the Junior
School the front-of-house it deserves and
making it much easier for visitors to find
reception, which will face onto the MacKenzie
Street Astro-Turf.
Our youngest students will enjoy some of the
features already cherished by their older peers
in The Naunton Family Building such as more
natural light and specialist rooms for languages,
science and art.
With input from staff and students, the new Junior School facilities will meet both the current
and future needs of those who use it.
The Board as it currently stands will serve the
school in 2015 and it will continue to be my
privilege to work with them in seeking new
opportunities for the school and to make sure
that Girton Grammar continues to be a wonderful place to educate young people.
Preparing every student for a future that we
can’t yet even fully imagine is the challenge that
every teacher at Girton is expected to take
on. Agility, initiative, adaptability, grit, curiosity
and a global perspective is what we hope
Girtonians have in spades when they depart
through the school gates for the last time.
The undercurrent of tradition and strength of
reputation that this school deploys, gives students a sense of security and the confidence
to be model departing Girtonians and we will
continue to invest in our teachers, staff and
students to meet the educational and other
goals that set this school apart.
This equates to 5 days per person consisting
of:
Matthew F. Maruff
Headmaster
Teaching Staff: 629 days or 4.63 days each
Non-Teaching staff: 405 days or 5.7 days each
Population
(N.B. These figures can be affected
considerably by one or two long term
absences.)
The accompanying table shows the distribution
of student population since 2003. You will
notice that at the time of the census we had a
student population of 1180 but at the time of
writing it is in fact 1190.
Staff
Up to the 31th October 2014 the School
had expended $198,052 on professional
development for the year.
Staff Arrivals since the end of the 2013 school
year:
Ms Effie Hamilton - Flute Teacher (fixed term)
As of 20th November 2014, the staffing
numbers were as follows:
Non-teaching
71
45.648 (FTE)
(Part & Full-time)
Teaching
136 129.397(FTE)
(Part & Full Time)
Total Staff
207 175.045 (FTE)
(Part & Full Time)
These figures do not include casual teachers
and music tutors employed on a fee-forservice basis. It is also important to remember
that the actual number can fluctuate markedly
with various forms of leave (parental leave,
long service leave, leave without pay, extended
sick leave) and various forms of contracts
(temporary replacements from a day to threeyears, casual, limited term and ongoing).
Up to the 20th November 2014, staff
members have taken a combined total of
1034 personal leave days including sick leave,
carer’s leave etc.
Mrs Robyn Kristenson - Business/Economics/
VET Teacher
Mrs Judith Lingard - French Teacher (JS)
Mrs Kerry Thompson - P-2 Teacher (JS)
Mr Nicholas Pease - Acting Head of Drama
(SS) Teacher
Miss Amanda Showler - LRC (Numeracy)
Teacher (JS &SS)
Ms Emily Erwin - French Teacher (SS) 1.0 FTE
Mr Christopher Maslunka - Science &
Mathematics Teacher (SS)
Mr Paul Waldron - Science Teacher (SS)
Mrs Shirley-Anne Day - Prep Assistant (JS)
(fixed term)
Mrs Prue Milner - Time Release Year 5 &
Drama JS (fixed term)
Mrs Melanie Scholes - Drama/ Yr 6 Time
Release JS (fixed term)
Mr Warwick Cohen - Sessional Music Teacher
Mr Raymond McCarthy - Cleaner
Student Population using August Census data
Preparatory
24
38
36
43
36
50
34
38
38
54
Ms Alexandra Fisher - Alumni Relations
Manager
1
25
25
37
38
46
35
50
35
40
38
Mrs Helen Chambers - Administration
Year
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2
25
25
26
37
40
44
42
58
38
44
Mrs Lisa Brooks - Integration Aide (JS)
3
25
25
25
27
45
40
49
50
59
52
Ms Lisa Gulyas - Community Relations Officer
4
25
25
45
37
26
50
50
68
59
64
5
26
25
40
50
46
44
52
67
75
63
Mrs Shannon Reading - Time Release Teacher
JS (fixed term)
6
51
76
66
65
70
61
74
73
77
93
JS Total
201
239
275
297
309
324
351
389
386
408
Mrs Pamela Stosic - French Teacher
(fixed term)
7
114
109
151
143
132
146
129
135
151
137
Reverend Gregory Harris - Chaplain
8
129
122
114
146
145
131
140
139
135
143
Mrs Sally Bellingham - Sessional Music
9
129
126
121
121
142
144
135
140
137
136
10
112
135
126
124
123
141
148
139
148
133
Mr Simon Merritt - Mathematics Teacher
(leave replacement)
11
91
106
107
118
116
115
130
122
116
104
12
87
87
96
97
113
113
111
126
117
119
SS Total
662
685
715
749
771
790
793
801
804
772
Total Population
863
924
990
1046
1080
1114
1144
1191
1190
1180
Mr Marcus Smalley - PE Teacher JS
(fixed term)
Mrs Alison Quick - Administration
(leave replacement)
3
Headmaster’s
Report to the
Community 2014
-- Mrs Kendra Burge – Acting Deputy
Mrs Michelle Turpie - JS Administration
(leave replacement)
The following colleagues have departed
during the course of the 2014 school year:
Mrs Kristen Beever - Assistant Registrar
(leave replacement)
-- Stuart Manderson – Head of Millward
Mr Peter Korteman - Science and Numeracy
Teacher (fixed term)
-- Mr Simon Merritt- Mathematics Teacher
At the end of Term Four 2014 we say will
farewell to these highly valued colleagues:
-- Mrs Kristen Beever- Assistant Registrar
Head of Junior School (fixed term)
House
Jenkin House
(leave replacement)
(leave replacement)
-- Takayuki Hirashima- Japanese Teacher
-- Mrs Meryl Cullen – Crossing Guard
-- Leanne Roulston – English and
-- Mrs Helen Hughan - Alumni Officer
-- Mrs Shirley-Anne Day – Prep Assistant
(fixed term)
-- Mrs Prue Milner - Time Release Year 5
& Drama JS (fixed term)
-- Mrs Pamela Stosic – French Teacher
(fixed term)
-- Mrs Sally Monichino - PE/Psychology
Teacher (fixed term)
-- Mr Peter Hagen – Session Music Teacher
-- Cynthia Holsworth- Music Teacher
-- Mr Shaun McCarthy- Acting Assistant
Head of Frew House
-- Peter Kendrick- Mathematics Teacher
Humanities Teacher
-- Mrs Cally Bartlett - Assistant Head of
-- Mrs Buffy Waugh- Acting Registrar
(fixed term)
-- Miss Shari Williams - Accounts Payable
(fixed term)
-- Mr Peter Korteman – Science and
-- Miss Aleisha Dullard - Accounts
Numeracy Teacher (fixed term)
Receivable/Payable Assistant (fixed
term)
Other staffing changes made during 2014
-- Mr Sam a’Beckett – Head of Millward
House
-- Mrs Kim Henery - Acting P.A to HM
(fixed term)
-- Mr Nick Pease - Head of Drama
-- Mrs Vickie Holland - Acting P.A to HOJS
-- Miss Kymberley Cresp – Assistant Head
(fixed term)
of Jones House
Graduating class of 2014: the students’ views
75 students from Year 12, 2014 completed the Survey a few days before they finished regular classes in late October. Our students were asked to
consider any and all of the teachers’ roles - classroom teaching, pastoral care, co-curricular leadership. Students, in my experience are perceptive
and generous and their views certainly inform mine
For teachers teaching Year 12 classes this year, there were 486 ratings provided. Using the usual Very High to Very Low scale, and where Medium
indicates capable, “Happy-enough” performance, the results were:
Rating
VH (= 5)
High (= 4)
Medium (= 3)
Low (= 2)
Very Low (= 1)
Number of this rating given
276
124
50
20
16
Total answers
486
486
486
486
486
Percentage of all ratings given
57%
26%
10%
4%
3%
Mean = 4.28; Std Deviation = 1.03; Median = 5
Year 12 also rated teachers who had taught or mentored or coached them in all years.
1588 ratings were given in this category. The same scale was used. The results were:
Rating
Number of this rating given
VH (= 5)
High (= 4)
Medium (= 3)
Low (= 2)
Very Low (= 1)
837
419
204
72
56
Total answers
1588
1588
1588
1588
1588
Percentage of all ratings given
52.7%
26.4%
12.8%
4.5%
3.5%
Mean = 4.20; Std Deviation = 1.06; Median = 5
Overall 92.1% provided ratings which were Medium or better. The figure for “Overall Teaching Quality” below asked separately has different figures;
that question tends to diminish the highly negative ratings. We still have a way to go in improving the performance of our teachers and good work
is being done.Year 12 was also asked to rate a number of aspects of the School.
4
Year 12 was also asked to rate a number of aspects of the School. The results were:
Programme
Range of Curriculum Offered
Teaching Quality Overall
Overall Co-Curriculum
Sport
Music
Dance
Drama
Service & Leadership
Leadership shown by Senior Staff
Pastoral Care & the House
Other Students’ friendliness,
inclusiveness etc
Range of Opportunities for you
and other students
Ratings => VH (5)
High (4)
Medium (3)
Low (2)
Very Low (1)
25 (33.34%)
Mean= 4.04
24 (32.0%)
Mean = 4.20
29 (38.67%)
Mean = 4.19
27 (36.00%)
Mean = 4.04
39 (52.0%)
Mean = 4.35
9 (12.00%)
Mean = 3.60
24 (32.0%)
Mean = 4.05
36 (48.0 %)
Mean = 4.19
30 (40.0 %)
Mean = 4.27
33 (44.0%)
Mean = 4.21
33 (44%)
SD 0.89
42 (56 .0%)
SD 0.63
32 (42.67%)
SD 0.76
31 (41.34%)
SD 0.97
25 (33.33%)
SD 0.79
36 (48.0%)
SD 0.85
32 (42.67%)
SD 0.78
21 (28.0%)
SD 0.93
35 (46.67 %)
SD 0.68
28 (37.33%)
SD 0.84
13 (17.33%)
Median = 4
9 (12.0 %)
Median = 4
13 (17.33%)
Median = 4
13 (17.33%)
Median = 4
9 (12.0%)
Median = 4
21 (28.0%)
Median = 3
18 (24.0%)
Median = 4
15 (20.0%)
Median = 5
10 (13.33%)
Median = 5
11 (14.67%)
Median = 5
3 (4%)
1 (1.33%)
25 (33.34%)
34 (45.33%)
14 (18.67%)
1 (1.33%)
Mean = 4.08
SD 0.83
Median = 5
37 (49.34%)
27 (36.0%)
10 (13.33%)
Mean = 4.33
SD 0.75
Median = 5
1 (1.33%)
1 (1.33%)
3 (4.0%)
2 (2.67%)
9 (12.0%)
1 (1.33%)
2 (2.67%)
1 (1.33%)
3 (4.0%)
1 (1.33%)
1 (1.33%
Parents’ Exit Survey Results – November 2013 to November 2014
When students leave the School, we invite their parents to complete an exit survey summarising their ratings:
(Very High = 5; High = 4; Medium = 3; Low = 2; Very Low = 1) of a number of facets of the School. Twenty one parents of Year Twelve returned
surveys, either electronically or on paper, as did one other departing parent from another Year Level. Returns have been aggregated.
Area of School’s Activity
Mean Score
Median Score
Lowest Rating
Transition to Girton Programme
4.60 = H
5 = VH
3=M
Were Parental Expectations met?
4.23 = H
4=H
3=M
Curriculum
4.06 = H
4=H
2 =L
Co-Curriculum
4.23 = H
4=H
3=M
Discipline
4.42 = H
4=H
3=M
Leadership of the School
4.40 = H
4.5 = H
3=M
Teaching Quality
4.26 = H
4=H
3=M
Communications
4.39 = H
4=H
4=H
Pastoral Care & The Houses
4.48 = H
5 = VH
2 =L
Opportunities for Students
4.42 = H
4=H
4=H
Opportunities for Parental Involvement
4.11 = H
4=H
3=M
Recommendations to Others considering Girton
4.55 = H
5 = VH
3=M
As this data suggests, along with a great deal of anecdotal, qualitative data, we are seen by our parents as doing a very good job in the education of
their most precious assets.
5
Headmaster’s
Report to the
Community 2014
The Junior
School in 2014
From Mr Don Thompson
Head of Junior School
Junior School enrolments grew to 416 this
year which is our largest cohort to date. Since
2007 we have seen gradual growth from 273
students across 13 classes to our current
numbers across 19 classes. We expect to
increase to 20 classes in 2015. It has been
pleasing to note that the growth in numbers
has not had a negative effect on the safe
and supportive culture of the school. This
is evident in the feedback received through
Parent Surveys, discussions with current
parents and students and through discussions
with prospective parents and students
during the entry interview process. We are
mindful of the importance of maintaining our
positive culture. One of the challenges as we
grow is the maintenance of close, positive
relationships. We are fortunate to have a
strong classroom pastoral care program. We
have taken steps to strengthen that over the
past few years through the implementation of
the RULER Emotional Intelligence program.
In March this year we welcomed Dr Marc
Brackett back to the school to run some
more training programs for staff. Mrs Gibson,
Mrs Fisher and Miss Juergens are now trained
RULER trainers which means that they are
qualified to train other teachers in the Yale
RULER program. Dr Brackett’s sessions
deepened our understanding of emotions
and the importance of teaching children how
to identify their emotional states and how
these impact on everyday interactions.
In response to our parent feedback processes
of 2013 our classroom teachers have been
implementing parental communication
processes to ensure that each parent is aware
of weekly events and curriculum overviews.
Feedback from this year will see us expand
these processes to include Specialist subjects
in 2015. We will also be working to identify
ways that all teachers can increase the
opportunities for regular individual feedback.
With the completion of the Naunton Family
Building earlier this year we have been
looking at priorities for the redevelopment of
the Junior School facilities on the MacKenzie
St site. The first step in the redevelopment
has been the commencement of the minor
refurbishment of the Jan Thomas Building. We
have competed the refurbishment of the top
floor classrooms and office spaces this year
and will follow with the refurbishment of the
bottom floor at the beginning of 2015. Plans
are also underway for the redevelopment of
the Jean d’Helin building and the recreational
spaces throughout the site.
In May students in Year Three and Year Five
sat the compulsory National Assessment
Programme – Literacy and Numeracy
(NAPLAN) assessments. While we must
recognise that each NAPLAN element is
a reflection of how students perform on a
single test on a given day they are a tool in
providing a standard measure against a large
data sample. The initial data provided by the
Ministerial Council on Education, Employment,
Training and Youth Affairs (MCEETYA)
provides feedback of our performance against
the results of other Victorian schools. Further
data allowing comparisons nationally are
usually provided early next year.
Year Three NAPLAN Results
Students
READING
State
School
WRITING
State
School
SPELLING
State
School
State
State
School
SPELLING
State
School
GRAMMAR & PUNCTUATION
State
School
NUMERACY
median
75th
90th
Mean
65,092
324.13
373.37
430.64
492.19
544.92
432.93
45
342.08
385.45
430.6
503.99
554.99
444.28
64,886
341.96
382.46
428.26
460.73
485.62
417.17
45
358.54
396.15
428.3
452.75
474.41
425.97
65,105
310.96
365.74
420.97
473.55
525.5
419.84
45
347.59
387.5
421
501.78
572.4
445.01
Students
School
WRITING
25th
Year Five NAPLAN Results
READING
10th
State
School
10th
25th
median
75th
90th
Mean
63,161
412.77
456.99
506.07
561.81
614.68
511.02
63
458.99
496.43
576.2
607.28
646.54
554.81
62,909
410.89
451.03
477.37
515.6
554.17
481.49
63
423.74
475.05
500.5
541.99
579.25
502.91
63,117
405.11
453.46
500.03
551.45
593.17
501.27
63
445.34
501.99
541.6
580.08
629.87
539.8
408
451.05
496.98
565.04
622.53
509.42
63
450.16
491.94
549.7
605.34
668.24
553.17
62,993
410.21
448.73
489.8
542.51
590.52
497.62
63
457.7
490.62
528.6
585.47
625.47
538.9
63,117
Data provided by Victorian Curriculum Assessment Authority (VCAA)
6
Analysis of our NAPLAN data for Years Three
and Five indicate that both cohorts have
performed higher than the State average
over all aspects tested. Analysis of the five
year trend data indicate that our Year Three
performance this year was an improvement
on all aspects but not our highest
performance over that period. Analysis of the
five year trend data for Year Five indicates that
this year was our best performing year in all
aspects except Writing. Since the introduction
of Persuasive text as a test material School,
State and National performance has been
very closely aligned. Our performance in this
aspect is an improvement over last year and
our second highest performance over the
five year period. While we do not receive
National data until early next year we expect
that our results will also put us above the
National performance levels in all aspects.
We had some notable achievements in Junior
School in 2014. Three of the four Junior
School Tournament of Minds teams won their
respective divisions of the Regional Finals
and went on to represent the school at the
State Finals. One of the teams was successful
and went on to win the State final and
represented the school at the National level.
We were very proud to see our Year Two,
Four and Six students perform in the Junior
School production of Peter Pan Junior at the
Capital Theatre in October. The show ran for
three nights and was a superb showcase for
our students.
For our Sporting achievements we were
proud to have twenty students represent
our school at the School Sports Victoria
(SSV) Regional Athletics Championships with
one going on to State level. Two students
represented us at the SSV Regional Cross
Country Championships and went on to
represent us at the State Cross Country
Championships at Bundoora. This year
six of our students made it to the final
round of selections for the SSV Victorian
Primary School Soccer team. Our Junior
School Soccer team were very successful
winning both the SSV Zone and Regional
Championships this year. They went on
to represent the school at the State Titles
in Melbourne for the second consecutive
year. We also entered Futsal teams into
the Australian Futsal Association (AFA)
Championships for the first time this
year. Two of our teams won the Ballarat
Championship Tournament and two won
the Bendigo Tournament. From these
tournaments 10 of our Junior School students
were selected to play for Victoria Country
in the National School Championships
which were held in Bendigo in September.
These were composite teams made up of
players from regional Victoria. From their
performance at these Championships four of
our Junior School students were selected by
the AFA international selectors to represent
Australia in touring teams for their respective
age groups. These students will have the
opportunity to tour USA and Spain in 2015.
Bursar’s Report
From Mr Neville Faulks
Bursar
One of the greatest accolades a school can
bestow upon a member of its community
is to name a building after them. In 2014
we had the pleasure of witnessing our new
building that borders Wattle, Creek and
Vine streets being named after not just one
person but an entire family. The naming and
ceremonial opening of the Naunton Family
Building not only marked a special moment
in the rich history of the school but it also
allowed us to immortalize the Naunton
family name in thanks for their many years
of dedicated service and involvement with
Girton Grammar School. In its completed
state the Naunton Family Building houses a
Learning Common, Library, Careers Centre,
two specialist Art classrooms, eight specialist
Science laboratories, nine study areas, eleven
general purpose classrooms and a 176 seat
lecture theatre. This remarkable building
is at the forefront of pedagogical design
and provides an engaging and inspiring
environment for our students.
In August the School was the grateful
recipient of two new Kawai grand pianos
which were funded by a generous donation
from the Girton Parents’ and Friends’
Association. One piano was used to replace
the old grand piano in the John E Higgs Hall
which was believed to be over 40 years old
and has given great service over its life. The
second piano is being used for classroom
teaching, performances in the Black Box and
to allow additional students the opportunity
to take piano lessons.
In the January holidays restoration works
were conducted on the top floor of the
Jan Thomas Building that houses four Year
Six classes and two Year Five classes. The
entire top floor was painted in a new, bright
colour scheme with new carpet, bag racks
and matching furniture throughout. An old
computer lab was converted to a new
classroom to house the extra Year Six class
that started in 2014. Plans are under way to
refurbish the downstairs classrooms, kitchen
and toilets in 2015 so that the entire building
will have a fresh new look, maintaining a
clean modern feeling and enjoyable learning
environment.
Further plans are under way for more
refurbishment works to be conducted in
the Junior School over the coming years as
we improve and increase the number of
classrooms to cater for growth in the Junior
School, as well as developing specialist rooms
for languages, learning resource centre,
science and art.
Other projects and improvements to Girton
Grammar School in 2014 include:
• Connecting door between prep
classrooms
• Retractable seating in the John E Higgs
Hall
• Removal of old portable classrooms on
MacKenzie Street site
• Sound proofing of some of the music
tuition rooms
• Creation of flip the classroom filming
rooms
• Conversion of old Science prep lab to an
IT office
• Decking under the oak tree in the
Performing Arts courtyard
7
Headmaster’s
Report to the
Community 2014
Pastoral Care
From Mr Rick McWaters
Head of Pastoral Care
The House System
The overarching theme for the houses
this year has been connectedness. The
involvement, achievement, and fierce
protection of their ‘Girton Family’ has been
very evident. The House calendar has been a
full one. Competition results were as follows:
• Swimming
Champion House – Frew
Spirit Cup – Riley
• Athletics
Champion House – Frew
Spirit Cup – Riley
• Public Speaking – Millward
• Cross Country – Frew
• House Singing - Aherne
As a result the trophy for Overall House
Champion was awarded to Frew.
House Charities
The Houses have been active in supporting
charities holding various events to assist/
provide funds and promote various causes.
•
•
•
•
Aherne – Birthing kits for ZONTA
Frew – Live Below the Line
Jenkin – Horizon House Bendigo
Jones – Brunei (Skype sessions with
students to improve English)
• Millward – Relay for Life
• Riley – Live Below the Line Blood
Donations, Op Shop
Term 1 saw the Annual Aherne Family night
– which has become an institution, great
practice and probably a reason why Aherne
has completed a hat trick of House Singing
trophies.
House Dinners were held at the beginning
of Term 4. These formal dinners are the
celebration of the year in each of the
colourful groups. Awards were presented,
talent showcased and the graduating Year 12
students honoured.
House Leadership
After 4 years as the Head of Millward
House, Mr Stuart Manderson departed to
take up a position as Head of Boarding at
PLC (Presbyterian Ladies College) Mr Sam
a’Beckett was appointed as the new Head of
House. Other leadership positions appointed
this year were Ms Kymberley Cresp as the
Assistant Head of Jones House, Mrs Cally
Bartlett as the Assistant Head of Jenkin
House, and Mr Shaun McCarthy as the acting
Assistant Head of Frew House.
8
Transition
After many years of fine service Mrs Trudy
Matthews stepped down as the Head of
Transition. Her place was taken by Ms
Amanda Showler. Ms Showler has set about
visiting our feeder primary schools, creating
new passports and information systems to
further smooth the pathway into Girton.
HQ
The Senior School HQ facility offers
specific social and emotional support for
referred students. HQ is managed by a
full time Head of Case Management and a
talented and dedicated support team. It is
an open plan environment which facilitates
Social and Emotional Learning, and self and
social awareness. In addition, relationships
and decision making skills are fostered as
pathways to positive self-efficacy. As with all
secondary streams the RULER approach and
anchors play a vital role in this process.
Life skills programmes have been
implemented, one of which has resulted
in the development of a micro market
garden unit. In this programme students
are responsible for the planting of fruit and
vegetables, maintaining and harvesting the
crops and then arranging the marketing and
sale of the produce. Other such programmes
include The Cycle for Life bicycle maintenance
programme, the Sporting Chance programme
(running sporting activities for primary age
students) and the Healthy Lunch programme.
The planning and preparation of these
initiatives have been some of this year’s major
highlights.
Peer Support
This year saw a change to the programme.
All students in Year 10 received training and
then all were allocated one student in Year
7 to mentor one on one as well as plan and
activate programmes in small groups. Team
building, forming friendships and decision
making in the secondary environment are key
platforms of the programme.
Drug and Alcohol Evening
This annual event was again attended by Year
9 students and their parents. Conducted by
Dr Michael Carr-Gregg, a noted specialist in
the area of juvenile psychology and the effects
of substance abuse, the audience certainly left
well informed and armed with the basis for
meaningful conversation.
Counselling Services
Mr John Pease works as a Consultant
Psychologist with the School to provide
different forms of assistance to students,
parents and teachers in relation to enhancing
the learning and emotional wellbeing of
students at the School. Some of his work
involves consultancy with teachers and
parents, while some can involve more direct
forms of assistance to individual students.
Students who are regarded as being “at risk”
may work with Mr Pease on a regular or
occasional basis. Psychological Counselling
can be arranged by parent/Doctor directly, or
from the School. All School based referrals
must be made through the relevant Head of
House or the Head of Pastoral Care.
Anti Bullying and Harassment Policy
The School has a formal policy which is
gone through with the students at the
commencement of each term, reinforcing the
Mission and Values statements that “Girton
Grammar School is committed to providing
everyone in our School with a working
and learning environment free from unfair,
unwarranted harassment. It is the School’s
goal to provide an environment where the
physical, emotional, moral and educational
health and well being of students are fostered
above all else.”
The RULER programme has been important
is providing students with the tools to help
deal with situations should they arise. Last
year anecdotal evidence indicated that there
had been a 20% reduction in bullying reports.
An online survey among all students is
conducted each year. The purpose of that
data collection is to evaluate the effectiveness
of the policy, make adjustments if needed
so that best practice is maintained and to
assist the Pastoral Care Team in dealing with
specific cases.
The figures for 2014 indicate that 92.4% of
students feel that Girton is a safe (mostly)
place and that 86% of students who reported
incidents felt that the issue was dealt with
satisfactorily.
Emotional Intelligence, RULER and the
Pastoral Care Programme
2014 has seen the full roll out of all Anchors
(Charter, Mood Meter, Meta Moment and
Blue Print) to all Year levels. In the Secondary
School the teaching has occurred in the
House Tutor Group, enabling Tutors to
practise their RULER skills, enable students
to see SELF RELEVANCE and STRATEGY
as a mantra for their involvement in the
programme.
The challenge for this year is the embedding
of the elements of this programme into the
Curriculum. This has been successful in those
subjects which have developed resources.
English, Science, Music, Art and Drama have
been the leaders in this project.
The year Dr Brackett again visited the School
and conducted training in three areas: RULER
programme Feeling Words Curriculum
and the new secondary modules entitled
‘Optimising Intelligences’.
As a result of Dr Brackett’s training the
secondary RULER team has been added to
with Mr a’Beckett, Mr Pease, Ms Grech, Ms
Cresp and Mrs Wastell being added to the
team.
In 2015 the ANCHORS will continue to be
reinforced through Tutors and the continued
incorporation in all classrooms through
the continued support of the Heads of
Department, The Feeling Words curriculum
will also become a key plank in syllabi with
Humanities teachers keen to lead the way.
The ‘Optimising Intelligences’ programme will
be introduced at Year 10 next year, in small
groups of 1-12 students and one trainer.
Emotional Literacy provides a foundation for
students and educators’ successful cognitive,
social, emotional and behaviour development.
Through our work on Emotional Literacy,
we are making a genuine commitment to
supporting the holistic development of our
students, staff and community.
THE RULER Approach at Girton Grammar
Junior School
In March 2014 Professor Marc Brackett from
YALE University visited Girton Grammar
School continuing to build the strong
relationship between our school and the
YALE Centre for Emotional Intelligence.
During his visit Professor Brackett, in
conjunction with Girton Grammar RULER
trainers, conducted training for staff and
outside entities. He delivered a keynote
address to staff and also conducted a Parent
Information Evening.
This year Girton Grammar School has
continued to train all Junior School staff in
the RULER Approach. Emotional Literacy
provides a foundation for students and
educators’ cognitive, social, emotional and
behaviour development. Through our work
on Emotional Intelligence, we are making
a genuine commitment to supporting the
holistic development of our students, staff and
community.
In 2014 all Junior School classroom teachers
have taught lessons in the Feeling Words
Curriculum helping students to gain a deeper
knowledge of feelings and emotions. This has
also involved engaging parents in the process
and developing a home school partnership.
In June at the TEDx conference our Junior
School captains presented to the world
about RULER at Girton Grammar School,
showcasing the impact emotions have on
their daily lives.
A highlight of the year was receiving national
coverage of RULER at Girton Grammar
School through the Age Newspaper and
ABC radio. This created an interest in the
RULER Approach and the implementation
at our school. RULER trainers have
conducted training in the wider Bendigo
area strengthening our partnership with the
community.
In 2015 The Four Anchors and The Feeling
Words Curriculum will continue to be
embedded in the Junior School. Parent
Education workshops will also be offered to
assist parents and guardians in the RULER
skills at home.
IT and e-Learning
in 2014
From Ms Barbara Fielder,
Head of IT & e-Learning.
Information Communications Technology
(ICT) is now embedded within every sector
of our economy and in every part of our
lives both as an opportunity and a risk.
Trends such as social media, cloud computing,
mobility and ever increasing data usage are
challenging all schools, with Girton being
no exception. However, a key component
of the ICT vision has been about merging
education, technology, pedagogy and learning
with the aim of expanding the learning and
skills of both staff and students, as well as
personalising the learning experience.
To cater for the ever changing ICT
environment, in 2014 the ICT Department at
Girton Grammar School has been working
towards four key objectives:
- improving educational outcomes
- increased outsourcing of installation and
equipment repairs
- increase in virtualisation
- commitment to the 1-to-1 program
your iPad” booklet. During Term 1 the ICT
Department was also heavily involved with
the Year 7s as part of their transition into
Senior School. This involvement included
troubleshooting, classroom visits and general
assistance to staff, students and parents.
Term 1 was also dedicated to rolling out
staff notebooks and allowing staff the time to
adjust to Windows 8.1 and move towards the
removal of all teacher desktops in classrooms.
During the year the ICT Department has
been completing recommendations from
the IT Audit which was conducted in late
2013. This has included the installation of
10 UPS devices for switches, two additional
ShadowProtect licences and eight server
hard drives (for additional storage capacity
across the school), upgrading of the network
management software update, upgrading of
server connections to 10GB (where possible)
and an upgraded wireless link to the Outdoor
Education office.
In the Junior School, the ICT Department
set-up a Help Desk which was operational
for four hours a day and continued to
provide weekly support for ICT sessions.
The computers and equipment in S14 were
upgraded and S16 was set-up as a new
multimedia area. The ICT Department also
completed the data projector upgrade, with
additional cabling and power in both the
Senior and Junior Schools.
In late January and February, the Naunton
Family Building was brought online and the
ICT Department moved into a new office
in the Morey Building. The year also saw the
School continue its commitment to assist
local and overseas organisations via the
donation of end of life computers. This year
items were given to the Alola Foundation
(Kirsty Sword Gusmao) to assist them in
setting up computer labs and IT Training
Centres in East Timor.
Finally, in 2014 the following equipment was
purchased:
Combined with the ongoing development
of the online teacher/student/parent portals
and the continually evolving multimedia-rich
curriculum, Girton is striving to provide
students with the key skills necessary for a
21st century citizen.
17
80
121
3
10
To achieve our key objectives, the ICT
Department has been actively involved in
the development of the new Year 7 Induction
program with Year 8 mentors; parent
information session including a new booklet
format; writing of new BYOD Student/parent
guidebook for Year 7 2014 and a “Setting up
20
7
3
6
3
Staff iPads
iPad minis for Junior school
Staff laptops
IT Department computers
Data Projectors for Junior School
Monitors for new Junior School
Multimedia lab
Monitors for Administration staff
Networked printers for staff
Kiosk computers for Morey Building
and Naunton Family Building
Notebooks for Casual Relief
Teachers
9
Headmaster’s
Report to the
Community 2014
Curriculum, Results and Tertiary Entrance data – Senior School
First Round Tertiary Offers,Year 12, 2013 made in 2014
In summary:
• 104 students of the 109 who applied for a tertiary offer (95%) received a first round offer.
• 100% of Girton Grammar School’s 2013 Year 12 students who sat for the VCE Certificate achieved it.
• 74% of the students received their first preference.
• Some students have chosen to enter the workforce including apprenticeships.
2014 Offers
2013 Offers
2012 Offers
2011 Offers
1st Preference
75
77
77
84
2nd
15
25
20
7
3rd
5
7
7
7
4th
2
2
0
3
5th
3
1
0
2
Other
2
6
2
1
Total Offers
102
118
106
106
Institutions which made Offers.
Year of Offer
University of Melbourne
Monash
La Trobe - Bendigo
La Trobe - Other
Deakin
RMIT
Other
2014
2013
2012
2011
2010
2009
29
40
31
31
36
26
11
9
6
10
7
8
18
32
28
16
21
21
2
2
10
6
3
4
15
13
11
21
7
10
10
7
5
6
10
10
17
15
15
13
17
13
In recent years offers of places at the University of Melbourne and La Trobe University, Bendigo remain steady.
Courses Chosen/Offered
Students choose from a wide variety of courses, some of the most popular being from the fields of, Science, Commerce, Arts, Environments,
Engineering, Events Management, Information Technology and Law. The Health/Sciences were also very popular with students selecting from
Medicine, Paramedic Practice, Pharmacy, Psychology, Physiotherapy and Dentistry. A number of students have also selected Bio-Medicine at the
University of Melbourne as a precursor to the study of Medicine. Other course selections include Exercise and Sport Science, Public Relations and
International Studies. Headmaster, Mr Matthew Maruff, commented, “These results demonstrate a commitment to learning by students, teachers
and parents. The relationships shared by these three groups have allowed our students to choose a preferred future.”
Medicine/ Dentistry/Biomedicine
Law
Health/Nursing/Physio/Therapies/Paramedical
Science or Agriculture or Pharmacy or Environment
Arts & Humanities & Social Science
Engineering / Construction/Aviation
IT / Electronics/ Software etc
Business / Commerce/Accounting
Media/PR/EventsMgt/ Journalism/Marketing/Tourism etc
Education
PE /Sports/Sports Mgt
Psychology / Behavioural Science
Creative Arts
Architecture and Various forms of Design –
industrial/commercial/graphics
Other Studies
10
2014 offers to the
2013 Cohort
2013 offers to the
2012 Cohort
2012 offers to the
2011 Cohort
2011 Offers to the
2010 cohort
7
1
7
18
14
11
5
14
8
2
4
3
0
9
2
11
28
20
3
5
15
3
7
2
2
6
8
5
14
16
12
5
0
15
7
4
1
4
4
10
8
9
17
21
7
5
11
3
2
3
6
4
1
10
4
4
4
1
1
On track survey data (for 2013 Year 12 Cohort) June 2014
Each year since 2003, the State Government publishes the numbers of students in each VCE School’s cohort, the percentage who apply for
tertiary offers and the success rates of those offers. The data in the columns with italics comes from a survey conducted on behalf of the State
Government. The percentages are based on the numbers surveyed. We do not know what percentage of the cohort is surveyed.
When reading the newspapers’ full reports for all schools, please note that they do not provide a “percentage of full cohort” figure for Offers.
These figures are relevant for schools which aim for university entry rather than providing comprehensive programmes for all aspirations.
2014
(Yr 12, 2013)
2013
(Yr 12, 2012)
2012
(Yr 12, 2011)
2011
(Yr 12, 2010)
2010
(Yr 12, 2009)
% applying for Tertiary study
95%
95%
95%
98%
97%
% of those applicants receiving University Offers
91%
96%
95%
95%
92%
% of cohort receiving TAFE/VET Offer
3%
4%
5%
4%
6%
% of cohort receiving any offer inc.VET, TAFE
94%
100%
100%
98%
97%
Actually at Uni in April (% shown by survey)
57%
52%
76%
80%
61%
TAFE/VET enrolled in April (% shown by survey)
5%
8%
3%
3%
4%
Apprentice or Trainee
1%
6%
5%
0
4%
Employed
5%
3%
2%
1%
3%
Looking for Work
1%
2%
0%
1%
0%
Deferred
30%
29%
14%
15%
27%
If any readers wish to make comparisons with other schools with any data, I urge some caution. The most useful comparisons year-by-year are
with the other independent schools of similar socio-economic status because they have a similar orientation to us in that most of their students
are aiming for tertiary studies. The State and Catholic sector schools usually have students in programmes such as VCAL (Victorian Certificate of
Applied Learning) which do not lead to university studies and thus some comparisons may be unfair.
The numbers taking a “Gap Year” have reduced significantly since 2010. This change may be attributed to the change in government legislation.
Most “Gap” students return to university studies after one or two years.
Senior School Curriculum
From Mr Evans, Senior Master (Teaching and Learning)
The NAPLAN Results for Years Seven and Nine 2014 allow comparison with students from the whole State. The headings, 10th, 25th, 50th, 75th
and 90th refer to percentiles. The mean is simply the average score measured using the National Assessment Program Scale
Year 7 Comparative Data from NAPLAN 2014(measured using the National Assessment Program Scale)
Students
10th
25th
50th
75th
90th
Mean
State
61535
464
502
548
597
644
551
School
126
499
530
574
616
672
581
Writing
State
61559
441
478
518
565
606
519
School
129
473
507
547
581
635
547
Spelling
State
61679
454
503
551
595
636
548
School
129
478
515
557
597
628
558
State
61679
447
490
540
595
649
544
School
129
497
529
570
627
672
577
State
61361
465
499
543
595
648
551
School
129
510
534
576
606
652
577
Reading
Grammar & Punctuation
Numeracy
11
Headmaster’s
Report to the
Community 2014
Year 9 Comparative Data from NAPLAN 2014 (measured using the National Assessment Program Scale)
Students
10th
25th
50th
75th
90th
Mean
60565
500
540
587
634
677
587
Reading
State
School
122
523
569
609
650
683
605
Writing
State
60719
469
511
564
615
661
560
School
123
401
542
591
641
684
582
State
60789
492
540
587
634
677
585
School
123
479
558
606
649
716
600
State
60789
486
529
579
631
681
581
School
123
525
560
613
661
706
612
Spelling
Grammar &
Punctuation
Numeracy
State
60392
511
543
588
637
689
595
School
124
548
576
617
657
721
625
NAPLAN Percentage of Girton students meeting National Benchmarks
Year 3
Year 5
Year 7
Year 9
Reading
98
98
100
98
Writing
100
98
99
94
Spelling
100
98
98
91
Year
Grammar and Punctuation
98
98
99
97
Numeracy
100
100
100
100
The English Department enriched the
classroom learning through bringing
performances of set texts to Girton
Grammar. Year 11 English students saw a
production of Macbeth by The Eagle’s Nest
Theatre Company. Year 12 English students
enjoyed the internationally acclaimed A
Christmas Carol. Year 10 and 11 Literature
classes participated in a workshop on
Antony and Cleopatra. An hour of Writing
Workshops were introduced fortnightly
at Years 7-10 as part of the core English
curriculum. These Workshops were team
taught, combining two class groups. 12
students from the Years 10 and 11 Literature
classes entered the Dorothea MacKellar
Poetry Competition. The School was one
of 18 nationally to be Commended for
the high quality of entries; Rani Jayasekera
(11 JE) and Jarrah Tokovic (10M) received
Commendations for their entries. The Year
12 English Language class submitted entries
into VATE’s Michael Clyne Essay competition
(the winners are yet to be announced). A
weekly Lecture Series was conducted by
Clint Whitsed, Sam a’Beckett, Matthew Maruff
and Scott Langan on Thursday afternoons in
Term Three for Year 12 English students. In
Term One, Amanda Scott presented an
all-day workshop for the VATE Literature
Day in Melbourne to experienced Unit 3/
12
4 Literature teachers. In Term Four she
presented at the VATE Student Revision Day
in Melbourne, lecturing on Peter Carey.
The Mathematics Department continues
to develop the “Flip the Classroom” model
and the use of iPads with a full version of the
Mathematics eTexts which has progressed
from Year Seven to Year Eight. Teachers have
been busy creating their own video lessons
and again dealing with the myriad of technical
issues. All teachers involved are congratulated
on their efforts. This year also saw the full
implementation of the Australian Mathematics
Curriculum into the Year Seven to Year Ten
Mathematics courses. Whilst the basis of
Mathematics has not changed, the difference
in emphasis and order has required a re-write
of the courses.
The Mathematics Department has again
run after school tutorials every Tuesday,
Wednesday and Thursday. Many students
take advantage of this opportunity to gain
additional assistance or to have a mathematics
teacher on hand as they do their weekly
homework.
Students again competed in the Australian
Mathematics Competition with 145 students
gaining Credit awards, 38 students gaining
Distinctions and one student, Bailey Stone
of Nine Millward gaining a High Distinction.
Kyle Jacobsen from Ten Jones was awarded
the Prudence award for answering the most
consecutive questions correctly. Students in
the Year Seven and Nine Extension classes
also competed in the Mathematics Challenge
for Young Australians with Evelyn Crawford
(7Je) and Milos Babovic (9Je) both gaining
distinction awards.
The Science Department moved into the
Naunton Family Building in Term One. We
now have 8 new science laboratories, an
excellent preparation area and a Living Wall.
The Science department has continued to
offer a range of events and competitions in
2014 to engage students in Science. Our
students celebrated many successes in
Science this year and the profile of Science
continues to rise in our School.
Junior School students achieved a Credit
award and a Minor Bursary in the Science
Talent Search competition. Many Junior
School students were successful in the
ICAS (The International Competitions
and Assessments for Schools) Science
competition. Six students were in the
top 11% of participants and achieved a
Distinction award. The Junior School vegetable
patch was initially set up by the Junior School
Science club. It supported the Year 4 Plants
life cycle unit and the Year 5 Habitats and
Adaptations unit and saw a successful harvest
of a large variety of Winter/Spring vegetables
this year. The successful composting program
collected food scraps from students and
made a rich nutrient supply to return to the
planter boxes
Sacha Mann (11Je) was selected for the
Growing (Junior) Tall Poppies program for her
academic excellence and passion for Science
and Mathematics along with her capacity to
communicate science to her immediate and
broader community. Sacha has won access to
an eminent scientist/mathematician who will
be connected to the school throughout 2015.
Seven Year 11 students participated in the
Science Olympiad Examinations to compete
for entry in the Science Olympiad Summer
Schools. Three students were invited to
attend the Summer schools based on their
examination results. Sacha Mann (11Je) and
Tavish Eenjes (11Jo) will attend the Earth &
Environmental Science Summer School and
Liam Murphy (11Je) will attend the Biology
Summer School at ANU in January. At the
completion of the Summer School they
will compete for a place in the Australian
Olympiad Teams. Thirty two Year Ten students
participated in the Regional Science &
Engineering Challenge. As the team had
the highest runner-up score in Victoria they
were invited to participate in the Victorian
Championships.
All students from years 7 to 10 participated
in the ICAS Science competition. This year
four students achieved a High Distinction
award with scores in the top 1% of students
in Victoria. A further twenty-one students
achieved a Distinction award with scores in
the next 10% of students in Victoria.
National Science Week this year with a
series of scientific explorations of different
concepts related to the Science Week theme
of Food. Y7 explored Energy in Food, Y8
Organic Food, Y9 “No Bee No Me” and Y10
Sustainable Food. There was also a Science
week Haiku competition for students and
Staff.
On October 14th many students and staff
participated in the Live Streaming into
the Classroom with Professor Brian Cox.
During this exclusive event students had
the opportunity to ask Professor Brian Cox
questions.
The Space and Engineering Camp Trip to the
United States of America is planned for 2015
and 2016. Staff and students have focused on
preparing for this trip of a lifetime.
The Humanities Department continues
to engage and motivate our students with
relevant curriculum, dynamic classroom
activities and exciting excursions.
The introduction of the National Geography
Curriculum has reinvigorated the department.
Geography is a diverse discipline and
the creation of new units to provide an
understanding of the earth and its systems
have strengthened our students’ critical
thinking skills and sense of global citizenship.
The National History Curriculum is extensive
and the History staff have worked diligently
to create stimulating and relevant units. We
teach History to help guide our students
to address the challenges we face in our
families, our communities and our nation
by discovering how others have lived and
thought about life.
It is rewarding to see the achievements of
our students each day and bear witness
to their commitment and tenacity. It is
equally rewarding when students efforts
are recognised by the broader community.
Jim Evans, the President of the Bendigo
Historical Society, presented an award to Rani
Jayasekera (11 Jenkin) who demonstrated
excellence in effort and achievement in
History.
In August, ten students competed in the
Model United Nations Forum. This event
placed them in the shoes of UN Security
Council representatives, giving them a
deeper understanding of global issues and
training them in the skills they need for active
citizenship. The competition takes the form of
a mock session of the UN Security Council,
where teams debate, amend, and vote on
a resolution prepared by our facilitators
from the perspective of one of the Security
Council’s member nations. Two teams were
selected to complete in the Semi Final
Round in Melbourne – Sophie Rhule (12
Aherne) and Amelia McNair (12 Millward),
and Georgia Jenkins-Smales (12 Aherne) and
Catherine Fist (12 Aherne).
The introduction of Conflict and Globalisation
has been a valued addition. This subject
examines the dynamics of human interaction
in which individuals and groups compete to
achieve their goals.
The focus of the Art Department is to
Girton students once again participated in
The Amazing Spaghetti Machine Contest
organised by the Melbourne School of
Engineering. The contest is an annual
competition for school students in Year 10 in
which knowledge and skills in Mathematics,
Science, Engineering, and Project Management
are put to the test in the creation of a
‘spaghetti machine’ — the Italian term for
an overly complex machine or device that is
used to perform a relatively simple task. The
Girton team were joint winners of the overall
competition to build a “Wake Up” Machine
and also the winner of the People’s Choice
Award. The team were subsequently asked
if they could display their machine in the
Engineering Department during Melbourne
University’s Open Day.
The Science Department celebrated
13
Headmaster’s
Report to the
Community 2014
encourage students to master the technical
skills used in creating artworks in many forms
and materials, and the development of strong
analytical ways of thinking and writing about
art-work. The introduction of the iPad at
Year Eight level this year has created a new
way for students to access art facts, and
imagery quickly, and across a broader range
of sources than in the past. The iPad provides
also a way in which students can individualise
the presentation of their written work in
a professional way. The art textbook has
disappeared completely for Year Seven and
Eight students and as of 2015 will no longer
be used for Year Nine and Ten Art Elective
studies.
The regular use of computers, laser
photocopiers and the iPad has provided a
non-threatening way in which students at
all levels can trial ideas for artworks more
quickly and in greater depth, than in the past.
It is also a way in which art can be seen as
more relevant in this digital age. In November
at the Annual Art Exhibition the range of
artwork and the conceptual and technical
skills evident in the students’ artwork, is a
validation of the process whereby new skills
are built upon skills learnt in previous years.
The Physical Education Department is very
excited to be working alongside Latrobe
University Bendigo, with Sports Science
students taking advantage of their new
physiology laboratory. The teachers worked
collaboratively with the Year Ten students,
conducting Exercise Physiology Laboratories,
undertaking blood lactate, anaerobic capacity
and VO2 Max tests. We look forward to
continuing and building upon our new
relationship with the University.
Students in Years Seven to Ten have enjoyed
another vibrant, exciting and vast program,
which has been enjoyed by all. A number
of new fun and exciting activities have been
added into the curriculum, including big ball
soccer.
Junior School students have also completed a
busy year as they continue to be included and
involved in many sporting arenas. Swimming,
athletics and cross country are our main
sporting carnivals with different interests
being stimulated in the Year Three to Six
area by a variety of clinics; tennis, dance, golf,
orienteering and lacrosse to name a few. The
Perceptual Motor Program (PMP) which is
delivered to the Preparatory, Year One and
Year Two classes, continues to develop the
sequential skills of the students. It has been
integrated in our curriculum for a number of
years now, with students really enjoying their
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experiences.
The ‘Sports Excellence Program’ to be
introduced in 2015 is designed to help
students balance their sporting goals and
academic studies in a supportive, professional
setting. Students accepted into the Sports
Excellence Program will not only participate
in regular strength and conditioning training
but will also be educated in all areas
associated with optimising performance. The
program involves an individualised training
program designed to allow students to work
collaboratively with coaches, parents, teachers
and experts to build on their physical and
mental strength and fitness to enable them
to perform at their peak. Girton Grammar
School will be working closely with Exercise
Research Australia (ERA) and Healthy Mates
Health & Conditioning Complex to provide
a first rate, comprehensive Sports Excellence
Program led by experts in the field. Constant
communication and consultation with leading
experts in the sports science field in these
organisations will be an integral part of this
program.
In 2014, Year Seven and Eight students have
continued to enjoy learning French with the
help of digital resources. The use of the IPad
in the French classes has enabled the students
to learn in an interactive manner, using
their device with multiple applications and
recording themselves speaking French and
producing digital documents in French.
Our senior students have enjoyed
participating in the conversation groups
and have benefited from mixing with Year
12 students. The classes are less structured
than normal and create the opportunity for
Year 10 and 11 students to see the level of
proficiency that is within their reach at the
end of their VCE studies. In Term Four, we’re
already preparing ourselves for the upcoming
visit of our French sister School and
organising family stays for February next year.
The Japanese Department has completed
another busy and productive year. In January,
Jemille McKenzie (12A) and Liam Murphy
(11Je) had the opportunity to spend two
weeks at Gojo Senior High School, our sister
school in Japan. We welcomed Mrs Liz
Blanks to teach Year 7 Japanese at the start
of the year. Our annual VCE Kanji camp took
place in February and 15 students spend
three days working very hard to learn the
250 VCE prescribed Kanji (characters for
writing). Gojo paid us another successful visit
in March and enjoyed what Australian home
and school life can offer. We hosted a ‘Kendo
Demonstration’ for Year 7 and 8 Japanese
students in August, which was educational and
entertaining at the same time. Mr Vernon
and Ms Watanabe took a group of 15 excited
students to Japan for two weeks during the
September-October holidays. The first week
was spent sightseeing in Tokyo, Hiroshima and
Kyoto and we visited Gojo for the second
week. Our students were fortunate enough
to take part in Gojo’s Athletics Day, which
was very different from our Sports Day at
Girton. Gojo is celebrating its 120th year
in 2016 and we are hoping to visit them
to be a part of their celebrations. Haydn
Musgrove (10M), Gabriel Lillington (10R)
and Dale Baker (10Je) are looking forward to
experiencing life in Japan when they go on
exchange to Gojo next January. Overseas
exchanges provide wonderful opportunities
for our students to broaden their horizons
and are an important pillar of Girton’s
Japanese language program.
This year has seen the implementation
phase of the gender-based programme, The
Rite Journey. The year-long program has
encouraged our Year Nine students to reflect,
discuss and develop strategies to assist them
with their transition towards adulthood. The
program follows a Rite of Passage framework
and provides an opportunity to deepen our
students’ experience of this important life
transition.
Another innovative Year Nine Programme,
Knowing, Playing and Making (KPM)
continued in 2014. Year Nine students
elected and completed four collaborative
learning scenarios. During each of the
scenarios, the teacher, when necessary
(and as part of the rigour of the program)
provided explicit teaching, but the major
premise was student centred learning. Year
Nine KPM emphasises how important it is
for our students to be actively involved in
the learning process. Each KPM scenario
adhered to the philosophy and rationale of
the programme. The scenarios that were
offered to Year Nine students during 2014
were: eRobot, Outbreak, Events, iInvent, Last
Team Standing, Real Magazine, Video Short,
Digital and Analogue Photography, Electronic
Music, All Things Food, Outdoor Skills, Rock
Band Recording and Movie Making.
The number of Instrumental Music students
taught each week in 2014 has continued to
expand and now includes over 550 students
and thirty ensembles between Year Two and
VCE. Girton has continued to be a major
centre for AMEB examinations in central
Victoria, hosting many days of assessments
over the course of the year. The Music
Department continues to produce numerous
high quality performances with continued
growth in standard within the classroom
music programs and the consolidation of
VCE Style and Composition within the
curriculum. Music Performance has shown
higher standards of performance once more
and both the Year Nine Music Performance
and Year 10 (VCE Music units 1 and 2) classes
were at capacity.
Our ensembles concert evenings proved
to be very successful in the Capital Theatre
once more, but will now be moved to the
new theatre Ulumbarra at the Old Bendigo
Jail site. This will allow for students to listen to
each other perform in concert and also give
our families access to an excellent venue.
In Junior School our Classroom Music
Programme continues to grow and prosper
under the guidance of a wonderful team of
music staff. The Year Two Strings Programme
is continuing to thrive under the guidance of
Mrs Timmins and Mrs Bartlett. The numbers
of students continuing from Year Three and
on is ever increasing and creating a pleasantly
challenging staffing dilemma for us all. What a
lovely dilemma to have! Mrs Laura Dusseljee
(Head of Junior School Music) continues
to lead our Junior Choirs with skill and
enthusiasm. The Junior Performance Choir
once more challenged Victoria’s best choirs
in competition and was victorious. The Band
and Superstrings Programme is continuing to
excel, with our Senior School now having an
influx of students from the BASS Programme.
The Junior Band (Dr M. Lichnovsky & Mr D.
Turpie), Junior Advanced Band (Mrs J. Vine &
Miss Hamilton), Superstrings (Mrs T. Timmins
& Mr S. Goble), Year Two (Mrs T. Timmins &
Mrs C. Bartlett) and Year Three and Four
Strings (Mrs C. Bartlett & Miss R. London)
are all providing a wonderful learning
environment for our young musicians. In
Senior School the Year Nine Music classroom
is now very much a VCE Music Performance
classroom under the excellent direction of Mr
D. Martin. The class has been oversubscribed
for three years running. In the VCE classroom
Mrs J. Vine has further advanced the quality
of the ensemble tuition within the classroom
setting and has deeply integrated arranging
and composition tasks into the curriculum.
The students have composed three works
this year, several of which were multimovement pieces in preparation for their
move into VCE Music Style and Composition
with Mrs C. Bartlett in Year 11. 2014 will
see fourteen students electing to study VCE
Music Style and Composition, which will make
for one of the largest classes in the state.
VCE Music Performance (Mr S. Vine, Head of
Music) and VCE Music Investigation (Dr M.
Lichnovsky & Mr S. Vine) continue as popular
choices for our advance VCE musicians. The
students have all applied themselves to their
studies with commitment and skill, which has
made for another excellent year of study.
For the second year in a row, the Business
Studies Department introduced a
new subject into the curriculum; Year
Ten Commerce. This new subject is an
introductory subject that gives students a
taste of Economics, Accounting and Legal
Studies as well developing some basic
financial literacy. It proved a popular Year Ten
choice with Twenty-Eight students enrolled
in two classes. After the introduction of VCE
Economics at Year Eleven level in 2013, Year
Twelve VCE Economics was taught for the
first time in ten years. Mrs Robyn Kristenson
was welcomed into the department as the
teacher of these new subjects. Students
of Accounting and Economics enjoyed the
Australian Stock Exchange Sharemarket
Game and Year Ten Business Management
students enjoyed preparing their Business
Plans as part of their course-work. They
were excited to enter these into the “CPA
Plan your Own Business Competition”. To
experience varied aspects of our Legal
System, Year Eleven Legal students visited
the Loddon Prison, Bendigo Magistrates
Court, Melbourne County Courts and VCAT
(Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal).
These excursions provide the necessary
insights into our legal system and the students
see first-hand our legal system at work. Two
Year Twelve students, Sophie Rhule (12
Aherne) and Jemille McKenzie (12 Aherne),
participated in the Victorian YMCA Youth
Parliament program in the April Term Break.
YMCA Victoria Youth Parliament is a program
designed to give young Victorian students a
chance to be heard at the highest levels of
State Government, on a wide range of issues
relevant to young people’s lives.
The Learning Resource Centre has
continued its development in Junior School,
while maintaining the regular programs in
Senior School. Added to this, The Head and
Assistant Head of the LRC have received
specialized training in the administration and
analysis of coordinated assessments that
were previously unavailable to schools. These
assessments are providing some excellent
insight into the learning challenges of many
students.
The focus on early intervention has
continued using a range of benchmark
assessment, administered by LRC staff for
all Year One students. There have also been
individual assessments completed on all new
students or students of concern; as well as
data analysis of students from Years Three to
Six. Junior School HQ plays a significant role
in the planning for and teaching of its regular
attendees. They take part in the lunchtime
sessions as well as the social and emotional
development programs. The number of Junior
School ‘Supergroups’ have been increased
to meet the need of intensive assistance to
those at highest risk. This is in addition to the
regular Literacy and Numeracy classes.
In the Senior School, in addition to the
15
Headmaster’s
Report to the
Community 2014
regular Literacy and Numeracy classes, two
‘Supergroups’ were again formed at Year
Seven to provide intensive assistance to those
of highest need. Study Skills and Examination
Strategies Workshops have been conducted
for all students in Years Seven to Ten with
the focus on ‘brain friendly’ techniques.
Students new to the School have taken part
in workshops designed to provide them
with skills and material that they would have
received in years prior to their enrolment.
Students are encouraged to use methods that
work with their brains.
The Learning Resource Centre HQ has
maintained its many projects, including the
Garden Project as evidenced by the regular
produce for sale. The students who take part
in the programs are regular proponents of
the RULER program and have found it of
excellent value. Involvement as coaches for
the ‘Sporting Chance Program’ has been
very beneficial for students who attend
HQ. ‘A Sporting Chance Program’ is open
to the wider community, focussing on
teaching students on the Autism Spectrum
to develop sporting skills and the necessary
skills for team play. This program has been
very well received and the benefit to the
student coaches and the wider community is
extensive.
This year, the Drama Department staged
three major productions with exceptional
performances from all students involved
and near sell-out seasons. As Director of
the Senior School Production, Mr. Nicholas
Pease worked with students throughout the
course of Semester One with an adaptation
of Stephen Sondheim’s ‘Into the Woods’.
Staging involved six metre trees, thousands of
leaves and even confetti cannons. As Musical
Director, Mrs. Jacqui Vine extended the
school’s musicians to perform these comedic,
yet sometimes dark and intricate pieces. The
Girton Grammar School community were
very supportive towards the production,
with all performances at the Capital Theatre
selling out. Special mention goes to Mrs. Laura
Dusseljee for her fine work on coaching the
singers.
Director of the Year Eight Production, Mrs
Joanne Grech, worked with the entire
cohort on an upbeat rendition of Rodgers
and Hammerstein’s ‘Cinderella’. Needless to
say, the challenges of working with so many
students and getting them to sing, dance and
act is no easy task. But Mrs. Grech, assisted by
Mr. Toly Sawenko helped the students rise to
the occasion with bright dances and catchy
show tunes. Again, these shows were sell outs
in the school’s much loved Black Box Theatre.
16
Term Four saw the Junior School Production
of Disney’s ‘Peter Pan’ directed by Mrs. Kristie
Woodward and Dr. Kristina Turner. It was so
exciting to watch all our younger performers
transform into dancing pirates, pixies,
mermaids and lost boys. Again, thank you to
Mrs. Laura Dusseljee for her work with the
singers.
All technical aspects of these productions
were handled by our technical crew led by
Mr. Grant Davis and Mr. John McMillan. Our
Backstage Club were also brilliant in the Year
8 and Junior School Productions.
Finally, all costumes for each production were
provided by the lovely Ms Anita Scott from
‘Scott’s Mascot and Costume Hire’. Her work
is very much appreciated by the Girton staff.
Overall, there has certainly been an
abundance of positive connections made
among both staff and students in the midst
of all this work. These productions are key
experiences for Drama students who learn
how to speak and present to an audience,
remain focused and work patiently alongside
their classmates to achieve a creative vision.
Performing Arts Showcase
The Drama Department has introduced
a new performance evening entitled ‘The
Performing Arts Showcase’ which combines
some of our strongest performers across
multiple disciplines including Drama, Theatre
Studies, Digital Media and Dance. Two awards
were also introduced including ‘Performer of
the Year’ and a ‘People’s Choice Award’. The
awards not only recognise the wonderful
performance skills of the students but also
their ability to lead and encourage other
students in the Performing Arts. This will
hopefully become an important date on the
Performing Arts calendar for years to come.
Congratulations to Laura Douglass for her tap
routine that won ‘Performer of the Year’ and
Andrew McKinnon for his performance as
‘The Baker’ from ‘Into the Woods’ winning the
‘People’s Choice Award’.
The One Act Play Festival
(MIC Mr. Toly Sawenko)
This year’s One Act Play Festival was yet
another example of the students’ passion
for performance. Students were given the
opportunity to prepare a short ‘One Act’
play which can either be scripted or devised
for performance in front of an audience.
Students were responsible for the direction
and rehearsal of their plays and learnt the
vital skills that are involved in preparing for
performance.
Overall, performances ranged from funny
family situations to contemporary dance
and explorations of World War II. All of
the performances were well received by the
audiences and judges. The Drama Captain,
Evangeline Matthews (12 Frew), hosted
the evening in a professional manner with
bubbly enthusiasm. A panel comprising of
Mrs Joanne Grech, Mrs Jacinta Jackson, Mr.
Nicholas Pease and the school’s illustrious
School Captains Tom Duke and Millie McNair,
provided insightful reflections on each of the
Plays. Congratulations to our winners and all
participants.
Junior School One Act Play Festival
(MIC Dr Kristina Turner)
The Junior School Actor’s Studio students
presented their ‘One Act Plays’ to their
families in the Black Box. The Years Five and
Six students involved in this Co-curriculum
worked very hard throughout the term to
organise their groups, select or write their
scripts, and direct their plays. All students
participated with great enthusiasm and
excitement, demonstrating excellent team
work, acting skills and creativity as they
learned lines, blocked scenes and decided on
appropriate costumes and props. The plays
were entertaining, humorous, polished and
well-rehearsed. VCE Theatre Studies students
Andrew McKinnon and Laura Downey were
outstanding in their roles as Masters of
Ceremony. Congratulations and thank you to
all students involved in this wonderful evening.
Class Clowns
(MIC Mr. Nicholas Pease)
This year has also seen Girton’s introduction
to the nation-wide competition known as
‘Class Clowns’. Students are set the challenge
of creating short comedic performances
and compete against other schools across
the nation for a spot in the National Final
at Melbourne Town Hall as part of the
International Comedy Festival. Tom Brewin
developed an excellent stand-up routine
which was performed at Melbourne’s
Malthouse Theatre. While he didn’t make this
year’s final, his act was brilliant for someone
who had never tried something like this
before. The Class Clowns are already gearing
up for the 2015 competition with many
students keen to develop their comedic
skills. Stay tuned for our comedians to make
headlines next year!
Girton
Co-Curriculum
From Mr. Dan Slater
Head of Co-Curriculum
The Girton Grammar Co-Curriculum
program continues to provide our students
with opportunities for personal growth
through a variety of excellent activities, led by
talented and enthusiastic personnel.
Students have the opportunity to participate
in activities where there is limited pressure,
maximum enjoyment and limited expectation.
They can also choose more challenging
activities which require disciplined effort in
the pursuit of excellence. In 2014 several
individuals and teams competed in national
competitions. We have two students who
are currently national champions and a third
who achieved a silver medal at a national
competition.
The expanded co-curriculum acknowledges
the relationship with the Independent
Country Co-Educational Schools (I.C.C.E.S.),
and the local Sandhurst Division of School
Sport Victoria. Our liaison with these schools
forms the basis of our external sporting
competition.
The pursuit of excellence in our cocurriculum programme is never more
evident than when the outstanding individual
performances are presented to the ‘Colours’
committee at the end of the year. In 2014 we
have 23 students who have been selected to
represent Victoria.
The following is a summary of each of our
co-curriculum activities.
A SPORTING CHANCE PROGRAM
(MiC: Mr John Doherty)
Now in its second year of operation, A
Sporting Chance Program was held during
Terms 1 to 4. This activity is an inclusive
Sport and Physical Education program aimed
specifically at young individuals aged 7-13
who have an Autism Spectrum Disorder
(ASD).
The program is open to Girton Grammar
School students and students from the wider
Bendigo community. Girton Grammar School
17
Headmaster’s
Report to the
Community 2014
senior students are trained to be coaches/
mentors by John Doherty, Carolyn Flood and
Joanne Evans who have specialist training in
this domain. The coaches are then able to
work one to one with the ASD participants.
Students who are interested in becoming
involved as coaches are interviewed at the
start of the year and then suitable candidates
are selected. This year we increased our
coaching numbers from 10 to 14 due to
the popularity of the program and the high
number of ASD participants attending. The
participants, also known as ‘student athletes’
travel from all over Central Victoria to take
part. Over the course of the year a total
of 42 student athletes participated in the
program with an average of 15 athletes
per session. One session per week involves
the coaches only and is dedicated to the
theoretical and practical aspects of inclusive
PE teaching whilst the second session is at
‘the coal face’ coaching the student athletes.
Each term the participants learn the basic
skills, rules and language of a variety of
common activities and sports played in
Australian schools including Perceptual &
Fundamental Motor Skills Circuits, Fitness
Circuits, Basketball, Soccer, Aussie Rules
Football, Cricket, T-Ball and Mini Tennis.
The student athletes learn sporting
skills but more importantly they have
the opportunity to socialise with their
peers in a fun, non-judgmental, stable and
consistent environment. Through excellent
role modelling, the coaches enable their
student athletes to develop appropriate
social behaviours and improve their social
confidence and communication skills. In
everyday life success is measured in many
ways. In the case of this program, it lies in the
fact that each week we see students with an
ASD who have formed such a strong rapport
with their Girton Grammar School coach that
they continue to participate and belonging to
this program means the world to them and
their families. The coaches have been able
to connect with them ‘through the heart to
the head’ and build lifelong friendships that
otherwise would not have occurred.
ART FOR LATENT PICASSOS
(MiC: Mrs Carol Knowles)
This activity takes place on Tuesday
afternoons between 4.00pm and 6.00pm.
The group is a small one but the students
are competent and keen to create artworks
across a variety of materials.
During the first semester the activity revolves
around the creating of handmade books.
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This included Accordian, Pamphlet and Stab
Stitch books. These books were collaged
and decorated, and made use of recycled
materials. During Semester Two individuals
focused on creating a sketchbook of drawings
of areas around the school, and the Bendigo
CBD.
Sandhurst Senior Athletics Carnival
ATHLETICS & CROSS COUNTRY
Bendigo South East College was the
champion school with Catholic College in
second place; Girton was placed 3rd.
(MiC: Mr. Dan Slater SS & Mrs. Carmel
Hamilton JS)
Girton Senior Athletics Carnival
The 2014 Girton Athletics Carnival was
conducted at the Flora Hill Athletics Track on
Friday March 14th in near perfect conditions.
The Athletics Shield for overall champion
House was won by Frew, for a record
eleventh consecutive year!
Age Champions:
13 Years: Girls:
Boys:
Matilda Moore (7R)
Thomas Kaye (7M)
14 Years: Girls:
Boys:
Eva Harrington (8F)
Henry Coventry-Brownrigg (8A)
15 Years: Girls:
Boys: Alex Rockliff (9F)
Jemuel Pryse (9Je)
16 Years: Girls:
Boys:
Anna Purtill (10F)
Lachlan Beever (10F)
17 Years: Girls:
Boys:
Emma Buttolph (11F)
Jed McGaffin (11JO)
Open: Kaitlin Waterson (12Je)
James Shelton (12Jo)
Girls:
Boys:
The Sandhurst Athletics Carnival was
originally scheduled for Friday 2nd May but
due to rain was postponed until Wednesday
3rd September. The Sandhurst Athletics
Carnival involved all of the secondary schools
within the Bendigo and District region.
Age Champions:
15 Boys Declan Rochford (9F)
17 Girls Keely Haig (11R)
I.C.C.E.S. Athletics Carnival
The ICCES Athletics Carnival was held
at the Victorian Athletics Track, Albert
Park, Melbourne on Wednesday May 7th.
The ICCES competition involves various
Independent Country Co-educational
Schools from throughout Victoria. The
competition at ICCES is very competitive and
to achieve a place in any event at this level is
commendable.
Gippsland Grammar won the carnival with St.
Pauls, Warragul in second place; Girton was
placed 7th.
Two Girton students set new records during
the carnival:
• Jemual Pryse (9Je) set a new record of 1.81
m in the Year 9 High Jump
• Joseph Baldwin (10R) set a new record of
1.92 in the Year 10 High Jump
Earlier in the year both boys represented
Victoria in the National Athletics
Championships in Sydney. Jemuel achieved
first place in pole vault and Joseph was
Runner-Up in High Jump
Girton Senior School Cross Country
The Senior School cross country event was
conducted at Wildflower Drive, Junortoun on
Thursday 29th April. The distances for each
event were as follows:
All girls – 3 kilometres
13, 14 & 15 Boys – 3 kilometres
16, 17 & Open Boys – 5 kilometres
The fastest time over the 3km course was
Thomas Kaye (7M) in a time of 13 minutes
and 5 seconds and the quickest for the 5km
course was Matthew Heislers (10A) who
completed the undulating course in 17.50
The teacher’s event was won by Ms
Kymberly Cresp and Mr Joe Monro. They
were presented with the coveted Golden
Sandshoe trophy.
Age Champions:
13 Years: Girls:
Boys:
Matilda Moore (7R)
Thomas Kaye (7M)
14 Years: Girls:
Boys:
Eva Harrington (8F)
Callum Moloney (8F)
15 Years: Girls:
Boys:
Lilian Harvey (9F)
Nelson Beks (9M)
16 Years: Girls:
Boys:
Nell O’Shea-Carre (10A)
Matthew Heislers (10Je)
17 Years: Girls:
Boys:
Emma Buttolph (11F)
James Kerr (11A)
Open:
Kaitlin Waterson (12Je)
Nicholas Moloney (12F)
Girls:
Boys:
Sean Kingsley (11F) – 2nd
Alexander Nielson (9M) – 4th
Fastest overall time for the 4.3km course was
Matthew Heislers.
ICCES Cross Country
The Girton cross country team travelled to
Bundoora Park, Melbourne on Tuesday 5th
August for the annual ICCES cross country
championships. In a very competitive field
Girton achieved 6th place. The overall
winning school was Gippsland Grammar.
The Intermediate & Senior Boys competed
over a distance of 6km and the Junior Boys
and all Girls Sections ran the 4km course. The
trails were over undulating terrain with water
channels and heavy conditions adding to the
already challenging course.
Students who achieved a top 10 placing were:
1st - Matthew Heislers (10Je) Intermediate Boys
7th - Alexander Nielson (9M) Intermediate Boys
9th - Kate Hadkins (8F) Junior Girls
10th - Kaitlin Waterson (12Je) Senior Girls
10th - Sean Kingsley (11F) Senior Boys
In March this year Matthew Heislers
represented Victoria in the National Athletics
championships where he competed in the
3000m event. He achieved 4th Place.
Liam Richardson (8Je) competed in the
Australian Cross Country Championships in
Perth and achieved First Place in the A.W.D.
Division.
2014 marks the sixth year of the David
Kinnersley trophy, presented to the most
outstanding senior athlete at Girton
Grammar. David Kinnersley (12R, 2008) not
only achieved the Age Champion award at
ICCES but won all five events in his final year,
smashing four records in the process. The
trophy is named after David in recognition
of his fine contribution to athletics and his
outstanding achievements during his senior
years. Previous winners have been restricted
to years 10 – 12.
For the first time we have selected a student
from Years 7 – 9 (Junior) and from Years 10 –
12 (Senior).
The 2014 recipients are:
Junior – Declan Rochford (9F)
Senior - Matthew Heislers (10Je)
Previous winners were:
2009 – Jackson Dargaville
2010 – Jarrah Wales
2011 – Blake Pryse
2012 – Blake Pryse
2013 - James Oliver
Girton junior School Cross country
Beischer Park – Tuesday, 6th May.
Age Champions:
Prep Girls – Georgia Mahony (PrepF)
Prep Boys- Hugh Dalton (PrepF)
Year 1 Girls - Mia Nichol (1A)
Year 1 Boys – Hunter Wright (1A)
Year 2 Girls - Portia Kaine (2Je)
Year 2 Boys - Samuel Kay (2M)
9 Year Old Girls – Olivia Green (3A)
9 Year Old Boys - Patrick Byrne (3Jo)
10 Year Old Girls - Emily Everist (4A)
Shield for overall champion House was won
by Frew.
Sandhurst Cross Country
On Tuesday 20th May a team of fifty Girton
athletes travelled to the harness racing
precinct at Sebastian to compete in the
Sandhurst Cross Country Event. The girls
and boys 13 – 15 years competed over a 3
kilometre course with the 16 years – open
boys completing the 4.3 kilometre distance.
The top 4 results for Girton students:
13 Years: Girls
Matilda Moore (7R) – 2nd
Kayle Thompson (8R) – 3rd
Boys
14 Years: Girls
Eva Harrington (7F) – 1st
16 Years: Boys
Matthew Heislers (10Je) – 1st
19
Headmaster’s
Report to the
Community 2014
10 Year Old Boys - James Kay (4M)
11 Year Old Girls – Leila Bartolo (4A)
11 Year Old Boys - Joel Bothe (6M)
12/13 Year Old Girls - Zahli Drummond (6Je)
12/13 Year Old Boys – Thomas St.Clair (6F)
Hill track on Friday May 10th. Twenty students
then won through to the CampaspeGoldfields-Sandhurst Division Athletics
carnival which was held in Bendigo on
Monday September 15th.
Girls 10 Year Relay team: Abbey Conquer,
Evie Kuchel (4Je), Alexandra Hope and Abigail
O’Sullivan (4Jo) finished 3rd in the Division.
8th in 800m
4th in 1500m
Abbey Conquer (4Je)
6th in 200m
5th in 100m
Caydn Thompson (6R)
7th in 200m
At the Regional event held on Monday
October 13th at the Bendigo Athletics Track,
Joel Bothe finished 4th in the Discus and
Serryn Eenjes finished first in the Discus.
Serryn will now go on to the next level
and compete in discus at the State Athletic
Championships later in the year. We wish her
well on the day.
Alessia McCaig (5Je)
5th in 100m
BADMINTON
Thomas St. Clair (6F)
7th in 100m
5th in Long Jump
(MiC: Mrs Denise Bailie)
Edward Carr (6Jo)
3rd in High Jump
Drew Fitzsimmons (6Jo)
15th in Triple Jump
10th in Hurdles
Millie Lourie (5F)
12th in Triple Jump
Peter Shearman (6M)
3rd in Shot Put
7th in Discus
Joel Bothe (6M)
2nd in Discus
4th in Shot Put
Timothy Johnston (5Je)
12th in Discus
Athletics - Junior School
Aiden Brown (4A)
Shot Put
The 2014 Girton Junior School Athletics
Carnival was initially postponed due to poor
weather conditions and then conducted at
the Flora Hill Athletics track on Wednesday
April 30th. All students in Preparatory
through to Year Six took part in a rotational
carnival. Jenkin House took out the carnival
cup with Millward House enjoying the Spirit
Cup win.
Serryn Eenjes (5Jo)
1st in Discus
2nd in High Jump
Olivia Russell (6Jo)
3rd in High Jump
Alexandra Hope (5Jo)
10th in Shot Put
Ashlee McKern (4Je)
3rd in Long Jump
Jemma Boromeo (6R)
15th in Long Jump
Zahli Drummond (6Je)
The winning House was Jenkin on 233 points
Emily Everist (4A), Jayda Drummond (4Je)
and Zahli Drummond (6Je) finished in the
top 10 place getters at the Shamrock District
and Campaspe-Goldfields-Sandhurst Division
Cross Country at the Bendigo Racecourse.
They went on to represent Girton Grammar
School at the Regional level at St. Arnaud.
Emily Everist finished 4th, Jayda Drummond
finished 5th in the 2 kilometre course and
Zahli Drummond finished 6th in the 3
kilometre course, allowing them to qualify to
compete in the State Championships, held
in Bundoora. The girls performed admirably
at a State level and are commended on their
achievements. Jayda placed 20th, Emily placed
48th (even with an injury during the race)
and Zahli placed 54th in their respective age
groups. The girls have been rewarded with
personal best times throughout this Cross
Country season and are congratulated on
their achievement and dedication.
Junior School House Athletic Results:
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
6th
Jenkin
Jones
Frew
Aherne
Riley
Millward
1768 Points
1735
1538
1470
1470
1292
Age Champions:
9 years: Girls
Boys
Emily Anderson (3R)
Lincoln Hocking (3M)
10 years: Girls
Boys
Emily Everist (4A)
Jarra Sardone (4A)
11 years: Girls
Boys
Serryn Eenjes (5Jo)
Thomas Perrin (5Je)
12/13 yrs: Girls
Boys
Zoe Hilson (6F)
Thomas St. Clair (6F)
Fifty-seven students competed at the
Shamrock District Athletics held at the Flora
20
Badminton student numbers have increased
this year to involve about thirty five
students each Friday night after school
at the Eaglehawk stadium. In Term One
and Two, students had the opportunity of
learning this sport and having a chance to
socialize with different age groups and skill
levels. In Term Three our annual two tiered
Badminton competition occurred. In Term
Four we welcomed Casey Berry (qualified
Badminton coach) to start the long term
goal of improving all students’ skill levels.
The main focus of Badminton at Girton is
one of enjoyment and learning in a positive
environment.
BASKETBALL
(MiCs: Mrs Deirdre Tunzi & Miss Amber Kotzur
SS & Mr Mark DiFede JS)
Girton Grammar School Basketball Club
introduced a Basketball Excellence Program
this year and players & coaches were very
privileged to have had Mr Ben Harvey and
the Bendigo Braves players assist with training
the teams. The players received specialist
training with drills and tips to assist in their
game. Throughout the year two Coaches’
Seminars were held for the coaches to learn
the finer points of coaching a basketball team
from Mr Harvey along with the Bendigo
Braves and Spirit players demonstrating
the drills. Coaches’ Booklets were handed
out to all coaches and the sessions were
videoed and placed on the School portal for
all to view. The program included a training
camp during the July School holidays for any
interested players. This training camp was
very well attended and the students enjoyed
some extra time with the players. All students
received a participation certificate with their
group photo.
Senior School Basketball
In the Summer 2013/2014 season Girton
entered 11 teams with 2 teams making
it to finals and 1 team progressing to the
Grand Final, the team Girton Spartans, were
unsuccessful in the Final going down by 8
points. The Winter Season saw us enter
10 teams and the season was a little more
successful with 7 Senior School Basketball
teams making it into finals with 4 teams
making it to Grand Finals. Teams successful
in winning their respective Grand Finals,
U18/20G DIV 3 Girton Knights 25 defeated
Girton Moonstones 19 and U16G DIV 3
Girton Rubies 30 defeated Strathfieldsaye
Stars 15, Isabella Keogh (9F) award MVP.
U16B DIV 4 Girton Spartans were defeated
by Celtic Thunder by 19 goals.
In addition to the local Basketball
Competition Girton also entered teams in
the ICCES Winter tour in Shepparton in both
Senior and Junior Divisions. Both boys’ teams
made it to the Semi Finals.
We also entered teams into Sandhurst
Division Basketball Junior & Intermediate
with our Junior Girls team making it into the
Grand Final and although very competitive,
were defeated by Catholic College Bendigo.
A big thank you needs to go out to the
Coaches/Managers and parent helpers
throughout both seasons. Your guidance and
support to our students is fantastic. The time
you have given up for training each week and
also the games is appreciated by Miss Kotzur,
Mrs Tunzi and by all players; without you we
would not have had the success we have had.
Thank you also to the Basketball Captains
Lewis Beks (11M) and Chelsea Bier (12Jo).
Their assistance and guidance to all players
and work done behind the scenes during the
seasons was instrumental in guaranteeing a
successful season.
Junior School Basketball
For the 2013/14 Bendigo Basketball
Association Summer Competition, Girton
Grammar School entered twelve Junior
School teams. Four teams participated in the
finals with one team achieving premiership
success. The Under 14 Boys Division 3 Girton
Aces coached by Mr David Ashman defeated
the Aztec Tigers Meteors by 33 points in
the Grand Final. Maxwell Beever (7F) was
awarded best on court. The Under 14 Girls
Division 3 Girton Pearls coached by Mr Mark
Di Fede finished the season in fourth position.
They won their first two finals to make the
Grand Final but unfortunately had to forfeit
because the Year 6 and 7 students were
away on Camp. The Under 12 Girls Division
3 Girton Gems coached by Ashlee Taylor
(11R) and Taylor Snell (11A) finished the
season in third place but lost their first final
by 4 points to the Beavers Cubs. The Under
12 Girls Division 4 Girton Jewels coached
by Christopher Dove and Michael Cason
finished fourth and lost their first final by 4
points to the Aztec Tigers Little Spirit.
Girton Grammar School entered fourteen
Junior School teams for this season. Three
teams made it through to the Grand Final.
The Under 14 Girls Division 3 Pearls coached
by Mr Mark Di Fede defeated the Aztec
Tigers by 4 points. The Under 14 Boys
Division 2 Girton Aces made the Grand Final
after finishing the season in fourth position.
The team made the finals on percentage by
one goal. Coached by Mr David Ashman the
Aces lost to the Beavers Bullets by 9 points.
The Under 12 Boys Division 3 Girton Sharks
also finished the season in fourth position by
percentage. The Sharks coached by Mr Mark
Bell won their first two finals to progress to
the Grand Final. In the Grand Final the Sharks
defeated Black Magic by 8 points. Oliver
Boucher was awarded best on court.
In Term 3, Girton Grammar School entered a
boys and girls team in the Loddon Campaspe
Basketball Championships held at the Bendigo
Stadium. The boys coached by Mr David
Ruddick were undefeated through their pool
games. They won their semi-final to progress
to the final but were defeated by Maiden
Gully Primary School by 6 points. The girl’s
team won three of their five games.
Throughout the year, girls from Year 2 to Year
6 had the opportunity to play during half time
games of the WNBL and Women’s SEABL
competition. The girls invited to play have
thoroughly enjoyed this opportunity and are
looking forward to participating again next
season.
CHESS
(MIC: Mr Nigel Veron)
Chess Club is now two years into operation.
It continues to be supported by the expertise
of Mr Gareth Mills and the Bendigo Chess
Club. This year 12 players from Year 7
through to Year 12 travelled to La Trobe
University, Bundoora to take part in the
newly re-formed ICCES Chess Competition.
The attendance at this activity is consistent,
and growing. The students learn new game
strategies and practise their plays at mini-
21
Headmaster’s
Report to the
Community 2014
tournaments.
CITY TO SURF
(MiC: Mr. Dean Langley)
Training started in October 2013 until the
14km race in Sydney in August 2014. City to
Surf members ran their best in the Bendigo
Fun Run which is held annually in November.
Girton won the schools participation
section of the event with 117 participants.
Matthew Heislers (10 Je) achieved 3rd
place in the 5km section. The Fun Run event
opportunities are expanding continually. This
year 20 students entered the Melbourne
‘Run for the Kids’ event held in April. Over
90 students participated in the early morning
Wednesday training sessions and 75 students
went to Sydney for the City to Surf event.
This is an indication of the ongoing success
and increasing popularity of City to Surf as a
co-curricular activity. The four student teams
that ventured to Sydney performed credibly
with a top three placing in every category:
Girls Under 16 team: 2nd place out of 10
entered teams
Girls Under 18 team: 1st place out of 9
entered teams
Boys Under 16 team: 3rd place out of 15
entered teams
Boys Under 18 team: 2nd place out of 10
entered teams
Maxwell Pearse (11Je) achieved the fastest
Girton male time of 57.33 minutes; Eva
Harrington (8F) achieved the fastest female
time of 73.24 minutes. Eva is our youngest
student to obtain the fastest time award.
Special mention to Mr Joe Monro for
obtaining a school record time of 52.33
22
minutes. The extra events and expansion of
the activity is challenging students continually
with personal goal achievement and fitness
improvement.
COMMUNITY SERVICE
(MICs: Ms Marie-Louise Walsh and Mrs Allison
Crickmore)
At Girton Grammar School Bendigo we
believe in service to others and building a
social conscience.
This year our students have been very
generous in giving their time once again
to help others in a variety of events and
activities. In January over 100 students
participated in the Australia Day activities
such as face painting, making balloon animals
and playing various games with the children
who were present. In February, 15 students
braved the heat to paint blue and white faces
and create balloon swords for the second
annual Scots Day.
April saw Girton represented by over 250
students at ANZAC Services in Bendigo and
Castlemaine. Many Old Girtonians attended
the service in Melbourne at ANZAC
Memorial.
Our major fundraising activity occurred in
May when over 250 students gave a few
hours of their time on a Sunday morning
door knocking for the Salvation Army Red
Shield Appeal. This is an annual event that has
grown in numbers over the years with our
students raising over $8,000 in 2014.
A student led initiative saw many Girtonians
live on under $2.00 a day in the ‘Live Below
the Line’ campaign. A staggering amount of
over $12,000 was raised and donated to the
Oak Tree Foundation supporting the under
privileged living in extreme poverty.
Fundraising for The Father Ray Foundation
and Pattaya Orphanage gained momentum
during 2nd and 3rd terms, with the selling of
Hot Chocolates during lunch times in Senior
School, a Cup Cake Drive in Junior School
and a fabulous afternoon of music at the
‘Tunes for Change’ event held at The Foundry
Hotel Complex. A total of approximately
$5,500 was raised, and this will be given
directly to the Pattaya organisations when a
group of graduating Year 12 students visit in
December.
Winter Solstice Day was a huge success. It
was a day of celebration with a great variety
of food stalls setup up in the Performing
Arts court yard. There was also wonderful
entertainment provided by our own Girton
bands. Funds raised went to supporting those
less privileged in our community. Over $1200
dollars was raised.
In October our students provided
entertainment in the Mall at Funloong Day.
The activities were face painting, helping
young children make lego animals, and
passing out helium filled balloons. A group
of our students assisted the wheel chair
bound elderly residents of Mirridong enjoy
the Bendigo Show. They are always most
appreciative of the assistance, as without
our students help, this outing would not be
possible.
October also saw over 100 students
participate in the 40 Hour Famine. Three
students were recognised for their efforts
by raising over $250 while Girton received
a special recognition for their fund raising
efforts.
November/December always brings a flurry
of activities to finish the year. 115 students
signed up to run in the Bendigo Bank Fun
Run. Many others operated check points and
entertainment. Our students assisted Rotary
with their barbecue at the Bendigo Swap
Meet and they were involved again in the
City of Greater Bendigo Christmas Party for
disadvantaged children.
A small group of Year Seven and Eight
students attended the Remembrance Day
Service in Pall Mall.
Our second annual Celebration Day held
at the end of November were a huge
success. A focus on the more traditional
BBQ foods were sold in the Performing
Arts court yard while the donations of pet
food and blankets and non-perishable food
items were appreciated by the RSPCA and
Salvation Army respectively. Once again the
entertainment was provided by talented
Girton musicians. Funds raised went to
supporting various charities and the less
privileged in our community.
Throughout the year there were many
House- based activities such as Red Balloon
Day, Jelly Baby Day and donating blood at the
Blood Bank.
In December, our students look forward to
helping with the Marong Cancer Fundraiser
and with the Eaglehawk Christmas party.
Two school socials were also run to raise
money for sponsor children. Wasana,
a 15 year old girl from Sri Lanka (Plan
International) and Comfort Hove, a 13 year
old boy from Zimbabwe (World Vision).
Monies were also donated to the Anti-Cancer
Council and Doctors Without Borders.
CRE@TE IT
(MIC: Mrs Penny Peachey)
CRE@TE IT is a very popular co-curricular
activity. Under the expert direction of Mr
Trevor Parry from the IT Department
the students have explored different
programming language, and practised some
basic programming. The students worked
in small groups to plan, produce and publish
their very own multi-layered computer games
which included the construction and use
of QR Codes. They then moved into the
exploration of 3 dimensional animation.
CRICKET
(MiC: Mr. Dan Slater)
Girton cricket teams played a total of eight
games throughout 2014. All games were
played mid-week with teams divided into
Junior (Years 7 & 8), Intermediate (Years 9
& 10) and Seniors (the best players in the
school from Years 7 – 12). The Junior games
against Goulburn Valley Grammar are a
combination of Years 7 – 9.
The Senior team played three games;
Goulburn Valley Grammar School,
Shepparton, Catholic College and Bendigo
Senior Secondary College. Although very
competitive, Girton lost all games.
The year 9 & 10 cricketers played two
games, winning the game against Eaglehawk
Secondary College, but losing against Bendigo
South East College.
The year 7 - 8 team defeated Crusoe College
and were defeated by Weeroona College. The
year 7 – 9 combined team lost to Goulburn
Valley Grammar School in a close finish,
eventually going down by 5 runs.
Nicholas Richardson (11Je) won the coveted
perpetual shield, as the 2014 Girton Cricket
Champion.
He won with 124 votes from Sean Kingsley
(11F), 100 and James Dempsey (11Je) on 82.
CYCLING
(MIC: Mr. Peter Kendrick)
A dedicated team of staff and students have
made cycling a great success this year. We
have used a combination of track and road
work for training with the aim of competing
in the 2014 Victorian Schools Cycling
Championships. The Midland Zone regional
final was held on Thursday 31st July and
eleven road cyclists represented the School.
The event was held at the Epsom Livestock
Exchange on a criterium circuit in windy
conditions. Each of our cyclists showed true
grit and spirit as they competed against a
large field of riders in each division. Each age
division was divided into two sections; Racing
(licensed road riders) and Novice (unlicensed
riders). Some outstanding results were:
First:
Maddison Ashby (9A) Under 15 Female Novice
Jagan Woods (8F) Under 15 Male Racing
Second:
Isabella Stone (11R) Under 19 Female Racing
Alessia McCaig (5M) Under13 Female Racing
(Alessia went on to come 4th in the State
Final)
Third:
Tom Flood (6M) Under 13 Male Racing
Liam Jacobsen (7Jo) Under 15 Male Novice
All students are congratulated on their effort,
attitude and behaviour throughout the year.
DANCE
(MiC: Ms Kymberley Cresp)
76 students have enjoyed the dance classes
offered in the Dance Co-Curricular Program
across Classical Ballet, Contemporary, Jazz,
Broadway and Hip Hop styles. These classes
have been run by five qualified dance
instructors.
Royal Academy of Dance examinations
were held early in Term Three with students
presenting well for examinations and
presentation classes. The Royal Academy of
Dance offers a classical syllabus which focuses
on developing strong, biomechanically-sound
technique, in addition to nurturing musicality
and performance skills. All grade classes
combine traditional ballet, free-movement
(contemporary technique based on the work
of Isadora Duncan) and national dance.
The Hip Hop class continues to be popular
with male students from grades Prep to Year
Nine participating. Students have enjoyed
developing strength and technique in both
Hip-Hop and Break styles.
Both Jazz and Broadway classes have been
popular with students this year with ever
increasing numbers. The Broadway class is
during senior school lunch time enabling
students unable to commit to after school
hours with the opportunity to develop their
dance skills.
The Annual Evening of Dance was held
this year on the 19th of November in the
Black Box, offering family and friends the
opportunity to see the improvement of
students throughout the year. We thank Mrs
Frances Mills and Mrs Nadine Ireland who
created many of the beautiful costumes seen
on the night.
DEBATING
(MiC: Dr Andrew Itter)
The Girton Grammar School Debating
Team spent its weekly meetings learning
skills in debating and building confidence
in addressing audiences. The senior school
debaters modelled the skills to those new
to the craft. Girton Grammar School held
a successful campaign at this year’s ICCES
Debating under the guidance of Co-MiC Mrs
Kathryn Barton, winning three out of its four
senior debates. Best speakers were Rajan
Ilagan (12Je), Violet De Graauw (12M) and
Holi Walsh (11M).
Students also competed in the Debater’s
Association of Victoria School’s Competitions.
The following students achieved best speakers
23
Headmaster’s
Report to the
Community 2014
in these competitions: Rani Jayasekera (11Je),
Kira Wheelhouse (12M), Ellen Brennan (12R),
Sacha Mann (11Je), Thomas Hatcher (11R),
Kavindu Hathurusinghe (9Je), Logan Rochford
(11R), Zara-Rose Adlington (11Jo), Tavish
Eenjes (11Jo), Galen Maxwell-Leone (10F),
Stephanie Brunner (8Jo), Sankalpa Gamage
(8Je), Reece Wheelhouse (10M). This year
Girton Grammar School had two A Grade
teams progress to the State playoffs for the
Debaters Association of Victoria Schools
Competitions, team 1 consisting of Roshan
Jayasekera (12Je), Rajan Ilagan (12Je), Joshua
Dew (12Je) and Matthew Kallasmae (12M)
and team 2 consisting of Ellen Brennan
(12R), Kira Wheelhouse (12M) and Violet de
Graauw (12M). The B Grade team consisting
of Elizabeth Kirby (11Je), Zara-Rose Adlington
(11Jo), Rani Jayasekera (11Je) and Sacha Mann
(11Je) progressed to the State Octo-finals.
We congratulate Ellen Brennan (12R) and
Tavish Eenjes (11Jo) who won the coveted
Swannie Award for the best performing
debaters for the Bendigo region in A and B
Grades respectively.
DUKE OF EDINBURGH’S AWARD
SCHEME
(MiC: Mr Graham Crickmore)
For the Year 2014, Girton Grammar students
once again performed admirably under the
conditions of the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award
Scheme:
Boak (12 Riley 2103) and Namit Kohli (12
Millward 2012) for their achievements in
gaining their GOLD Award for 2014. These
will be presented later on in December at
Government House Victoria.
evolved, our HPV teams and our EEV
team have become more competitive and
passionate. This has culminated in Girton
participating in more events further afield
than Maryborough.
The practice and test Hikes/Expeditions,
usually the highlight of the year, took students
to various parts of Victoria and the World:
In addition, 2014 has seen the addition of
a much valued staff member Ms. Amanda
Showler and our first Energy Breakthrough
Co-Curricular Captain, Isabella Stone (11R).
Bronze Hike (Camps Week) Mt Feathertop
to Falls Creek, Howqua Valley and Lake Eildon.
They begin at the introductory level of
Bronze, (Year Nine), work towards the
Intermediate level of Silver (Year Ten) and
then onto the advanced level of Gold (Year’s
Eleven & Twelve).
Bronze/Silver/Gold Hike (June Holidays:
World Challenge Training Expeditions).
A record book, recognised world-wide,
provides each participant with a “diary” of
their achievements, incorporating:
Gold /Silver/Bronze Hike (December
Holidays) Tasmania Freycinet National Park
and Maria Island.
(i) Community Service (ii) Physical Activities
(iii) Skill Acquisition (iv) Expeditions (Bushwalking)
Special thanks to Mrs Marijke Horvath
for her continued support of the Duke of
Edinburgh program, especially in regard to the
Expeditions.
The Year Nine students are very close to
completing their Bronze requirements.
ENERGY BREAKTHROUGH
Year Ten students have completed their
Bronze: with many needing to finalise the
minor requirements for their Silver.
The Year Eleven and Twelve students who
completed their Silver in 2013 have begun
their Gold requirements and are once again
juggling the components that need to be
fulfilled with their academic and other school
and personal commitments.
Congratulations are extended to Aliesha
24
Silver/Bronze Expedition/Residential Project:
Yr 10 and 11 Outdoor Education and
Environmental Studies.
(MiC: Ms Lynden Francis-Wright, Assistant Ms
Amanda Showler)
Energy Breakthrough at Girton initially
began as part of the RACV program where
students construct and ride Human Powered
Vehicles (HPV) or other forms of energy
efficient vehicles (EEV) around the streets of
Maryborough for twenty-four hours in late
November.
In the past two years as the program has
This season approximately forty-five students
met every Friday afternoon and worked on
the design and construction of the vehicles,
completed physical training or prepared
for the presentation component of the
Maryborough Event.
In February Girton entered two HPV teams
(Infusion and Introuble) into the Casey Fields
6-Hour Round 1 event. Both teams were
very successful and showed wonderful team
spirit. Team Introuble finished in first place and
Team Infusion finished in sixth place in the
Middle Secondary class.
Following the success of both teams and
the teamwork shown it was decided that a
new vehicle was needed to allow the Senior
members of the team to continue competing
into 2014 and beyond. Thankfully the new
trike, Intrepid, joined our family of trikes just
in time as the Senior boys had grown too tall
for their existing trike by mid-year!
In August the Girton Energy Breakthrough
Team hosted the first ever Bendigo EEV/HPV
10-Hour Grand Prix at the Bendigo Livestock
Exchange. The event attracted 33 teams
in total and included Primary, Secondary
and Community HPV teams as well as EEV
teams. The Mayor, Barry Lyons started the
race and added to the Community feel of
the event. All feedback was very positive
and we are looking forward to making the
event an annual one. Thank you to the
committee members Mr. Robin Kirby, Lucas
Kirby (10Je), Mr. David Stone, Isabella Stone
(11R), Montague Velthius (9M), Mr. Kane Ellis,
Caleb Ellis (9A), Mrs. Joan Merrin, Ms. Amanda
Showler, Mr. Trevor Parry and Mr. Dan Slater.
Thank you also to the Grand Prix event
sponsors Coates Hire, Bendigo City Council,
Shell Helix, Bendigo Bank, Interact Us and the
Oil Warehouse.
October saw our three HPV teams battle
it out again at Casey Fields in the 6-Hour
Round 3 event. Once again our teams did
themselves and the School proud with their
efforts and team sportsmanship. Our newest
team, Team Intrepid, made its race debut
and finished first in the Middle Secondary
category by a whopping 12 laps and in
eleventh place overall in a field of 102 teams!
Team Introuble finished in seventh place and
Team Infusion in Ninth. Overall, another very
successful day. Thank you to our wonderful
parent supporters!
Building on the success of 2013 we have
entered four vehicles into the RACV
Maryborough 24-Hour endurance event
in November. Team Inception will battle to
retain its three year winning streak in the
Energy Efficiency class (EEV), and three HPV
teams will also compete. Teams Introuble and
Infusion will compete in the year 7/8 HPV
class and Team Intrepid in the year 9/10 HPV
class.
The construction of the vehicles takes
much time and extensive thanks must go
to the contribution of Mr. Robin Kirby who
maintains an ongoing commitment to the EEV
and who manages two of our HPV teams.
In addition to the time spent constructing
and maintaining vehicles, the guidance
and expertise that Mr. Kirby provides to
our students is invaluable. Mr. Kirby is ably
supported and assisted by his son Lucas
(10Je) who also commits significant time and
energy to the program.
Similar thanks must also go to Mr. David
Stone who was instrumental in the
construction and maintenance of the Team
Infusion vehicle. This year the Infusion trike
has undergone some major refurbishment
sponsored generously by Strathfieldsaye
Primary Health. The canopy has been
chopped down to make the vehicle more
streamlined and a new, lighter weight frame
has been installed making the vehicle much
more competitive with other teams. Thanks
also to Isabella Stone (11R) dedicates much
time and energy to the program as EB
Captain and is also a passionate supporter!
Without a purpose built Criterium track we
have continued to face some challenges with
sourcing suitable training venues, especially
for the EEV which is bound by VicRoads
regulations being a petrol vehicle. The
Bendigo Kart-Club have been excellent in
allowing us to use their facility for evening and
weekend training. Tom Flood velodrome has
also been used throughout the year for cycle
training and vehicle training.
This year we have conducted a number
of fundraising activities including a Cookie
Dough drive, Crest Chocolates drive, a Movie
Night fundraiser and a Bunnings BBQ. In total
we have raised $4119 via fundraising.
Where to from here?
We continue to prepare for another
successful year in Maryborough and are
hopeful that Girton will finish in the top ten
schools and that the EEV will maintain its
winning streak! Parent helpers are abundant
and we thank them for their time and
expertise.
In 2015 Girton will enter Team Intrepid into
the Victorian HPV Series starting with the
Wonthaggi 24-Hour HPV event in March. It is
hoped that in addition to the events entered
this year that we will secure places for our
HPV teams in the Murray Bridge 24-Hour
event as part of the Australian International
Pedal Prix Circuit. Entry in this event will
provide our HPV teams with experience in
the World’s largest HPV race entered by
200+ teams. We will also look to enter the
EEV Team Inception into the Cobden event.
It is the dream of the MiC to secure sufficient
funding and sponsorship to introduce a
Primary School trike and team into the HPV
team family. A Primary team will help to
retain the enthusiasm of students entering
Girton at Grade 6 who have previously been
involved in the Energy Breakthrough program
and will serve as an excellent feeder into the
Senior School program. Currently $7,000$8,000 stands in the way of this dream!
Many thanks must also be forwarded to
our generous sponsors and benefactors
who without which we would not have
been able to run the program; Central Test
and Measurement, Strathfieldsaye Primary
Health, Strategem Financial Group, Honda,
Grant Pollard, Moro and Dooly, Moronis
Cycles, Elliott Brothers, Littles Competition
Services, Neil Pearce, Low-Cost Cars, The
Oil Warehouse, Lucas Oils, Valvoline, Bursons
Auto Parts, Poppet Head Estate, Crafted
Stainless Steel, John Taylor (Think HPV),
Southern Cross Travel, Broad’s Poultry, Tweed
Sutherland, Poyser Motors, Bendigo Mazda,
Bendigo Tyres, Darren Chamberlin Signs, Jet
Hot Coatings and Currawong Engineering.
EQUESTRIAN
(MiC: Mr Dan Slater)
The Girton Equestrian club consists of
thirteen members who participate in
equestrian events throughout Victoria, with
some students competing in interstate
competitions.
25
Headmaster’s
Report to the
Community 2014
The main event of the year was the Bendigo
Interschool’s event organised by the Bendigo
Pony Club, held at the Bendigo Showgrounds.
Students to place in the top three were:
Kathleen Mudie (12Jo)
- 3rd Handler
Jessica Dalgleish (6Jo)
- 3rd Smartest on Parade and 3rd Handler
Harriet Eaton (12F)
- 1st and 6th Showjumping and C Grade Champion
- 3rd Dressage
- 1st Handymount
- 1st Games and Reserve Senior Champion
- 2nd Pleasure Mount
Indiana Shepheard (9Je)
- 1st Smartest on Parade and Senior Champion
- 3rd Handler
- 1st Rider
- 2nd Best Educated
Claire Crawford (9Je)
- 1st and 2nd Showjumping and D Grade
Champion
A number of students also competed at
Werribee interschools, Geelong Interschools,
Geelong Showjumping, Adelaide Show,
Melbourne Show, Perth Show, Hobart Royal,
Victorian Showhorse Masters, Sydney Grand
National, Swan Hill Show, Maryborough
Horse Trials, Deniliquin Dressage and
numerous Pony Club events.
We have some outstanding riders at Girton;
three students were successful in achieving
Girton Equestrian Colours and another three
received a Merit.
FOOTBALL
(MIC: Mr Clint Whitsed)
Girton once again fielded teams in all of
the major Sandhurst competitions: Boys at
Year Seven/Eight, Year Nine/Ten and also girls
from Year Seven to Year Nine enjoyed the
opportunity to represent Girton Grammar
on the football field. Our senior team
consisting of students from Years Ten to
Twelve competed in the Sun Country Cup
against Bendigo Senior Secondary College
and also played two friendlies against Ballarat
Grammar and Carey Baptist Grammar
respectively. Our senior team enjoyed a close
victory over Carey which was our third win
in eleven years of competition. A Year Seven
to Nine team and Senior Team (comprising
boys from Year Nine, Ten, Eleven and Twelve)
competed competitively against Goulburn
Valley Grammar School in our annual Winter
Sports Day. Representing Girton on the
football field provides our students with the
26
opportunity to play together outside their
club environment and is always enjoyed by
those who take part. Special mention must be
made of students Tom Walters (8R), who was
awarded best player representing the Bendigo
Junior Football League against Ballarat and
Tyrone Moloney (8F) who represented the
Maryborough and Castlemaine Football
League at Under 16 level. Congratulations
are also extended to Senior students Braidon
Blake (11R) who was a member of the
Bendigo Pioneers under 16 team and to Kane
Timmins (11R) and Harry Weaver (10R) who
not only represented the School admirably
throughout the season but also represented
Castlemaine and Boort Football Clubs
respectively at senior level.
GirtOnline
(MiC: Mr Sam a’Beckett)
GirtOnline is a co-curricular activity which
began in the second semester of 2014. Its
focus is on digital citizenship and cyber-safety
through education. The students meet each
Friday lunchtime and have created a blog
containing articles and reviews of popular
games, social media sites and apps. The main
role of the group is to regularly update the
blog with relevant, current information and
advice. One of these articles or reviews
features in eLink each fortnight, where there
is also a link to the blog. The group also
serves as in an advisory capacity to support
staff and the Digital Citizenship and CyberSafety Parent Advisory Group. It is envisaged
that in 2015 the students will assist in parent
information and education sessions.
GIRTON COMMUNITY ACTION GROUP
(MiC: Mrs Melinda Naunton)
The Girton Community Action Group
(GeeCAG) was a new Co-Curricular activity
in 2012 and has continued to go from
strength to strength in 2014. We have an
enthusiastic core group of students from
Years 9-12 who are passionate about raising
awareness of key issues, such as Refugees
and Mental Health Awareness in the Girton
Community. Initially, GeeCAG was formed
to raise awareness of the needs of refugees
living in the Bendigo region and fundraise to
assist with the provision of essential items to
the local Karen community, working closely
with the Bendigo Mentors and Friends group
to fulfil this aim. This year we have expanded
our focus to include the promotion of Mental
Health and Well-being. This year’s efforts
commenced when GeeCAG celebrated
World Harmony Day with a special assembly
and a Popcorn and Spider stall. Term Three
was “kicked off ” by celebrating RUOK Day
with the much anticipated staff-student soccer
match and BBQ (which the staff won for the
third year running!). The Girton Community
was entertained by local bands Split Decision
and The Babel Brothers during the game,
adding to the festive spirit of the afternoon.
GeeCAG also provided a BBQ and Spider
Stall at the Mental Health Week Staff-Student
Netball Match in Term Four. Overall, GeeCAG
raised more than $800 dollars this year, with
half of these funds being donated to Beyond
Blue. We look forward to another successful
year in 2015.
GIRTON COMMUNITY SERVICE
(MIC: Mr Clayton W. Jones)
As usual, the students from Girton Service
assisted the school and its staff with many
tasks. These tasks have included assisting
with camping equipment, reading with very
young students from Junior School, laminating
classroom materials, assisting the Community
Relations office with their preparation of
marketing folders, arranging the Sports Shed
and more. Some of these jobs required
weekly attendance by dedicated groups, while
others needed just a working bee or two to
complete.
By far the most significant task is Girton
Service’s commitment to assisting the Old
Girtonians with the sorting and archiving of
a vast range of documents and photographs.
Each week, teams of students have attended
Girton House, the fine old administration
building on MacKenzie Street, to carry out the
work under the guidance of Ms Alex Fisher
and CW Jones. It is expected that this work
will continue next year.
The students have been most helpful and
considerate in this valuable work for the
School.
GROUP FITNESS
(MiC: Ms Kristy Nicholls)
Group Fitness was conducted every Thursday
afternoon in the Girton Gymnasium.
The focus of Group Fitness is to improve
cardiovascular fitness and muscular endurance
primarily through resistance training. The
program is suitable for students of all ages
and fitness levels. Students are also given the
opportunity to develop and present their
own Group Fitness Routine with guidance
and assistance. Ms Nicholls thoroughly
enjoyed instructing the group of enthusiastic,
motivated students who pushed themselves a
little harder each week. It has been a satisfying,
and successful year.
HOCKEY
(MiC: Ms Joanne Grech)
Girton Hockey fielded five teams from
U/13 to U/17 in the Hockey Central Victoria
(HCV) Winter Season Junior Competition
in 2014 and with such strong numbers in
our Under 13’s team, this will more than
likely increase next year. As in previous
years, students unable to play for Girton,
due to age restrictions, had the opportunity
to play senior hockey with other teams in
the Central Victorian Hockey Association.
Some of the students who played with the
Strathdale Hockey Club were part of a
successful Grand Final win in the A men’s
division for this team, whilst other played
finals for the Sandhurst Hockey Club.
2014 was again seen as a consolidating year
for hockey with only two of the Girton
teams playing finals. The basic game skills
developed here will lead onto better things in
the future. Girton Hockey teams were also
well supported by students who attend other
schools in the district. It is truly spectacular
to see this multi collegial effort and the warm
welcome and support our students gave to
some of these first year players.
Results for the HCV junior competition
were: U17 Girton Cuatro-Third; U17 Girton
Cinco – Fifth; U/15 Girton Dos- Fourth;
U/15 Girton Tress – Fifth; U/13 Girton Uno–
Runners up.
Two of our students were successful in being
nominated and winning awards at the HCV
presentation evening. Nominated were Junior
Most Disciplined- Max Rowley (9M); Best
Under 21 player- Eliza Pettit (12M). Mitchell
Coles (10A) was successful in winning the
Most Valuable Player for Under 17 Country
Championship.
Girton was represented at the 2014 Junior
Country Championships played in Melbourne.
Numerous students were selected to
represent HCV at this event in Under 13’s,
15’s and 17’s age groups.
From this competition, aged zone teams
were selected, Mitchell Coles (10A) and
Maya Mann (9Je) were selected to play in the
Lightning (North West) zone for the Junior
State Championship in a tournament held in
July.
Girton students were also well placed in the
Hockey Central Victoria’s senior competition.
Eliza Pettit (12M) played in the Sandhurst
woman’s A grade team who lost their semifinal. Ethan Jeffrey (11Jo) played as Goal
Keeper for Sandhurst men’s B Grade side.
The following students were a part of
Strathdale Hockey Club team which won the
2014 Hockey Central Victoria A Grade Men
premiership 5:2; Charles Walker (Captain,
Millward 2011), Sam Webb (Vice Captain,
12A) and Mitchel Coles (10A). The following
past Girton students also played throughout
the season: Jack Gloury (Jones 2012), Archie
Bate (10M), Stanley Grech (Millward 2013)
and Ridge Poyser (Jenkin 2012). Sam Webb
(12A) was also successful in receiving the
Strathdale Hockey Club A Men Best and
Fairest award at the Strathdale Hockey Club
Presentation.
It is particularly pleasing to see the leadership
positions in the team filled by members
of the Girton community. As well as on
field leadership, Charles Walker (Millward
2011), Sam Webb (12A) and Mitch Coles
(10A) often run the canteen while studying
for school or university. It is wonderful to
observe these young men evolve into such
fine young leaders and role models in such a
short period of their life.
Girton Hockey also entered teams in the
local Sandhurst competition. Bendigo South
East College again was our nemesis playing us
27
Headmaster’s
Report to the
Community 2014
in the finals of both our 9/10 boys and girls
team. Victory was achieved by our boys but
our girls went down in penalty shoot outs
when our Goal Keeper, Chloe Chamberlin
(10F) was injured. The girls had played so well
up until this point so we are really looking
forward to a rematch next year. Results were
as follows: Year 7/8 Girls – Fourth; Year 7/8
Boys –Second; Year 9/10 Girls – Second; Year
9/10 Boys –First.
Girton Hockey also entered a Senior
Boys team which competed in the ICCES
competition in Shepparton. Runners Up to
Bacchus Marsh, the team is very determined
to take the top place next year and if the
enthusiasm of the younger students who
wanted to play in this senior event is any
evidence, it should be a good carnival.
Girton Hockey was again supported by our
students as they performed coaching roles.
Hockey coaches this year Sam Webb (12A),
Ethan Jeffrey (11Jo), Isabella Stone (11R) Eliza
Pettit (12M), Max Rowley (9M), Archie Bate
(10M), William Griffin (11F) and Belle Grech
all took command of our five junior teams
through training and games. Girton Hockey
is very grateful to those students for the time
they spent mentoring and sharing the love of
the game. The Hockey Club is also grateful
for the assistance given to our students
from John Hawke as a team manager for
the Under 15 Dos team. There are many
other families that consistently support not
only their own children but the entire team.
Their enthusiasm and willingness to assist
has enabled our five teams to be able to
compete and for this we are truly grateful.
On a final note, Archie Bate (10M) has left
Girton Grammar School for the big city. The
Bate family; Jackie, Nicholas, Charles (Millward
2013) and Archie have all played many roles
in Girton Hockey Club for many years. They
have been coaches, team managers and first
aid, travelled with students to tournaments,
supplied countless cakes, slices and other
goodies as well as being voting members of
Girton Hockey attending numerous meetings
with Hockey Central Victoria. The loss of
this wonderful family has been a big blow
for Girton Hockey but we know that they
have left us with an outstanding legacy and
will always be welcome at any Girton hockey
event.
LIONS YOUTH OF THE YEAR
(MiC: Mrs Amanda Scott)
As usual, this co-curricular leadership event
was well supported by the School. From the
45-plus application forms submitted at the
28
end of 2013, 23 students were placed in five
local Lions Clubs Finals, held in late February
2014. Thomas Brewin (12A), Rajan Ilagan
(12Je), Lucy Holmes and Amelia McNair
(12M) and Liana Valentini (12R) kicked off
proceedings at the Strathfieldsaye Club on
Sunday 23/02, where Amelia was awarded
Best Public Speaker and Club Finalist. The
following Tuesday, Catherine Fist and Saskia
Wallis (12A), Joshua Dew (12Je), Jacob
Kaye (12M) and Bevan Madden (12R)
competed at the Eaglehawk Club Final. Bevan
was awarded Best Public Speaker on the
night, and Catherine Fist was Club Finalist,
proceeding to the next round. On Thursday
27/02 at the Bendigo Club, Oliver Cox and
Samuel Webb (12A), Roshan Jayasekera and
Kaitlin Waterson (12Je), and Olivia White
(12R) competed, with Samuel winning Best
Public Speaker and Roshan crowned Club
Finalist. Meanwhile, at Maiden-Gully/Marong,
Brenton Apostolou and Michael Mayes (12A),
Molly Robertson and Khashie Tilak-Ramesh
(12F) and Thomas Duke (12R) participated,
with Thomas winning Best Public Speaker
and Club Finalist. Finally, Stephanie Dolman
and Jessica Farrar (12Je) travelled to the
Inglewood Club Final on the Friday of that
week, where neither was placed.
congratulated for the fine way in which they
represented themselves, their families and
their School.
Catherine, Amelia, Roshan and Thomas
competed against each other at the Bendigo
Regional Final on March 14th, where Thomas
cleaned up both awards of Best Public
Speaker and Regional Finalist. He proceeded
to the District Final (held on March 29th in St
Arnaud), where he won Best Public Speaker.
As ever, the standard set by the students
was very high and they are all warmly
(MiC Mrs Timmins)
MUSIC
(MiC: Mr Steve Vine)
Chamber Music:
(MiC: Mrs Cally Bartlett, Mrs Trish Timmins, Mr
Sam Goble, Mr Ben Gibbons, Mr Josh McGuffie
& Ms Rachel London)
The Senior String Quartet:
(MiC Mrs Bartlett)
The Quartet is comprised of Evangeline
Matthews (12F) Zoe Deed (11F), Hugh
Feary (11M) and Ruby Shirres (9M) and
has been particularly active through 2014.
They have supported many play-outs for
Girton Grammar School, and performed at
major music department events. Amongst
their performances they have played at the
National Pharmacy Student Association
Conference, Sandhurst Club Annual General
Meeting, Women’s Health Breakfast Event,
Open Day, Senior String Recital evening and
Performance Assemblies.
Year 10 String Quintet:
Haydn Musgrove (10M), Dale Baker (10Je),
Sita Jhaveri (10Je), Nellie O’Shea (10A) and
Lily Begg (8Jo) have rehearsed every Thursday
morning at 7.45am. The ensemble has worked
on a new piece each week, which challenges
and develops their skills. They have been
asked to play at various community events:
Rowing Club, Zonta Club, OGA dinner, Art
Gallery, school performance assemblies, etc.
The students are starting to build up a large
and varied repertoire which can be used at
any performance. Taking ownership of the
group and working more independently is the
next challenge for this group for 2015.
The Cello Ensemble:
(MiC: Mr Goble)
Cello Ensemble rehearses before school
every Wednesday. The range and diversity
of the instrument has allowed us to work
on a broad range of repertoire from pop
music with works by “Apocalyptica” and
Lady Gaga through to more traditional art
music (with perhaps a leaning to the lighter
popular repertoire). The ensemble prepared
“Applause” by Lady Gaga for Zoe Knighton’s
Masterclass and performed 2 works at the
string concert, “Farewell” and “Kaamos” both
by Apocalyptica written with 4 cello parts
ranging from very difficult to intermediate.
These two works particularly challenged the
ensemble and the performance was highly
successful. Other works studied this year
include “Sheep may safely graze” (Bach),
“Lucky” (String Theory), “No Education”,
“Cortege” and “Coma,” (Apocalyptica)
and “Andante Religioso” by Block Jozsef.
The group has gained many new skills
particularly in the area of rhythm since the
music has demanded this, tone blending and
matching which is particularly important in
single instrument ensembles, and of course
intonation which is always necessary to
work on particularly in string ensembles.
Sight reading has also been periodically
undertaken. The ensemble gives students a
slightly different opportunity with their music
in regard to the repertoire undertaken which
is often much more challenging in a cellistic
sense, and the responsibility assumed by each
member in relation to their part.
The Girton Jazz Band:
(MIC: Mr Ben Gibbons)
The Girton Jazz Band is an extension
ensemble for the members of the Girton Big
Band. It allows the Rhythm Section (Piano,
Bass, Drums & Guitar) and the leaders
of each section (Trumpet, Trombone &
Saxophones) to explore improvisation and
genre studies in a small band format. The
ensemble has explored Swing, Latin and Funk
as well as many other styles. The Girton Jazz
Band rehearse in the percussion room on
Thursday mornings from 7.45am-8.30am.
Year 7 Quartet:
(MiC: Ms London)
The year 7 string quartet is a group of
dedicated students including Analise McKenzie
(7A), Grace Morrall (7M), Sophie Baxter (7Jo)
and Tenzin Graham (7Jo). These students
meet for a one hour rehearsal each week
and learn a range of repertoire that develops
their individual playing technique, as well as
providing valuable experience working within
an ensemble setting. The string quartet looks
forward to further performances at school
events such as recital evenings, performance
assemblies and open days.
The Senior Guitar Quintet:
(MiC: Mr McGuffie)
The Senior Guitar Quintet is an auditioned
ensemble open to the most advanced
guitarists in the music programme. The
quintet specialises in substantial classical
guitar repertoire, ranging from 18th and 19th
century Spanish music to South American
and modern works written specifically for
guitar ensemble. The quintet performed
to great acclaim at the annual ensembles
showcase as well as Foundation, Open days
and the opening of the Naunton family
building. The aim of the ensemble is to give
students a forum to advance their technical
skills and to provide experience with a wide
range of repertoire.
The Senior Guitar Quartet:
(MiC: Mr McGuffie)
The Senior Guitar Quartet is an intermediate
ensemble that allows students to perform
more intimate chamber music outside of
the combined guitar ensemble. The quartet
was formed in Term 2 2013 and has so far
performed a range of repertoire ranging
from modern Australian guitar ensemble
music to arrangements of orchestral classics.
The Quartet has performed at the annual
ensembles concert and guitar showcase.
Saxophone Ensemble:
(MiC: Dr Lichnovsky)
A large saxophone ensemble (12 players)
was formed to provide pre-service music at
Foundation Day, and a saxophone quartet
was formed to perform at the 100 Years of
Red Cross in Australia luncheon in August.
The large ensemble performed sacred music
as appropriate to the service in the Cathedral,
while the saxophone quartet played a mix
of light popular music and sacred music from
around the time of the foundation year of
the Red Cross. Learning about ensemble skills
with like instruments allowed for discussion
of techniques and tone production specific
to the instrument, facilitating more rapid
improvement for all members.
Flute Ensemble:
(MIC: Ms Effie Hamilton)
This small extension ensemble available to
students who are already participating in
Symphony Orchestra or Wind Symphony.
Flute Ensemble consists of students from
years 7-12 and rehearses for one hour per
week during lunch time on Wednesday.
Students have the opportunity to try out
the piccolo, alto and bass flutes and have
worked through a large variety of scores this
year including arrangements from the musical
Les Miserables and compositions by Mozart.
Flute Ensemble performed at Foundation Day
and most students have completed AMEB
examinations.
Girton Chamber Choir:
(MiC: Ms Jennifer Schatzle Accompanist Ms
Cheryl Long)
The Girton Chamber Choir was formed
29
Headmaster’s
Report to the
Community 2014
this year. It is an auditioned mixed choir of
15 students. Students sing a wide range of
repertoire from early music and a Capella
to jazz choir arrangements. The choir has
performed at Open Days and Performance
Assemblies and was invited to perform for
the Musician of the Year recital.
The Chamber Music co-curricular group
has also supported a number of events with
groups that have been brought together
to support such occasions. Many Chamber
Music students have completed AMEB
examinations this year. Many students were
also involved in the Orchestra Victoria Move
Workshop in second Semester.
Junior School Choirs:
(MiC: Mrs Laura Dusseljee, Accompanist: Betty
Higgs)
There are two choirs in the Junior School
and each rehearses for an hour each week.
The two choirs consist of students in years
3 and 4 and years 5 and 6. These choirs
are not competitive and come together to
sing at all major school functions such as
Foundation Day, Speech Night, Grandparents
and Special Friends Day, Open Days, and
Ensembles Evenings. Repertoire includes
unison and up to three part-singing with a
focus on Australian repertoire. The aim is
for a beautiful, blended sound and aspects
like phrasing, diction and breath control are
taught. Students also learn presentation skills.
Junior School Performance Choir:
(MiC: Mrs Laura Dusseljee, Accompanist: Betty
Higgs)
This is an auditioned choir who meet once
a week for an hour. This choir competes
at all major competitions around the
state. They are an award winning choir
and are recognised for their pure, clear
tone and excellent diction. They perform
more difficult repertoire, which includes
Australian compositions, as well as traditional
international choral repertoire. During 2014
the Junior School performance choir were
awarded the Gold certificate at the Bendigo
competitions, won first prize in the Junior
School section at the Geelong Eisteddfod
and were awarded 2nd place (to our Senior
School choir) in the Sacred Song section at
the Geelong Eisteddfod.
Vox Contempo:
(MiC’s: Ms Jennifer Schatzle, Mr Ben Gibbons,
Accompanist: Mrs Cheryl Long)
Latin for voice with tempo or upbeat –
also a play on voice vox contemporary.
30
A non-auditioned choir of mixed voices
has about 50 members from years 7 -12.
The choir sings works in unison and up
to three-part harmony.The group has a
rhythm section of piano, bass and guitar.
The choir sings contemporary repertoire
– from Latin to popular ballads. The choir
performed at Foundation Day, the Ensembles
Spectacular and Speech Night as well as
giving performances at four Performance
Assemblies. Musically, the group has
developed in their ability to convey different
styles and to sing in different languages. A
significant achievement has been made where
the students assist in running rehearsals
– conducting, taking warm-ups and even
creating and teaching some of the harmony
parts to the other choristers. Several
members of the choir are singing/instrumental
music students and have completed AMEB
exams and/or VCE music. Several members
of the group were involved in the Senior
School and Year 8 Production and also in the
Male Choir a la the Ten Tenors item for the
Year 12 final assembly.
Vocal Stagecraft:
(MiC: Ms Jennifer Schatzle, Accompanist: Mrs
Cheryl Long)
Vocal Stagecraft is a select ensemble of 14
students. These student singers rehearse
once a week at lunchtime. The group
performs works from the Musical Theatre
genre including Opera, Operetta and more
modern Musical Theatre. The students
combine movement with their singing and
learn how to move on the stage, stage
etiquette and some of the different vocal
techniques required to perform the songs.
They have performed at the Opening of the
New Building, Performance Assemblies, Open
Days, a joint performance with the Wind
Symphony and the Year 12 Final Assembly.
It has been a very rewarding year - exciting
to see the students continue to enjoy this
ensemble and to see their skills become
more refined. Several members of the choir
are singing/instrumental music students, have
completed AMEB exams and have been
involved in various school productions.
Girton Singers:
(MiC: Mrs Laura Dusseljee, Accompanist: Betty
Higgs)
This is an un-auditioned treble voiced choir
who meet once a week for rehearsals. All girls
are welcome to join. This choir is competitive
and this year has won the Gold certificate at
the Bendigo competitions, came first in the
sacred section at the Geelong competitions
and won the Secondary schools section
at the Royal South Street competitions in
Ballarat. They also perform at Foundation
Day, Open Days, Ensembles Evenings and at
Speech Night. There are 55 members in this
choir. This choir sings advanced repertoire and
promotes Australian repertoire.
Forever Young Rock Choir:
(MiC: Mrs Laura Dusseljee)
This is a senior citizens’ choir which meets
weekly at Girton Grammar School. This choir
sings only rock songs of all genres and is
accompanied by the musicians from Girton
Grammar School. They meet in terms 1, 2
and 3 and present one concert annually.
Bells Angels Bell Choir:
(MiC: Mrs Laura Dusseljee)
This is a small choir that makes music by
ringing the tone chimes using the traditional
numbering method. Students perform at
Ensembles Evenings and at other school
functions as well as at assemblies. This year
we were fortunate to be supported by Mr.
Rowan Blackmore who arranged music
for the choir and accompanied them on
the Chinese violin and the French button
accordion at the Ensembles concert.
Large Classical Guitar Ensemble
(Mr. McGuffie)
The Large Classical Guitar ensemble is an
auditioned ensemble comprised of students
from year 7 to 12. The ensemble focus is on
classical music ranging from the medieval
period through to modern Australian and
Latin works. The group rehearses each Friday
at lunchtime and has performed at Open
Days, Foundation Day, the annual Ensemble
Showcase and the annual Guitar Showcase.
The ensemble provides the opportunity for
students to develop their guitar technique,
rhythmic, sight reading and chamber
music skills in a supportive and studious
environment.
Percussion Ensemble 2014
(MiC: Mr David Turpie)
This year has been a challenging one for the
percussion ensemble group as unfortunately
some students had to depart at the
conclusion of last year and filling the gap left
by these departures has been challenging.
Thankfully since the start of term three the
line-up of the group has settled and their
repertoire has expanded.
As part of their rehearsal all students are
expected to rotate on various percussive
instruments to ensure that one person isn’t
pigeon holed to a particular responsibility
when performing musical arrangements. This
variation in roles has also provided stimulus
for the students to take on more challenging
instrumentation when performing several
percussive parts with a piece music.
The goal for this year was to settle on a lineup of students that work well in an ensemble
setting and display respect towards each
other’s learning needs. The second goal was
to work up three to four performance pieces
that would not only challenge the students’
abilities but help them to realise the benefits
of jumping out of their musical comfort
zones as well as putting in dedication and
practice. The results should hopefully speak
for themselves and inspire the students to
continue on this path.
Year 3/4 Poco String Ensemble:
(MiC: Mrs Trish Timmins, Assistants: Ms Rachael
London, Mrs Betty Higgs)
The Year 3/4 Poco String Ensemble consisted
of 35 enthusiastic students, who vastly
improved their skills throughout the year. They
performed at many school events, including
Junior School assemblies, Ensembles Evening,
Grandparents and Special Friends Day and
they achieved gold at the Bendigo Eisteddfod
Competition earlier this year. The adjudicator
was highly impressed with their ability to play
with a strong tone and with good intonation.
Poco Strings have learnt to read, play and
listen to various repertoire that has advanced
in standard throughout the year. Their
favourite piece was “Puff the Magic dragon”!
Members in the ensemble have been diligent
and respectful, helping with setting up and
supporting their partner. We have had a lot of
fun in Poco Strings this year.
Year 5 & 6 Superstrings:
(MiC: Mrs Cally Bartlett, Assistant: Mr Sam
Goble, Accompanist: Mrs Cheryl Long)
There were 31 members in Superstrings
this year. They rehearsed on Wednesday
afternoon for an hour during BASS time.
Students range in ability from AMEB First
Grade to Fifth Grade. As part of the rehearsal
each week, students presented a solo
performance to the group. This encourages
them to work on their performance
techniques. Superstrings worked through a
large variety of scores this year, developing
their pitch, rhythm, bowing articulations and
dynamics to a high standard. Superstrings
performed at the Victorian Schools String
Festival at Federation Square, Junior School
Ensembles Evening, Grandparents and Special
Friends Day and Junior School assemblies
throughout 2014.
Christopher Field Strings:
(MiC’s: Mrs Trish Timmins & Mr Ben Gibbons)
Christopher Field Strings almost doubled
its intake to 30 members this year. Senior
students have stayed on to help mentor the
younger students and they have thoroughly
enjoyed this role within the ensemble. The
range of ability extends from Grade 1 to
7 AMEB. Christopher Fields Strings has
performed at the Ensembles Concert, Term 2
lunchtime concert and Term 4 parent concert.
The standard of repertoire has also advanced
with students enjoying the challenge of
playing more complex pieces. Students have
been highly committed in helping with setting/
packing up each Tuesday and practising their
music at home.
Symphony Orchestra:
(MiC: Mr Stephen Vine, Assistants Mr David
Martin, Mrs. Trish Timmins and Miss Hamilton)
Girton Grammar Symphony Orchestra
continues to grow in standard each year.
This year, the orchestra has tackled some
very challenging music, including Radetsky
March by J. Strauss, Theme Music from the
Musical Chicago, The Great Gate of Kiev from
Pictures at an Exhibition by M. Mussorgsky,
Procession of the Nobles from Mlada, by N.
Rimsky-Korsakov, March from The Love for
Three Oranges by S. Prokofiev and Thaxted
from Jupiter by G. Holst with massed five
hundred voice choir for the 2014 Speech
Night. The orchestra performs in a ceremonial
capacity at Foundation Day and Speech
Night each year, providing processional and
recessional music for these major events.
The symphony orchestra rehearses Monday
from 3:45pm to 5:00pm and is open to
students recommended by their instrumental
teacher. Many members of Orchestra have
successfully completed A.M.E.B examinations,
Orchestra Victoria Move orchestral
workshops, VCE Music Solo Performance,
Investigation and Style and Composition
examinations. Many of the members of
Orchestra also play in Chamber ensembles,
and perform in the community and at a range
of school events.
Junior Advanced Band:
(MiC: Mrs Jacqui Vine, Assistant Miss Effie
Hamilton)
The Junior Advanced Band is a nonauditioned band, which caters for wind, brass,
and percussion students who have been
learning for more than 12 months. This year,
the band has comprised of Year 6 students.
This ensemble rehearses a wide range of
musical styles and also gives the students the
opportunity to take on leadership roles in the
band, such as learning to conduct and tune
up the ensemble. The Junior Advanced Band
have performed several times throughout
the year including Junior School assemblies,
Junior School Ensembles evening and
Grandparents and Special Friends Day. This
ensemble recently presented a concert and
music information session at the Bendigo
Pre-School as part of their ‘community links
program’.
Senior Concert Band:
(MiC: Dr. Michael Lichnovsky, Assistant: Mr
Stephen Vine)
For the first time at Girton Grammar the
Senior Concert Band did not function as
a gateway ensemble to Wind Symphony.
In previous years the ensemble ran only in
Semester One, after which its members
merged with the Wind Symphony. In 2014
the growth of the Music Program allowed the
ensemble to operate as a separate entity. The
benefit of the new structure is in allowing
the students to rehearse and perform music
targeted to their level and needs. This major
advance for the Music Department has been
made possible by the growth in the number
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in the Girls Division and for the very first
time, a team in the Mixed Division. The Girls
team was coached by Mrs Tina Turnbull and
Jodie Turnbull (10A) and our mixed team
coached by Mrs Linda Gibson. The girls
played a number of games against various
schools within our region. After some tough
competition, Girton Gold was placed 7th
on the ladder. Our mixed team had some
moments of brilliance on the court, but were
unable to put a win on the board. Both teams,
are commended for their sportsmanship,
impeccable manners and positive attitude
throughout the day.
of wind, brass and percussion players in the
Years 5-8 program. While in the band the
students learn and consolidate the ensemble
skills necessary for a successful transition into
the senior ensembles in later years. Balance,
rhythmic integrity and understanding a
conductor’s gestures are the key focus areas.
Additionally, all students participated in the
management of the ensemble, from setting
up and packing away, to repertoire choice,
management of the music library and roll
taking.
Wind Symphony:
(MiC: Mrs Jacqui Vine, Assistant Miss Effie
Hamilton)
Wind Symphony caters for students working
at approximately AMEB 3 and above and
rehearsed every Tuesday lunchtime in
the Black Box. Wind Symphony has an
approximate membership of 40 brass,
percussion and woodwind students. Wind
Symphony has performed at Ensembles
Concert in Term Three, Twilight Concert in
Term Four and were the feature band for the
Boys Item at Speech Night.
Big Band:
(MiC: Dr Michael Lichnovsky)
Big Band yet again attained higher levels
of performance during this year than last
year. The ensemble played music of greater
technical difficulty and musical sophistication
as appropriate to the growing skills and
maturity of the students. The Big Band
members continued to display a wonderful
attitude towards rehearsal, despite the
7.45am Friday starting time. Additionally,
32
the Big Band has continued to add vocal
repertoire to its music and is undertaking
themed programs from particular composers.
Featured writers have included Maria
Schneider, Benny Carter and Lachlan
Davidson. Davidson visited Girton Grammar
in Term 3, rehearsing his own compositions
with the Big Band. We hope to further this
relationship in the future.
NETBALL
(MiC Senior School: Ms Belinda Moore & Mrs
Carmel Hamilton, Junior School Mrs Erin Moss)
Junior School Netball
This year has been another successful year
for Girton Grammar School Junior School
Netballers. We entered eight teams into the
Golden City Netball Association, participating
in the Year Three Clinic, Under Eleven
Section and competing in the Under Thirteen
competition. All four of our teams in the
Under Thirteen section are congratulated on
making the finals. Girton Gold was defeated
in the Preliminary Final, Girton Green and
Girton Maroon were both defeated in their
Grand Finals while Girton Pink was successful,
winning their Grand Final. In addition, all
girls have conducted themselves beautifully,
both on and off the netball court and are
commended for their attitude and effort
throughout the season.
During recent months, our Year Six Netballers
have competed in a number of tournaments
across Central Victoria. Our first tournament
was the Regional Competition held on
Thursday the 7th of August at the Golden
City Netball Courts. This year, Girton
Grammar Junior School entered a team
On Friday the 22nd of August, Girton Gold
entered into the Netball Victoria School
Championship. It is a fantastic day for the girls
to develop their skills and experience being
umpired by badged umpires. It was a glorious
sunny day with the girls playing a number of
games, consisting of two seven minute halves.
Girton Gold won all but one game. The
same Year Six Team played against Ballarat
Grammar School in the annual competition.
The girls were victorious and returned the
shield to Girton Grammar School.
Senior School Netball
In 2014 the Girton Netball Club entered
teams in the Golden City Netball Association
competition on a Saturday at the City
complex courts. We entered 12 senior school
teams with the following results in each of
their divisions:
Year 7 Red- premiers.
Year 7 Orange- made preliminary finals
Year 7 Pink- Runners up
Year 8 Purple- made preliminary finals
Year 8-10 Green- premiers
Year 9 Aqua- premiers
Year 9&10 Yellow- premiers
Senior Black- made finals however pulled out
owing to the Debutante Ball.
Congratulations to Girton White, Lime, Blue
and Maroon on a great season also.
Two senior teams also played in the midweek
Flora Hill Netball competition throughout the
year, gaining more experience against an older
playing group, with the Senior Girton Gold
team playing off in finals.
The first event on the school calendar was
the Year 7 and 8 Sandhurst competitions at
the Golden City netball complex.
The results of each team are as follows:
Team 7A came 5th and 7B 2nd. Team 8A
came 3rd and 8B 5th.
Two weeks later it was the Year 9 and 10
girls turn. Both teams ran hard and put in a
mighty effort, finishing the day off well.
All teams are congratulated on their efforts.
The representative Intermediate and Senior
teams headed to Ballarat Grammar on
the 30th April to play a mini-tournament
against Ballarat. The Intermediate and Senior
girls both missed out on the glory of a win,
however proving competitive on the day.
The next netball tournament on the school
calendar was the ICCES Winter Tour in
Shepparton.
The Year 7 and 8 juniors played brilliantly
taking out first place.
The Year 9 and 10 intermediates worked the
court in an excellent fashion, also taking first
place.
The senior team missed the Grand final and
took out the bronze position.
Overall it was a great couple of days for all
three teams.
Yet again the representative teams headed
out for another tournament. On August 13th
Girton attended the Victorian Schools Netball
Championships in Melbourne. Overall the
Junior girls A team placed 3rd, the Junior B
team 6th, the Intermediate girls 5th and the
Senior girls 8th.
Our last feat was the annual game against
Goulburn Grammar Valley.
This year the games were held in Shepparton.
Despite our determination, will to win and
stamina, Goulburn Valley was undefeated in
the netball.
The best on court for Girton were Amelia
Fogarty (8M) (Junior), Carly Moloney (10F)
(Intermediate) and Kaitlin Waterson (12Je)
(Senior).
The girls are congratulated on their efforts.
To summarise the netball year I think it’s fair
to say that everyone who played, coached
and umpired this year did a fantastic job and
we can’t wait to see you all next year.
ORIENTEERING
(MiC: Mr Dan Slater)
Nine Girton Senior School students
participated in the Victorian Orienteering
Championships at a course near Plenty
Gorge on Friday May 16th. Girton was placed
8th out of 24 schools. Michael Loughnan (8R)
and Tavish Eenjes (11Jo) achieved 2nd Place in
their respective categories.
Tavish and Michael were selected into the
State squad. Michael represented Victoria at
the Australian Orienteering Championships
near Bindoon, WA from 28th September
- 6th October. He competed in 7 events
ranging in distances from 2,300m to 6,500m.
His best three results were 8th in the Middle
Distance, 10th in the long Distance and 11th
in the sprint.
PUBLIC SPEAKING
(MiC: Mrs Winsome Wastell)
Public Speaking Club operated on a weekly
basis and developed public speaking skills in
students from Years 7 – 12.
Catherine Fist (12A) and Rajan Ilagan (12Je)
represented Girton in the Plain English
Speaking Award.
Alexander O’Shea (9A) and Kavindu
Hathurusinghe (9Je) represented the
school in the Legacy Junior Public Speaking
Competition. Alexander placed runner-up in
the Regional Competition.
The Inter-House Public Speaking Competition
took place in Term 3 and again was an
opportunity for students to show their
considerable public speaking skills. The quality
of the speeches was very high and the
competition was hard fought. The audience
in each of the venues was treated to wellcrafted speeches and excellent delivery.
Students from the Public Speaking Club and
Senior Prefects ran each of the venues for
the competition, providing roles of MC and
timekeeper. Six staff members adjudicated.
Results were as follows:
Overall Results:
First: Millward
Second: Jenkin
Third: Frew
Fourth: Riley
Fifth: Aherne
Sixth: Jones
Best Speakers:
Year 7: Harry Chester (7M)
Year 8: Stephanie Brunner (8Jo)
Year 9: Alexander Nielsen (9M)
Year 10: Haydn Musgrove (10M)
Year 11: Holi Walsh (10M)
Year 12: Khayshie Tilak-Ramesh (12F)
Public Speaking continues to feature at school
assemblies. The Prefects deliver speeches
year-long and provide students with fine
examples of impressive thinking, preparation
and delivery.
ROWING
(MiC: Ms Annette Reid)
The 2013/2014 Rowing season has involved
about twenty students. Students train at Lake
Weeroona between one and three times a
week depending on their skill level. The main
focus has been enjoyment, teamwork and
learning in a positive environment. The Girton
Rowing Club has had a successful season with
the sport gaining in popularity. The 2014/2015
season has commenced, with 24 students.
Throughout the 2013/2014 season, all crews
33
Headmaster’s
Report to the
Community 2014
competed in a number of Regattas with a
large number experiencing success in finals.
Female crews competed in the following
regattas; Bendigo, Dimboola, Carey Schools,
Rutherglen, MRA, Firbank Schools, VSSSA,
Essendon and States. All crews achieved a
high level of success.
The following students excelled across the
season;
Bendigo Rowing Club,
Club Champion 2013/14: Jemima Morris (9A):
Achieved wins at Dimboola, Carey Schools,
Firbank Schools, 2nd place at All Schools and
fourth in the final at Junior States. In many
of these events Jemima competed against
rowers much older and more experienced.
Best First Year Rower: Ella Fraser (8M)
Achieved success in a number of regattas and
came third at Junior States.
Coxwain of the Year Amy Morgan (6Jo)
As Amy’s coxing skills have developed she
proved to be invaluable to the crews she has
taken.
Male crews competed successfully at All
Schools and Essendon.
The continued support of the Bendigo
Rowing club is greatly appreciated. A special
thanks to the volunteer coaches who have
given many hours of their time freely. This
season parent support and involvement with
crews and Bendigo Rowing Club has been
invaluable.
SCALE AND GAME
(MIC: Mr Scott Langan)
In Scale and Game the students enjoy
competing with and against each other in a
range of strategy board and card games, such
as Monopoly, Scrabble and Chess, to RISK,
Axis and Allies: Pacific and Zathura. Card
games are also played, such as Saboteur,
UNO and Magic: The Gathering. All are
played with competitive enthusiasm. Students
are also welcome to bring along their
favourite strategy games or they join in and
play one of the games from our collection.
Scale and Game is also a rewarding social
experience. A change of venue also
happened this year, with Scale and Game now
taking place on the third floor of the Naunton
Family Building. Scale and Game continues to
challenge and excite its loyal members. Nine
students from Year 7-11 enjoyed Scale and
Game. New members are welcome.
34
SCIENCE & ENGINEERING
services.
(MiC: Mrs Jane Reaburn)
STUDENT 2 STUDENT MENTOR
PROGRAM WITH THE SMITH FAMILY
(MIC: Mrs Winsome Wastell)
This co-curricular activity provides
opportunities related to science and
engineering that are not able to be facilitated
in a timetabled science class.
Once again in the first semester of 2014
the Science & Engineering group focused on
the Amazing Spaghetti Machine competition
run by the Engineering Department of
Melbourne University. Eleven Year 10 students
spent many long nights, weekends and days
during the school holidays designing, building,
testing and fault-finding the many energy
transfers required to “wake up Jeff ”. This
year’s competition required the students to
build a Rube Goldberg Machine that would
wake a sleeping person. The students were
able to relate the many ways in which their
parents had attempted to get them out
of bed in the morning to come up with a
winning combination. Skills in Mechanical and
Electrical Engineering were put to the test
in order to automate a range of methods to
achieve the outcome. These ranged from a
bedside lamp being turned on to tipping cold
water over the Jeff doll. Ultimately the final
wake-up was Jeff being tipped out of bed,
through a trapdoor in the floor and landing at
the breakfast table.
Judging was at the Melbourne University
in late May and all of the hard work and
dedication was rewarded by winning the
People’s Choice award for the third year in
a row as well as tying for first place in the
overall competition.
Seven students from Years 8 and 9 were
selected to participate in this program, which
is run in conjunction with The Smith Family.
Our students are trained to help support
younger readers from local primary schools
to develop reading skills. Over a period of 18
weeks and twice weekly phone calls, mentors
work with their buddies and help promote
confidence, skill and an enjoyment of reading.
The program continues to be one that
promotes reading skills and relationships.
Now in its fifth year, our partnership with The
Smith Family continues to be very strong.
Students involved in the program were:
Erin Colgan (9A), Miranda Knowles (9R),
Irene Benny (9M), Tessa McNaulty (9Je), Amy
Nicholls (8F), Teagan Scott (9Je), Miranda Farr
(8Je).
SWIMMING
Senior School swimming
(MiC: Mr Rick McWaters)
Interhouse Swimming Carnival
Frew House won this year’s carnival ending
Aherne House’s three year dominance in the
pool. Riley was the successful claimant to the
Spirit Cup.
Age Champions were –
13Yr Female Champion Abby Rowley (7M)
In the second semester the co-curricular
group has been focusing on improving
the Laser Tag systems for the School Fair.
Twelve students have been busily soldering,
cutting, grinding, painting and wiring new
vests in order to improve the waiting times
for people wanting to play Laser Tag in
the Girton Pub. Their work will provide
the opportunity for many more people to
participate in this popular fair activity.
13Yr Male Champion Sebastian Wood (7R)
Planning for the Science & Engineering camp
to the USA in 2015 and 2016 is underway.
17Yr Female Champion Zoe Deed (11F)
SQUASH
(MiC: Dr Andrew Itter)
Squash at Girton Grammar School offers
students a fun and friendly activity on Tuesday
afternoons. Students’ skills have improved
considerably with round robin tournaments.
This year we have also had the benefit of
some coaching from A Grade squash player
Dr Dean Hadlow who kindly offered his
14Yr Female Champion Kate Hadkins (8F)
14Yr Male Champion Callum Moloney (8F)
15Yr Female Champion Millie Beaton (9M)
15Yr Male Champion Bailey Edwards (9M)
16Yr Female Champion Alexandra Liacos (10A)
16Yr Male Champion Matthew Slot (10A)
17Yr Male Champion Michael Valentine (11F)
20Yr Female Champion, Emajane Fisher (12F)
20Yr Male Champion Jacob Waller (11A)
Sandhurst Swimming Carnival
Girton successfully defended its
Championship status, making this six straight
wins over CCB and Bendigo South East
Secondary College.
Age Champions were –
House awarded to Jenkin House.
14Yr Male Callum Moloney (8F)
Results:
16Yr Female Alexandra Liacos (10A)
1st
Jenkin
612 points
16Yr Male Matthew Slot (10A)
2nd Jones
473
20Yr Female Emajane Fisher (12F)
3rd Frew402
20Yr Male Jacob Waller (11A)
4th
ICCES Swimming Sports
5th Riley315
Girton had a very successful carnival in
Melbourne, finishing in 3rd place.
6th
Age Champions –
Millward378
Aherne254
Age Champions were:
9 Years: Girls
Boys
Elise Richards (4Je)
Joshua Smith (4Jo)
Yr12 Male Champion - Jacob Waller (11A)
10 Years: Girls
Boys
Georgia Cox (4M)
James Kay (4M)
In the Year 8 Male 50m Freestyle Callum
Moloney (8F) set a new record of 26.77sec.
11 Years: Girls
Boys
Oliva Richards (5Je)
Angus Mayes (5Jo)
Swimming Colours
12/13 Years:
Girls
Boys
Lauren Cox (6Jo)
Flynn Edwards (6M)
Year 7 Female Champion - Evelyn Crawford
(7Je)
At the conclusion of the swimming season
the Colours Committee met and a total of
10 Half Colours and 12 Full Colours were
awarded.
Junior School Swimming
(MiC: Mrs Carmel Hamiltlon)
House Swimming Carnival
This year the Girton Grammar Junior School
Swimming Carnival was back again at the
Bendigo East Swimming Pool on Friday
February 21st. We had a beautiful day and
the Spirit Cup performances had stepped
up a level with Millward House taking out
the Spirit Cup and the Champion Swimming
Campaspe Goldfields Sandhurst Division/
Loddon Mallee Region, Swimming
Championships
Twenty-five students competed at the
Division/Regional Championships which
were held at the Bendigo East Pool on Friday
March 7.
Our competing students were:
James Kay (4M) 50m freestyle
Georgia Cox (4M) 50m freestyle - 3rd in
Division
Angus Mayes (5Jo) 50m freestyle - 3rd in
Division, 50m Breaststroke - 3rd in Division
Olivia Richards (5Je) 50m freestyle
2nd
in Division, 50m Breaststroke - 3rd in Division
Cadi Kuchel (6Je) 50m freestyle - 4th in
Division
Evie Kuchel (4Je) 50m Backstroke - 2nd in
Division
Tim Johnston (5Jo) 50m Backstroke - 5th in
Division
Serryn Eenjes (5Jo) 50m Backstroke - 3rd in
Division
Flynn Edwards (6M) 50m Backstroke - 3rd in
Division, 50m Breaststroke - 2nd in Division
Lauren Cox (6Jo) 50m Backstroke - 2nd in
Division, 50m Breaststroke - 3rd in Division
Livinia Douglass (4Je) 50m Breaststroke - 5th
in Division
Nina Lenard (5R) 50m Butterfly - 5th in
Division
Xavier Dole (5F) 50m Butterfly - 2nd in
Division
Boys 9/10 Yrs 200m Freestyle Relay finished
4th in Division. Consisted of: Mac Hilson (3F),
Joshua Smith (3Jo), Baxter Gurd (5Jo) and
James Kay (4M)
Girls 9/10 Yrs 200m Freestyle Relay finished
2nd in Division. Consisted of: Elise Richards
(3Je), Livinia Douglass (4Je), Evie Kuchel (4Je)
and Georgia Cox (4M)
Boys 11 Yrs 200m Freestyle Relay finished
2nd in Division. Consisted of: Angus Mayes
(5Jo), Timothy Johnston (5Je), Hamish
Archibald (5R) and William Douglass (5F)
Girls 11 Yrs 200m Freestyle Relay finished
2nd in Division. Consisted of: Ruby Fletcher
(5M), Serryn Eenjes (5Jo), Nina Lenard (5R)
and Olivia Richards (5Je)
Boys 12/13 Yrs 200m Freestyle Relay finished
1st in Division. Consisted of Xavier Dole (5F),
Flynn Edwards (6M), Dominic Tune (6Je) and
Elliot Beks (6M)
Girls 12/13 Yrs 200m Freestyle Relay finished
2nd in Division. Consisted of: Lauren Cox
(6Jo), Cadi Kuchel (6Je), Emily Turnbull (6A)
and Jessica Dalgleish (6Jo)
Boys 12/13 Yrs 200m Medley Relay finished
1st in Division. Consisted of: Xavier Dole (5F),
Flynn Edwards (6M), Dominic Tune (6Je) and
Edward Burke (6Jo)
Girls 12/13 Yrs 200m Medley Relay finished
3rd in Division. Consisted of: Lauren Cox
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Headmaster’s
Report to the
Community 2014
(6Jo), Cadi Kuchel (6Je), Emily Turnbull (6A)
and Olivia Richards (6Je)
The Boys 12/13 Years 200m Freestyle and
Medley relay teams went on to the Regional
Championships in Swan Hill which they won
and then went to Melbourne for the State
Championships.
TABLE TENNIS
(MiC: Mr Ralph Algreen-Ussing)
2014 saw the Table Tennis co-curriculum take
a significant step forward with the addition
of a parent coach; Mr Paul Green, to assist
students with their techniques and tactics,
achieving a general improved standard and
introducing the use of the ball machine.
The boys dominated the local Sandhurst
competition with the Year Seven Boys team
undefeated, winning the final a staggering
twelve games to nil; the Year Nine and Ten
Boys team also went through the competition
undefeated whilst the Year Eight Boys were
only slightly off the pace coming third.
Our Girls teams were competitive with the
Year Eights just missing out on winning the
competition, eventually finishing second, the
Year Seven team finished third and the Year
Nine and Ten team also finished third. We
are gradually gaining more girls to the cocurricular activity and would like to see the
girls take a further step forward next year.
Once again we had use of the Eaglehawk
Table Tennis Stadium after school every Friday
with up to 30 students attending each week.
Students varied in ability from state ranked
players to beginners. It is very satisfying to see
the improvement in players’ ability as the year
progressed.
Once again we would like to thank the
Bendigo District Table Tennis Association for
their assistance throughout the year and also
for providing a world class venue for us to
use.
Each week we start with friendly warm
up activities, and then provide coaching,
and practice using “Multi-Ball” and the Ball
machine. Most weeks finish with the fiercely
contested “Top of the Table” Competitions for
the prized ‘Mars Bar’.
As well as the Sandhurst Competition,
students play in the Co-Curricular Junior and
Open Singles and Doubles Championships.
This year the Junior and Open Champion was
Isaac Green (7A) with Xavier Green (7A)
Runner Up in the Junior Championships and
Alex O’Shea (9A) Runner Up in the Open
Championship. The Doubles Champions
36
were Xavier and Isacc Green, with Avril Price
(8Jo) winning the Open Girls Championship.
Congratulations to all competitors.
THEATRE TECHNICIANS
(MiC: Mr John McMillan)
Conducted by John McMillan with assistance
from Grant Davis and Ben Gibbons.
The Theatre Technicians team consisted of
30 students, spread across years 7 to 12.
Training sessions are conducted Tuesday 3:455:00pm, and Thursday lunchtime. Formal
technical classes as part of the VET Music
Industry (Technical Production) course are
conducted Wednesdays from 3:45-5:00pm.
Much training is conducted ‘on the job’ whilst
technical services are being provided to the
numerous school functions.
The demands for technical services across
the School increase every year. Most weeks,
spread across multiple venues, we have
six House Assemblies, two Headmaster’s
Assemblies, a Religious Assembly, Performance
Assembly and a Junior School Assembly. At
various times, Assemblies requiring technical
support are conducted in the Higgs Hall,
Junior School Library, Black Box, PA02/03,
M06/07, N02/03 and the Gymnasium.
Since the large LED screen was installed in
the Gymnasium Court 1, the Gymnasium is
used more frequently for conducting whole
of Senior School Assemblies, notably weekly
Religious Assemblies, special event Assemblies
such as the “Shave for a Cure” Assembly, the
“Inter-House Singing Competition”, the Year
12 “Farewell Assembly” and on occasions
when the J.E. Higgs Hall is unavailable for
Headmaster’s Assemblies. The Gymnasium
is also utilised for the beginning, and end of
term Assemblies for the entire School.
The Theatre Technicians Co-curriculum
activity involves Senior School students,
but the team provides technical services
across Junior and Senior School, both within
and outside the classroom. Regular events
include: Religious Assemblies, Headmaster’s
Assemblies, Performance Assemblies, Junior
School Assemblies, and House Assemblies;
classroom technical needs (presentations,
converting audio tapes to CD, guest speakers,
etc); House activities (Social evenings, House
Dinners, Carols Services, etc); Music Concerts
(both JS and SS piano recitals, vocal concerts,
general music concerts, recordings); Sports
Presentation evenings; School Socials; JS
Concerts and Socials; School Productions (JS,
SS and Year 8); Drama Productions; GGPFA
events (concerts and Girton Fair), Valedictory
Dinner, Foundation Day and Speech Night
Ceremonies.
In 2014, Girton School hosted the TedEx
Conference in Bendigo. This involved an
extensive team of students working on
planning the event and operating cameras for
both live feeds and recordings, lighting and
audio.
Each year Girton continues to grow and
become busier, with more and more events
requiring technical support. The talented
and dedicated team of students provide
outstanding and generous service across
the School in catering to the wide variety of
technical requirements.
Girton is indebted to the Theatre Technicians
team for the significant contribution they
make to the life of the School.
TOURNAMENT OF MINDS
(MiC: Mrs Viv Bath)
Tournament of Minds (TOM) has been
operating as a club at Girton Grammar
School now for a long time. This year we
had approximately 60 students involved.
Each year we have more students apply to
be in Tournament of Minds than we can
accommodate. The teachers have a very
difficult job deciding which applicants will be
selected following the initial three weeks of
rehearsals.
TOM involves students from Years 4 to 10
in team based problem solving activities
that are then presented in the form of small
dramatic pieces at the Tournament of Minds
Regional Final at La Trobe University, Bendigo.
The students combine in teams of seven
and work on a specific discipline - Maths/
Engineering, Social Sciences, Language/
Literature or Applied Technology.
This year we had eight teams compete
at Regional level at La Trobe University in
Bendigo. Four secondary teams and two
primary teams won their division and
went on to compete in the State Final in
Melbourne.
At the State Final two of our six teams
won their division and two of the teams
achieved Tournament Honours. The two
winning teams went on to compete at the
Australasian Pacific Final on the 18th October.
Our Secondary Applied Technology team
won their division, defeating seven other state
teams, including one from New Zealand. This
is an amazing accomplishment and one that
we are extremely proud to acknowledge.
Girton Grammar School has an excellent
reputation amongst the people administering
Winzar 2009 MI) Silver
Girton came 3rd overall in Victoria.
Victorian Representatives
U19 Blue: James Haythorne (12M) - Won
Bronze at Australian Junior Volleyball
Championships
U19 White: Michael Mayes (12A) - Captain of
U19 Victorian White Team
U17 Blue: Evan Shelton (11M) - Won Bronze
at Australian Junior Volleyball Championships
U17 Blu: Lydia Rhule (10A) - Won Gold at
Australian Junior Volleyball Championships
U17 West: Declan Rochford (9F)
U16 Boys: Jameson Crawford (9F), Ayrton
Zanella (9RI)
and competing in Tournament of Minds in
Australia. This is not just because of our
performances but because of the way
our students conduct themselves when
representing the school.
Thank you to Harry Morrall (10M), our
TOM 2014 Captain, who has supported
and encouraged all students this year. He
has worked tirelessly, both as team member
and as a role model to the students of
Tournament of Minds. Thanks also to our
wonderful Tournament of Minds staff – Mrs
Peter, Mr Vernon, Mr Thomas, Mr Parry and
Mr Turner.
I am extremely grateful for the amazing
senior students who have been involved in
Tournament of Minds for many years and
who keep returning to offer their support.
We are also fortunate to be supported
by some wonderful parents who have
encouraged the students along the way.
We look forward to an equally rewarding
year in TOM in 2015.
VOLLEYBALL
(MiC: Mr TakaYUKI Hirashima & Mr Matthew
James)
General Details:
Seven Girton teams travelled to Melbourne
to play in the 2014 Victorian Volleyball
Schools Cup. Most of those teams will be
playing for the Australian Volleyball Schools
Cup in December. Girton Open Boys will
try to be the best team in Australia after
winning a silver medal in Honours Division at
Victorian Volleyball Schools Cup.
125 students and 15 teams were involved this
year, as well as 14 teaching staff and 2 Old
Girtonians.
Friends of Volleyball organised a fund raiser at
the Inter-House Swimming Carnival.
Team/Group Achievements:
Australian Volleyball Schools Cup
(December 2013)
Open Boys Honours 5th, Coached by Mr.
McWaters
Girton finished 5th in the Champion School
in Australia.
2014 Bendigo Volleyball Association Autumn
Season
2 Girton teams played in Grand Finals.
Jameson Crawford (9FR) won MVP in his age
group.
2014 Victorian Beach Volleyball Schools Cup
Year 9 Boys Pair achieved 3rd Place - Jameson
Crawford (9FR) and Jemuel Pryse (9JE)
2014 Victorian Volleyball Schools Cup
U14 Girls Div1 (Coach Mrs. Lilburne) 12th
U15 Girls Hon (Coach Old Girtonian William
Hogan 2013 MI) 7th
Open Girls Hon (Coach Mrs. Brewin and Old
Girtonian Laura Roberts 2011 AH) 6th
U15 Boys Hon (Coach Mr. a’Beckett, Old
Girtonian Evan Jenkins 2013 MI) Bronze
U15 Boys Div1 (Coach Mr. James and Dr.
Maslunka) 6th
U15 Beach Volleyball: Jameson Crawford (9F)
- Won Silver at Australian Beach Volleyball
Championships
Australian representatives:
Australian Youth Team James Haythorne
(12M)
Invitation to National Volleyball Youth Camp:
December 2013: James Haythorne (12M),
Evan Shelton (11 M), Guy Hickman (10J),
December 2014: Jameson Crawford (9F),
Jemuel Pryse (9J), Declan Rochford (9F),
Amelia Fogarty (8M)
WRITER’S GROUP
(MIC: Mr Scott Langan)
The Writer’s Group Co-Curriculum gives
keen, upcoming writers a chance to develop
and publish their works. Using a blog on
the Girton Portal, information regarding
writing competitions for both Primary and
Secondary students was disseminated and
promoted. As well as this, students used
Mr Langan as a sounding board, editor and
proof reader before submitting work to
public competitions, or for internal School
publications, such as the E-Link. Many of
the writers also submitted entries in the
Girtonian Writing Competition. The students
enjoyed discussing the writing process with
other students every second Friday, and
email was used to share and submit work for
proofing or publication at all times of the day
and night. Seven students from Year 7 to 11
participated in Writer’s Group.
U16 Boys Hon (Coach Mr. Hirashima) 5th
WORLD CHALLENGE
Open Boys Hon (Coach Old Girtonian James
(MiC: Mr Graham Crickmore)
37
Headmaster’s
Report to the
Community 2014
On Friday 27th June, 48 Girton Grammar
students ranging in ages from 15 to 17
years set out on the journey of a lifetime
as they travelled to Cambodia /Laos to
spend one month jungle trekking, sightseeing
and working and living in remote local
communities. Girton Grammar School
Bendigo has been involved in the World
Challenge Expedition programme since 2006.
This trip to Cambodia/Laos was our fifth
consecutive trip, with the other expeditions
taking place in Borneo (2006/12) Vietnam
(2008) and Vietnam/Laos (2010).
Taking part in the World Challenge
Expedition will help to equip our students
with leadership skills, initiative and a sense of
adventure as they negotiate the challenges
of travelling in a foreign country, coping with
the diversity in language, cultures and lifestyles
barriers that this trip will present to them.
Under the guidance of 8 Girton Grammar
staff and Expedition leaders from World
Challenge, the students travelled in 4 groups
– these groups formed the students’ family
and support networks for the month they
were away. Special bonds were be formed,
and a deeper understanding and appreciation
of their classmates and staff was developed
as they worked collaboratively to plan, design,
problem solve and lead this one month
expedition in Cambodia/Laos. The students
must be self-sufficient whilst in Cambodia/
Laos having to cook, clean and manage the
day to day aspects of life.
The students had been preparing for this
trip for 15 months completing a syllabus that
included fundraising, money management
plans and training camps. $2500 was taken to
the remote communities of Cambodia/Laos
where the students lived and worked with
the community members. They were required
to help support the community whether
this is painting classrooms at the local
school, paving concrete paths, planting trees
or assisting with the building of irrigation
infrastructure for crop watering and water
access for the community. They slept each
night within the village and ate and socialized
with the families within the community.
“The expedition sets the students on a
pathway of independence and acceptance
of others as they immersed themselves in
the local communities and the exposure to a
foreign culture.”
38
YOGA
(MiC: Ms LEANNE ROULSTON)
Students from across all year levels have
joined the yoga community this year. We have
continued to work with ‘Salute to the Sun’; a
sequence that has been traditionally practised
in the morning to honour the sunrise.
Students have become stronger, more flexible
and are more capable of correct alignment
in various postures. They have challenged
themselves to keep still in balances such as
‘Tree Pose’ and endured such postures as
‘Plank’ and ‘Warrior’ to build core strength.
Students have eagerly greeted relaxation, and
the opportunity to ‘switch off ’, at the end of
each session. We used different visualisation
techniques, breathing exercises, chanting or
soft music to help elicit a relaxation response.
Students left yoga sessions feeling relaxed,
refreshed and often commented on the
restorative nature of regular practice.
Marketing &
Community Relations
Mr Mark Beever
Head of Marketing and Development
2014 saw a number of changes to the
structure of the CRO team with Ms Mitch
Trevena taking twelve months leave and the
appointment of a new Community Relations
Officer, Ms Lisa Gulyas. Ms Gulyas brings
extensive experience in event management
and media relations through her previous
roles in five star hospitality, industry
associations and local government. Mrs
Alex Fisher was appointed Alumni Manger
to further develop the Old Girtonians
Association. Mrs Fisher joins Girton Grammar
School following an exciting and diverse
career in public relations and communications,
spanning roles in Melbourne and Londonbased PR consulting firms to a more recent
stint in Victorian State Government as a
Media and Communications Adviser.
We are sometimes asked the question
“Why does Girton need to market itself or
advertise?”. The reasons are twofold, one
is to maintain and steadily grow enrolment
numbers to assist in ensuring the financial
security of the school, thereby limiting the
need for significant fee increases. The other
is to enhance the Girton brand, giving
gravitas to the value of a GIrton education to
tertiary institutions, employers and the wider
community.
Much of this year’s marketing has revolved
around the concept of the “Girton Door
of Opportunity”, that walking across
the threshold into the school provides
students with a wealth of opportunities
and experiences from the moment they
commence at Girton and continuing through
their lives beyond their education years.
Late 2013 saw the introduction of Corporate
Identity Guidelines and across the past twelve
months we have been gradually updating
documents and communication pieces to
reflect the guidelines and bring consistency to
the presentation of our brand.
During 2014, Tour Mornings and Open
Days were again highly successful in
introducing new families to the school
and the CRO supported countless events
with management, co-ordination, publicity
and advertising. A highlight event was the
TEDxBendigo Conference in June. Directed
by Mr Les Evans and run by a student
committee, the CRO provided co-ordination
support, giving students “real life” event
management experience.
We worked closely with local media to keep
them informed of all newsworthy events
and activities gaining significant amounts of
exposure. Building a reputation for Girton
beyond the Greater Bendigo area was also
given attention in 2014 and this effort was
rewarded with significant metropolitan
newspaper articles and interviews on
commercial Melbourne and statewide ABC
radio stations.
Girton Parents’
& Friends’ (GPF)
In March 2014, the Executive of the GPF was
elected with Mrs Margaret Keech re-elected
as President and Mrs Rita Bosaid re-elected
as Secretary. Mrs Helen Symes was elected
as Treasurer with Mrs Kathy Hutchings
standing down from that role. We thank her
for her contribution over some 4 years on
the Executive. Mrs Lorraine Flynn was elected
as Vice President, with the rest of Executive
Committee, Mrs Paula Saxon & Mrs Sarah
Mayor-Cox elected as general committee
members. We extend out thanks to the
Executive and those parents who attended
meetings and assisted the GPF in 2014.
Fundraising activities by the GPF and its Fair
Committee and the GPF subcommittees Friends of Music, Friends of Drama, Friends
of Volleyball and Friends of Junior School, has
been significant in 2014. The work from all
these groups and their volunteers has been
outstanding and the School is very grateful
for their efforts, not only fundraising, but
also in in working on ways to connect and
enhance our School community.
Old Girtonians’
Association (OGA)
Mrs Alex Fisher, Alumni Relations Manager
This year marks 100 years of unwavering
support and commitment to the vision of an
outstanding school by the Old Girtonians’
Association.
Countless OGA volunteers have worked
selflessly behind the scenes in so many ways
over the generations to make the OGA
an important pillar of the Girton Grammar
Community. Old Girtonians have safeguarded
our school’s narrative and vision and it’s
impossible to measure the benefit that past,
current and future students will gain from this
hard work.
In particular, 2014 President of the Executive
Committee and current parent at the
School, Mrs Samantha Cordell (nee Moon),
along with the Executive Committee, has
contributed many hours to protecting the
memory and deeds of Old Girtonians and
maintaining links with the school.
This year’s Annual Reunion Dinner,
commemorating 100 years of the Old
Girtonians’ Association was a true indication
of the association’s ongoing cohesiveness and
commitment to friendships.
Held at the historic Château Dore winery, the
dinner was fully attended with Old Girtonians
from the class of 1944 through to the 2013
cohort. The atmosphere on the night was
truly buoyant with old friends catching up and
new friends being made.
For the 2013 OGA Departing Girtonian
Scholarship, two candidates could not be split.
Angus McCormack (2013 - School Captain)
and Daniel Atkinson (2013 Millward) were
each awarded a $2,000 prize, continuing the
tradition of the OGA supporting students as
they start their life after Girton. Applications
for the 2014 scholarship are of the highest
quality and the OGA looks forward to
announcing the worthy recipient.
The OGA again sponsored the Girton
Grammar Fairbrother Fair and hosted the
annual Year 12 Careers Lunch. This year’s
Careers lunch event was held in the new
lecture theatre of the Naunton Family Building
with three past students as guest speakers;
Cameron Bryan (2005) now a radiographer,
Todd Broadbent (2009) PE teacher, and Anne
McIntosh (1994) physiotherapist.
Speech Night dux prizes were also provided
by the OGA to continue to support the
academic excellence that defines the school.
2014 has been a great year of change for the
OGA. The school has shown its commitment
to the association with the appointment
of an OGA Alumni Manager to oversee
all operations of the OGA and the future
direction of membership services.
For the first time, operation of the OGA
without an active volunteer committee of
OGA members will occur in 2015.
At the 2014 AGM, a quorum was not
achieved so there was no voting for Executive
Committee or President and the current
Committee stood down. Executive Members
standing down were Mrs Anita Butters (nee
Vanston), Mrs Wendy Meehan (nee Pilcher),
Mrs Anne McIntosh (nee Johnson), Mrs Helen
Buttolph (nee Vanstan) and Ms Meghan
Ketterer, along with President, Samantha
Cordell. The OGA wishes to thank these
Committee members for the many hours of
support they have devoted to the association.
As per the Constitution of the Old
Girtonians’ Association, in the event the
Executive Committee position cannot be
sustained and/or the operational framework
as outlined in the Constitution cannot
be met, the administration and financial
management of the OGA reverts to the full
responsibility of Girton Grammar School. This
Constitutional arrangement is now in place.
2015 will be a busy year for the OGA
with 12 member events scheduled. From
reunion events for specific school leaving
years, to OGA school tours and professional
networking events, the OGA aims to create
a range of sufficiently broad membership
services to suit the needs of all members.
Finally, the very important job of being
custodians of the school’s history has taken
great strides this year with a dedicated team
of Community Service students, under the
guidance of past Headmaster, Mr Clayton
Jones, visiting Girton House at lunchtimes to
sort through and organise school documents,
photos and memorabilia. Shelves from the old
Junior School library have been installed in
Girton House and it is hoped that the ground
floor of the most historic school building,
including the old Headmaster’s Office,
become a place for people to visit and to
browse the school’s history.
The OGA will continue to strive to keep
historic details in-tact so that the story behind
them, so crucial in our schools’ fabric, is
passed onto the next generation.
The OGA website (www.oga.girton.vic.edu.
au) and Facebook page (www.facebook/oga.
girton) are great places to visit regularly for
stories about Old Girtonians’ and to find out
about OGA events.
Comments and suggestions for the OGA can
be directed to Alumni Manager, Alex Fisher, at
any time on (03) 4408 5985 or alexfisher@
girton.vic.edu.au.
Matthew F. Maruff
Headmaster
39
Contextual information about the school, including the characteristics
of the students at the school
Girton Grammar School is an Independent, Christian, Co-Educational School for young people from
Preparatory to Year Twelve.
Girton is proud of its unique place in the Bendigo community and of the role it plays in offering a high
quality, academically oriented education option to local families. Through hard work and judicious
management the School strives to remain as affordable as possible for as many families as possible.
The School has at its heart, a Mission Statement: “Girton Grammar School strives for excellence both in
academic and co-academic areas of education in a Christian, caring environment.”
We strive also to make our Mission Statement more than a mere platitude. At Girton we value
Learning, Character and People. We live the mission.
Girton is a School that recognises that successful young people are people who have a well-rounded
approach to life. Community involvement and participation in the co-curriculum are seen as crucial
components of a child’s development.
Girton Grammar School consists of approximately 1200 students, over 200 staff and many volunteers
who assist in many and varied aspects of School life including providing support for the various cocurricular programmes offered by the School.
Girton’s students come from a range of backgrounds and experiences with many nationalities and
cultures represented in the School’s student population. While Bendigo is Victoria’s third largest city
and the school is in a highly urbanised environment, many students come from rural areas, farm
communities and small towns. Girton students come from far and wide with many travelling in excess
of 50 kilometres to get to School each day.
Student Attendance Rates
There is a higher than 90% attendance rate at each year level from Prep to Year 12.
Management of Non-Attendance
If a student is absent without explanation the parent or guardian is contacted on the same day. All
absences must be explained in writing by the parent or guardian. Regular or extended absence is
monitored by the School’s pastoral care team.
Workforce Composition - Teacher Age
Junior School Teachers
Average Age 2015: 45 years 4 months (2010: 45 years 2 months)
Senior School Teachers
Average Age 2015: 46 years 6 months (2010: 43 years 11 months)
Teachers – Years of Service
79% of Girton teachers are in their 6th year of service or more
26% have completed 5 years or less
37% have completed more than 10 years of service
Girton Grammar School commenced in 1993 and 11 foundation staff are still serving after 22
years.
Teacher standards and qualifications (as mandated in the State or
Territory in which the school is located)
As a minimum all teaching staff hold a Bachelor’s degree or its equivalent and a teaching
qualification
7 teachers also have a Master’s degree
6 teachers hold a PhD
14 teachers hold additional tertiary qualifications
Workforce composition, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islander composition
Number of employees 260 (including casuals)
Number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Employees - 0
Staff Gender Spread
full time
%
part-time
%
casual
%
totals
%
female
male
female
female
male
female
female
male
female
female
male
female
0
0
0
2
7
22
0
0
0
2
7
22
1
3
25
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
3
25
1
3
25
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
3
25
7
5
58
2
0
100
0
0
0
9
5
64
8
6
57
3
0
100
0
0
0
11
6
65
Trans etc)
5
3
63
1
0
100
0
0
0
6
3
67
Teaching Staff
32
20
62
37
2
95
4
2
67
73
24
75
Staff
17
3
85
13
0
100
2
0
100
32
3
91
Ancillary Staff
2
8
20
18
15
55
22
15
59
42
38
53
TOTAL
73
51
59
74
17
81
28
17
62
175
85
67
Board
Executive HM /
DHM / SM / HJS
Senior
management
HOS BM FM
HSSF
Managers
HOPC / HOCC /
CURRIC / H’sOH
/ Alumni /
Comm Rel
Academic
Leaders HOD’s
Curric Leaders
Teachers with
Additional
Responsibility
(Asst
HODs/H’sOH
Administration
School financial activity (extract from Audted Accounts)
105 MacKenzie Street Bendigo Victoria 3550
Telephone (03) 5441 3114
Email reception@girton.vic.edu.au
www.girton.vic.edu.au