Sydney Boys High School

High Notes, Vol 16 No 5, February 27 2015

From the Principal

High Talent
Congratulations to Kevin Ke on his selection in the team to contest the Asian Physics Olympiad in Hangzhou, China.

Summer Sport Co-payments
The rolls for summer sports and activities have now been finalised. In many activities co-payments are levied for the season, so boys in Years 8-12 continuing in a summer sport will have paid their co-payments already. However, for Year 7 and recently enrolled students, one term of summer sport will be levied. Also, a few activities have term-by-term co-payments. These are due now.

For 2015 the agreed figure for Term 1 only co-payments is $70. Certain Supporters Groups, with agreement from parents, decide upon higher co-payments for some expensive to run sports, such as rowing ($180 per term), sailing ($286) and rifle shooting ($160 small bore). For winter sports the agreed base co-payment will be $140, after adjusting for on costs. Individual Supporter Groups need to advise the Principal before the end of term 1 what adjustments they may have made for the upcoming winter season.

Co-payments are generated from a central spreadsheet controlled by the School Administration Manager. MICs and Supporters Groups cannot vary co-payments without the permission of the Principal in writing. The SAM adjusts the spreadsheet when notified by the Principal.

Year 7 Classes – Purposeful Grouping
Year 7 boys are grouped for their first year at High according to a Grouping Policy devised by the school. The grouping for this year for Year 7 is: 7R Outrider – boys grouped together with high profile scores in the SSET; 7M – Enhancement: boys with a significantly lower score on the English component than in both mathematics and GAT components of the SSET; 7E GAT – boys with high scores on the GAT component of the SSET test measuring general ability; 7E sports - boys with self- reported club sport participation in one or two seasons each year; and 7F & 7T - boys were assigned to these classes to accommodate the maximum languages preference combinations possible, so more boys could get their first and second language preferences.

Our School Plan – 1. Maximising potential
We hope to lift engagement across the whole school. In academics, we have built a team of nine Year Advisers to find out what the learning, social and emotional needs of our boys are. We want everyone to make a good transition into term 1. Boys coming into Year 7 have many adjustment issues to overcome before they can thrive. We want our Advisers to be the ones to help them. New enrolments in Years 8, 9 and 11 need support as they start all over again in a new school.

Students who have already exhibited blockages in their learning, need our help. Our School Learning Support Officer will be working with the Wellbeing Team to develop collaborative plans for selected students. These Individual Learning and Support Plans (ILSPs) will include input from the students, teachers and parents.

Year Advisers will be employing a variety of strategies to overcome the identified barriers to achievement that restrict our boys. Included in this list are: organisational skills, effort (GRIT), focus in class and while working at home, consistency of organisation, frequency of task completion, revision and study skills and exam preparation.

High provides a very high number of opportunities for learning and interacting with others in teams or groups with a task in common. We want more boys to take up more of their opportunities. We want to build their character so they can develop the grit necessary to succeed in stage 6.

For those boys looking for challenge we have many academic competitions with block entries. From the Davinci decathlon, Tournament of Minds, Philosothon, debating and public speaking to advanced mathematical problem solving programs and multiple acceleration course offerings, there are many ways to maximise your potential at High.

We have a big emphasis on nurturing scholar-sportsmen so we really push you to get engaged in competitive team sports. Some boys have taken up a completely new sport at High and have developed so rapidly that they represented their state and even their country, within ten years. Build your son’s character and assist him to make a happy future by encouraging and supporting his involvement in school life!
Dr K A Jaggar
Principal