Today we conducted taypani limilinaturi, a gathering on the grounds of Don College, to celebrate the achievements of our students in the first 10 weeks of this school year. Our surroundings set a wonderful stage to highlight the natural environment, which we are immersed in, each day. I thank Elder, Tony Medcraft and members of the Tasmanian Aboriginal Corporation for conducting a traditional smoking ceremony.

 Having worked in this role for 15 years now I am still impressed by the capacity of our students. Student Leaders, Jaikira, Paige and Toby are very accomplished in public speaking and managed proceedings for the gathering. Katie and Lucas combined to provide amazing musical entertainment for us. Thank you to all students and staff who organised and participated in this gathering.

A key value of our school is responsibility. All students have a responsibility to attend all classes. We know that students who attend more classes achieve higher results and have more choices when they leave formal education. I would like to congratulate the 438 students who have attendance greater than 90%. In fact, 342 of our students have achieved 100% attendance for this term. This data demonstrates that attending classes is the norm.

We understand that life is not always predictable and there might be the odd occasion where barriers to attendance result in an absence. The “work” of a student is to be in class, engage in learning and complete tasks to the best of their ability. We encourage all students and families to set high expectations of themselves in Term 2 and work towards excellence in participation in their educational program.

We wish all students and staff safe and happy holiday break. Thank you for your efforts this term.

The outdoor team have started Term 1 by spending lots of time around the ocean. Students have been involved in a mix of water related activities including surfing, snorkelling, getting everyone comfortable in a kayak, and fishing.

This week, classes were taken out to kayak at Coles Beach which was their first experience being in a kayak in open water. In the theory part of the class, students have been looking into the more technical side of surfing including parts, different types of waves, and where most of the class, as beginners, can surf locally.

Week 2 and 3 this term led to investigating the seven 'leave no trace' principles which the classes are hoping to use at camp scheduled for the first couple weeks back into Term 2.

In Week 7 of this term, staff took the Outdoor Leadership group to Hollybank so that students can get an insight on what goes on behind the scenes of a big business where lots of risk is involved, and what precautions they take. That night, the group stayed at Hollybank and camped for the night. Unfortunately, it was raining, but the group made the best of the night by cooking a hot meal on Trangia’s, sitting by the fire and getting to know each other more. 

Music: 

A group of 16 music students participated in a two-day SongMakers workshop on March 14 and 15, run by APRA AMCOS. The workshop gives students an insight into working in the Australian music industry as an artist, songwriter and/or music producer and the opportunity to work with mentors who themselves work in the industry. During day one, students collaborated in small groups to write an original song which was then recorded and produced on the second day. Thank you to our wonderful mentors, DVNA, Tim Commandeur and Yeo for supporting and encouraging our students during the workshop.

Don College has been partnering with APRA AMCOS for the past 6 years through this workshop. APRA AMCOS represents Australian songwriters, composers and music publishers. They license organisations to play, perform, copy or record their members music and distribute royalties to them. Our music teacher, Danielle James, is also a member of the SongMakers national teacher advisory committee. Earlier in the term she was invited to APRA AMCOS headquarters in Melbourne to meet with other teachers from across the country to discuss the future development of this program and the integration of song writing into the national curriculum.

You can have a listen to the songs by accessing the link below: https://soundcloud.com/don-college/sets/songmakers-2024

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Theatre:

Congratulations to our Theatre Performance Graduating Class of 2024 on the Term 1 monologue performances, their first major performance assessment for the year.

These 3-5min pieces were chosen from a range of Australian and Internationally acclaimed playwrights requiring in-depth character research, vocal accent work, memorisation of lengthy text and written reflection.

This class are now in the beginning stages of blocking for their mid-year show, ‘Little Girls Alone in the Woods’ which will be staged mid Term 2. Written by Australian Playwright, Morgan Rose, Little Girls Alone in the Woods is a ‘whip-smart adaptation of The Bacchae that puts a contemporary lens on the Greek legend of Dionysis, the god of wine, theatre and ritual madness. It dares to go into the woods and seek out what knowledge lies beyond the border of respectability and rules. What worlds await us?’….

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Theatre and Drama: 

Friday 22^nd March was a late one for the 30 Drama 2, Drama 3 and Theatre Performance students who travelled to Launceston to view Encore Theatre Company’s latest show-stopper, CHESS THE MUSICAL.

This year’s cohort didn’t disappoint and continued our ‘tradition’ of dressing up for a night at the Theatre with gusto and excitement.

After a classy stop over at Morty’s Food Hall, we arrived at the beautiful old Princess Theatre in Launceston for a three hour stage spectacular. BJ King and Encore extended their kindness by offering our students a Q&A with the cast, on the stage following the show.

The 12.30am return to college was definitely worth the effort. Next comes the hard task of writing up formal theatrical reviews for internal assessment. Thanks to Encore Theatre and Theatre North, Launceston for having us.

We look forward to the next theatre experience in Ulverstone in May where we will view Ulverstone Repertory Theatre Society’s production of ‘Mother and Son’.

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Is it important for students to explore constitutional issues?

Jada-Li Crossey sure thinks so!

In fact, she wrote a 400-word response on the matter to enter the National Schools Constitutional Convention (NSCC) Competition earlier this term.

In forming her entry, Jada-Li expressed that “the 2023 referendum made me realise how important it is that we understand our constitution and political processes. Without this understanding it is difficult to separate credible news, and fact, from opinion.”

Jada-Li was fortunate to be selected as one of five Tasmanian representatives who joined 94 other Year 11 and 12 students from around Australia at the 29th National Schools Constitutional Convention in Canberra. This year’s convention posed the following prompt for discussion: “Section 96 of the Constitution allows the Commonwealth to grant funds to areas that fall outside those prescribed in Section 51. Should Section 96 be amended to decentralise the power of the Commonwealth?”. As part of the four-day program, delegates heard from keynote speakers and debated this topic at Old Parliament House before casting their vote in a mock referendum conducted by the Australian Electoral Commission and passing on a communique to Senator Andrew McLachlan CSC. As well as having the opportunity to meet politicians and His Excellency General David Hurley, students also visited the Museum of Australian Democracy, National Press Club, National Museum of Australia, Government House, Parliament House and observed Question Time in the House of Representatives.

Students engaged in meaningful and thought-provoking conversations throughout the course of the program and enjoyed the invaluable experience.

Pictured: Shanli Perkins (Textiles- teacher) Ella Deane and Colleen Day (Red Cross),   Laura Mathews is pictured wearing her winning Agwear design made in 2023.

Ella Deane and Laura Mathews were given $500 sponsorships to continue their love of making using textiles. This sponsorship was offered by the generous creative, the late Maisie Pyke. Maisie was in close association with Ulverstone Red Cross. Ella is continuing her passion of textile design at Don College in year 12, while Laura Mathews is aiming for a career as a chef, while continuing her textile design work as a life-time hobby.  We wish both students luck in their future studies and creative pursuits.

Thank you to Maisie Pyke’s family and the Ulverstone Red Cross, for their generous support.

(Special thanks to Jaikira Grundy for documenting the occasion and sharing the images)

Pink Stumps Day was a huge success at Don College, with a whopping $1800 raised for the McGrath Foundation.

The Community Services class in collaboration with the hospitality team worked tirelessly to organise fundraising for the day including a barbecue, lucky prize draws that were supported by local businesses, a Pink Stumps casual cricket game, and the sale of McGrath Foundation merchandise. The hospitality team also joined in and made cupcakes to help raise money. 

All proceeds of the event went towards helping provide care through the McGrath Breast Care Nurse programme.

As students fully settle into their courses for the year, they may want to double check that their 2024 plans will get them where they want to go. Below is a summary of resources for students.

Explaining the TCE

• The short video What is the TCE?explains the purpose of the TCE and the TCE standards.
• More detail about how to achieve the TCE standards is available on the TCEwebpage, including information about achieving the Everyday Adult Standards.

Using the TCE Planner

• Students can use the TCE course plannerto check that their enrolled courses allow for attainment of the TCE standards, and the credit points needed for their future pathway.
• VET unit levels and the TCE credit points available are viewable in the TCE course planner. 

Understanding University Entrance and the ATAR 

• Students can visit TASC’s University Entrance page to access information about the ATAR and pathways to university study.
• For an ATAR overview, read the Understanding the ATAR: Student Factsheet(PDF, 731 KB) and watch the What is an ATAR?
• More detailed information about the ATAR and how it is calculated is available in the Understanding the ATAR(PDF, 7.4 MB) document. 

Understanding Options for the Future 

• Careerifyis a great career planning resource, with tailored information for both Year 11 and Year 12 students.
• Students wishing to continue studying beyond their senior secondary years can use Course Seekerto search and compare thousands of courses from different institutions. This website also allows you to filter search results by courses that do not require an ATAR for entry.

Remind students to clear their calendar and save the date/s: The 2024 written exam period is from Monday 11 November to Thursday 21 November 2024.

Students are expected to be ready to attend the scheduled exams for Level 3 and 4 courses as they are a necessary part of their assessment for that particular course.

If a student is planning to travel interstate or overseas at the time of the exams, they must see Dayna Dennison at Don for support to request a special exam centre. They must apply before 1 July and be prepared to cover the cost associated with having a special exam centre. Applications are limited to certain circumstances only.

TASC will look at whether it is possible to set up a special exam centre where they will be and any risks to the integrity of the exam paper.

Derived exam ratings are restricted to students experiencing unfortunate and unplanned circumstances, such as being sick, an emergency or other exceptional unexpected circumstances.

TASC has clarified the evidence that needs to be submitted when a student is unexpectedly selected to take part in a recognised National or International sporting, academic or cultural event that will occur at the same time as their exam. This includes that a National or International event is an event that is officially sanctioned and has a limited entry basis where a restricted number of young people represent the State of Tasmania, nation of Australia, or a specific cultural group.

Students must submit an application for a special exam centre if their travel and/or recognised National or International sporting, academic or cultural event attendance is likely to overlap with the two-week written exam period, and the date of their selection for the event is before 1 July (the closing date for special exam centre applications).