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VOL. 54 / MAY 2015 THE OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OF THE ALLIANCE OF GIRLS’ SCHOOLS AUSTRALASIA Conference, Southport Beach. Southport Conference, Photography: Greg Gardner Greg Photography: 2015 Student Leadership Leadership Student 2015 Vol.54 COVER IMAGE Innovation and Initiative IN ALLIANCE MAY 2015 FROM THE PRESIDENT EXECUTIVE OFFICER Gender equality A life–changing experience THE ALLIANCE OF GIRLS SCHOOLS AUSTRALASIA 102/239 Golden Four Drive Bilinga Qld 4225 Australia (t) +61 7 5521 0749 (e) [email protected] (w) www.agsa.org.au PATRON PROFILE MAKING A DIFFERENCE MANAGING EDITOR Gail Kelly Student Alliance Network Loren Bridge Executive Officer (e) [email protected] (m) +61 408 842 445 PRESIDENT Judith Poole Abbotsleigh, NSW VICE PRESIDENT MEMBER PROFILE ARTICLES (P.13–37) Merici College ACT Innovation and Initiative Fran Reddan Mentone Girls Grammar School, VIC TREASURER Jenny Ethell Perth College, WA EXECUTIVE Vivienne Awad RESEARCH REVIEW DIARY DATES Domremy College, NSW Anxiety in girls 2015 Alliance events Mary Cannon Canterbury Girls’ Secondary College, VIC Ros Curtis St Margaret’s Anglican Girls School, QLD Tom Dorey St Mary’s College, TAS Anne Johnstone Seymour College, SA Mary Nixon Napier Girls’ High School, NZ ALLIANCE PATRONS The Alliance of Girls’ Schools Australasia is a not for profit organisation which advocates for and supports the distinctive work of girls’ schools in their provision Dame Jenny Shipley DNZM of unparalleled opportunities for girls. Gail Kelly Elizabeth Broderick www.agsa.org.au IMAGES: (LEFT) SLC2015 STUDENT LEADERS CREATE THE CONFERENCE THEME IN BODY LETTERS ON SOUTHPORT BEACH (BELOW) JUDITH POOLE WITH ABBOTSLEIGH STUDENTS negative evaluations, and their lower self-confidence in mathematics and science, it is hardly surprising high-achieving girls choke under — often self- imposed — pressure.’’ Raising girls’ confidence, promoting intellectual risk-taking and providing opportunities to build resilience is a focus in many of our schools. We are well aware of the debilitating effects that high 4 anxiety levels among girls often create. I encourage our members to openly collaborate on how best to create environments where girls thrive intellectually 5 and have a healthy approach to wellbeing. The Executive of the Alliance has been considering research opportunities in this area. One of our strategic goals is to provide leadership in girls’ education through cutting edge research. Grant GENDER EQUALITY money is available for research and the Executive is actively negotiating with a project partner to facilitate research within the Alliance on the topic of anxiety FROM THE ALLIANCE PRESIDENT and wellbeing. Another part of our mission is to provide leadership development for those working in girls’ schools. I would like to encourage all members of THE YEAR 2015 CONTINUES TO HOLD PROMISE FOR GIRLS THRIVING IN GIRLS’ SCHOOLS. IN A RECENT REPORT BY the Alliance to consider sending middle and senior THE ORGANISATION FOR ECONOMIC CO-OPERATION AND DEVELOPMENT (OECD, 2015) ON GENDER EQUALITY IN leaders to the Aspiring Leaders Conference to be EDUCATION SOME ALARMING STATISTICS WERE HIGHLIGHTED. held at Bond University from 28 to 30 May. This biennial conference builds leadership capacity in our schools and promotes networking to strengthen collegial relationships. The AGM of the Alliance will be held on Friday 29 May before the conference dinner where I will be passing the baton to the next president. I look forward to sharing time with those he OECD report says that just three per cent of Many of our schools are addressing this issue schools are leading lights in promoting STEM and who are able to attend. Australian teenage girls contemplate a career with an emphasis on STEM subjects. Sharing ideas giving girls experiences to excite their imagination JUDITH POOLE in engineering or computing, compared to in how best to engage girls in these areas has and critical thinking. seventeen per cent of boys. The report blames been a focus of several branch meetings as well as documented in our In Alliance magazine (Vol. 50 The report also claims, “High-achieving girls REFERENCES: girls’ lack of confidence for their hesitation to April 2013). In girls’ schools we have an opportunity are more likely to suffer from high levels of anxiety OECD (2015), The ABC of Gender Equality in Education: Aptitude, Tpursue careers in maths and science even though they to tackle these statistics and move girls beyond than high-achieving boys. Given girls’ keen desire to Behaviour, Confidence, PISA, OECD Publishing. http://dx.doi. often outperform boys at school. the stereotypical framework. Indeed many Alliance succeed in school and to please others, their fear of org/10.1787/9789264229945-en THE ALLIANCE OF GIRLS SCHOOLS AUSTRALASIA VOLUME 54 / MAY 2015 achievements Gail has remained family-orientated, FROM THE EXECUTIVE OFFICER raising four children with her “fantastic husband” of A LIFE-CHANGING EXPERIENCE 37 years Alan, and dedicated her time and energy to serving the community. A passionate advocate ver the past seventeen years more than for education, equality and empowering people to 2000 young women have participated in the help themselves, she serves on the Prime Minister’s Indigenous Advisory Council and is CARE Australia’s Alliance’s student leadership conferences. Women’s Empowerment Ambassador. Their feedback echoes a recurring phrase – So, is Gail Kelly a superwoman? No — although ‘life-changing’. So just what is a life- being blessed with a fortunate physiology in needing Ochanging experience for a young woman about to enter only four hours sleep a night probably helps. Gail says her final year of secondary school as a school leader? that the “key to success is loving what you do and This is how one student described her experience. being pretty focused on what matters. You have to make choices with regard to your life and your career. This week has probably been one of the most I prioritise my whole life, not just my work life. There is incredible, life-changing experiences of my life. GAIL KELLY nothing more important to me than my family”. I have learnt so much and challenged myself further than I would have thought possible. At the FROM THE CLASSROOM TO THE Lamentably, women in leadership positions who start of the conference my goal was ‘To improve BOARDROOM have achieved and contributed as much as Gail are still my leadership skills and knowledge, experience very much in the minority in Australia. Women hold 19.3 per cent of board positions in ASX 200 companies (as a new environment, and meet new people with he Alliance profiles our Patron Gail Kelly, who similar interests from around the world’ and I think at 31 December 2014) and only a fraction — the figure I achieved all of these and more. retired as Westpac’s Chief Executive Officer in hovers around three per cent — of these companies February this year after 35 years in the banking have female CEOs. While these statistics remain The conference was definitely very challenging underwhelming, there is good news. The percentage and full on but I am so proud of the way that I, and industry. As a role model for professional of women on boards of ASX 200 companies and the every single girl, in our own ways, stepped up to success, champion for gender equality and proportion of women comprising new appointments has that challenge. I am honestly so grateful for the Tadvocate of workplace flexibility, Gail’s life-lessons increased significantly in the past five years, with the opportunity and to everyone that worked tirelessly will resonate for everyone endeavouring to “live a current figures being the highest ever (AICD, 2014). 6 to make it happen. These women all inspire me (ABOVE) 2015 STUDENT LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE, BOND UNIVERSITY whole life”. And she has sage advice for young women so much and I hope that they know just what a While the momentum for systemic change does difference they have made, not only to me, but contemplating their professional futures. seem to be gathering pace, what needs to be done 7 also to all 153 of us and everyone that we will hovering overhead, the girls were challenged to Gail Kelly’s first foray into the work force, as a to ensure a level playing field for our talented and meet and transform as a result throughout the create body words in the sand. Without a complaint or secondary-school Latin teacher in her native South ambitious girls? Gail offers practical strategies for rest of our lives. — Lorane Gaborit, Queenwood groan every girl literally threw herself into the sand – Africa, taught her a salutary lesson. “As much as I the way forward. “We spend a lot of time in Australia School for Girls, NSW. their exuberance and willingness to complete every loved teaching and I love education, I didn’t feel like I debating and talking about women on boards. It is The five-day residential conference, hosted by Bond challenge was quite breathtaking. was doing a good job. I lost confidence and ended up a very important debate. We need to have adequate feeling deeply unhappy. I recognised that I needed to representation of women on boards, because it tends to University on Queensland’s Gold Coast and facilitated Our theme this year was ‘Empower’ – the process of by yLead, featured team-building and character- make a change either in my attitude or in what I was be a pull-point through which everything else develops. becoming stronger and more confident. This message testing activities, inspirational guest speakers and doing. You owe it to yourself to love your work.” When I got to be a CEO I said: ‘Right. I’m now going was made tangible for the 150 student leaders who to tackle gender inequality head-on.

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