Billanook Bulletin Issue 15 | 17 September 2012
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BILLANOOK BULLETIN ISSUE 15 | 17 SEPTEMBER 2012 14 Jack and the Beanstalk Rehearsals IN THIS ISSUE Tournament of Minds Cuckoo Restaurant German Excursion Jack and the Beanstalk Resource Centre Latest Editions Prep-Year 2 Olympics Prep - Grade 2 Olympics Tournament of 12 Minds 6 www.billanook.vic.edu.au FROM THE PRINCIPAL’S DESK NEW SPORT UNIFORM Last week I unveiled to the College community our new Sports Uniform, which will be available for purchase from the beginning of Term 4 this year. The new uniform items were very well received and I look forward to them becoming part of the life of the College. CONTENTS Principal’s Piece ...........................2 Chaplain’s Message .....................4 Important Dates ............................5 College Notices ............................6 Tournament of Minds....................7 Performing Arts.............................8 iPAD RESEARCH Year 9 German..............................9 Year 7 English..............................10 Over the last month Mr Matt Wood (Leader Learning Innovation) and I have been speaking The Vine.......................................11 Early Learning Program...............12 with parents and students of the classes of Years 7, 8 and 9, 2013 about the iPad roll out Junior Learning Centre.........................13 Primary 3 -6...........................................14 that will take place at the end of this year. Friends of Round Square....................15 Community Noticeboard......................16 I spoke of the things that predicated this move by the College. First and foremost was the need to be able to demonstrate that introducing the iPads would have significant educational benefit. To that end, as a school, we have carried out a range of our own research and coupled the findings we have made with research that has been conducted in the wider domain. In the field of iPad research, I have asked Mr Wood to share with us his summary of the research findings, as follows: As more research into the benefits of iPad’s as an educational tool is published and made available, we are seeing themes similar to those found in the research from our own iPad trials. Common to this research is the emergence of themes such as Billanook College connectedness, engagement and student achievement. Listed below is a summary Phone: 9725 5388 of several key points outlined from several 1:1 iPad research studies conducted in Fax: 9725 8556 the UK, Norway and the US. [email protected] CONNECTEDNESS www.billanook.vic.edu.au The iPad helps students better connect with their peers, their teachers and the 197-199 Cardigan Road Mooroolbark, 3138 subject content at hand. It provides greater opportunities for students to collaborate, discover, externalise, consolidate and make conclusions about educational material. New ways of learning are engendered by the ‘any time anywhere’ access to information and learning tools. BILLANOOK BULLETIN ISSUE 15 | 17 SEPTEMBER 2012 | 2 FROM THE PRINCIPAL’S DESK ENGAGEMENT Collaborating with ones peers, problem solving and ultimately creating something to demonstrate ones capabilities or unique understanding is engaging. Students equipped with iPads show high levels of engagement throughout a range of learning experiences. The device enables them to face a problem and develop higher-order thinking skills from pursuing the solution. The iPad is also ideal for project-based learning and experimenting that resemble real world contexts. ACHIEVEMENT Students demonstrate a deeper understanding of the subject matter when they have access to an iPad for researching. It allows students to uncover the latest thinking and best practices in the area that they are studying – all at the tap of the screen. This also gives rise to the notion of secondary knowledge, the phenomenon of uncovering new information and resources; the source for future ideas and thinking. iPads provide a unique ability to have students create content in a mobile environment that otherwise would be extremely challenging or nearly impossible to achieve in a traditional classroom setting without these devices. They also enable students to provide tangible evidence of their learning CONTENTS journey, by having an electronic record that shows just how much they know and Principal’s Piece ............................2 have learnt about a topic. Chaplain’s Message ......................3 Important Dates .............................4 College Notices .............................5 Benefits in Use of iPad as an Educational Tool (UK) Tournament of Minds.....................6 Performing Arts..............................7 Year 9 German...............................8 http://www.emergingedtech.com/2012/07/study-finds-benefits-in-use- Year 7 English................................9 of-ipad-as-educational-tool/ The Vine.......................................10 Early Learning Program................11 Junior Learning Centre..........................12 iPad as a pedagogical device (Norway) Primary 3 -6............................................13 Community Noticeboard.......................14 http://framsikt.files.wordpress.com/2011/09/ipad-as-a-pedagogical- device.pdf For more information on the Billanook iPad Trials and other research information please refer to iPad Central on Billanook Connect. https://connect.billanook.vic.edu.au/mycollege/ipadcentral/Pages/ Background-and-Research.aspx WITHDRAWAL OF A STUDENT Billanook College Parents are reminded that the College policy regarding withdrawal of a student requires Phone: 9725 5388 notification in writing, directed to the Principal one term prior to departure. In the Fax: 9725 8556 absence of such notice, one term’s fee will be payable. If parents are considering [email protected] withdrawing a student at the end of the 2012 academic year, the final date and time for www.billanook.vic.edu.au official notification is Friday 21 September by 5 pm. 197-199 Cardigan Road Mooroolbark, 3138 Roger Oates Principal BILLANOOK BULLETIN ISSUE 15 | 17 SEPTEMBER 2012 | 3 CHAPLAIN’S MESSAGE “The creation of something new is not accomplished by the intellect, but by the play instinct acting from inner necessity. The creative mind plays with the objects it loves.” - Carl Gustav Jung Delighting in the Senior Production, observing rehearsals for the Year 7 & 8 Revue and marvelling at the capacity of Liz D to direct 4 year old ‘chickens’ for Jack and the Beanstalk, I got to thinking about the performing arts. I was one of those enigmatic PA and Sport kids, switching from one focus to the other as the day or the hour demanded. It was probably just Carl Jung says that the creative mind has an inner to keep me busy and out of trouble. Engagement in necessity, a drive to exercise and express our play the arts gave me an appreciation of the performance instinct. I wonder though, as we grow up, how much experience, of learning words and movement, of that is passed over for the more serious business shaping a character and being part of a team that of life, and at what cost? How much space in our day takes the audience out of the everyday and into an do we dedicate to play, to observing, holding, and irresistible story. Navigating my teens partly through relishing the ‘objects’ we love? How much poorer are the lens of performing arts allowed me to play with we as friends, lovers, parents and citizens because identity, to learn who I was by finding myself in a we forgo the creative space for a more measurable character, in a story not my own, however small the ‘productive’ way of filling every moment of the day? part. Prayer or meditation can be creative play space, time for hanging out and basking in the Big Love and letting that blessing infiltrate and inspire our other moments. How much space in the day of our children is allocated to play? I see students whose every waking moment and even some of their sleeping times are filled with activity - before school, after school, during school, at weekends and then the precious spaces in between filled with keeping up appearances on social media because no one wants to miss out on anything. Where’s the time to play, to exercise the creative mind, to find something new and wonderful, to relish our proximity to things, people, spaces and objects that we love? Paul Newman is quoted as saying; “To be an actor you have to be a child.” I’d like to suggest that it’s not only a prerequisite for an actor, but also to be a fully integrated human being, whatever age we are. These holidays might be a great time to rethink how we as parents, students, partners and members of community allow and honor the creative ‘play’ space. Who knows what creativity might burst forth. Look out Mr Cotton! Blessings for a safe holiday filled with creative spaces of playing with those you love. Rev. Jennie Gordon College Chaplain 0416 152 051 BILLANOOK BULLETIN ISSUE 15 | 17 SEPTEMBER 2012 | 4 IMPORTANT DATES Thursday 13 September – Tuesday 25 Year 7-9 ‘Beat a Retreat’ excursion, Pallotti September College, Millgrove Malaysian Cultural Language Tour Prep Health Checks 2012 Term Dates Reef n’ Rain Tour Wednesday 10 October Top End EXIT Tour Year 8 Da Vinci Academic Challenge, Term 3 Thursday 13 September – Thursday 4 Kingswood College October Thursday 11 October Monday 23 July – Friday 21 German Cultural Language Tour Year 10 Science excursion, Mission to Mars September Monday 17 September Friday 12 October Year 10 Landcare Activity in Yarra Valley Year 6 Graduation Photos Term 4 Region (8.30am-3.30pm) Year 5 Leadership