Newsletter Term 1, Week 6 10 Mar 2022

Closer to home we are still grappling with this stage of the pandemic. From running the School point of view, it is the most challenging phase yet in terms of logistics and the management of people. The government wants schools open and running fairly much as usual (and so do all of us). However, the reality is that we must also operate within their directives, so while trying to be ‘normal’ we are compelled to comply or find ourselves in breach of the law. As individuals in a democratic society we all hold our own views. It’s true infections are high and yet life continues as almost normal inferring pandemic days are over, and it feels surprising when all of a sudden in the middle of freedom and normality a government directive means we must go back to our homes to isolate.

I know people are tired after two years of loss, change, compliance, uncertainty, restraint and patience. This situation we are currently in, while better for us all particularly our young people, is better than a lockdown but it can be very frustrating. Camps are an example of that. Testing positive on Camp or having been in a cabin overnight with someone who tests positive means that under government guidelines those students have to be collected from Camp. I understand the inconvenience of this for parents and I also sympathise with the disappointment at what is lost. However, until the government changes the directive around this, the School has no choice. We wanted to proceed with Camps and we have; parents and students wanted us to do this too and those who are very anxious about COVID could self-select to opt out. So, we proceeded with the Year 7 Camp this week and from what I have heard, it was wonderful and the students absolutely loved it. However, out of a cohort of approximately 100, by today, under half will finish the day. But, we gave them the experience – even if only a few days!

We have yet to get to such events as the Head of Schoolgirls Rowing Regatta, the Year 12 Formal, the Musical etc. We do not know what directives will still be in place then and we do not know what the rates of infection will be. Managing the examination schedule is also challenging with so many students having to isolate at home while we also have students at School. The teachers continue with dual delivery, managing the confusion at the start of each lesson trying to ascertain who is physically present, who is sick, and who is online. The VCE students have not had the usual training face to face training and practice in how to navigate exams and nor have they matured into the stage of developing an older student relationship with their VCE teachers. VCE teachers are under pressure to cover content and get results and usually they can do this with an expectation that students have the maturity and confidence to ask questions, email them, ask for individual sessions etc. However, the way this is playing out post two years of lockdowns, it seems that a lack of the usual development of a different kind of relationship with teachers at this level has become obvious. Consequently, students can panic pre-exam, get anxious and the parent phones or emails – at the moment at a level that is ‘unprecedented’. This then takes the student - the learner - out of the equation, rattles even the most able, successful teacher, and does not lead to development of the student to be able to navigate working relationships and learn to solve their own problems and seek help for themselves. Again, this is understandable given the context we are in, but it is what we are working our way through.

It is also evident across the School that there is a high level of preoccupation from parents about what their children, whatever the age, have lost these last years. I think it is a real grieving. The students themselves seem more sanguine, but I suppose the perspective of parents is different and we always want our children to have the best in life. This focus is about not missing out on anything after two years of missing out on so much. This is so understandable, of course, and we are trying as hard as we can to do as much as we can – literally almost shoe-horning things into the crowded School calendar. But the School’s preoccupation is as much with the developmental catch up as with the experiences we can provide. This is intellectual, taxing and emotional work, which our teachers, who deeply understand their craft and the development of young people, can do. This catch up is in wellbeing (age-appropriate socialization, basic interpersonal courtesies and understanding others and civility) and learning (mostly how to conduct themselves in and out of classes for maximum learning and understanding, how to self-manage in the lead up to deadlines while managing the now active co-curricular program and renewed social lives, any academic gaps etc). This layer is in addition to the ‘normal’ work of running classes. For the students, this attention and, if you like, dual delivery (teaching for the now – 2022 - while also teaching to the gaps of two years – 2020 and 2021) is incredibly important.

Teachers came into this year the same way as everyone in the community having been through the same experiences. They too are parents and they have worked hard through it all, braved their own personal circumstances, and remained committed to their students. I worry now about the constant headlines of forthcoming teacher attrition, the ‘great resignation’ owing to exhaustion and then there are the headlines of a looming teacher shortage. Our Strathy teachers have thus far, remained resolute, but nonetheless I worry. Who will teach our kids and manage our schools if they are worn down and opt out?

It is International Women’s Day Week, not World Teachers’ Day, but I would like to salute our teachers and I would like to convey to you my deepest gratitude for the acts of kindness small and large you have extended to them. Whether it is a brief or long email of acknowledgement, care, empathy, and respect when navigating difficult conversations – your support seems to be helping our teachers hang in there and keep on giving, day after day. They know you are worried about your children – most have their own so they know the loss parents carry for what children have missed out on, and the frustrations felt. We will continue to work with you to make life as good as it can possibly be for these precious young people who will be the next generation. Our values of Respect, Integrity, Compassion, Courage and Empowerment served the Strathcona community well during those dark days of lockdown. Now as we embark on the next stage of the pandemic, steering through the high infections whilst balancing normality, let’s celebrate them again. 

Marise McConaghy, Principal

Good morning and I extend a very warm welcome to you all to this year’s celebration of International Women’s Day.

Just to frame up International Women’s Day, I want to point out the obvious: you all are in a girls’ schools and girls’ schools, by design, are committed to developing girls’ leadership, participation, confidence, voice, agency and the courage to step up, at this incredibly important formative period of your life. You can do this without the presence of the opposite gender, who themselves are also at a critical time developmentally. Girls leave girls’ school – generally - with the experience of leadership positions, playing sport without self-consciousness, debating, taking to the stage, participating in the Sciences and the more challenging Mathematics, and speaking up without being spoken over by louder, deeper voices and, while you are here at School, you are not subjected to ‘mansplaining’, boy-dominated classrooms or unwanted male sexual comments and innuendos. This is your normal – equality is a given. We love that this is kind of hard wired into you before you reach adulthood and you can take that mindset out into the world with an expectation that the ‘co-ed’ world should be the same.
However, as you know, in this wider world which inevitably you find yourself, things are not quite like that. This year’s International Women’s Day theme is #BreakTheBias. This has been chosen for a reason, of course. There is still a bias against women and inequality exists, far more than it should in this year 2022. We have come a long and we don’t want to be too pessimistic but I am not sure all those who fought before us and for us would be happy with the rate of change.

Here are some numbers that support this:

47,000 women and girls were killed by their male partners or family members in 2020.

2.7 billion women are legally restricted from having the same choice of jobs as men

14.2% is the size of Australia’s gender pay gap.

45 countries do not have specific laws against domestic violence

30% of women globally have experienced sexual or physical violence in their lifetimes.
Additionally, women are more likely to be employed in unstable casualized labour and experience economic hardship and poverty for all kinds of reasons.

You all come from a feminist school and I think most of you would have feminist mothers (even if some don’t like that word – they would believe that men and women are equal as human beings); your parents believe, invest in, and support your education as do, of course, your teachers. Make sure you continue to find out more about the feminist movement and the fight for gender equality. Read books by women from all walks of life, listen to the stories of women, get inspired by leading feminist scholars and activists, speak up when you see misogyny and be aware of your own rights as a woman in relationships and as a woman in a workplace. As your School Captains would say ‘lean in’ to understanding the issues women face, always look out for other women, find role models (male and female), and always help other women find their way. The sisterhood is real if you make it so. Take your place your place at the table so that you can help to...#BreakThe Bias.

Marise McConaghy, Principal

2000 hours, 84 days, or three and a half full months. On average, that is the time each one of you are going to spend on high school science. For that feat in itself, I think us ladies deserve a round of snaps.

So, you’re hanging out in our chemistry lab periodically, cell-abrating in the biology lab and some force seems to make you gravitate toward the physics lab. You know what? That makes you a heroine in my opinion. You’re truly punstoppable! You, the very girls in front of me, are the reason we are progressing with gender equality. You are the reason we can celebrate having more girls in STEM every year.

C’mon, give me some snaps for that!

STEM is important – it’s inbuilt into everything. It’s so crucial, it makes sure the tallest buildings don’t collapse, that cars don’t catch fire, that airplanes can land safely and most importantly, that my phone doesn’t lose its Wi-fi connection. Yes, I obviously have my priorities straight.

Today, we celebrate 28% of the STEM field – the field of future jobs and innovations and advancements - being embraced by women. Sure, we have a long way to go, but let us take this moment to appreciate the life-changing technologies invented by women in this past century. The fire escape, medical syringe, electric refrigerator, central heating, life raft, early wireless technology, bulletproof vest, space station batteries, and again, most importantly, the coffee machine were all the product of women’s bright minds. Where would we be without the coffee machine?! Snaps!

Maybe one day, one of you will remember your 2000 hours in high school science when you develop some grand new invention. You might become the next Marie Curie, Rosalind Franklin or Amelia Earhart. Whether you receive a Nobel Prize in science or are just in STEM for the interest of how our world works, know that you have made an impact towards gender equality.

Thank you.

Maha Thiagarajan, Year 12 

I can’t remember my first experience of gender bias, but I know I was desensitised from a young age as I never found it a shocking issue, more one that angered me.

However, an experience of prejudice that has stuck in my mind, surrounds my year six T20 cricket team. Throughout the competition, my girls’ team had been much more successful than our boys, despite our notable lack of experience. However, I remember the outrage I felt when my team found out that the boys were able to train on the oval, multiple times a week with our cricket coach, whereas the girls were shunned to the basketball court, where we attempted to bowl straight in amongst the Year 4s playing two square. We received a lack of attention and care not because the boys’ team was any better than us or needed more practice than us, but because they were perceived to be more worthwhile than us. Regardless of the disinterest we faced, we made it much further in the competition than the boys did, breaking down the bias.

A particular area where bias against women has always been obvious to me is within sport. The opinion that men’s sport is more important than women’s isn’t hard to miss. For me to access a netball court, Australia’s most popular women’s sport, I have to drive 35 minutes away, whereas, I can walk less than five minutes and have access to more than five football ovals. Even on a national stage, women’s sport is undermined. In 2016 the women’s league of the AFL was introduced, and even for me, someone who just figured out how many points each goal was worth, it was genuinely exciting to see women playing Australia’s biggest game. But that excitement was quickly spoiled when I found out that it was named AFL W, as if it was some tacky knockoff, a version that was just not as good because well they were women. But despite society's biases against female athletes, they are just as good as their male counterparts. Within AFLW’s last 2021 season 53,034 people attended the final after only six seasons. Serena Williams firmly holds the title for most grand slams won in tennis. The Head of the Schoolgirl’s regatta is annually the largest regatta in the southern hemisphere. Once again, women breaking down the bias

As us, as young women beginning to enter another stage of our lives, university, and the workforce, we are faced with a whole new range of biases. An experience of preconception from my sister stands out to me. She was in a university lecture, and the discussion was surrounding the inequality women face in politics. My sister was one of the few women present in the room and instead of listening to what some of the women had to say, the men in the room decided to mansplain it to them. They were obviously of the belief that they understood the issue better than actual women and had some sort of increased intelligence because they were men. However, if that increased intelligence had been correct maybe they would’ve known that my sister actually works for a female parliamentarian and has personal experience in the area, not just an opinion and an amplified sense of importance. Once again, women breaking biases.

I always count myself pretty lucky to have attended an all-girls school, because even though we would all likely survive in a class full of boys, at a girls' school we don’t have to fight for our validity as people. However, unfortunately, this experience free from males only lasted about three years until we were inevitably released back into the world of men, through the infamous ballroom dancing program. Surprisingly, in a patriarchy, the boys could only be avoided for so long and as I began to become friends with boys, I began to see how prejudiced their perceptions of women could be.
 
Whilst girls chatting through issues with their friends are considered gossiping, for boys its perceived as guys stepping out to comfort a friend, being vulnerable with their emotions. Girls taking an interest in their appearance or fashion is vain and self-centred, for boys it’s them breaking gender norms. Girls that are assertive and opinionated are called aggressive and hostile, boys who do the same however are told they are great leaders. The more I look, the more I see that things perceived as negative characteristics within women are no different from idolised traits in men.

No matter how hard women try to politely explain this concept, something is not clicking within the male population. Girls’ schools are still described as nasty environments, passionate women are still labelled as emotional. Sadly, like many women’s issues, this problem is predominately up to us to resolve. The only way to deconstruct gender bias, is to call it out, every, single, time. One harmless action is usually just the tip of the iceberg. So take the courage to call out prejudiced behaviour, don’t take it lying down.
 
If you create a culture between your guy friends that they can treat you like less because you accept it, they will and they will do it to other women too. If you aren’t condemning it, you are condoning it.

Furthermore, take the time to reflect on your own biases. I think it’s insane how often I hear girls my own age stating that gender-based issues are overblown and don’t impact greatly anymore. if even within our wealthy, educated and privileged corner of the world, women are having to go on strikes for their rights, imagine what it’s like for women in a developing country.

Gender bias isn’t just a women’s issue, it’s a human issue. It’s not overblown, nor overdramatic, its rational and its real, and it’s an issue that is up to us women to break down.

Thank you.

Lexie Patience, Year 12

Items in the Career News include:

• Career as a Telecommunications Engineer

• Bachelor of Health and Medical Science at Charles Sturt University

• Engineering (Honours) - Masters Accelerated Pathway at Monash University

• Career in Horticulture or Landscape Gardening

• Banking and Finance Degrees in Victoria in 2022

• Snapshot of Charles Sturt University (CSU) in 2022

On Monday, a day early, we were joined by Mrs McConaghy in our celebration of International Women’s Day. She challenged all of us to work towards gender equality and gave many daunting statistics about the number of women occupying senior positions in government and business. It was gratifying to hear students throughout the day discussing the Assembly and thinking about what differences they could make.
Our city excursion on Tuesday was the culmination of a group activity whereby students planned a city visitor tour and then led it. My group took me to a number of interesting places and we saw a great deal of post-covid street art. Bubble tea, cakes and donuts supplemented the weary travellers along their routes. Reflecting on the tour the following day, there was a sense of achievement and a growing feeling of community collaboration.

All week, our two PE teachers and Sports Captain Hannah Crow have been running a series of lunchtime activities for Health & PE Week.  Dodgeball has been the most popular choice, apart from on Wednesday when Narelle Cameron organised two ‘Bike & Blend’ bikes to pedal our way to smoothie goodness.

 Today, Narelle Cameron and her Food Tech skills group hosted a lovely afternoon tea for special friends in the Ballroom. Students had prepared a range of savoury and sweet treats to share and their visitors enjoy the afternoon immensely. I was proud of how the group hosted their family and friends and enjoyed watching each student carry out their task with diligence and initiative. I had the pleasure of watching the last 5 minutes of Ari Josefsberg-Blum's Media class this afternoon where he performed a song written for his students, as well as admiring our new Art display in the Atrium with a selection of silver jewelry. 

Aside from this, a number of students have competed in Swimming and Diving Competitions and our Rowers are busily preparing for the Head of Schoolgirls' Regatta, while maintaining their studies.

We are certainly very much looking forward to the long weekend – I hope that yours is a great one!

Karyn Murray, Head of Tay Creggan

Relax and enjoy an evening out with other Strathcona mums and caregivers. A great opportunity to meet our new mums and reconnect with others after a long two years.

$25 per person for finger food and drinks at bar prices.

We have reserved a large private area at the recently renovated Hawthorn Hotel.

The evening has been arranged by the Strathcona Family Association Mothers' subcommittee. 

The Hawthorn Hotel will require double vaccination status to enter the function and will require proof of your COVID-19 vaccination on arrival.

Tuesday March 17 2022. Click here to book.

Asha Rao will share with us her journey to becoming a mathematician. She has not always wanted to be a mathematician. Like many career journeys, hers has not been linear. Now she is a strong advocate for girls and women studying Mathematics and will talk of the benefits of doing so. She identifies one of the differences in workforce opportunities between men and women to be their achievements in mathematics at school and will share with us her efforts to break through this source of inequity. This presentation will be valuable to those who enjoy mathematical studies and those who question whether it is worth them taking mathematics subjects any longer than they are required to.

Indian-Australian Professor and Associate Dean, and former Interim Director of the Australian Mathematical Sciences Institute (AMSI), Prof. Asha Rao was inducted into the 2021 Victorian Honour Roll of Women in the Trailblazer category. She is passionate about mathematics and gender issues that stymie the progress of women and girls in STEM careers. As the founding chair of Women in Maths, Prof. Rao has put in place several initiatives to improve gender equity within the mathematical sciences in Australia.

You are warmly invited to Strathcona Girls Grammar Parent Seminar Series event on how to strengthen all children and teens against anxiety, and build courage and resilience with Psychologist, Karen Young.

What could our children do if they knew in their hearts they were brave enough? All children and teens are capable of their very own versions of greatness. For too many though, anxiety will shut down their capacity to discover their potential - but it doesn't have to be this way. This transformational session will provide the essential information and strategies to help all parents and carers support children and adolescents to build courage and resilience, uncover their strengths, and take anxiety back to small enough. We will discuss ways to nurture the skills and qualities that will strengthen all children for life. Participants will learn:

• a new, empowering way for children, teens, and adults to think about anxiety, and how to use this to manage anxiety;
• taking the 'anxiety out of anxiety';
• how to build courage, resilience, and confidence in children and teens with anxiety;
• proven, practical ways to calm and strengthen an anxious brain;
• the power of parents to move children towards brave behaviour, and how to do this when anxiety is in the way;
• how to respond to anxiety in the moment to make way for calm and courage;
• how children can switch on the relaxation response;
• the different ways anxiety can manifest, and what to do;
• how to build the mindset that will strengthen against anxiety and make way for brave behaviour;
• how to build the solid neural foundations of resilience in all children;
• why new behaviours take time, why old responses can feel tough to change, and the simple explanation for children and teens that can build resilience and grit.

Because we know our children are mighty. Now to make sure they know it too.

Our guest speaker for this Parent Seminar Series event is Karen Young. Karen has worked as a psychologist in private practice, and organisational and educational settings. She is now a sought-after speaker, educator, and consultant, both at home in Australia and overseas. Karen is the founder of ‘Hey Sigmund’, an internationally popular online resource that provides contemporary, research-driven information on anxiety and the neurodevelopment of children. She has written three books, including the bestselling ‘Hey Warrior’ and 'Hey Awesome', which creatively assist children to understand and manage anxiety.

We look forward to you joining us for this event.

Parents’ Night Out – Dancing Under the Stars 2
Saturday 26 March 2022

The Strathcona Family Association are delighted to invite parents to join them for a fun evening at Dancing Under the Stars 2. Last year's event was a huge success with parents enjoying an evening on the Deck socialising and dancing the night away.

Enjoy a complimentary drink on arrival and then drinks can be purchased at the bar. Bountiful finger food and a DJ to entertain you who will be happy to play your requests!

Blow the Covid cobwebs away and have a fabulous evening with other Strathcona parents!

Smart casual attire and only $45per person.

* Please note that parents must be double vaccinated to attend

You are warmly invited to this upcoming Parent Seminar Series Event. 

'Body image' has been named as one of the top concerns across adolescent age groups and genders consistently in a number of surveys and studies over the last decade. Far from being a superficial or harmless concern, body image worries can span across physical, mental and social aspects of health and life to have significant impacts on young people, their families and communities. Significantly, this topic has never been as important as has emerged over the last 2 years with the various challenges that have been presented to all of us. It's not unusual that we are concerned about our teen's body image, but we might be unsure what to do or say. Should we be concerned or not? What is 'normal' anyway?

The good news is that parents, families, schools and communities can play powerful and important roles in supporting young people to understand their own experiences and provide environments where they are more likely to take care of their bodies from a place of respect.

This Parent Seminar will be presented by Body Image specialist and Dietitian Fiona Sutherland and is for parents and caregivers who would like to understand how to support a body-positive environment at home. The aim will be for attendees to leave with a deeper understanding of how body image concerns show up, how to have constructive conversations and take timely action if/when needed.