Newsletter Term 3, Week 2 22 July 2021

It’s all a question of imagination. Our responsibility begins with the power to imagine. It’s just as Yeats said: “In dreams begin responsibility” (Murakami, 2003). To be empathetic human beings and responsible citizens, it is critical that we imagine the experience of fellow human beings and are moved to action or intervention when required.

The circumstances of the past 18 months have had an impact on us all, but particularly young people as they navigate critical developmental periods of their lives. For adolescent girls in particular, relationships and friendship groups are central for them, and the dynamics that play out are complex and subtle. As we start off this term, I wanted to share the following thoughts in consideration of the role of the bystander in situations where decency is being tested.
 
We know that each individual is part of the School community and has a responsibility to contribute positively to the quality of social relationships operating in and around the core of School life. Here at Strathcona our values are: Respect, Integrity, Compassion, Courage, Empowerment. Because we are involved in one another’s lives we know that how we interrelate affects the quality of the overall environment, the culture if you like. However, it is unrealistic, in fact naïve, to expect that all the exchanges which occur in this intense matrix of interweaving relationships is going to be without complication, whether we are speaking of students or adults. Hence, we have policies and protocols, schools and workplaces in order to better understand and manage the difficulties which inevitably occur between people. 
 
In recent discussions, in order to promote a safe and positive environment, we have started to consider, not just on the role of ‘bully’ and ‘victim’, or who is at fault or who is not (and that is just about always more difficult to work out and murkier than it would seem) to that of the role and responsibility of the bystander. Bullies or groups mostly will only do what bystanders allow and if we can galvanize this bystander group, firstly to imagine how it might feel to be the person at the mercy of the bully/group, and then to take responsibility for some appropriate action, then we will be closer to developing young women with an inner moral compass and the strength to act on what they believe is wrong. For students who are themselves not confident or who fear putting their heads above the parapet, this is much easier said than done.

Two books I have read recently made me ponder the moral blankness of the participant bystander who witnesses events which are grave and extreme and yet who do nothing. In Kafka on the Shore, Murakami has his main character considering Adolf Eichmann whose job it was to design a final solution for the Jewish people – extermination – and how he investigated the best ways of actually carrying this out.

Eichmann studied how many Jews could be packed into each railway carriage, what percentage would die of natural causes while being transported, the minimum number of people needed to keep this operation going, the cheapest method of disposing of the dead bodies. Seated at his desk Eichmann pored over all these numbers. Once he put it into operation, everything went pretty much according to plan. By the end of the war some six million Jews had been disposed of. Strangely, he never seemed to feel any remorse. After the war on trial in Tel Aviv, behind bullet proof glass, Eichmann looked like he couldn’t for the life of him work out why he was being tried, or why the eyes of the world were upon him. He was just a technician, he insisted, who’d found the most efficient solution to the problem assigned him. 

In Joe Cinque’s Consolation, Helen Garner relates the true story of Anu Singh, who in 1997 devised a plan to murder Joe, her devoted boyfriend. Joe died after being administered a massive dose of rohypnol and heroin.  It took him all weekend to die.  Others – mostly middle-class Australian university students – knew of the plan and had in fact provided Singh with money, heroin, injecting lessons, dosage advice and had attended dinners at their home that week knowing what was planned. No one warned Joe. No one phoned the police. Even as he lay obviously dying, neither Singh nor her friend, Madhavi Rao, phoned an ambulance in time to save the life of this young man. They had succeeded in finding a solution to the problem they had assigned themselves: to kill Joe Cinque.  At her trial in 1990, Anu Singh was acquitted of murder but convicted of manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility. Her friend, Madhavi Rao, described by Garner as a “moral wraith”, was acquitted and now lives overseas.

Garner’s book probes the gap between ethics and the law. But most interesting for the purpose of this discussion, the notion of evil emerges as it explores conscience, culpability and the battered ideal of the duty of care one person holds to another. At a conference a while ago, I heard a definition of evil as an absence of something important – an absence of good, of thought, empathy, gratitude, generosity, forgiveness. (Symington, 2006). In extreme situations such as these, there seems to have been an inability of individuals to break the force field which had taken hold of the group. In her book, Garner poses this question of the judge at the sentencing of these women: Did he think of people as discreet bubbles floating past each other and sometimes colliding, or did he see them overlap, see into each other’s lives, penetrate the fabric of each other?  Where does one person’s influence end and another’s responsibility begin? Somehow, in the home, work and school cultures in which our girls watch and learn we must make it desirable - “cool”- if you like, not to ignore or “not see” mistreatment of others. We need them to speak up or show by their actions that they are not unwittingly part of a triadic dynamic of the bully, victim, bystander circle of power trading.

I remember years ago my then Year 10 daughter, who was studying Lord of the Flies for her Elective in English, drew me into a discussion regarding whether or not an ethical nature is inherent in mankind. This was at the same time I was managing a web of interpersonal mess and unkindness of students at School on the then new social media platform, MySpace, and it was complicated by the use of MSN, also then relatively new. William Golding, the author, seems to think an ethical nature is not inherent and his well-known book has come to symbolise this notion. He appears to be telling us that there is a certain capacity for evil in human beings and that morality or civility is superficial. It is this moral integrity that must prevail in order for a civil society to be maintained. Without this suppression of evil – an absence of the strength of goodness – society caves in on itself with people singling out other people - or other groups of people - to look down upon, or victimise in order to feel more powerful, dominate, be more secure or the most “cool”. My husband holds this view. His experience in Rwanda just after the genocide in the 1990s meant he saw the repercussions of an extreme breakdown in civility in an absence of moral authority. The result was people, including children, turn on each other with machetes resulting in millions dead. The scale and brutality of this mass murder was the stuff of nightmare.

It is important that the School and parents work together to instill in our young people a commitment to goodness - to trying to be the best that they – we all - can be. For our students, we need them to have the courage to stand up when they see things, particularly on social media or at social gatherings, that does not align with the values they have been taught at home and at School and their own developing moral compass. It is also important that we ourselves do our best to keep our standards for how we treat each other high, even as we all struggle with the context we are currently in. We have done incredibly well together thus far and hopefully everyone feels valued and cared for. Let us hang in there a bit longer and hold it together! Strathcona has a strong, constantly articulated moral authority and value set and that will hold us in good stead.

Take care, all.

Mrs Marise McConaghy, Principal

References:
Murakami, H, Kafka on the Shore, Vintage, 2003
Symington, N, Conference:  Narrative and Identity, Brisbane Psychoanalytic Centre, 2006
Garner, H, Joe Cinque’s Consolation, Picador, 2004
Tremlow, S, Conference:  Bullies are Everywhere:  Power Issues at Home, Work and School (Creating a Bully-free School Learning Environment) Introducing the concept of power struggles and psychoanalytic model for change, Melbourne, 2006

This principle was validated when we returned and observed children through the lens of research. Children are constantly engaged in making meaning of the world around them through play and exploration. They are intelligent thinkers with their own ideas, theories, and perspectives. As such, our learning environment is rich for learning in multiple ways and favours social interaction, exploration and learning where these understandings can be shared and questioned. Our role, as teachers and co-researchers, is to listen, be responsive, to record and document, support, validate, and celebrate the many ways of knowing.  

The intrigue or enthusiasm one child may notice or question, can become ‘contagious’ with other children in the class, and can develop to larger collaborative projects of research. For example, our younger learners in the 3-year-old group remain enchanted with the rainbows that appear in the classroom at certain times of the day. This relationship between light and rainbows provides an opportunity for the children to further explore and experiment many theories and possibilities in the coming weeks. A snail discovered in the garden this week has captured the interest of the children in the other 3-year-old class. Their habitat, movement and eating habits has led to many more questions yet to be researched.

In the 4-year-old groups, research continues in perspective: How do you draw someone sitting down? In engineering: How do you build something within another construction without it falling over?  Investigation into caring for our earth is continuing with children concerned about the amount of waste in the oceans. Where did it come from? How can we rectify this?  Where to next?   This has developed into a collaborative research project.

This is only a glimpse of the research happening within the ELC where teachers remain in constant dialogue with children’s curiosities and wonderings! 

Ms Jo Dowling, Director of ELC

I am pleased to say that most of our girls in Years 7-12 have done their best to accept this news and are navigating our Continuous Learning Program well. Our Wellbeing Team have begun doing check-ins with each and every girl across the Senior School. This is an important part of our pastoral approach, and I would like to encourage all parents to contact the relevant Head of House or Year Level Coordinator if your daughter or family needs further assistance during this time.

A huge thank you to all our families who are providing excellent support to both their daughter and our staff. I know that families are under significant pressure yet again and I want to reassure you that whatever you can do right now is enough. We are all doing our best.

Hoping for good news next week on a return to onsite learning.

Take care

Mrs Amber Sowden, Dean of Students and Head of Wellbeing

Some of the ways Strathcona can assist are:

Strathy Angels: Our wonderful parent community can assist with grocery shopping or perhaps in other ways if required. Please contact Community Relations, Amanda Orgill aorgill@strathcona.vic.edu.au

Pastoral Care: If you are struggling and would like someone to speak to, contact our Chaplain (and trained Counsellor) Rev Janet Costello jcostello@strathcona.vic.edu.au
 
Community Relations: Some of our alumnae, overseas families or single parent families may feel isolated through this restriction period. We can arrange casual conversations, cards of care from our students or just a phone call to check in. Please contact Community Relations and International Students Manager, Amanda Orgill aorgill@strathcona.vic.edu.au if you or someone you know may benefit from this contact.

We are a strong and connected community; the positives of the challenges we now face are the courage, connection, kindness and care we demonstrate to each other. I give my thanks to this incredible giving community. Please take care over the next few short weeks.

Warm regards 

Mrs Marise McConaghy, Principal

Our students have been encouraged through their Wellbeing classes, to explore a variety of actions such as making gifts for others, writing letters, reflecting on their experiences, giving compliment cards, and considering a variety of perspectives when participating in teambuilding activities. 

Koala Kids is an organisation whose motto is ‘we believe happy helps’. They are based in Hawthorn and have generously taken time to work with us to provide meaningful tasks for our students to complete in order to contribute to their services, despite the present covid restrictions and barriers of students connecting directly with children in hospitals. This has enriched their experience of service learning by making visible, the impact of their actions. The activities have brought many smiles throughout the process, and encouraged further acts of kindness and gratitude (several girls have opted to volunteer with Koala Kids later in the year). We are thrilled that their efforts have been well received, as many hands have made light work, having constructed up to 100 craft kits, sock bundles, IV clips and NAIDOC week kits. We look forward to seeing our students continue to contribute to the broader community, with both empathy and a spirit of giving. 

Ms Liesl Woods, Year 7 Coordinator

“The kits are absolutely fabulous!! The girls did a fantastic job with them, we are very impressed! As you can imagine we work with lots of different schools doing these types of activities and I must say these are some of the best kits we've had!”
- Jess, Koala Kids

A few weeks ago, Year 7 students were fortunate enough to have a visit from the mum of the Koala Kids Foundation Founder, Mandy Mandie. She explained to us how the Foundation began in 2005 when her son, Nick, a Year 7 student at the time, decided that he wanted to start a program with the money he had recently received at his Bar Mitzvah. His aim was to provide fun experiences for siblings of children with cancer. His idea rapidly grew into Koala Kids and was soon providing craft kits that included paper plates, coloured paper, pipe cleaners, glue, and other fun things to The Royal Children’s Hospital and the Monash Children’s Hospital. At first, Koala Kids operated as a program of the Children’s Cancer Foundation but now they are an independent Foundation. Today, Koala Kids is making an impact in the lives of more than 2000 children and young people, their families, and their healthcare teams whilst they are undergoing cancer treatment in Victoria.
 
- Erin Ellis, 7C Leader

These past few months, during Wellbeing classes we have been creating craft packages and packing gifts for sick children and their families, writing thank you cards to the healthcare workers and making creative IV clips for their rooms. I’m sure there are many more activities to come. Thank you to all the volunteers for making this program possible!

- Olivia Harris, 7C Leader

Gratitude Resources:

https://positivepsychology.com/benefits-gratitude-research-questions/
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2020/jun/21/smile-could-the-pandemic-lead-to-happier-times-laurie-santos-professor-of-happiness-yale

https://www.forbes.com/sites/amymorin/2014/11/23/7-scientifically-proven-benefits-of-gratitude-that-will-motivate-you-to-give-thanks-year-round/?sh=535d14d8183c

Our Saturday Netball teams have also been placed on hold, the season was set to return on the July 17, we are now hoping that it will resume on Saturday 31 July. We have a number of teams across all age groups who are sitting in strong positions in their divisions and are well placed to make finals. From our 24 teams, we have 12 sitting in the top five on the ladder in their age group and division.

While we are back to continuous online learning, all students are able to log into Teams and join in some online fitness session, the timetable is as below:

• Wednesday 21July - 3.30 - 4.00pm
• Thursday 22 July - 3.30 - 4.00pm
• Friday 23 July - 7.00am – 7.30am
• Monday 26 July – 7.00am – 7.30am
• Tuesday 27 July - 3.30- 4.00pm

We also have some fun fitness challenges the students are able to partake in for the chance to win a Rebel sports voucher! Click on the below images for the challenge info.

Ms Gayle Burgi, Sport Administrator and Netball Coordinator

Suggestions are welcome from staff, students, and parents in the community and if your suggestion is chosen you will win a pair of Pro Apple AirPods, valued at $304.00.

Some guidelines:
Keep it short and sharp!
The more symbolic of our school, and positive, the better!

Tips:

• You could use an acronym
• You make up an entirely new word
• You could have a brainstorm over the family dinner table and see what you come up with together!  

You can submit as many suggestions as you wish and all suggestions are welcome. The more suggestions the better!

To Enter: 

Place your suggestion in this online form by July 31: https://sb.strathcona.vic.edu.au/survey/intro/384  

Questions?

Email Mrs Newton cnewton@strathcona.vic.edu.au 

Items in this edition include:

• Dates to Diarise in Term 3
• Bond University – Open Day Experiences 2021
• RMIT Next Fest
• New Bachelor of Animation and Visual Effects at VU
• Career as an Air Traffic Controller
• News from Monash University
  o Engineering Accelerated Pathway
  o Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA)
  o The Monash Criminology Difference
  o Health and Physical Education at Monash
  o Resources on Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences
• Computer Science Degrees in Victoria in 2021
• Information Technology Degrees in Victoria in 2021
• Snapshot of Monash University in 2021

Please click here for this week's Career News. To visit the Careers page or view previous versions of Careers News click here.

It forces one to reflect on where we are at and the lives which are impacted by this pandemic. Last Friday, our Year 9 cohort transitioned seamlessly to online learning.  They did not all like it; in fact there was a great deal of frustration, sadness and apathy, however, students have been online, joining in and keeping up with their lessons. The Year 9 teacher feedback is positive and our absentee rates are extremely low. 

Pleasingly, start-up ecosystems can thrive in lockdowns, and Envision businesses are being shaped efficiently by our entrepreneurs. New vocabulary is quickly being acquired - mood boards, logos, customer personas and business model canvases are appearing in each business team's portfolio. Students are now referring to customer segments, value propositions and revenue streams. Already some of our 38 businesses have booked in to pitch their product for their $20 Seed Funding. I have included some samples of what the students are producing below.

Year 10 2022 Subject selection information has been distributed over the past few days by Ross Phillips. Being locked up together is a good time for conversations, importantly, there are no bad decisions to be made, as all available options have pathways to Year 12 success. The curriculum handbook is a wealth of information too. Please remember that selections are due by Monday 9 August.

I wish everyone well during this time of home isolation, for some it involves quarantining and uncertainty for 14 days.  Please reach out if you feel that your family needs further support or someone to chat to. 

Hopefully we are back at Tay Creggan very soon.

Mrs Karyn Murray, Head of Tay Creggan

Karyn Murray, Head of Tay Creggan: https://www.strathcona.vic.edu... 

Michelle Holding, Year 9 Wellbeing Leader: https://www.strathcona.vic.edu...

This year as part of our DigiTech lessons, students have learned how to behave online and how to balance their use of technology. A fantastic resource to reinforce these learned concepts can be found on the Cyber Safety website. I recommend spending time as a family to look at these resources together to support your child’s use of technology.

https://cybersafetyproject.com.au/families/

Mrs Eleni Kyritsis, Deputy Head of Junior School

Click on the below image to enlarge

Read the special report here.

The physical impact of the pandemic has mostly spared our young people, however as the nation remains to be on alert and in various stages of lockdown, restrictions continue to be mandated. The pandemic has had a great effect on our young people with many paying a heavy emotional and developmental price. Psychological disorders are on the rise and emergency interventions have skyrocketed.

As hard as it is being a young person today, it's also draining being the parent of one. It has been reported that many parents are struggling to keep their child's mental health afloat, often proving it is difficult to juggle parenting responsibilities whilst at the same time providing much-needed emotional support for their children.

SchoolTV is an online resource designed to empower you as parents with credible and sound information with realistic, practical ongoing support strategies. Click here to access the website.

Unfortunately due the Victorian lockdown Open House Melbourne has once again pivoted to an online event.

Please follow this link and enjoy Open House 2021 at Tay Creggan. 

Planning Liveable Cities event is tonight 5.30pm - 6.30pm. Register now! 

You are warmly invited to the Strathcona Centre Learning Futures event – Planning Liveable Cities.Hear about urban planning and the impact it has on lives now and into the future. Madison Robb and Yang Bai from Plan Melbourne will share about their careers in urban planning. We eagerly await their presentation where we will learn something that will have enormous impacts on our futures - the future of Melbourne.

Read more about our guest speakers below.

Madison Robb
Madison has over seven years' experience in urban planning, project management and Ministerial roles in State Government, delivering high-profile, large-scale planning and urban renewal projects, including Docklands and Fishermans Bend in Victoria and Perth City Link and Scarborough Beach in WA. Originally from Perth, Madison moved to Melbourne 4 years ago and took a short break from planning to explore cities as cabin crew for Virgin Australia, before COVID-19 hit the travel industry. Madison now works on delivering Plan Melbourne 2017-2050, the Victorian Government's strategy to guide the growth of Melbourne until 2050, including where people live and work and how we connect people to jobs and services.

Yang Bai
Yang Bai is a strategic planner working on the 20 minute neighbourhoods project in the Planning Department of Victoria. Her passion is in understanding the relationship between people and urban space, and also how we can create quality spaces. She is also interested in spatial data analysis and visualisation to facilitate communication and decision making. She was an engineer before moving to Melbourne to study Urban Planning. She is now also studying Urban Design.

Click here to register for this event.

Parents, caregivers and students are warmly invited to the Careers Nights for 2021. 
Hear from a panel of Alumni about life after Strathy and where their careers have taken them. Outstanding career stories from a range of industries including STEM, Law, Health and Business to name a few.

As we know career journeys are not always linear. There may be highs, challenges, and even changes of direction we do not anticipate. We are delighted to welcome these Alumnae to share with current students their insights and anecdotes into their chosen careers. 

This event will be held online at 7pm on Monday 2 August, Wednesday 4 August and Thursday 5 August. 

We look forward to you joining us for what will be an informative night.
Click on the below images to see the panellists for each night.

Families are invites to the Junior School Family Disco!

Saturday 28 August, 6.00pm - 9.00pm. 

Ticket prices:
Adult ticket: $35.00
Child ticket:$20.00

Cost includes dinner & drinks will be available at bar prices. Please let us know of any dietary requirements when purchasing your ticket. Please note that every child must be accompanied by an adult.

Click here to book in.

Tomorrow at 7.15am is Strathcona's Green Evolution Breakfast. We hope that you can join us for what is going to be a very informative event. 

Hear from our panel of experts about climate change and rising sea levels, and be inspired by stories of action from local sustainability heroes. Learn about Strathcona’s own "Green Evolution’’ and commitment to a better Earth for girls and families everywhere.

Click here to register for this event.

Dr Kathleen McInnes ('79) - CSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere 

Kathleen McInnes leads the Climate Extremes and Projections group of the Climate Science Centre in CSIRO's Ocean and Atmosphere business unit. Her work deals with how climate change will affect severe weather and coastal extreme sea levels through numerical modelling and climate model analysis with a focus on Australia and small islands. She has developed climate projections for impact and adaptation assessments to assist local government manage and adapt to climate change. Her contribution to this work was awarded Eureka award in 2003 and 2009. She has published over 200 refereed publications and other reports and articles and was a contributing author on the IPCC second, third, fourth and sixth assessment reports. She was a lead author on the IPCC Fifth assessment report chapter on Coastal Systems and Low-Lying Areas as well as a lead author on the IPCC Special Report on Managing the Risks of Extreme Events and Disasters to Advance Climate Change Adapation in 2012 and the IPCC Special Report on Oceans and Cryosphere in 2019. She currently serves as a co-chair of the World Climate Research Program Grand Challenge on Regional Sea Level Changes and Coastal Impacts. In 2017 she became a Fellow of the Australian Meteorological and Oceanographic Society and in 2020 she was awarded the CSIRO Medal for Lifetime Achievement.

Ninna K Larsen, Founder and Director - Reground

"Reground exists to help businesses help the environment and not let coffee, chaff or soft plastic waste end in landfill. Reground creates a community around waste resources to educate us all on how to make our future more sustainable.Reground changes our current waste disposal structure making it more resourceful for our pocket, people and planet.Reground exists to create positive change."Ninna is an expert in behavioural design, marrying her passion for sustainability and practicality to create real change in the waste and innovation space. She founded Reground in 2014 after experiencing the unnecessary coffee waste in Melbourne. Determined to see businesses stepping into the circular economy, she is creating a movement of businesses that puts impact over profit.

Matt Jones, Director - Mamachi

Matt owns and operates a number of Energy and Technology businesses and is driven to accelerate Australia's Energy and Carbon Transition. His passion and experience in Sustainability and Renewable Energy drives Matt to create impact and value for the Education Sector and other large organisations across the country. Through increasingly intelling and automated Building, Asset and Energy Management technologies Matt has delivered large scale programs and portfolio wide data management strategies nationally, achieving meaningful energy, emissions and building outcomes across most sectors.

Hollie Fields - Head of House, Strathcona Sustainability Team Leader

Hollie Fields has taught the Geography curriculum in schools across Victoria and Tasmania. She is committed to giving students on active role in sustainability education by providing them with knowledge and skills to foster change. Currently she teaches at Strathcona Girls Grammar where she leads the Senior curriculum for Geography (10-12). Alongside this, Hollie is a member of the School's sustainability committee, oversees the environment club and participates in the Boroondara Indigenous Network. Having presented at the Australian Geography Teachers Conference in 2019, Hollie engages with an Australia wide network of teachers to consider the best approaches for raising awareness for an ecological mindset. She believes everyone has a key role and that significant change is required to reduce the impacts of modern lifestyles on the natural environment. 

Unfortunately this event has been cancelled.