Yearly Archives: 2011

This week International Women's Day was celebrated across many countries in the world marking 100 years of thought and action to address the inequities in the lives of so many women. As a result of a decision taken at the first international women's conference in 1910 in Copenhagen, more than one million women and men across several countries in Europe attended rallies in 1911 to focus attention on three key demands: the right of women to work; an end to discrimination in the workplace; the right to vote and to hold public office.

From the Dean of Co-Curriculum In her recent article ‘What do the Arts bring to Education’, Dr Jane Gooding-Brown, Visual Arts Coordinator at the Sydney Conservatorium High School, cites international research demonstrating that arts programmes teach a specific set of thinking skills that are rarely addressed elsewhere in the curriculum. These skills include visual-spatial abilities, reflection, self-criticism, and the willingness to experiment and learn from mistakes, all of which are vital to a wide range of career paths, but are largely ignored in standardised testing such as the Australian NAPLAN tests. In a similar vein, a recent article published in The Age by Richard Gill, notable Australian Music Educator, Director of Victorian Opera, and composer of the music for our own school song Nil Sine Labore, warns us to “wake up, Australia, or we’ll have a nation of unimaginative robots”. Gill believes that schools across the country are cutting back on arts education to devote more time…

It has been a torrid start to 2011 with floods, cyclones and humid weather but hopefully the start of secondary school has been a little breezier for our Year Eights. The sight of new Grammar girls with crisp white shirts, shining shoes and eager faces is always heart- warming and after three weeks that bright exterior may even be matched with a more confident interior. We should not underestimate however, the challenges that our Year Eights face as they embark upon the next phase of their educational journey.

From the Assistant Dean God be in my head, And in my understanding; God be in mine eyes, And in my looking; God be in my mouth And in my speaking; God be in my heart, And in my thinking. God be at mine end, And at my departing. Amen. This hymn was chosen to be sung at the Prefects’ Induction forty years ago in 1971 and at many other induction ceremonies that followed. This choice of music, often sung by a choir, highlights many significant qualities demanded of those in leadership roles: wisdom, integrity, empathy and open-mindedness. The 1971 Prefects also took a pledge to the School: I resolve to undertake the responsible duties of a Prefect, to uphold in every way the honour of the School, by my own actions to set a good example, and, to maintain the order and discipline of the School. This pledge was slightly shorter, but with similar intent, to…

The date of January 26 was chosen for Australia Day as a commemoration of the landing of the First Fleet in Port Jackson in 1788. However, in modern Australia, we take this time to reflect on some of the qualities that make our country such a special, wonderful place. And seldom has there been a greater demonstration than in these last few weeks, of the worst, and the very best, of Australia.