November 2012 – Brisbane Girls Grammar School

A Time of Hope

Post published:November 22, 2012

Mrs A Stubbington, Head of Hirschfeld House ‘At least half of what we call hope, I believe, is simply the sense that something can be done.’ Anna Funder (2011) One way or another we are all in transition at the end of another year. For all of us transition means, at the very least, a change of focus from one year to the next, a separation from people to whom we are attached, or perhaps, a reassessment of who we are and where we are. For each girl it means a step up to a new Year level or stepping out into the world, and for Brisbane Girls Grammar this year it means a transition from one Principal to another. In the life of the School this is indeed a major transition. Our appreciation goes to Dr Bell for her inspirational leadership during the past 11 years and our hopes go with her for her future.…

Unlocking the future with the keys to the past

Post published:November 15, 2012

Mrs H Boltman, Head of Gibson House The immortal words of the Beatles, ‘You say goodbye and I say hello’ speaks to the feeling of this week, the last week of School for our Year 12s. The girls have now come to the end of their time at Brisbane Girls Grammar. Those fresh-faced girls are now ready to leave us. They have grown and matured into fine young women, ready to face the world and take on the challenges of adulthood. As they take their first steps of independence, we need to look forward and see how we can support them in their futures. As teachers, we have spent many hours preparing them academically, and it is always interesting to note how much of our academic lessons the girls seem to remember years down the line, and how much of the person and the values they remember. I am not suggesting that the academics are…

Remembrance Day Address

Post published:November 8, 2012

Mrs M McConaghy – Deputy Principal In this time now, we are remembering – quite simply - those who made sacrifices for the good of humanity. I want to do this today through a story which is personal and I want you to make your own meaning. I particularly want you to consider how seemingly small, unknown people can be great in simple quiet ways. Last year, while on Long Service Leave, with some friends, we drove from Istanbul to Gallipoli and the site at Lone Pine where the ANZACs landed. We walked the beach, swam in the sea and walked around the graves of the Australian and the Turkish soldiers who had fallen. I did not know, but my brother – an historian – emailed to tell me about a relation of our family whose name is on the Lone Pine monument - Lance Corporal George Laurence Murphy. His story of heroism and complete sacrifice…

From Gutenberg to Google

Post published:November 2, 2012

Mrs M McConaghy, Deputy Principal The technological marvel that drove the first Renaissance was the mechanised phonetic script realised in the Gutenberg printing press. It allowed books to become available to those beyond the Latin-familiar, literate elite. Copies of the Bible and Latin and Greek Classics became available to a wider audience. Theoretically, a broader aspirational class, if not exactly the ‘common man,’ could read arguments and ideas personally and draw personal, rather than officially mediated, conclusions. Today’s nearest exemplar of a comparably revolutionary phenomenon is the Internet. This digital Gutenberg has rendered access to voluminous information and global communications instant — and has done so with more democratic universality than the original. Canadian futurist Donald Tapscott coined the term “disintermediation” in the mid 1990s to describe how new technologies facilitate direct access to the sources of information, services or goods in the same way Gutenberg’s press allowed the ‘masses’ to access scholarly ideas. Tapscott’s ponderous…