‘Happy the merciful: they shall have mercy shown to them’ Matthew 5:7
From The Principal
The importance of praising effort
As you would be aware, the teaching staff have developed a common focus for 2018 to help all our students to develop their skills as thinkers and problem solvers. We have adopted the ‘Habits of Mind’ and ‘Thinking Routines’ as tools to develop in students a deeper understanding of the process of learning and to grow their capacity as thinkers. A fundamental principle underpinning the approach is that everyone has the ability to grow and develop their intellectual and cognitive capacity. We call this a ‘Growth Mindset’. Psychologist Professor Carol Dweck from Stanford University, is a pioneer and world acclaimed researcher in providing evidence about the flexibility of the human mind and how we can all continually improve our capacity as learners and thinkers.
One of her key pieces of research highlights the significance of praising effort rather than achievement and the impact that such an approach has on students. Her studies highlighted that using praise that focused on effort and the process of learning, rather than the outcome, created better learners who achieved more of their potential. Praise focused on effort created an understanding in learners that:
- success in learning comes from hard work
- making mistakes is an important part of learning
- persistence is a core component of learning new concept
- The ‘struggle’ associated with learning is important in the process of mastery
- Taking on a challenge is the fun part of learning
She highlighted the fact that all of the great achievements in human history were made by people that worked incredibly hard, made lots of mistakes, failed many time but persisted and eventually achieved.
Her studies found that praise centred on results (Well done you scored perfect marks!) or ability (Well done you must be really good at maths) created a fear of failure, identified having to work hard to solve problems as a weakness and that learning is only difficult if you are not smart. The high expectations of success impacted negatively on their desire to take risks as a learner and therefore they achieved less of their potential.
Her advice to parents and teachers was to applaud hard work, celebrate effort, encourage students to struggle and work with difficult challenges and to acknowledge mistakes and failure as the first step towards learning and understanding.
Some tips for talking to children about learning
- Ask about the process they used to develop a project
- Praise the strategy used to tackle a problem
- Acknowledge the effort they put into an assignment
- Encourage them to keep working at something they haven’t mastered yet. Professor Dwerk spoke a lot about using the word ‘yet’ as it suggest possibilities and potential.
- Congratulate their persistence
- Talk about what they have learned from their mistakes
Praising effort and valuing the processes of learning creates a love of learning and individuals who love learning achieve more of their potential.
To assist Year 6 students with the very significant process of transition from Primary to Secondary School the College has organised a Year 7 2019 Secondary School Experience Day on Wednesday 28 March. The aim of the day is to give students a taste of some of the specialty subject areas and experiences that are unique to Secondary School as well as to experience the different structure of daily life in the Secondary School. This is the first of four days that take place throughout the year as part of our Transition Program. Enrolment demand is incredibly high and places for Year 7, 2019 are very limited. If you do know of any families with students in Year 6 at other schools who may be considering joining EAC please encourage them to make contact with Mrs Kate Jenkins, via the College office.
Please keep Year 12 in our thoughts over the next two weeks as they prepare for and then complete their Mid Course Examinations. These is a very significant assessment period in their HSC preparations and so we ask for God to be with them and that they will be able to remain focused and keep their stress levels at a manageable level.
Mr Robert Tobias
Principal
Off the Deputy's Desk
The fifth "Habit of Mind" is metacognition.
Metacognition means thinking about your thinking. In short terms, metacognition is to know your knowing. It means that you are aware of your own thoughts, strategies, feelings and actions and their effects on others. In other words, metacognition is the ability to reflect upon your learning, decisions and see the ramifications of this reflection. The following information taken from Art Costa’s 2008 work about The Habits of Mind expands our knowledge of metacognition.
The human species is known as Homo sapiens sapiens, which basically means "a being that knows their knowing" (or maybe it's "knows they're knowing"). What distinguishes humans from other forms of life is our capacity for metacognition—the ability to stand off and examine our own thoughts while we engage in them.
Occurring in the neocortex, metacognition, or thinking about thinking, is our ability to know what we know and what we don't know. It is our ability to plan a strategy for producing the information that is needed, to be conscious of our own steps and strategies during the act of problem solving, and to reflect on and evaluate the productiveness of our own thinking. Although inner language, thought to be a prerequisite for metacognition, begins in most children around age 5, metacognition is a key attribute of formal thought flowering at about age 11.
The major components of metacognition are, when confronted with a problem to solve, developing a plan of action, maintaining that plan in mind over a period of time, and then reflecting on and evaluating the plan upon its completion. Planning a strategy before embarking on a course of action helps us keep track of the steps in the sequence of planned behavior at the conscious awareness level for the duration of the activity perceptions, decisions, and behaviors reflecting upon the strategy to evaluate its effectiveness in producing the desired student outcomes.
Intelligent people plan for, reflect on, and evaluate the quality of their own thinking skills and strategies. Metacognition means becoming increasingly aware of one's actions and the effect of those actions on others and on the environment; forming internal questions in the search for information and meaning; developing mental maps or plans of action; mentally rehearsing before a performance; monitoring plans as they are employed (being conscious of the need for midcourse correction if the plan is not meeting expectations); reflecting on the completed plan for self-evaluation; and editing mental pictures for improved performance. (Costa, 2008)
This week is important for our Year 12 students as they prepare for their Mid-Course examinations which are taking place next week. We wish them every success and pray that may manage the stress associated with these exams in a manageable and positive manner. They are a great group of young people and I look forward to seeing them produce their best possible work in the upcoming exam block.
Mr Darren Parks
Deputy Principal
Upcoming Events
Sports Update
NCIS Football (Soccer) Championships
Overall Results were
Our Primary Girls were Champions for the fourth year in a row! These girls went through the tournament undefeated, beating Lindisfarne in the final. Well done girls and super coach Mrs Kent.
The Primary Boys were Runners Up. The Primary Boys played exceptionally on the day. After a very tough and tight final they drew 1-1 with Bishop Druitt. After a count back Bishop Druitt were awarded the championhsip on overall goal difference.
The Under 15 Girls were placed third. The Under 15 Girls played strongly all day and narrowly missed a chance to play in the grand final. They had great teamwork on the day.
The Under 15 Boys were placed third. Playing in a very tough compeition this year the under 15 boys went very close to winning overall. They were knocked out in the semi finals by the eventual winners Bishop Druitt. After a 1-1 draw this game was again decided by a count back.
The Open Girls were placed fourth: Well done to our Open Girls who played hard all day in a tough competition reaching the semi final level.
The Open Boys were placed fifth: While finishing 5th our Open Boys performed well only losing one game during the tournament. All other games being wins or draws.
Thank to our staff who went away with the teams and coached in the lead up: Mr Brenton, Mrs Kent, Mrs McLelland, Mrs Wilson and coach Mr Taylor. These staff did a great job, I genuinely appreciate your time, effort and enthusiasm.
NCIS Football Team Selections
- Jack Whitaker
- Kalani Franklin
- Cooper Keane
- Cooper Lamb
- Joshua Mumford
- Lachlan Mumford
- Emily Whiltshire
- Erica Truman
Drama News
EAC’s Inaugural Shakespeare Carnival
Tread the boards with the Bard
Two years ago, Sydney based Sport for Jove Theatre realised that every school in NSW has a swimming carnival and an athletics carnival. So they thought – "we should have an arts carnival too!" And so, the Shakespeare Carnival came into being.
It's like a swimming carnival, but for the arts, creating an opportunity for students to act, dance, make music or a short film.
The Shakespeare Carnival is a state-wide educational event that gives students a great chance to develop literacy, critical thinking, collaborative skills and confidence in a way that only the arts can. In 2017 there were over 1000 participants and Regional Carnivals staged in Albury, Armidale, Wollongong, Newcastle and Sydney.
This competition is open to any student in the Secondary School to enter whether they do Drama or not. The school will host the EAC Carnival early in May. The winners from that will go onto the Regional Final and then hopefully the State Final!
Some of the potential prizes include: Workshops at NIDA, Workshops at Sydney Dance Company, Opportunities to compose and make a short film as part of a Sport for Jove production - and even more to come!
For further information and Carnival guidelines see Ms Brown.
Be part of the fun!
Eva Brown
Drama Teacher
Debating
Debating Report (Round One)
Exciting chatter filled the air as we boarded the bus for Bishop Druitt College, Coffs Harbour to compete in the first round of the HICES debating competition. Glad to survive the journey, we enjoyed our lunch and moved to designated rooms to do battle. Butterflies filled our stomachs as we nervously shuffled our pencils, paper and palm cards into position. First point, second point, rebuttal, rebuttal, rebuttal as we attacked the opposing teams with fact, fiction and at times, fantasy. By the end of the day both very talented Year 6 teams rightfully claimed victory.
In other areas of Bishop Druitt the older students from Years 7 -11 were preparing their debates as they only get 1 hour to prepare their arguments. The Senior team (Years 9-10) won both of their debates, and the Intermediate team (Years 7- 8) won their second debate. The Open team were able to have two practice debates and learned a great dealing about the lively art of debating!
Very proud of what we had achieved we enjoyed a well deserved hot meal before wearily climbing aboard the bus for the return journey, entertained only by i-pad games, silly songs and rap battles. The experience was loads of fun and as the bus rolled to a stop, and we stepped out into the fresh evening air of the EAC carpark to welcoming parents, a wonderful sense of satisfaction filled our souls in knowing that we had done our school proud.
Thank you to the teachers Ms McLintock, Ms Regan and Mr McCotter for organising the competition and coaching us in the finer skills of debating. ‘The pen is still more powerful than the sword’.
We all look forward to the next round in May.
By Marlie, Zoe and Alexander (with a little addition from Ms McLintock)
Junior Team
Alexander Keir
Marlie Koenen
Zoe Marr
Ava Moon
Sofia Rezai-Smyth
Asia Windeyer
Intermediate Team
Eliza Grosser
Ava Maddock
Finley Parker
Luca Wagner
Senior Team
Imogen Hughes
Darcy Kingston
Caitlyn Seamer
Francois van Kempen
Open Team
Georgina Legg-Bagg
John Murtagh
Collaborative Book Project
Confirmation at EAC
What is Confirmation:
In the Anglican Church, Confirmation is an opportunity for people to confirm for themselves the promises made on their behalf at their Baptism.
Those seeking to be Confirmed participate in a time of preparation; a refresher course in what it means to be a Christian, and what promises were made for them at the time of their Baptism. It is a time for growing in faith, and learning more about themselves.
CONFIRMATION AT EAC:
We will be holding a service of Confirmation here at EAC on Saturday 28th May, 2018 at 10am.
Interested? Please contact Rev Sal as soon as possible – Preparation starts 26th March.
Canteen
EAC Canteen operates 4 days a week: Monday, Wednesday, Thursday & Friday, with special lunches on Tuesdays, canteen is open on Tuesdays for general sales at LUNCH only.
Hot Cross Buns now available $2
Traditional and Chocolate Chip
Canteen opens at 8.30am and the Menu is available here:
Sushi Dates: April 3*
Noodle Box Dates: March 27
Subway Date: April 10
Sushi – Tuesday 20 March
Sushi from IGA will be available from the canteen next Tuesday 20 March. If you would like to order Sushi for your child’s lunch next Tuesday please complete the order form then attach your order to a paper bag with your payment enclosed. This should then be put in the canteen basket on Monday morning, 19 March.
Order forms will be sent home but are also available at the canteen, office or online.
PRIMARY LUNCH ORDERS
Please place the money in a paper bag of sufficient size to fit all of the lunch items. If you are ordering a drink with your child’s lunch please provide two (2) bags. Please remind your child to place their lunch/recess bag in the class tub NOT directly to the canteen.
PLEASE DO NOT STAPLE / TAPE BAGS CLOSED, FOLDED IN 4 APPEARS TO WORK WELL
BAG 1: Name, Class, Teacher, Lunch Order (John Smith, 5A, Mr Falvey, 1 Junior Pie)
BAG 2: Name, Class, Drink/Cold Order (John Smith, 5A, Mr Falvey, 1 Orange Juice)
Any change required will be placed in the bag for return with the child’s lunch order.
Christine Hall
Canteen Supervisor
0414 811 668
Can you help in the canteen?
Community News
Ballina Cross Country Running Club
Distances: 1km, 3km, 6km
Ballina Coastcare (http://www.ballinacoastcare.
All EAC students and parents are welcome to attend. This Community Service program counts towards your Lighthouse hours, and can also be used for the Duke of Edinborough Award.
If you're interested in getting involved, please contact Roy at flavel@hotmail.com or 0403 989 584. The next session is Sunday 8th April.
