Principal’s Update | September, 2024

Principal’s Update

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Welcome to this end-of-Term newsletter, where we chronicle the events, celebrations and success of the last half of Term 3.

As we head into the Term 3 holidays, there is a sense of excitement and sadness as we prepare for the many ‘last times’ for our Year 12s. We trust that they have a balance of rest and study over this holiday period, so that they have the stamina to be in great shape for their final examinations, their Graduation and their final Presentation Night. We look forward to celebrating with them and their families across the course of Term 4.

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The Combined School Play: Much Ado About Nothing.

Congratulations to the 60 or so Mac.Rob and Melbourne High students, and the many staff who contributed to such a successful production of this year’s play. A particular note of gratitude goes to Mr. Edgar Wegner for his wonderful direction of all aspects. It was a truly spectacular performance, full of humour and mischief. The talent and commitment of all involved was truly stellar. Our Hall looked grand throughout the performance, with an extended stage, and with stunning backdrops projected via a (relatively new) LED screen. The performing arts at Mac.Rob are alive and well.

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Returning to Adelaide for the 2024 Prefects' Cup.

During August, 60 students and 8 staff flew to Adelaide for the first time since 2019 to continue the Annual Adelaide Exchange and Prefects' Cup. It was a wonderful few days of connection and relationship building, with our students' billetted with Adelaide High School families. There was of course, spirited competition over 12 events too.

While we did not return with the Cup, we had an incredibly good time, competed with commitment, and students' talents had the opportunity to shine. Well done to all, and thank you to Adelaide High School for being wonderful hosts.

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Exciting News: More Self-Funded Infrastructure Upgrades (Approx. $2,000,000).

The school has just been approved to upgrade two very important areas of the heritage Kingsway Building. Since our school population has grown to 1200, we are desperately short of science laboratories. What this means is that our Year 9 and 10 students are increasingly missing out on valuable practical skills. We are converting a ground floor classroom into a science lab to address this shortfall.

We are also creating a Student Wellbeing & Careers centre in the middle of the Kingsway Building. Both of these additions will be welcomed by our students and staff. We look forward to sharing concept plans of the upgrades in the near future. If you have capacity to contribute to the cost of these projects, all donations will be gratefully received to the Building Fund.

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Great progress for Learning @ Mac.Rob.

After significant work, consulting research and our school community, we have developed and launched a unique Mac.Rob Learner Model. The model is tailored to meet the needs of our students and families. It will provide a shared language for students, staff and parents/guardians and understanding to improve learning efficiency and effectiveness. You can access our work at the Mac.Rob Learner Model.

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Celebrating Mac.Pherson Robertson: Mac.Rob Week.

Our School Captain, Kathy Gu; Vice Captain, Maggie Umbach; our Middle School Captains, Claire Lee and Chloe Lim; and all of our 48 Connect Captains did a fabulous job of celebrating Mac.Rob Week last week. There was the online escape room, decorations on the overpass, Mac.Rob memes everywhere, activities during Connect classes, Freddo Frogs and Cherry Ripes, and a massive number of fun activities for all to enjoy on Friday. It was truly a great celebration of the connection and belonging at our school. We are incredibly grateful to our student leaders for their efforts.

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International Baccalaureate: “Metamorphosis” - Year 2 Art Show.

Again the Arts were on show in our Hall, when on Wednesday, September 4th, the IB Year 2 Art Show opened to the public. Our IB Visual Art students were required to do between 5 and 8 pieces (depending on their level) of art over the 2 years of their diploma. Not only are they required to produce art, but they are also required to exhibit it. They established the set up and curation of works for the exhibition.

A massive congratulations to all of the students, and their teacher, Sandra Tobias, and to Shungo Sawaki for his leadership of the IB program. The art show was about the metamorphosis of our talented young people into skilled young adults. It showed the transformative power of the process of creating art, the expression of ideas, of persistence and vulnerability and most importantly the creativity to generate something never before seen. Well done to one and all.

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Spring is in the air - Spring Concert.

In the second last week of Term, our Music Department held the Spring Concert, also in our Hall. This event also marks the last of the in-school concerts for this year’s Year 12s. Our Music Captains, Alex and Christine, did a fabulous job of hosting the evening. There were fifteen performances, ranging from a wind quintet right through to a 150 strong chorale performance. The evening culminated with a stunning performance of Rossano Galante’s Hypnotic Memories by the 75 strong Symphonic Wind Band.

Well done to all involved; your hard work, commitment, and your joyful performances were enjoyed by all in attendance.

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RUOK? Day.

It was a beautiful sunny spring day on Thursday, September 12th, when we celebrated RUOK? Day. The student leaders were running events all over the school – a mini concert on the deck, cultural dancing, making stress balls, a bake sale, decorating biscuits, a petting zoo and a tug of war. The whole school was a buzz with enjoyment and celebration.

So many staff and students wore a touch of yellow and the overpass was decorated beautifully. Well done to the Wellbeing and Engagement team, led by Dr. Bridget McPherson and to the wonderful student leaders who coordinated the event.

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2025 School Captains and SRC Co-Presidents.

We have been going through the rigorous process of selecting our 2025 Student Leaders. It has been delightful to be involved in the process from start to finish, seeing the commitment, passion and willingness to take on responsibility that so many of our students have shown through the process.

Book Week Parade.

Mac.Rob celebrated Book Week in style with a fabulous Book Week Parade, a guest author, a writing competition and a book mark competition. It was a wonderful week, celebrating and promoting a love of reading. The Executive Team led the way with the dress ups, coming as a childhood classic book, ‘Where’s the Green Sheep’ and our Library team, Oliver Jach and Talei Valucava went all out, dressed up as Sherlock Holmes and Snow White’s Evil Queen. Congratulations to our Middle School House Representatives for leading the parade. You can read more about Book Week activities here.

We end this term with the sensational House Dance Competition - the final House competition for the year.

Thank you to the school community for your many contributions and continued support across Term 3. We hope the break is restful for students and staff. There are many wonderful things to look forward to in Term 4.

Kind regards, 

Sue Harrap | Principal


Mac.Rob Learner Model | Principle Spotlight

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It’s been great to delve more deeply into the Mac.Rob Learner Model with our students this Term, as we’ve explored the first three Principles - “1. Wellbeing”, “2. Attend to New Inputs”, and “3. Explore & Expand Your Limits” - in our Connect classes. Next Term, we will explore Principles 4 and 5 in more detail.

Students are encouraged to draw on the strategies of the Learner Model as they prepare for their upcoming Term 4 exams. In particular, Principle 4: Higher Order Processing, highlights the idea that by putting effort into learning and practising, we can enhance our ability to retain and retrieve newly learnt concepts and skills.

Some strategies that students may like to use include: 

  • Making connections between concepts through techniques such as Mind Mapping, Cornell Notes, and Duel Coding.

  • Applying deliberate techniques to engage in critical thinking such as Evaluation Tables, and Socratic Questions.

  • Applying the information and skills you are learning to solve problems and find new, creative applications for your new abilities. 

  • Reflecting on your learning using summaries, and returning to rubrics to evaluate your areas for further growth.

  • Using Spaced Repetition: A technique that involves deliberately returning to revision at set intervals. 

  • Using Interleaving: A technique to deliberately introduce “desirable difficulties” into the retrieval process by studying in a different topics in a latticed way (rather than all in one chunk).

We hope that these strategies, and others outlined in the Learner Model can support our students as they prepare for their Term 4 exams.

Samuel Crocket | Assistant Principal


What’s On At Mac.Rob

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VCE Art & Design Exhibition: “WANDERLUST”

Students, families, and friends of Mac.Rob are warmly invited to support students of the VCE music, media, and visual arts programs at Mac.Rob. The exhibition is open to students and staff during school hours, and to the general public at the opening night gala on Tuesday, October 15th.

Join us for an inspiring journey of creativity at “WANDERLUST” - Mac.Rob’s annual VCE Art & Design Exhibition. Indulge your wanderlust as you explore a world of visual and auditory wonders devoted to the imagination.

Please join us at the gala for an evening of incredible art, music, and media as we celebrate the student work developed in 2024.

'WANDERLUST' | Opening Night Gala

Tuesday, October 15th | 5:00pm - 6:30pm
Held in the Mac.Rob Hall, Level 2, Kingsway Building

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This is a free event, but guests are asked to RSVP to assist us with catering. The Opening Night Gala will include speeches by school leaders, complimentary canapés, and the presentation of artwork prizes by special guest artist, Kay Abude.

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Presentation Night 2024 | Tuesday, November 26th

Families, friends, and graduates of Mac.Rob are warmly invited to join us for Presentation Night, our annual celebration of student achievements from across the school year! The evening will be held once again at the iconic Palais Theatre on Tuesday, November 26th, and feature musical performances, the presentation of academic awards, and our special guest alumna speaker, Jacqui Briggs Weatherill (CEO of Greater Dandenong City Council)! Tickets are now on sale, and available from TicketMaster.


Student Highlights

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Year 11 German Class Excursion

At the end of May, the Unit 1-2 German class took a journey to the Goethe Institute on St Kilda Road to learn about the history of Germany post World War II. The first part of the excursion involved participating in activities that allowed us to gain some insight about the divide of Germany into East and West Germany and the establishment of the Berlin Wall. After that, we were able to spend some time and dive deeper by visiting the exhibition, which allowed us to read and see pictures of the unique life of Germany in that time period. 

I would like to express my gratitude to Frau Hohmann for organising this excursion, as this was an excursion that broadened all of our knowledge on German history and culture. I would also like to thank the Goethe Institute for providing us with an exhibition that was so multifaceted. 

Ayanna S (11D)

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Goethe Poetry Competition at Monash University

In late August, ten Mac.Rob students participated in the annual Goethe Poetry Competition where students would recite a German poem from a selection of timeless poetry by Joseph von Eichendorff, Rainer Maria Rilke, Wilhelm Busch, Heinrich Heine, Friedrich Hölderlin, Else Lasker-Schüler and Friedrich Hebbel. Students prepared for their poems a month prior and during this time, they interpreted the text and memorised the poems by heart.

This year, Monash University hosted the competition for around a hundred students in Years 10-12 from Melbourne. Although we had slight trouble on our commute, we thankfully managed to arrive on time and before the provided baked goods vanished! Students would recite their poem to the assessor and as they decided the winners, we toured around the campus.

From Mac.Rob, Grace L (Year 11) and Jahziel S (Year 10) both won third prize. Overall, it was a wonderful opportunity and no matter the outcome, us improving our pronunciation, working together and growing closer as German students was the sole gift and was what made us winners.

Jahziel S (10D) and Quentin S (10D)

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Year 9 Geography Fieldwork

Our excursion to the Royal Botanic Gardens for the Biomes unit was a wonderful experience. The day’s clear weather was perfect for delving into the gardens’ diverse ecosystems, enhancing our understanding of geographical concepts.

The area was full of variations of different plants in their specific environments, and it was amazing to see. Walking through the gardens, we observed the diverse plant life and learned about their roles in local and global ecosystems. Exploring the different garden sections was extremely enjoyable, such as the Tropical Glasshouse and the Southern China collection each offering insights into plant adaptation.

The gardens’ design, featuring serene lakes and lush lawns, allowed us to learn more about different biomes while admiring the view of the area. Participating in a hands-on activity which was mapping out plant species and their habitats, reinforced our classroom learning in a practical setting.

Overall, the excursion was both educational and inspiring. It provided a tangible connection to our geography studies, deepening our understanding of plant life and the different environments of the world. I thoroughly enjoyed the experience at the Royal Botanic Gardens and I am sure others will agree. 

Saanvi S (9J)


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