LIBERATING EDUCATION 098 ST PATRICK’S COLLEGE STRATHFIELD LUMEN 2024 Reflecting on the 2024 academic year, both students and faculty members achieved much. Students delved into the prescribed NESA syllabus, expanded their historical knowledge, and further developed their historical skills and concepts. Faculty members, as lifelong learners, set professional development goals and worked to achieve them. They undertook educational short courses in areas such as artificial intelligence, universal design for learning, and mentorship. A key area of professional development is the analysis of HSC data to further inform our classroom practice. The 2023 HSC results were extremely pleasing. Our Legal Studies students achieved an exam mean 5.71% above the state mean, while our Ancient History candidates sat 8.76% above the state exam mean. Members of the Modern History cohort scored 5.05% above the state examination mean, and our History Extension students achieved marks 3.49% above the state examination mean. Following this, discussion and evaluation took place around the 2023 NESA Response Analysis Package. Essay performances, short answer responses, and source analysis interpretation results were carefully unpacked and assessed. This process ensures that student HSC results inform classroom teaching, assessment, and, importantly, student feedback. Beyond the regular classroom experience, students had the opportunity to mark significant historical events, such as Anzac Day and Remembrance Day. The extract below showcases Year 10 student Lachlan Wodson’s poignant annual Remembrance Day reflection. “Today, on the 11th hour on the 11th day of the 11th month, the guns fell silent along the Western Front. Following the abdication of the German Kaiser, an armistice was signed to cease all fighting on the Western Front. This bought disbelief to many soldiers, who thought the pause would be temporary, Colonel Percy Dobson wrote, ‘It was hard to believe the war was over. Everything was just the same, tired troops everywhere and cold drizzly winter weather – just the same as if the war was still on’. But it was not; fighting stopped, and the war was over. Whilst the allies had achieved victory, they did not celebrate, surrounded by the devastation they had faced and the thought of those not returning. It is for those that we remember today,”. Meanwhile, Year 12 Ancient and Modern History students attended the NSW History teacher’s Association HSC Study Days. Here, students revised content and evidence presented in class, and gained perspectives from experienced HSC exam writers and markers. They also were exposed to a range of source evidence, as presented by university academics. As the year draws to a close, I know we are all very fortunate to learn and teach in an environment such as St Patrick’s College Strathfield. HUMAN SOCIETY AND ITS ENVIRONMENT (HSIE) A Mr A Brennan Head of HSIE (A) Year 9 History Students Harrison Ticli, William Chen And Valentino Pagano Year 7 History Students
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