Weekly Newsletter #21 - 21 Jul 2021
Reflection
Mary of Magdala
This week the Church celebrates the feast of Mary Magdalene, a key follower of Jesus of whom everyone knows, but about whom people know very little. Mary Magdalene is often referred to as the Apostle to the Apostles due to her role as first witness to Jesus’s resurrection and herald to the frightened disciples of this great news. Women are scarcely named in the New Testament, and when they are they are usually named through their relationship to a husband or father. To be connected to the town of Magdala a significant first-century port centre of trade and commerce on the Sea of Galilee, suggests she was an independent woman of apparent means.
However, Mary has often been maligned throughout Church history due to the incorrect assertion that she was a prostitute, effectively silencing her voice and prominence in the Church. Reflective of the groundswell of support for similarly maligned women such as Brittany Higgins and Grace Tame, it is timely that we honour and celebrate this prophetic voice. The scripture scholar Elizabeth Johnson rightly situates Mary in the apostolic tradition:
The way we decide to tell her story can become an impetus for growing an understanding of possibilities for women in the church today. In rendering her visible, women also become visible. In reclaiming her, she reclaims women who witness to a God who calls forth life out of death. And for women and men alike, there are questions she asks that can frame our own lives and ministries: how do we continue her courageous solidarity with those who suffer, and her apostolic witness to new life?
May Mary of Magdala be our model of courage and faithful service to the Gospel. By her example, may we delight in the presence of Jesus and show through words and actions our joy in being able to say, “I have seen the Lord!”
From the Executive Director
I am very grateful for the way in which our schools switched to remote learning at such short notice; the announcement timing made it very difficult for all of us. As I have phoned around different schools across the diocese this week, it is clear to me that schools have handled the switch to remote learning very well. Looking after the wellbeing of our students, families and our staff is our highest priority during these lockdowns. Thanks for the work everyone does to ensure this occurs. As always please feel free to contact myself or one of my team if you require any specific information or advice.
Announcements
Appointment: Janette Trento – Psychologist Central Zone
We are delighted to be welcoming Janette Trento to the Wellbeing team as a part-time Psychologist commencing Term 4, 2021. Janette will be working 0.8 FTE from the Ballarat office. She is currently consulting for St Anne’s Primary School in Sunbury and working in private practice in Moonee Ponds. Janette has previously worked with the Department of Education and Training North Central Network.
Tom Sexton
Executive Director, Catholic Education Ballarat
Catholic Identity and Mission Updates
Reminder: Faith in the Future – Religious Education Leaders Conference Update
The final details for the Faith in the Future – Religious Education Leaders Conference are now available. The conference will be held on Thursday 19 and Friday 20 August in Ballarat, and will feature four keynote and workshop speakers:
- Rev Dr Kevin Lenehan – Master, Catholic Theological College
- Prof Mary Coloe pbvm – Professor, Yarra Theological Union (Biblical Studies)
- Dr Emmanuel Nathan – National Head of the School of Theology at the Faculty of Theology and Philosophy, Australian Catholic University
- Rev Andrew Hayes – Ararat and Stawell Parish Priest; Director and Deputy Chair of Diocese of Ballarat Catholic Education Limited (DOBCEL)
Registrations close next week on Tuesday 27 July – see further details here.
System Improvement Updates
Quality Initial Teacher Education Review Surveys
The Quality Initial Teacher Education Review is an an Australian Government initiative looking at:
- attracting and selecting high-quality candidates into the teaching profession
- preparing initial teacher education (ITE) students to be effective teachers.
Thank you to all who have engaged with the Review to date. You can still participate in the Review by responding to a short survey about initial teacher education. The two surveys available include:
- Survey for Year 11 and 12 students
This survey will help the Expert Panel better understand why young people choose (or choose not) to pursue a career as a teacher.
- Survey for anyone else interested in sharing their views and ideas
We are also inviting teachers and principals, current ITE students, early career teachers, those considering a career in teaching and anyone else interested in sharing their views and ideas to respond to a short survey about initial teacher education.
See further details about the review here.
Maggie Farrar Workshops
Country Education Partnership (CEP) and Victorian Principals Association (VPA) have partnered with international education expert Maggie Farrar to offer a series of workshops for individuals, schools and partnerships – and Schools in the Diocese of Ballarat have been invited to participate.
This series of three workshops will explore how you can cultivate resilience at individual, organisational and partnership levels and will provide you with practices and tools to be shared within your teams. See further details here.
Learning and Teaching
Invitation to be part of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children’s Day PowerPoint Presentation
As part of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children’s Day, the CECV Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Education Working Party are creating a PowerPoint Presentation that showcases the commitment of Victorian Catholic schools to promoting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children’s Day or Reconciliation.
This invitation is open to all schools regardless of whether they are participating in watching the Mass or have Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students. Due to time constraints, the Presentation will not be part of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children’s Day Mass but will be an additional resource that sits alongside the Mass and the launch of Opening the Doors Foundation’s new video promoting their 20th anniversary. The closing date is Thursday 29 July.
If you are interested in being part of the Presentation, please email the following to Jeanette Morris:
- your school logo
- one photo that exemplifies your school community’s commitment to promoting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children’s Day or Reconciliation (for example: a sacred space, students’ artwork, project work, Acknowledgement of Country poster/plaque, welcome sign in local Aboriginal language, printed copy of RAP, etc.).
PAT Assessments and Professional Learning
PAT Adaptive – official launch
The PAT Adaptive Reading and PAT Adaptive Maths assessments will be officially launched from Monday 19 July. Both assessments will be available within the ‘Store’ tab of each school’s online account.
PAT Data Explorer – PAT Maths sub-strand reporting
The PAT Maths item sub-strands have been updated within the PAT Data Explorer to provide more diagnostic information to teachers and to more closely match the existing PAT Maths achievement band descriptions and the PAT Teaching Resources Centre. PAT Maths items are now grouped in the online reports by the following strands and sub-strands:
- Number and algebra
- Whole number operations
- Fractions and decimals
- Money and financial mathematics
- Patterns and algebra
- Measurement and geometry
- Measurement
- Geometry
- Statistics and probability
- Statistics
- Probability
Semester 2 school support webinar calendar
Please find attached a copy of the Semester 2 school support webinar calendar for your reference. All school support webinars are free to register and recordings will be made available within the ‘Help’ tab of all schools’ OARS accounts.
ACER’s school engagement team is also hosting a number of ‘Understanding PAT’ workshops (face-to-face and online) throughout Semester 2.
ACER Global Academic Competition
Drawing on their expertise and experience in designing, developing and delivering international achievement studies, ACER has announced the launch of the ‘Global Academic Challenge’ next month.
The Global Academic Challenge is an internationally‐referenced, academic competition for Australian students in Reading, Mathematics and Science. In late August 2021, the competition will be offered for students in Year 4, Year 6 and Year 8. In designing the Global Academic Challenge, ACER utilised their extensive organizational expertise in developing assessments that assess the application of skills and knowledge to real life contexts, while remaining relevant to Australian curriculum.
A unique feature of this competition is that schools will be able to access instant reporting with international comparisons. The international comparisons are drawn from ACER International Schools Assessment (ISA) program that has been delivered annually since 2003 and has a typical participation of 400 schools across the world. Many of these schools follow the International Baccalaureate, English National Curriculum and US curricula (including schools based in the United States).
Four to six weeks following the Challenge competition days, schools and students will receive the competition results, detailing how each student performed in comparison to Australian peers. Medals and certificates of achievement will be awarded at this time as well.
The Global Academic Challenge costs $15 per student per learning area but ACER has offered a discount to Diocese of Ballarat schools. Any of our schools that register for the Global Academic Challenge and use the voucher code GAChallenge2021 will receive a 10% discount.
If you are interested in knowing more about the Global Academic Challenge please contact Dr Jarrod Hingston at ACER via jarrod.hingston@acer.org or 0439 979 446.
Business Services Updates
Camps, Sports and Excursions Fund
Please note that the Camps, Sports and Excursions Fund application deadline has been extended. Schools now have until Friday 13 August to submit CSEF applications.
We note from current information that many schools have significantly lower applications compared to last year.
Given the extended application deadline we ask that schools promote CSEF within their communities for families with a means-tested concession card.
Primary School GRG Grant Payments
This week, primary schools received their July instalment of Commonwealth recurrent grant funding. As previously communicated, system Fee and Levy costs based on the February census were deducted prior to distribution. A remittance detailing all deductions was forwarded to ensure correct coding within the general ledger.
Career Opportunities in the Diocesan Education Community
CEB Leadership Vacancy
- Education Consultant: Secondary Schools – to commence Term 1 January 2022 (closes 16 August)
Principal Vacancies
- Principal – Lumen Christi Primary School Delacombe, to commence Term 1 January 2022 (closes 16 August)
- Principal – St Joseph’s Primary School Penshurst, to commence Term 1 January 2022 (closes 16 August)
- Principal– St Mary’s Primary School Donald, to commence Term 1 January 2022 (closes 16 August)
School Vacancies
- Deputy Principal: Learning Diversity/Learning Enhancement – St Francis Xavier Primary School, Ballarat – 1.0 FTE (closes 23 July)
- Classroom Teacher – St Mary’s School, Swan Hill – fixed-term position at 0.2 FTE (closes 28 July)
- Music/Performing Arts Teacher – St Francis Xavier Primary School, Ballarat East – ongoing position at 0.8 FTE (closes 30 July)
- Casual Relief Teachers – St Columba’s School, Ballarat North (closes 31 July)
- Director of Library Services – Loreto College, Ballarat – ongoing position at 1.0 FTE (closes 2 August)
- Learning Diversity Leader – Loreto College, Ballarat – ongoing position at 1.0 FTE (closes 2 August)
- Religious Education Teacher – St Joseph’s College, Mildura – ongoing position at 1.0 FTE (closes 6 August)
- Classroom Teacher – St Francis Xavier Primary School, Ballarat East – ongoing position at 1.0 FTE (closes 6 August)
- Deputy Principal – Trinity College, Colac – ongoing position at 1.0 FTE (closes 16 August)
- Casual Relief Teachers – St Francis Xavier Primary School, Ballarat East (closes 10 December)
From Other Dioceses and Beyond
World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly – 25 July
The inaugural World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly will be commemorated on Sunday 25 July.
Pope Francis announced earlier this year that the day will be marked each year around the feast of Sts Joachim and Anne, the grandparents of Jesus. In his message for the World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly, with the theme “I am with you always”, Pope Francis said older people, even if “energy is running out”, have a “renewed vocation”.
Resources provided by Dicastery for the Laity, Family and Life to assist in the celebration of this day, are available from the Diocesan website and further information on World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly is available here.
Recruitment Opportunities in Other Dioceses
The following recruitment opportunities are currently available in other dioceses: