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With only a month until the first written HSC exams, Year 12 students have an extra place to look for support.

Year 12 and the HSC can be a stressful time, and this year’s students have already overcome bushfires, floods and the COVID-19 pandemic.

The department has brought together new and updated tools to help HSC students stay healthy, active and connected as they finish their final weeks of school.

Stay healthy HSC includes:

• advice about looking after your own mental health and checking in on friends from ReachOut.com
• exam tips from the NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA)
• on-demand video lessons, written by teachers, to help with study.

Visit Stay healthy HSC to explore the resources.

The semifinalist teams for the virtual Game Changer Challenge 2020 have been announced.

From all corners of NSW 420 students will use their design thinking skills to explore tangible solutions for a real world wicked problem in the 2020 Game Changer Challenge.

Hundreds of applications from NSW public schools were received for the Game Changer Challenge, which this year will be delivered as a colossal virtual event with seven semifinals culminating in a grand final.

The 84 primary and secondary student teams will aim to solve the real world problem: “How might we use technology to bring everyone in our community closer together?”

The student applications covered COVID-19 restrictions, including innovative ways to social distance and sanitise, cutting-edge technology like aerial transport systems, and new ways to ease social isolation, combat racism and build community for people with disability.

Department of Education Secretary Mark Scott said today’s students will solve the great challenges of the future.

“To flourish in this world they will need to be deep thinkers, critical and reflective, empathetic and creative,” he said.

“The Game Changer Challenge aims to highlight and develop these future-focused skills.”

The 84 student teams were judged into the semifinals by a panel of Department of Education executives and design thinking and STEM advisers. The judges were looking for the design thinking trifecta of desirability, feasibility and viability in the students’ applications.

Design thinking is a human-centred approach to solving complex problems, with empathy and collaboration at the heart of the process.

The teams selected for the 2020 Game Changer Challenge will attend an intensive workshop in the semifinals from 27 October to 13 November where they will learn and apply the design thinking process to build on their video application.

They will be guided through the process by expert facilitators and a series of videos produced with thought leaders in technology and innovation.

The winners of the seven semi-finals will be judged in a virtual grand final event for the title of 2020 Game Changer Challenge Champion on 1 December.

Visit the Game Changer Challenge webpage for the full list of semifinalists.

Relive memorable acts and performances from the past four years in a special televised Schools Spectacular event.

The annual Schools Spectacular, cancelled this year due to the pandemic, will entertain audiences with a special television broadcast next week.

The Schools Spectacular 2020 Remixed will air on Channel 7 on Saturday 5 December at 7pm.

The two-hour broadcast will feature memorable acts and spectacular moments from the past four years.

The show will also feature a surprise digital performance from this year’s graduating Class of 2020 with the Year 12 students sharing their passion and talents while celebrating with NSW Education for one last time.

This technical feat aims to inspire audiences as more than 70 dancers, singers, instrumental musicians and signing performers from across NSW assemble virtually for the performance.

Mark Scott, Secretary of the NSW Department of Education, said this event is an opportunity to revisit memories of past performances and celebrate the talents of students in NSW public schools.

“Schools Spectacular 2020 Remixed will be an extraordinary broadcast and a unique opportunity to look back at some of the many achievements of our talented performing arts students and their hard working and committed teachers from the past four years,” he said.

Audiences can also share their own memories and see highlights from past Schools Spectacular performances on the Schools Spectacular Facebook page.

Schools Spectacular Remixed 2020 is produced by the NSW Department of Education and proudly supported by Presenting Partners, Telstra and the NSW Teachers Federation, and Segment Partner, RØDE Microphones.

Celebrate Schools Spectacular 2020 Remixed on Saturday 5 December at 7pm                    on Channel 7.

 

 

Public school students have again dominated the HSC honours securing 71 of the 126 First in Course awards announced today.

Among the high achievers, Sariena Ye from James Ruse Agricultural High School became only the fourth person since 1991 to secure first place in both Chemistry and Physics – and the first female in 27 years to top both subjects.

NSW Education Secretary Mark Scott congratulated the winners and also paid tribute to every student that had completed their HSC in 2020.

“Those students who received a First in Course – and their families – should be rightly proud of their achievements,” Mr Scott said.

“Considering the particular challenges of 2020, we are extremely proud of every student that has shown the determination and resilience to achieve their best and finish their HSC.

“They now leave school with the skills to embark upon a successful life, no matter what they choose next.”

Public school students secured First in Course across a range of subject areas including, among others, three of the five mathematics and English courses, chemistry and physics, science extension, Aboriginal studies, economics, ancient history, languages and visual arts.

Mr Scott said the diversity of subjects topped by public school students showed NSW Education was committed to quality education across all fields of endeavour.

“Our success in the HSC is also a tribute to the quality of teaching and dedication of staff in supporting our students during their final year of schooling.”

The First in Course winners this year came from a wider selection of schools with James Ruse Agricultural High School the most successful school overall, securing six First in Course positions.

Be prepared for the new school year with our back to school tips and tools.  

The start of a new school year can be both an exciting and demanding time for parents and students alike.

Our parents and carers Back to school hub can help you prepare for the year ahead with practical articles, tools, activities, calendars and checklists so you and your child can be ready from day 1, term 1. 

Find out about what your child will learn in high school, how to support their health and wellbeing, and help them make decisions about their future.

There’s also a dedicated section for students starting Year 7 and Year 11 & 12 where you’ll find tips for a smooth transition into high school, and pathways for students after school.

Video – #FirstDay2021

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Registrations for the Game Changer Challenge close on Friday, 23 April.

The Game Changer Challenge is back and reinvented for 2021. 

Open to all NSW public schools, the Game Changer Challenge is a student-led, dual-stream design thinking challenge that asks students to tackle real-world problems and explore innovative solutions.

The Game Changer Challenge is a valuable learning opportunity for schools and their students.

This year students will choose to become either a Game Changer or Social Changemaker. They can expect to develop future-focused skills, learn important design thinking processes, engage with their community and have fun with their team along the way. 

Schools can participate by signing up their teams online by Friday 23 April.

Find out more about the challenge, design thinking and how schools can participate on our website.

Make Every Day Count is a film competition open to all students from Kindergarten to Year 12. Entries close 28 May, 2021.

Make Every Day Count

The NSW Department of Education is holding a state-wide film competition for all students from Kindergarten to Year 12.

Schools can participate in the festival as a class entry or submit films created by individual students or groups of students. Schools can submit multiple films.

All films submitted must have the approval of the school principal.

The theme is “make every day count”. Schools and students should explore all the possible reasons why attendance is important and what reasons may cause poor attendance.

Why school attendance?

The overall picture of school attendance in Australia is generally good. Year 1-10 students attend, on average, 92% of ‘available school days’ in Australia.

However, there are areas of concerns, where 25% of Australian school students attend less than 90% of school days. This adds up to 20 or more days absent in a school year.

At this rate, after 13 years of school, it’s equates to more than 260 school days lost or more than 5 terms.

According to the report Attendance matters (PDF), absenteeism can increase social isolation, including alienation and lack of engagement with the school community and peers, leading to emotional and behavioural difficulties.

Schools and students are encouraged to create films that address the issue of attendance in schools and how this can impact the student – socially, academically and personally.

Competition details

Entries close 5pm on 28 May 2021.

All films should be

• 3 minutes or less
• .mp4 format, 1040×1920 screen size and 25fps
• enter through the online submission form.

Budding filmmakers and teachers should read the Information booklet (PDF). Students and their parents and carers will need to sign the consent form enclosed.

The film competition is organised by Film By, established by teachers to recognise and showcase the stories and creativity of students told through digital film media.

Public schools are making sure the sacrifice of war veterans and serving defence personnel is not forgotten.

Across NSW students and public schools last week played a key role in keeping the ANZAC spirit alive.

In the lead-up to the national day of remembrance, students were making artworks, studying literature, writing poems and learning the story of Australia’s military history.

School-based ceremonies also offered children of defence personnel the opportunity to mark their parents’ service.

This included the 28 public primary schools and 10 public secondary schools in NSW that are part of the Defence School Mentor program, which supports the families of current personnel.

The school choir at South Coogee Public School, with defence families from the Randwick and Victoria barracks, continued a 15-year tradition by singing at the Coogee Beach Dawn Service.

At Wattle Grove Public School in Sydney’s west, students created an interactive garden.

The metal poppies are connected to an audio file which is listened to via an old fashion tin can similar to war time.

The audio files include interviews with members of the school’s defence force community talking about their experience in the army and the ANZAC spirit.

At La Perouse Public School in Sydney, the students marked ANZAC Day by unveiling a plaque in the memory of local Aboriginal veteran Uncle Vic Simons, who died earlier this year.

The release of the HSC timetable marks the beginning of the final leg of the Year 12 school journey.

As of 29 April, 76,000 NSW school students received their personalised timetable for the 2021 written HSC exams.

HSC written exams will start on Tuesday 12 October with a compulsory English paper and finish with the examination of Food Technology on Thursday 4 November.

Minister for Education Sarah Mitchell said the release of the HSC timetables were the final leg of the school journey for Year 12 students.

“The HSC is a logistical behemoth, it includes scheduling 18 days of HSC exams involving around 76,000 students, 129 exams and more than 775 exam centres,” Ms Mitchell said.

“The HSC is the culmination of years of schooling and receiving your timetable makes it all the more real for students.

“Students are already working hard in their final year, and I wish them all the best during an exciting time.”

NESA CEO Paul Martin said planning for the HSC exams was a necessarily rigorous process, especially after last year showed just how quickly things could change.

“The timetable is designed to provide a schedule which is as fair and equitable as possible to ensure all students get the opportunity to do their best in their written exams,” said Mr Martin.

“Last year showed that plans can change in an instant and we always want to make sure students, schools and exam supervisors feel prepared for anything, so they can focus on exams.”

To develop the timetable NESA follows rigorous procedures to:

• provide sufficient breaks between exams for popular courses
• provide sufficient breaks between exams for frequently combined courses
• enable all exams to be marked and students to receive their results from 6:00am on Friday 10 December
• minimise the number of students with two exams scheduled at the same time.

All 2021 HSC students can access their timetable on Students Online.

The full 2021 HSC written exam timetable is available on the NESA website.

Every child in NSW deserves the opportunity to develop the necessary mathematics and numeracy skills to succeed in life, increasing their post-school pathways and life options while building the foundations for future dreams.

From 2022, all NSW secondary schools will have access to the new Numeracy course in Stage 6.  This course is proven to lift student engagement in mathematics and numeracy and contribute to their HSC.

The new course is being rolled out following evaluation of the pilot that was led by the Centre for Education Statistics and Evaluation (CESE).  The evaluation found an increase in participation and engagement with students of Stage 6 mathematics including Students enrolled in Vocational Education and Training courses, Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander students and Students in rural and remote areas.

To support and drive awareness of the importance of mathematics in everyday life – a group of well-respected ambassadors and content creators will continue to share with students how they use mathematics in their daily life. 

Some of our ambassadors have already shared their stories with us:

• Sports brains with professional athlete, Steve Solomon, and mathematics teacher, Eddie Woo
• Creative brains with former Harper’s BAZAAR editor-in-chief, Kellie Hush, and mathematics teacher Eddie Woo 
• Chef brains with former Masterchef contestant, Alice Zaslavsky, and mathematics teacher Eddie Woo.

For more examples and ideas for you and your child to explore mathematics in a fun and engaging way, check out the Everyday Maths Hub.

The Everyday Maths Hub was designed specifically to support students and their families to bring mathematics into the everyday, developing and supporting positive attitudes towards mathematics and numeracy.

As we know from evidenced-based research, when teachers and schools work together with parents and carers, our students’ attitudes, engagement and success are enhanced.  We can work together to achieve great results across mathematics and numeracy. For ideas on how to engage your child visit Everyday Maths Hub.