At the beginning of this week, we started our new online learning program. While change is always difficult at first, we are well equipped and prepared to continue our schooling in a way which we aren’t so used to.
It’s important that all boys at the College adhere to the requirements placed on us. I am well aware of the trouble that all members of staff at the college have gone to when preparing our online education. They are putting their best foot forward to ensure we continue with our academic progress as best we can. We can all assist and support this happening through remaining connected with each other in positive ways and staying in touch with our tutors and teachers as requested. Every lesson we have work set, and just like school, the expectation is that you complete that work to a high standard. At the same time, it’s vital that we stay in touch with our mates and make sure that they are coping well with the current situation. If for any reason you notice something strange about your mate, check in with him and talk to an adult. Most importantly, stay up to date with the information regarding COVID-19 and follow the recommended guidelines as best you can to completely ensure the safety and wellbeing of our community.
It’s obvious that through this online learning, we will be spending a lot of time on our laptops. I would encourage everyone to make sure you spend some time away from technology. While technology is extremely crucial to what we do every day, spending too much time on it can become very unhealthy. This is where exercise can fit into your daily routine. Because we can’t currently play any team sports or engage in our PE classes, it’s never been so important to exercise by ourselves. I understand that everyone has different preferences when it comes to how they exercise, but it doesn’t matter what you engage in, it’s just important to do something and stay fit.
I know that everyone would be wishing they were at school, but this stands out particularly for our Year 12 cohort. These past few weeks have hit us, in particular very hard. Some of us have been told the tour of a lifetime has been cancelled. Our summer sports were cancelled and just before our winter sport preseason trainings were due to begin, they were cancelled too. We are worried about how this pandemic will affect our academic results. We are losing the limited time we have with our mates, but the most frustrating part is that it’s completely out of our control.
Being brought up surrounded by technology, most boys at school would have some type of social media. For me personally, I have an account on a number of platforms and recently I noticed something that stood out on Facebook. What stood out was a post that a number of parents, not necessarily parents of the College but nonetheless, parents in the community who were tagging their children in a copy and pasted article. This article talked about how this whole event is affecting Year 12 students from all across Australia. I would like to share a few of the words said throughout the article:
“To them, the cancellation of school is not a vacation. It’s time they don’t get to spend with their friends. They’re nervous that they may not get to write their final exams and not receive that certificate they have been working hard on for 13 years”.
That encapsulates a tiny amount of what is going through the minds of our Year 12 students. So, if you’re a parent of a student currently in Year 12 or you have anything to do with a Year 12 student, just remember that what they are going through at the moment, isn’t easy. Through everything going on, we are remaining hopeful that everything goes back to normal soon so we can enjoy our final year at school.
Sam Gibson
College Captain