For the first time Humanities ran the AsiaWise competition
with all Year 8 students. This required the use of
sophisticated research skills on the part of students over
three lessons. Support was provided by the Director of
Learning Resources, Mrs Julie Purcell, and many students
were impressed by their growing ability to work through
complex information to determine an answer.
Yet again, Business Management provided the opportunity
for students to conduct their own small businesses, with
products including cupcakes, meditation sessions, gourmet
burgers and iPhone cases. The simulation activity entitled
Justicecountry
was also a highlight for Year 11 students
who chose to participate. It provides an opportunity to be
involved in an activity which focuses on the workings of
government and the issue of wealth distribution. Many
students participated and thoroughly enjoyed this very
different style of learning.
Every year the Department is responsible for running
Assemblies on both Anzac Day and Remembrance Day.
This year a number of Year 9 History students were involved
in presenting the Anzac Assembly and are to be
commended on making it such a moving occasion. The
incoming 2014 School Leaders gave an excellent
presentation for Remembrance Day.
Thanks are due to the staff of the Humanities faculty
in 2013 for their continuing hard work and commitment
to their students. They are also to be thanked for their
contribution to the Faculty review process which was
conducted this year. The rewriting of courses and the
process of researching and creation of new resources is very
time consuming. It is wonderful to see this tackled with
enthusiasm and creativity so we are able to produce
courses for students which are current, personalised and
stimulating.
At the beginning of this year we welcomed two new
members to the faculty, Mr Chris Moloney (Commerce) and
Ms Lindy Broadfoot (Commerce and History).We also said
au revoir to Ms Emma Officer on maternity leave and we
look forward to her return in 2014. She was replaced by
Mr Tim Agnew for Semester 2. Students thoroughly enjoyed
his History classes and he is to be thanked for his
contribution to Ruyton.
The Humanities Faculty can see an exciting time ahead as
Australia, in particular, moves into a phase of huge
economic and environmental restructuring. A knowledge of
these disciplines for students has never been more valuable
if they are to be productive members of society.
Ms Margaret Barratt,
Dean of Humanities
Library Resource Centre
During the year within the Ruyton Library, we have
continued to embrace the principles of best practice within
C21st school libraries. Recognising the need to keep current,
we have responded to the key drivers for change within all
modern libraries; the identification and adoption of
emerging technologies, the recognition of borrowers’ needs
diversity and the creation of authentic social spaces.
We acknowledge that reading is an important ingredient
in students’ ongoing success, and understand the power of
guiding a student to the right book at the right time. Our
collections reflect diversity in students’ reading preference
taking many forms, including print, electronic, audio and
graphic. Author visits continue to be an important element
of our literature programme and this year’s Isobelle
Carmody visit proved to be a highlight.We also enjoyed the
presentations fromMs Sarah Brennan, author of the
Chinese Zodiac
series, and Mr Tony Bones’ BookWeek
presentation. Our annual Book Fair is a hugely popular
event and continues to create enthusiasm for books and
reading, as does the new Junior School Book Club.
During 2013, we embraced the power of social media as
an effective way to connect with our students. Students
who follow the library’s Instagram account are alerted to
the availability of new high-interest titles and receive
promotional information about our regular competitions.
The Lit Club blog provides a private online space for
like-minded students to share their thoughts on reading.
This blog is also an entry point for the Library Tumblr
account and our Instagram feed.Within the Year 6 Library
programme students have again worked within a reading
wiki, sharing their thoughts on literature, while also gaining
valuable experience in digital citizenship.
As we move from focusing collections to connections, we
seek to provide students with a sense of ownership and
community within the Library, something Oldenburg
1
(1999) calls ‘the third space’. This is a space that is
welcoming and highly accessible, where students feel free
to interact with their peers academically and socially. Our
space usage statistics continue to rise and door traffic has
grown 18 per cent since 2010. Interestingly, our after-school
usage has almost tripled in these years.We also believe
that it is important to provide students with opportunities
to gather with other students across year levels, at events
such as Lit Club meetings, conferences, movie nights/
1. Oldenburg, R. (1999).
The great good place: Cafés, coffee shops,
bookstores, bars, hair salons, and other hangouts at the heart of
a community.
New York: Marlowe.
Annual Report 2013
11
