Coburg Senior High School expansion: Tour Tuesday 10 December at 6pm (with Free BBQ) and Principal's Progress Report

Here in Coburg a local year seven transition option in 2015 is getting much closer to a reality!

High School for Coburg continue to work with the Coburg Senior High School (CSHS) - attending CSHS Community Consultation Subcommittee meetings and assisting with promotion. For example we were able to help the CSHS get a story in this week's  Moreland Leader, page 11 of the 2 Dec issue to promote the upcoming 10 Dec tour and report on recent progress. A great result!

If you are interested in Coburg High as a Year 7 option from 2015  please consider coming to the tour on Tuesday 10 Dec at 6 pm. There will be a free BBQ provided - including salad and veggie burgers and the school cafe will be open for coffee and drinks.

For full information on progress with the expansion of the school  and to register for the tour, please follow the link to the update from principal Don Collins on the school website:

An excerpt from the post is as follows:

It is pleasing to report that the Master Planning for Coburg Junior is progressing well. We are on target to have building design and curriculum development in sufficient shape to share at the next CJHS Tour ~ which will be on Tuesday December 10 at 6pm.
The evening will commence at 6pm with a free BBQ outside our cafe (Bytes Café). Sausages, (we only ever use halal meat.) veggie burgers and salad will be provided. Bytes Café will be selling coffee and other drinks during this time. This event will run for approximately 90 mins during which time we will be sharing information on curriculum and organisational elements, facilities development and invite discussion around elements such as uniform, language, technology and sustainability.
Please register your attendance at:
Coburg Junior HS Tour
Baade-Harbour Australia (BHA) have been appointed as architects for this next stage of development. With a wealth of knowledge about our site having been responsible for the previous two stages, BHA is well placed to transform the existing spaces into learning spaces to facilitate thinking and learning in a range of ways.

Tara's story

I am in Grade 5 this year and we live in Coburg North. Next year I will choose my Secondary School. I am really excited about going to Coburg High School which will be accepting Year 7 students from 2015.
I am delighted about having a school which I can walk to and is so close to home. I think it’s cool that I can also ride my bike along the bike track too. I know there will be a few friends going to Coburg High and hopefully lots more might attend from my school but I don’t know yet…  I really hope they will be in my class!
And the big question I ask myself is what will the new High School be like? Well, I am hoping that there will be a huge library because I love reading and I am hoping for big traditional classrooms. I feel more comfortable in an enclosed area. I feel many other Primary students probably feel the same way as we are all  used to them.

Then, the question about teachers - I hope they are nice teachers - inspirational and playful too so learning can be fun.
There are some cool subjects that I am looking forward to like Cooking and all the Arts. I hope I may use some professional equipment to make movies. I love being behind the camera and directing scenes and performances.
I am not particularly keen on using computers all the time in the classroom because I am much faster at writing but least I will have to learn to type faster!  However, I would be delighted  to have my own laptop if possible. I think laptops are faster to download than iPads.
I think it’s fantastic that there is a real Cafeteria at the school as there isn’t one at my Primary School.
The other thing I hope for is that there is a uniform as it will be easier not to choose different clothes every day and nobody can tease anyone about their clothes.

Tara

High School for Coburg Survey Report: Towards a Coburg High in 2015

Finally the HSC working group are happy to be able to share the results of our online survey with the community.
The survey aims:

• To get a quick snapshot of what the local community would like their local 7-12 high school to be like.
• To enable Minister Dixon’s request that the Department consult with the community “to map out what the new school will look like.”

Please take some time to read the verbatim responses included in full in our report. The HSC Working Party would like to commend the survey respondents for their thoughtful and considered answers. We are proud to be part of this community and are confident the expanded Coburg Senior High School – our local high school, will reflect all the richness that is evident in the survey responses.

Towards a Coburg High in 2015 by HighSchoolForCoburg

Coburg Senior High School Forum - 8th of August 2013

Who's going to the Coburg Senior High School Forum on August 8 from 6.00 pm to 7.30 pm?

The CSHS website gives the following information about the forum.

"On August 8 will we holding small table group forums to continue to share the vision for the expansion and to seek feedback from interested members of the community. Registration for the Forum is now open.

This process will ask for each attendee to select a forum topic that most interests them. The choices will include Thinking Oriented Curriculum, Sustainability, Facilities and Community Building.
Once again our students will be on hand to assist along with members of staff and existing parents.
The evening will begin at 6.00 pm with a short presentation en masse, and then break into table groups. The Forum will conclude at 7.30 pm."

Post May 15 tour survey

There is a section of the Coburg Senior High School website dedicated to the junior intake from 2015. On the right hand side you can complete a survey. It is aimed at those who completed the May 15 tour but we have had confirmation that anyone can complete the survey. The survey will be up for another week and there are lots of open ended questions which allow you to have your say. HSC encourage parents and prospective students to be part of this dialogue.


The survey also asks parents for expressions of interest regarding participation in various focus groups in the following areas:

• Teaching and Learning
• Facilities
• Uniform
• Thinking Curriculum
• Community Building
• Sustainability and Environment
• Technology
• Other

Participation in a focus group would be another great way to have input into the community consultation process. You can complete the survey and nominate to participate in a focus group here.

A workplace of learning for the connected generation

by Janet Grigg

Last Wednesday, there were two tours of Coburg Senior HighSchool (CSHS) for parents of/and students commencing Year 7 from 2015. Both tours were very well attended with about 70 at the 10.00am presentation and over 100 adults and 40 or so children at the 6.00 pm tour. Over 150 parents on a cold rainy day! This should dispel any doubt that there is massive pent up demand for a local Year 7 option!

From the start it was clear that at CSHS, learning is student centred, that teachers get to know their students, and that at CSHS they really love learning. It was also abundantly clear from Don Collins’ manner and words that they actually really like the students too. There was a warmth there that I didn't expect but was very pleased to see.

Here’s a sample of what people said about the tours on the HSC Facebook page.

“I was very impressed with everything that was presented to us. A bit disappointed that there was no tour of the school as part of the tour.”

“I was very impressed too. And wishing they had grade 4 available so I could enrol my daughter next year! I think that their approach to learning will translate really well to the younger years. There might need to be a few tweaks along the way but I got the impression that CSHS would be on to that. Yes, very impressed.”

“Really great launch of sincere consultation process. Don the principal had a lot of time for the parents who were there. They seem legitimately interested in ensuring a positive development and transition to the CJHS intake of 2015. Still some financial battles to fight though, clearly.”

“I was very impressed too. Loved the open plan learning areas and the teaching style connected to this generation of children.”

“They currently offer many foreign languages via distance Ed. Which I have seen work well.
I wasn't expecting much but it came across as a strong school with a clear sense of what it is doing.”

“We felt very positive about the whole process-especially the passion and enthusiasm of teachers, students and parents alike. We would be happy to send Tara there in 2015, Great to see so many children and familiar faces from Child Care and Kinder days...”

“I also was really excited about the innovative teaching methods taking place at the school. I had a couple of concerns, that were probably nothing new - very little chance given to ask questions and I also got the view that the senior school was their "baby" and nothing was going to mess with that. However, it was wonderful to see so many enthusiastic teachers along with parents and students.”

More tours are planned for Coburg Junior High School for early term 3. You can register your interest here. 

Coburg Senior High School tours

Coburg Senior High School is offering junior school specific tours on May 15, 2013 at 10.00am and 6.00pm.

The tour is for families considering sending their children to the school when they transition from primary school to Year 7. How wonderful to have a local option from 2015 onwards!

This is a great chance to see the school and give your feedback and ideas. Refreshments served throughout.

You can register for the tour here.

There is also quite a bit of information about the expected Coburg Junior High under the Coburg Junior High tab at the top of the page and the boxes down the side.

New high school to bring Coburg community together

It is almost ten months since Minister Dixon issued his July 18 Press Release announcing the decision to expand Coburg Senior High (CSHS) in 2015. "This is an excellent outcome for the Coburg community," Mr Dixon said.

"Having a high school in the heart of Coburg will better support the community's long-term education needs. Expanding Coburg Senior High School is the logical choice for a new school, as it is in an ideal location, already has some of the necessary facilities and has access to a host of nearby sport and recreation areas."

The community of Coburg and surrounding areas greeted Minister Dixon’s announcement with great joy, relief and enthusiasm. Tours of CSHS for parents and students commencing Year 7 in 2013 have been recently announced and promise to be very well attended.

Minister Dixon also said the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development (DEECD) would work closely with the school and the local community to ensure the expanded school meets the needs of the community. "This is a big undertaking and I have asked the Department to begin consulting with the school and community to map out what the new school will look like," Mr Dixon said.

In term three 2012, HSC were invited to nominate two working party members to be part of a consultation subcommittee run by Coburg Senior High. The subcommittee first met in mid December and has met once since.

Late in 2012, in response to HSC's concern about the lack of action on the Minister's July announcement, the DEECD Partnerships Division of the Office of Government Schools advised HSC that the DEECD North Western Victorian Region, would begin serious planning in January 2013 - once positions were filled after major structural change. They said the Region would support the planning and community consultation for the year 7-12 project at CSHS. However in February 2013 HSC plus a director and manager from Moreland Council, met with the new Regional Director who informed us that the project would be managed entirely by the CSHS governing board.

Under advice from the Regional Director, who couldn't answer HSC’s questions about the project timelines, HSC wrote to the CSHS governing board members and principal in March 2013 asking them to outline the project timeline and advisory committees relating to the expansion of the school in 2015 with particular reference to curriculum, school naming and facilities planning. A response was not received and in May 2013, HSC wrote to Minister Dixon once again asking about this and requesting a clear timeline regarding consultation, planning, funding and refurbishment works.

In addition to the above meetings and letters, HSC have also:

• Had  a second meeting with Regional Director Jeanette Nagorcka.
• Met with the Moreland Mayor and Director Socila Development Moreland Council.
• Spoken to Craig Ondarchie Liberal MLA Northern Metropolitan Region.

The expansion and refurbishment of Coburg Senior High School does not appear to be in 2013-14 State Government budget. The DEECD assured HSC last year that the timeline would still be workable if funding for Capital Works wasn’t in the budget until 2014-15 as all planning and design work could be done with out specific budget allocation.

HSC strongly concurs with the words of Minister Dixon in The Age on 07 April 2013 “we want schools to really reflect their community and meet the needs of the local community” HSC believes that the DEECD's community consultation needs to be carried out in a broad and transparent fashion and fully utilised to shape an offering which needs to be finalised by the end of 2013 so that everything is in place for Year 7 enrolments in early 2014 to commence high school in 2015. Here in Coburg it is nearly ten months since the decision to expand Coburg Senior High was announced by Minister Dixon and the community is still looking forward to giving their ideas for the expanded Coburg Senior High.