Term 4 | Week 2 | 2025
College Principal's Address
Recognising Success
In just a few short weeks, the College, at our Presentation Evening at the Bega Civic Centre on 9th December, celebrates the year that has passed and, in doing so, formally recognises those who have perhaps made the most positive impact during 2025. Such ceremonies occur at schools everywhere, and the genre is widely accepted as being simply the right thing to do.
Reflecting on such matters, though, has led me to do just a little bit of research into the role of the intrinsic, versus the extrinsic, in terms of motivation, and blend that learning here with recent feedback from several parents about ways we might continue to improve College life.
As I assume most readers are much too busy to engage in such research, here are the definitions I settled on for the two key types of motivation:
‘Intrinsic motivation in students arises when learning is driven by curiosity, enjoyment, or a sense of purpose. A student is intrinsically motivated when they engage in learning because it is personally rewarding or meaningful.’
There’s no doubt that we would all wish that not just students at a school like ours, but everyone, might consider themselves well endowed with intrinsic motivation, but, and it is a BIG but, some are drawn towards the extrinsic:
‘Extrinsic motivation occurs when students engage in learning to gain a reward or avoid a negative consequence. It is an important factor in school life, particularly when tasks are not inherently interesting or enjoyable.’
Far from me to suggest that any learning experience at Sapphire Coast Anglican College is not inherently interesting or enjoyable. However, as someone who has been challenged, particularly earlier in my career, to introduce the delights of the Demographic Transition Model, or how one calculates the decreasing friction a river experiences as it flows through its channel, from source to sea, I recognise that sometimes, for some students, these concepts are not as compelling as I find them.
So, while there’s no doubt that intrinsic motivation has the moral high ground, as another article elegantly presented it:
‘Extrinsic motivation, while helpful in maintaining structure and accountability, should serve as a bridge — leading students toward the deeper, self-directed motivation that sustains genuine learning.’
I have every confidence that our teachers provide the framework for a great deal of intrinsic motivation to exist among our student body.
The whole intrinsic v. extrinsic dilemma was brought home to me a couple of years ago, in our very own Theatre, when an external consultant had led an entire Year cohort in preparing presentations for, and against, relying on intrinsic motivation only in schools, with a vote at the end to see which argument had carried the day. How ironic that there was a highly visible prize of an enormous bag of lollies for the victors, enthusiastically accepted by the eloquent intrinsics!
And so, finally, here is the key tenet of my message, prompted by those parental comments that were along the lines of,
‘We don’t do enough to recognise the day-to-day efforts and successes of students at SCAC. Not just celebrating the high achievers, but also those who are making progress of any sort, in any field.’
Trying hard to comply with the wise counsel of former England cricket captain, Mike Brearley, to always respond to feedback with one’s intellect, not one’s ego, and after much discussion with colleagues, I have to agree with that parental point of view. So, change is afoot, and what was an existing, but little-used system of extrinsic rewards has now been overhauled and redesigned in what might be referred to as a ‘Spiral of Success, or possibly even a Pyramid of Praise?!’
From right about now, all our teachers will regularly and rigorously shine a little more limelight on deserving cases, providing that bridge of extrinsic motivation that we trust will lead to increasingly self-directed, genuine learning; learning that is a joy, in and of itself, not just motivated by the allure of a physical reward.
But who’d say, ‘No’, to a jelly snake?!
Mr David Proudlove | College Principal
Student Success
After being talent-identified at the Junior State Cup last February, Piper Duffy was selected to play for the U14 Girls NSW Southern Rebels. The Rebels draw from an extensive region from south of the Harbour Bridge in Sydney to the Victorian border. She joined 5 other players from the Sapphire Coast and attended the National Youth championships in Coffs Harbour during the school holidays. The U14 Girls performed well, having wins against ACT, NT, TAS & WA before facing some tough competition from QLD. Piper played as a winger, scoring 6 tries over the 3 days. The team did not make the finals, but had a wonderful time and made some lifelong friendships.
The season is kicking off again this term with many SCAC students (and some parents!) playing in the Sapphire Coast Touch Football Association social competition in Pambula. With representative teams due to be finalised in the coming weeks, there will be more Touch Footy news to come!
Jump Rope for Heart
We held a Jump Rope for Heart event last term. Jump Rope for Heart gets your blood pumping, which strengthens your heart. Jump Rope for Heart also helps kids raise the money they need to save their lives.
We had 5 different activities and groups. We had our House Captains lead the groups (Olivia, Hannah, Abi, Makayla) and Judd, our SCR President. The activities were two ropes, solo skipping, big rope, bank and river, and skipping relays.
- Big rope - we did skip a beat, which is jumping in and out, and teddy bear.
- Two ropes - we jumped over 2 ropes and skipped a beat.
- Bank and river - jumping over the line when a teacher called bank or river.
- Skipping relay - we split into groups and skipped up and back down, then it was the next person's turn.
- Solo skipping – we practised skipping forwards, backwards, cross-over, and some tried a double rope turn to one jump.
At the Friday morning assembly, some students taught Mr Proudlove to skip. You did amazingly well, Mr Proudlove. A massive congratulations to Jorjyia and Olive, you beat the Peppers' record.
And last but not least a massive thank you to Mrs Batten for organising Jump Rope for Heart, Mrs Louie for getting the activities set up on the day, Mrs Whyman for being our DJ, Asha for being our photographer, all the primary teachers for running the activities, our primary House Captains (Olivia, Makayla, Hannah, and Abi) and to our SRC Committee people (Sienna, Duncan, Judd and Hugo) for selling Zooper Doopers and running games at lunch. A massive thank you to all the people who raised money for Jump Rope for Heart. Overall, our school raised an amount of $1149.00.
Olivia Oxenbridge and Asha Milliss
From the Library
Pre-Kindergarten News
Pre-Kindergarten has had a vibrant and productive start to Term 4. Over the holidays, a brand-new home corner was thoughtfully set up, and the children have been thoroughly enjoying imaginative play in this inviting space.
In addition to their indoor activities, the children have been actively involved in caring for our environment. Daily visits to the Lighthouse Garden have become a cherished part of our routine, where the children engage in hands-on experiences that nurture their understanding of nature and responsibility.
Addison and Jocelyn showed wonderful nurturing instincts today while playing in the home corner. They cared for their baby dolls with gentle attention, demonstrating empathy and imaginative caregiving through feeding, soothing, and affectionate interactions. It was a joy to witness their developing social and emotional skills in such a meaningful way.
Mrs Louise Fish
Year 1 News
Year 1 was busy at work in Week 2. Remember, home reading has started for the term. Please encourage regular reading at home, and hats are required each day for the term.
Year 7 Science
This term, Year 7 Science students continue to work on their Chemistry unit and are learning about the properties of solutions. They have looked at how Potassium Permanganate crystals behave in water when heated and enjoyed creating a saturated solution of sugar. Next lesson, they will be creating a super saturated solution that will require Bunsen burners!
Mrs Heidi Marksel
Year 8 STEM
Year 8 STEM have been working on designing paddle boats and investigating ballasts and buoyancy of boats.
Mrs Jenny Weber
Year 12 Biology
Year 11 students have now commenced Year 12 and are off to a strong start in Biology. Students have been studying plant reproduction — their understanding of the topic is already beginning to blossom.
Mrs Casey Hoynes
Musical News
At last month's Australian Conference for Neurodevelopmental Disorders (more warmly known as differences), clinicians and educators alike came together to share how we can help neurodivergent students thrive.
Alongside Tony Attwood and Edward Hallowell, the familiar name Rebecca Stewart was on the presenter list. "Connecting Through Play: The Music Advantage" was a study of how Dr Anita Collins' work relates to our neurodivergent brains.
SCAC encourages all students to pursue music lessons! For more details, see the "Meet Our Music Teachers" section of the SCAC website.
Mrs Rebecca Stewart
ANU Rural Responders
Medical students from ANU Rural Clinic School joined SCAC students at the Bega Hospital to participate in a simulated emergency training exercise.
SCAC Cattle Show Team
We had our first visit to Bennock Park Murray Grey Stud with the initial group of students in the selection process for the SCAC Cattle Show Team.
Thank you to Steve Robertson (Robbo), who is going to train the team and allow them to use his cattle and facilities. Robbo and Mrs Flower were impressed with the skill demonstrated by this first group.
The group enjoyed the visit and learned a lot.
Mrs Raelene Flower
CDAT Leadership Camp with Year 10
On Thursday, the 16th October, eight Year 10 students paid a visit to Bournda Environmental Education Centre to meet with local community organisations that support young people in the Bega Valley. Cat Gardiner, Evie Umbers, Sara Wood, Fran Jory, Wilbur Larsen, Cooper Connelly, Josh Croxford and Jeev Randhawa spent the day mixing with Bega High School students to hear talks and participate in team-building activities like geocaching and paddling the surf boat in Wallagoot Lake.
We all had a great day and look forward to the three-day camp in Week 3!
Miss Clair Hopkins
Secondary English Macbeth News
Year 10 students studied Shakespeare’s Macbeth in Term 3. To demonstrate their understanding of how Shakespeare treats the concept of masculinity through his characters, students addressed the question “What does it mean to be a man?" While adhering to the conventions of the podcast form, students employed equal measures of insight and enthusiasm to produce outstanding podcasts that revealed personal perspectives supported by textual evidence.
I applaud their collaborative efforts, and I’m delighted to share some of the best with you.
Agriculture News
A Big Thank You
Thank you to all our morning and afternoon crew STUDENTS who came down and prepared milk for our calves over Term 3 AND into the holidays! Thank you to parents who brought students in early or picked them up later after school! Thank you to all the teachers, Farmhands, parents, and Student Support staff who came down early in the mornings and during their free Period 6s to supervise our students in feeding the calves. THEY WERE WEANED MID-HOLIDAYS!
Thank you especially to Charlie and his mum coming in on the last two days of weaning to assist, and also, two of mine (now ex-students of the College)... Otis is totally unimpressed and refuses to look at any of us now. He only gets pellets in those buckets! Amber (Year 10) and her mum also deserve a special mention for coming in early mornings and in the holidays to check on her calves!
Year 8
At the end of Term 3, our Year 8 Aggies prepared a beautiful pot plant for Mrs Moulton's birthday, ground charcoal in preparation for potato planting, potted strawberry plants from Mrs Flower and walked the calves. Term 4, our Year 8 Aggies continue to tend to the chicken and calf areas; pick lovely mulberries; and prepare our garden beds for a Year 8-12 Agricultural organic vs inorganic fertiliser trial... stay tuned! Oh, and of course, they called up the sheep with a bucket of pellets! What a lovely and productive crew!
Year 9/10
Our Year 9/10 Aggies have jumped into their final term of Stage 5 Agricultural Technology, feeding the calves and cleaning out their poddy sheds; packing away milk prep areas and routines; enjoying farm mulberries; and preparing our potato beds for the Dutch cream crop!
Year 12
For their first term as HSC students, our Year 12 Aggies tended to the calves and enjoyed the "lime" iceblocks from the previous Year 12 Aggies... these were made to remind our students currently going through HSC to ADD LIME if you have acidic soils!
Our students are commencing their potato fertiliser trial which starts with 'randomisation' - randomly sorting potatoes into five planting groups: control; cow manure; chicken manure; worm juice; and inorganic fertiliser. Jonah needed to pick out potatoes without looking at them and hand them to Beau who would allocate them to each labelled bucket.
Mrs Heidi Marksel
Students Dream Big in New Permi Plot Classroom Design
Exciting things are taking shape at the Permi Plot with students helping design a new classroom–kitchen–workshop–nursery space that will take our outdoor learning to the next level.
Guided by real-world problem solving (or ‘potentialising’ as Dan the Dirt Man calls it), students are contributing ideas to a flexible, practical and creative learning hub that supports gardening, science, sustainability and hands-on making.
Both the Green Team and primary students have already been busy sharing imaginative design suggestions. So far they’ve agreed that the doorway must be big enough for students, cows, rhinoceroses and fairies - yet cleverly designed to keep out mice! They’ve also asked for the space to be full of plants with room to explore.
With moveable workbenches, greenhouse walls, wicking beds, and a camp-style kitchen bench included in the plan, this new learning space will grow with the school community. Stay tuned as our students continue to help shape a space they can truly call their own.
And as for the name of the new classroom? Ideas are rolling in fast, and a shortlist is on its way soon!
In the interim, there’s been peas to pick, popcorn to pop, poly pipe to place, pavers to position and weeds to wrangle, keeping us all very busy…