Student Wellbeing

Goals & Intended Outcomes

Mazenod College employs a multilayered approach to wellbeing that is designed to improve and sustain both staff and students' mental fitness. Visible Wellbeing is a whole school approach that encourages all areas of the College to build wellbeing capacity in each classroom and activity utilising the SEARCH framework. Personal and Social Learning is the explicit teaching of wellbeing that is taught during the Homeroom Pastoral Care periods. Personal Development Days and seminars are scheduled at each year level addressing age and stage wellbeing issues and education.

The Approach

Visible Wellbeing combines the science of wellbeing with the science of learning to achieve the three key goals of:

• Helping students and staff to see more clearly their own and others’ wellbeing using visible wellbeing practices.

• Helping students and staff more systematically build wellbeing using the SEARCH framework.

• Facilitating learning through the visible wellbeing classroom process.

Visible wellbeing is not a set curriculum. It is a flexible approach that can be applied across any subject matter, and in all contexts – primary, secondary, in the staff room and with the affiliated Mazenod community groups. With the Visible Wellbeing approach, academic learning and wellbeing are truly integrated. Visible Wellbeing complements our existing student wellbeing programs delivered at Mazenod in a variety of formats including, extended homerooms, seminars, personal and social learning timetabled classes, retreats, camps and dedicated personal development days. All wellbeing programs are designed to address age and stage wellbeing issues.

Visible Wellbeing is Mazenod College’s approach to creating resilient, happy, and successful young men.

The goal of a Visible Wellbeing approach is to make wellbeing visible so that we can proactively intervene and make changes in our students’ lives and our own. We do this through acknowledging the negative but specifically working to amplify the positives and increase overall wellbeing with students and staff consciously thinking about what they SEE, HEAR, and FEEL in all situations.

The SEARCH Framework includes Strengths-Emotional Management-Attention and Awareness-Relationships-Coping-Habits and Goals. In 2022 Mazenod College staff completed three more modules of this framework Relationships and Habits and Goals. The ‘coping’ module was designed and presented by members of the College’s Student Welfare Action Group which highlighted not only the expertise of the wellbeing staff but also the flexibility of such an approach that it can be adapted to suit the school’s individual context.

Achievements The Curriculum

In 2022 provisions for the explicit teaching of wellbeing was formulated and timetable adjustments set in place to deliver specific lessons that are age and stage appropriate for 2023. This formalises and extends the time allocated in previous years through the Personal and Social Learning classes conducted in Year 7 and during specific extended homeroom. In the Junior School (Years 7-9) students will be engaged in the Resilience Project Curriculum and, for Years 10-12 a bespoke program that focuses on Respectful Relationships, E-Safety and consent to name just a few themes.

Wellbeing Days, Seminars and Awareness Campaigns

In 2022 Mazenod College engaged several organisations to provide further education through the form of seminars and reflection days for both parents and students.

Examples include:

• The Mancave - Breaking The Man Box includes themes such as Mental Health Prevalence, Gender Stereotypes and Creating an Optimistic Future.

• YourChoicez - Present to various year levels on themes such as friendship, anger, sexting, digital consent, being an up-stander, empathy, and social media, emphasising our Catholic Social Teaching on the respect for the dignity of the human person and for the beauty and sacredness of human sexuality.

• Elephant Ed. Pornography vs Reality

• Sex and Social Media

• Driver Education

• Game Aware - Bridging the gap between gamers, parents and professionals through education and intelligent gaming strategies.

• Internet Safe Education - Cyber Safety Education

• “Brave Parenting Conversations – Raising Teens in a Hyper-Sexualised Society” Online seminar for parents. (All parents)

• RU OK? Day Mental Health Awareness Week

• National Day of Action Against Violence and Bullying Awareness week embracing the 2022 Kindness culture complimenting the focus on character strengths as part of Visible Wellbeing.

• Completion of VIA Character Strength Surveys.

Wellbeing Events

In 2022 with the relaxation of restrictions the College was able to invite parents back for in person events. On RUOK day David Schwartz presented to parents and students about the pitfalls of gambling candidly speaking about his story and the impact that gambling addiction has had on his life. Time and Space was introduced to the College in 2022 with the first event held during Year 12 Transition coinciding with the launch of Year 12. The Parent/Son evening aimed to strengthen the relationship between parents and their sons leading into final year of school. Such events attempted to highlight the important partnership and support between home and school. The College has implemented three Time and Space events each year. A Year 7 mother/female mentor/son in May, a Year 8 father/male mentor/son in February and at the conclusion of Year 11 in preparation for Year 12 a parent /son in late November.

Mazenod College also participated in the Respectful Relationships Community of Practice collaborating with Avila, Sacred Heart and Salesian College to dialogue and plan how student voice can create awareness of the importance of healthy, respectful, and inclusive attitudes towards all members of the community.

Individual Wellbeing

In 2022, the College strengthened its wellbeing support with additional resources in the Psychologists team including the appointment of an Educational Psychologist along with a Learning Diversity Wellbeing Coordinator. These new appointments complimented the opening of the new Learning Diversity Centre and Student Wellbeing Centre. The College continues to provide 2 full time nurses onsite to manage the health of students and staff. Both Junior and Senior Student Welfare Action Groups continued to meet regularly throughout 2022 to collaborate and identify students that required extra wellbeing support. This group consists of College Deans, Year Level Coordinators, Psychologists, Oblate Priests, and representatives from the learning diversity and nursing teams. In 2022, welfare check-ins were introduced at Year 7 with members of the College executive team and Year 7 staff meeting one on one with each student during term 2 to discuss how they have settled into Mazenod College. This also took place in a similar format with Year 12 students using academic and pastoral data to initiate conversations and set goals for the remainder of the year.

Commitment to Child Safety

As part of the introduction of the new child safe standards and obligations for Information Sharing under the MARAM framework. The College formulated a Child Safe Committee to further strengthen, revise and embed all associated Child Safe policies. Staff were provided time to complete the annual mandatory reporting modules, and completed training from Moore’s Australia on the new Child Safe Standards. The Deputy Principal Students provided information and processes for Mazenod College to follow under the Child Information Sharing Scheme (CISS) and Family Violence Information Sharing Scheme (FVISS).

Value Added

• Every student in the school participates in 100 minutes of organised sport each week.

• Participation in every ACC Inter-School Sport that was conducted.

• The vast majority of students represent Mazenod College in at least one Association of Catholic Colleges (ACC) event.

• Many students participated in our comprehensive volleyball program, training and playing weekly, dominating the ACC competitions. Our highly successful volleyball program had all teams perform at the state and national level.

• 60 students participated in the Chess club, receiving weekly tuition, and recording record breaking wins in the ACC. Our Middle Years chess team won gold in both the state and national championships. Our Open team won silver in the state and national championships.

• Debating success at ACC level, and at the Debating Association of Victoria's (DAV) state competition.

• Our public speakers competed with success at the VCAA's Plain English-Speaking competition and the annual Lions Club Youth of the Year competition.

• The performing arts department held a Performing Arts Festival in the evening featuring music, dance and film performances from all levels

• The music department held various evening recitals, with many students participating.

• Years 10, 11 and 12 also participate in Mazenod College’s Social Justice program which includes; Rosies Street Mission, RE days, retreats and community service.

• Student driven initiatives to highlight inclusivity and mental health such as RUOK? Day and World’s Greatest Shave.

• Peer support Year 11 with Year 7.

• Our senior badminton team placed first in the ACC Badminton Championship. This sport is one of the fastest in the world and the team can be very proud of their achievement.

• Welcomed Daisho staff and students from Japan, who were with us from 25th July to 2nd August. As part of the program, our Japanese student visitors were in class with their Year 9, 10, 11 and 12 hosts. Mazenod students chaperoned our visitors on excursions and exchange activities.

• Our musicians competed in the annual Boroondara Eisteddfod and are enrolled to do again in 2023.

• Our musical production "Shrek, The Musical", held in conjunction with Avila College, was a huge success. It involved over 100 students either acting, singing, backstage or playing music in the pit.

Instrumental Music Program

The number of students receiving individual music lessons in the exceptional College Instrumental Program at the end of 2022 was in excess of 250. Lessons continued online during lockdown.

Students study the following instruments with our team of 16 instrumental music teachers: Bassoon, cello, clarinet, cornet, double bass, euphonium, flute, french horn, oboe, percussion, saxophone, trombone, trumpet, tuba, viola, violin.

Students have the opportunity to join the following range of ensembles:

Junior Strings, String Quartets, Boyle Strings, Chamber Strings, Chet Baker Band, Concert Band Dorsey Band, Monk Big Band, Flute Ensemble, Founders Ensemble, Junior Vocal, Liturgy Choir, Senior Vocal, Stage Band, Swing Band, Symphonic Wind Band and the Symphony Orchestra.

Student Wellbeing - What we usually do

• A group of music students usually travel to Mt Gambier for the Generations in Jazz Music Festival with students from across the region, although didn’t this year. They will in 2023.

• The Stage Band, the Founders’ Ensemble and other groups usually represent Mazenod College at the Victorian Schools Music Festival, receiving awards.

• Groups of students usually travel biennially to Japan, Italy and China for two-week cultural exchanges, although didn’t in 2022.

• Many usual social justice activities were cancelled, including Red Cross door knock, St Vincent de Paul Winter Sleepout and the Special Olympics, due to COVID-19 restrictions.