Andrew Watt – Principal

The darker side of social media

Many of our young people are prolific users of social media for entertainment, ranging from gaming, chats, posts, photo and video sharing, and streaming services. TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram, YouTube, WhatsApp, Twitter, Kik and Pinterest are currently the most popular Apps. If unsupervised and left to their own devices, parents run the risk of their children accessing pornography or being exposed to online predators. Paul Dillon, Director of Drug and Alcohol Research Australia (DARTA), recently shared with parents the growing adolescent phenomenon of both gambling and sourcing recreational drugs through social media. Perhaps the most common online threat, however, is cyberbullying, where children can be exposed to abusive texts and emails, hurtful messages, images, or videos, imitating others online, excluding others online, humiliating others online, spreading nasty online gossip and chat and creating fake accounts to trick someone or humiliate them. Cyberbullying has been likened to an adolescent pandemic, a virus that has infected our young people

Recent data from Headspace National Youth Mental Health Foundation reveals more than half of young Australians (53%) have experienced cyberbullying, indicating that bullying in an online context is very prevalent among young people. Seventy percent of young people with high and very high rates of psychological distress also said they have experienced cyberbullying, revealing a strong link between these events and the young person’s mental state.

At High School Assembly this week, I posed a question to our students: Are you going to be part of the problem or part of the solution? Despite our best efforts, we often deal with cases of cyberbullying. Hurtful and offensive messages have a significant impact on the wellbeing of the recipient, particularly when exposed on an ongoing basis, 24/7.

Our students are encouraged to be:

• Respectful – considerate of others when they are online
• Kind – while online; being a positive role model
• Prepared to ask for help – reaching out to friends, family, or authorities if something goes wrong online
• Safe – trying to avoid situations that pose risks to themselves or others online
• Responsible – thinking about how their actions online might affect others

The School remains committed to educating our students on responsible social media use, encouraging them to be proactive and courageous upstanders, who show support and speak up, rather than bystanders who stand on the sidelines and watch.

Encore HSC Music Showcase – Guy Rein

I was privileged to join our Music Department and a group of Elective Music (Years10-12) students to attend Encore 2021 at the City Recital Hall. This special event showcased a series of outstanding HSC Music performances, featuring solo and ensemble vocal and instrumental performances and compositions. We watched with awe the performances of talented musicians, including our very own Guy Rein. Guy performed in a saxophone quartet: Quatuor Pour Saxaphones Movement 3, by Desenclos.

Mazal tov to Guy and to Diana Springford, for her support. We hope that over the coming years, making our way to the City Recital Hall in February will become a familiar routine!

Keeping our young people safe – recreational drug use

This week, Paul Dillon (Director of DARTA), presented to Year 10,11,12, High School staff and parents. Paul’s presentation dealt with the important issue of keeping young people safe during their teenage years. Paul addressed healthy and unhealthy risk taking, alcohol use, vaping, and the use of other illicit drugs. He also provided relevant research, trends and statistics about risk taking behaviours in young people.

Students were given valuable tips and strategies to keep themselves and their friends safe at parties and gatherings throughout their teenage years. Staff were informed about the key issues that are on the rise for young people. Parents were provided with up-to-date statistics about the use of alcohol and other drugs and what strategies the research shows are effective in keeping young people safe when socialising during these years. Paul’s presentations to students, staff and parents are a communal approach, which we know is the most effective strategy to keep young people safe.

Year 6 Leadership Camp

This week marked the start of our Year 6 Leadership journey, where students participated in engaging and interactive sessions that supported them to discover and develop the leader inside them. Students unpacked what leadership is all about in sessions ran by Burn Bright, overcame obstacles in an Amazing Race at Sydney Olympic Park and connected to each other and the community through Jewish Life activities on the Basketball courts.

This 3-day event is only the beginning of the journey, and we expect to see many more amazing things from the Year 6 students as they apply the lessons that they have learned to their leadership roles in the year ahead. 

Lewy Saul with Mr Watt

Mazal Tov

• We were delighted to present Lewy Saul  with his Year 10 Mensch Award, left over from our 2021 Annual Presentation of Awards event, in my office. Parents and extended family are very proud!
• Congratulations to the following students on their selection to represent Emanuel at CIS Sporting events:
  Cooper Rosen (Year 5): Selected to attend the CIS Basketball Trials
  Jonah Trope (Year 12): Selected to attend the CIS Cricket Trials
  Luca Calderon-Havas (Year 12): Selected to attend the CIS Tennis Championships

Quote of the Week

“A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way”.
John C. Maxwell