From the Principal

Great success at HICES Debating!

Just yesterday afternoon we had two teams in the Grand Final of the HICES Debating competition. HICES schools are independent and co-educational, from across NSW, and these were the culminating debates of all the rounds. The Middle (Years 7 & 8) team, comprised of Beau Glass, Rebekah Goldsworthy, Elijah Grynberg and Lara Fosberry, argued the affirmative for the topic ‘That countries with poor human rights records should not be allowed to compete in the Olympics’. They discussed the benefits of allowing athletes from countries with poor human rights to compete under the Olympic banner, but not under their own country’s banner and did an extremely good job at arguing and explaining their case – so much so that they won the debate and are the Middle Division champions. The other students in the team who had debated during the preliminary and final rounds, thus helping them get to the Grand Final, were Isaac Grove, India Sacks, Ruby Hurwitz and Chloe Miller.

Then the Senior team (Years 9 & 10) debated the negative for the topic ‘Australia does not give everyone a fair go’, arguing strongly that a fair go meant equal opportunities, rather than equal outcomes. They too impressed the adjudicators and won their debate! The students who debated in the Grand Final were Sienna Amoils, Liahm Simon, Lara Joffe and Noah Solomon, with Natasha Gering, Isabella Flax and Joshua Amoils also part of the team who had debated in the previous rounds.

Both teams were coached by ex-student Anthony Small, of the class of 2011. The teachers who had supported the teams throughout the competition were Jemma Lenn-Lopis, Helen Philp and Suzanne Plume. We are very proud of the team’s success and congratulate them on this outstanding achievement. We are very grateful to Anthony, Jemma, Helen and Suzanne for their great stewardship of debating this year and also acknowledge their significant role in the School’s success in this area.  

P&F Trivia

Congratulations to the P&F on their fantastic night of Trivia last Saturday evening. This involved a huge amount of organisation by their committee and helpers, and was a great night out for those present as well as an excellent fund-raiser for the School. They have reported in more detail elsewhere in this week’s Ma Nishma. Congratulations and thanks go to Susie Rosen and Sharon Schulz, the co-chairs of the P & F, as well as the other members of their committee, on running this outstanding initiative so effectively, and to Andrew Klein for his superb role as MC for the evening, which added so much to its success.

Year 12 final reports

These were sent by email during the week, and are available through Edumate as well. Please ensure that Year 12 parents and students have received them and read them closely, since they provide much advice for our students in the lead up to their HSC Examinations that are only a few weeks away.

Our new portal

Congratulations also go to our IT team, and in particular Zoran Taleski, for our new portal for parents, students and staff, which was launched this week. This provides much improved access to communication and information for members of our community and much more seamless navigation between the various items. We hope you enjoy using it, along with our new look Ma Nishma. These represent giant steps towards improving our communication systems and we are very grateful to Zoran and his team for guiding this project towards fruition.

Evening of Song

Come along to what will be a beautiful hour and a half of song this Sunday evening at 5 pm. Adam Majsay is leading a choral spectacular, assisted by our Senior Chamber Choir and a group of alumni as well. It will be a lovely time to relax and enjoy the power of song.

Mazal tov to:

• Our AICES competitors who represented CDSSA at the recent championships, and particularly Danielle Rutstein and Oskar Beck, who will go on to CIS for High Jump and Javelin respectively
• Rebecca Waalkens and Dana Rutner (Year 12) who, as their last act of Tikkun Olam at Emanuel School, will run the Biggest Morning Tea for students next Thursday 14 September
• Our new SRC team who will host a barbeque for all HS students on Monday.

Coming up

• Senior Chamber Choir and Alumni Concert, Sunday 11 September, 5 pm
• Parent Information evening, Sex, Drugs and Rock & Roll, Dani Klein, Monday 12 September, 7 pm
• Year 11 Drama Showcase, Tuesday 13 September, 7 pm
• Madrichim Event, Thursday 15 September 7 pm
• Year 12 Farewell Assembly and Graduation Dinner, Tuesday 20 September
• Grandparents Day and Rosh Hashanah celebration, Friday 23 September.

Quote of the week

‘Things do not change; we change.’ [Henry David Thoreau]

Best wishes for a wonderful weekend.

My Portal for Parents

My Portal

 My Portal is a gateway that is accessible to all parents and contains important information about their child(ren)

• Change My Details – Parent/Student Contact Details confirmation/update
• Edumate – Excursion Approvals, Attendance, Academic Reports
• Reshet – (Learning Management System) Course Work Content
• Diary – My Child/ren’s Timetable
• Calendar – School Calendar Digest, Important Dates, Term Dates
• Ma Nishma – School Newsletter
• FlexiSchools – Online Canteen Ordering
• Policies – School Policies and Official Documentation
• Extra Curricular – Information about Extra Curricular Activities
• Edval – Parent Teacher Interview Booking

Sign In 

Sign-in is required to access My Portal 

Your default username credentials on enrollment are emailed to parents. The default Username is: Firstname.Surname e.g. John.Smith

If you do not remember your school credentials please follow the link here to reset your password. Hint: Your username is Firstname.Surname

School Website

A new MyPortal login button has been added to the top banner of our School Website. This replaces the existing Edumate, Reshet, Flexischool’s and Calendar links.

If you have any suggestions/comments/issues with MyPortal, please email helpdesk@emanuelschool.nsw.edu.au.

If you do not remember your school credentials please follow the link here to reset your password. Hint: Your username is Firstname.Surname

Zoran Taleski – ICT Manager

From the Head of Jewish Life

Gatekeepers and Gateways

This weeks parashah, ‘Judges’ derives its name from the opening verse: “Judges .. you shall employ at all your gates”.

In ancient times, judgement was rendered at the gates of the city, where the courts and magistrates would arrive at and execute its decisions. The character of the city and the esteem in which it was held were dependent upon its judicious process and results.

Noting that the words ‘you’ and ‘your’ appear in the singular, the Rabbinic tradition argues that this directive is addressed to the individual no less than it is to the collective. We all have gateways lying at the intersection of our interactions with others. Accordingly, we are each being asked to filter our interactions through wise judgements and executions.

The renowned developmental psychologist and author Robert Kegan, in his book Immunity to Change, speaks of the “socialised mind”; what issues from and enters through our gateways is limited by what we believe others want to hear and what we deem they want us to receive. We, therefore, say what we think others will find supportive and hear what they might not have said.

In contrast, what issues from and enters through the gateways of our “self-authoring mind”, explains Kegan, is conditioned by what we want others to hear and what we want to receive. In its interactions, our ‘self-authoring mind’ seeks to drive whereas our ‘socialised mind’ is given over to be driven.

Our biblical text goes on to say “do not pervert your judgement”, and presents two ways in which this might happen: showing favour to a particular perspective/ person or in taking a bribe.

Our ‘self-authoring mind’ may bribe and coax our gateways, our eyes, ears and mouth, to see, hear and say only that which we believe will maintain/further our own interests. Or, our ‘socialised mind’ may defer to a particular power or person directing our gateways to see, hear and say that which would be ‘expected’ or ‘wanted’. In doing this, our Torah tells us, we become blind where we could be wise and we replace balanced interactions with perverted ones.

Kegan identifies, as well, our ‘self-transforming mind. Not subservient to meeting presented/perceived agendas from without or constrained by securing the safety of status from within, the ‘self-transforming mind’ is vigilant in promoting expansive interactions, enabling our gateways to generate change for both ourselves and others.

In commanding us to employ critical judgements at our gateways, we are being asked to scrutinise our filters rather than being consciously/unconsciously governed by them. As the Torah text proceeds to state, “in order that you may live”. We are the gatekeepers for an ever-expanding self, a “self-transforming mind”, without which we would die.

Devar Torah

Noah Klein

Eden Sadra

The following Devar Torah was written by Year 9 students Eden Sadra and Noah Klein and presented by them in this week’s High School tefillot.

Rabbi Daniel Siegel 

At Mt Sinai, God called upon the Israelites to be a holy people, partners with God in creating a world of justice for all. Shoftim, the name of this parashah, means ‘Judges’. In this parashah, the Israelites are on the banks of the Jordan, almost at the Promised Land, when God tells the Israelites to appoint judges and officers so they can begin to administer this justice. God’s final instruction to them is among the Torah‘s most famous lines tzedek, tzedek, tirdof, or ‘Justice, justice, you shall pursue.’

Why ‘Justice, justice, shall you pursue?’ The second ‘justice’ must have some meaning. Some say ‘justice’ is repeated for emphasis, to teach that pursuing justice is among the most important things a person can do. Others say that it’s repeated to teach that we must be just in the way we go about our pursuit of justice.

Here in Shoftim, we learn about four circumstances calling for justice.

In the first issue of justice, God tells the Children of Israel that when they arrive in the Promised Land, if they really want, they can be like other nations around them and appoint a king. Criteria for qualified royalty are pretty strict. The king must be from his own nation, must not keep an excess of horses, wives, silver or gold. In addition, the king must write his own Torah scroll and read it regularly, to remind himself to follow its laws, and to rule justly, treating all people with equity, no matter how rich or poor they are.

For the second example of justice, God tells the Children of Israel to create ‘cities of refuge’ in the Promised Land. If a person accidentally kills someone, he or she can flee to these cities and be safe from relatives of the dead who might seek revenge. But if someone commits murder and tries to escape into a ‘city of refuge’, the elders of that city are to send him or her directly into the hands of the vengeance-seeking family.

Carrying on with the theme of crime, accidental or otherwise, the third case of justice covers witnesses and testimony. In order for testimony to be valid, not one but two witnesses must give the exact same testimony. If it is discovered that two witnesses got together to make up false testimony, the Torah says to rid the city of that evil – in this case, to expel the false witnesses from that city. In another famous line in the Torah, the Israelites are told not to have compassion for them – “a life for a life, an eye for an eye,” and so on. This is to scare others who might have been considering providing false testimony of their own.

The fourth consideration of justice is about rules of warfare. God tries to comfort the Israelites, telling them not be fearful or faint-hearted when they go out to war even if outnumbered by their enemies. Easier said than done! Officers were commanded to protect the lives of soldiers who had a lot to lose, or a lot of living left to do. By telling their armies, the following – “Whoever has built a new house but hasn’t lived in it yet, go home.” Whoever has planted a vineyard and hasn’t picked the fruit yet, go home. And whoever is engaged to a woman but hasn’t married her yet, you go home, too.”

For thousands of years, the command ‘Justice, justice, shall you pursue’ has defined who the Jewish people are and what they’re about. Especially today, in the face of the critical need to ensure justice on issues like environmental devastation, economic injustice and genocidal activity around the globe, this call warns us. We dare not wait for opportunities to do justice but rather must act assertively to address the great moral issues of our time. Tsedek, Tsedek Tirdof, each of us must pursue justice.

Ma Koreh

From the Head of Hebrew

From the Deputy Head of Primary

Emma Clemens

Seven Habits of Successful Families

On Monday evening, Tany Milner, Kim Slender and I had the privilege of presenting the second of our two-part series on Seven Habits of Successful Families. During the workshop we looked at the transition from independence to interdependence using the Emotional Bank Account. We then unpacked Habits 4-6, which are about effective relationships. We concluded by looking at Habit 7, which is about personal renewal. The key messages of the presentations are outlined below:

Transition from Independence to Interdependence:

When moving from the private to public victory, we need to explore the foundation of an effective relationship. All relationships are built on trust. In an effective relationship there is a high level of trust. We build trust in relationships by making deposits in the Emotional Bank Account. Deposits in the Emotional Bank Account may include keeping promises, acts of kindness, being loyal, listening or saying you’re sorry. Withdrawals from the Emotional Bank Account may include breaking promises, putting people down, gossiping, lying or setting false expectations. A withdrawal from the Emotional Bank Account requires two to five deposits to rebuild the trust that has been lost in the relationship. For the years K-2 students we use the language of ‘Bucket Filling’ and for the Years 3-6 students we use the language of ‘Emotional Bank Account’.

 Habit 4: Think Win Win

Habit 4 is about mutual benefit. The principle of this habit is to have an abundance mentality, knowing that there is plenty for everyone to share. To quote Stephen Covey: Think Win-Win is a frame of mind and heart that seeks mutual benefit and mutual respect. It’s not thinking selfishly (win-lose) or like a victim (lose-win). It’s thinking in terms of “we, not me.” There are four options we can consider when working with others, these are displayed in the matrix below.

Habit 5: Seek First To Understand, Then Be Understood

Habit 5 is about empathic communication. The principles of this habit are respect, mutual understanding, empathy and courage. As Stephen Covey says: The only reality I can possibly know is the world as I perceive it…and the only reality you can possibly know is the world as you perceive it…and the only certainty is that these worlds are different. There are as many “real worlds” as there are people.

Listening to others also helps to create feelings of being valued, validated, affirmed and understood. Often when we listen we use autobiographical responses. An autobiographical response is focused on self rather than the other person. Probe, evaluate, advise and interpret are four ways in which we can listen to others that lead to an autobiographical response.

An alternative to autobiographical listening is empathic listening. Empathic listening is rooted purely in our intent to understand the other person. If we continually seek first to understand and listen empathically, we will make deposits in the Emotional Bank Account of that relationship. With a high level of trust, people are more willing to speak openly and honestly about how they feel. There are three steps to empathic listening:

1. Take Time: This doesn’t necessarily mean setting aside long periods of time to listen and talk. It is about making the most of each conversation and actively listening.
2. Avoid ‘door slammers’: This can involve criticising, talking about yourself or giving advice. In highly emotional conversations, empathic listening is far more effective to get to the heart of the issue. Some helpful phrases for keeping the door open for empathic listening may include ‘Tell me about it’, ‘You’re saying’, ‘As you see it’, ‘So you feel…’
3. Listen first, talk second: When we respond in a conversation it is important to control our body language, use appropriate words and speak in a soft voice. When we use our words to listen empathically it is like giving air to the body because it provides understanding to the heart.

Habit 6: Synergise

Habit 6 is the result of thinking win win (Habit 4) and seeking first to understand (Habit 5). It is based on the principles of effectiveness, co-operation, diversity and humility. When we synergise we need to consider how to come up with a solution that is better than could be devised as an individual. Synergy in the family is celebrating differences, being open minded, working as a team and finding new and better ways. Synergy is not tolerating differences, working independently, thinking you are always right and compromising. The first rule of synergy is to value one another. The second rule of synergy is to recognise strengths. A helpful tool to identify individual strengths is the VIA survey of character strengths, developed by Penn University. This survey tool is free and has a questionnaire for adults and children.

Habit 7: Sharpen The Saw

Habit 7 is about daily self renewal, it is the habit that makes all the others possible. Sharpening the saw in the family context has four domains. First is the physical. This may include exercising or doing physical activities together, collaborative family work, getting enough sleep and eating healthily. Second is the mental. This is to learn new things together, share and discuss ideas, watch good movies or educational TV programs and develop talents. Third is the emotional. This involves loving and affirming one another, laughing and relaxing together and building relationships of trust and unconditional love. Fourth is the spiritual. This is spending time together in prayer or worship, mindfulness, meditation or reading inspirational literature as a family.

IPSHA Deputies

On Tuesday Emanuel School hosted the IPSHA Deputies’ Umbrella Group with about 20 Primary School Deputies from other IPSHA schools. At this meeting we showcased innovative practices in our Primary School. Firstly Tany Milner spoke about our Year 6 trip to Jilkminggan with student presentations from Sasha Goldman, Amanda Bozic, Kai Biton and Zachary Gothelf. Helen Maynard and Adam Majsay spoke about our Cultures of Thinking practices and Instructional Rounds professional development scheme. Kim Slender discussed our PAWS and .b Mindfuless programs, with student presentations from Ashley Cohn and Max Salamon. Finally I spoke about The Leader In Me program using Covey’s ‘7 Habits of Highly Effective People’, with student presentations from Ezra Glovers Sanders, Violet Nathanson and Remy Waller. It was wonderful to showcase some of the exciting initiatives taking place at Emanuel School to the deputies of other independent schools across NSW. Thank you to the staff and students who presented at the meeting and also to Holly Dillon for her assistance in organising and setting up the event.

Chess Success

On Tuesday the Primary School chess teams competed at the Jewish Schools Primary Chess Competition hosted at Mount Sinai. The students played incredibly well and won the overall school trophy. Team A won all of their games. Teams B, C and D also played at a very high standard which contributed to this outstanding whole school result. Thank you to Colleen Elkins for her ongoing commitment and support of the chess teams and for organising Emanuel students to attend the event.

 Upcoming Dates

• 12 September: Parent Teacher Night, 4:00pm-9:00pm MPH
• 13-14 September: School Photos – Music, Sport and Extra-curricular
• 14 September: Parent Teacher Night: 4:00pm-6:30pm
• 14 September: CIS Athletics
• 15 September: Year 3 Great Mates Day
• 16 September: Project Heritage, 11:15am-1:10pm MPH
• 16 September: 1 Be’er Sheva Assembly Class Item (Talia Hynek’s Class)
• 18-26 September: Year 6 Northern Territory Trip
• 19 September: Year 2 Science Incursion
• 20 September: Year 4 Guest Speaker James Roy
• 21 September: Year 6 Make A Difference (MAD) Excursion, Monte, Hunters Hill
• 22 September: Years K-2 Gala Day, Centennial Park
• 23 September: Rosh Hashanah and Grandparents and Friends Day, 9:30am-11:45am MPH

From the Primary Charity Leaders

Recently the Year 6 charity leaders held a charity drive by collecting food and toiletries for the Asylum Seeker Centre. The Asylum Seeker Centre helps refugees who don’t have a home to settle in. These people are provided with daily hot meals and resources. Lessons in English are also provided to help them apply for jobs.

The collection went for two weeks and was a huge success, as so many generous children brought in food and toiletries. Emanuel Primary School is helping people who need help to settle in to a brand new country for a fresh start. Thank you to everyone who donated.

Sasha Goldman

Amelia Cohen

Nathalie Freed

Primary Musical

From the Director of Studies 7-12

A Message to Year 12 Student from Dr Prue Salter

These last few months of Year 12 can be overwhelming as the focus just seems to be on marks, marks, marks.

So here are some important things to remember:

Yes this year is important. And yes you want to get the best marks you can. BUT.

A very big but.

You as a person are not defined by a number alone.

There are always alternate paths to get to where you want to go in life. The marks might make it quicker or easier but if you really want to get somewhere, if you are passionate about what you want to do, you will find a way to make it happen. Many people don’t get their first preference at university, so start off in one course then transfer after a year to the one they really wanted.

Lots of students leave school and find out that they actually have some incredible skills, they just weren’t academic! They discover that they are really good at lots and lots of stuff and that in the end, the marks did not make that much difference to their final career.

Really what you want after the next few months is to walk away with no regret, to be able to walk away saying no matter what, I really did the best I could – rather than I threw away twelve years of school just because I couldn’t be bothered pushing hard in the last few months. Doing your best is all anyone should expect of you, teachers, parents and even yourself.

These can be challenging months and you will be so over study by the end of it. Remember everyone has to go through it and the good news is it is never like this again! Just keep saying to yourself each day, this is one day less and I will never ever have to study like this again. The hardest part of Year 12 is finding the self-discipline to make yourself do the study when you don’t feel like doing it! So hang in there, persist, just take it day by day and make use of the support structures around you through the school, family and friends.

Dr Prue Salter

While Year 12 is busy studying, the rest of the school can learn more about how to achieve their personal academic best at school at www.studyskillshandbook.com.au  by logging in with these details:


Username: emanuelschool

Password: 20achieve

From the Head of Drama

From the Visual Art Madrich

Ronan Collins

Art Camp and the HSC Intensive course at National Art School

During 27 and 28 June all elective Visual Arts students in Years 9, 10 and 11 went to spend two full school days at the National Art School (NAS) in Darlinghurst. Each year group was assigned a different medium and art instructor to accompany them and they spent the next two days strongly focused on that particular discipline. These three instructors demonstrated the fundamentals of the three art styles, by teaching both practical skills and theoretical concepts. The Year 9 students attended contemporary artist and printmaker, Mini Graff’s class on innovative silkscreen printmaking methodologies. Year 10 students brought along clothes to ruin, as they learnt the foundations of wheel thrown pot making, with renowned ceramicist, Bronwyn Kemp. The Year 10’s were also joined by a few NAS graduates. The elders of the bunch, Year 11s, practised realistic oil paint portraits under the instruction of painter VR Morrison.

The days themselves were long and tiring, though every student became immersed in the art making experience. It was an unusual and beautiful experience having the whole day dedicated to focus on art making, I found the process almost meditative. Even the lunch break was enjoyable as, thanks to the ice-cold winds outside, everyone congregated in the university café. I attempted to play the only song I know on piano, (the chorus of crazy frog), but left the real music to Lexee as she accompanied our hunger with notes. At the end of the two rigorous days, we left holding an artwork to be proud of. It was the first intensive art course I had undertaken and was a perfect entry point for the intensive course both Pnina and I were about to undertake a few weeks later.  

Between 12-15 July, last school holidays, both Pnina and I returned to NAS for a selective HSC Intensive Art course. Both having chosen mediums, Pnina arrived for life drawing and me for printmaking.  First, everyone went into a hall for a short introduction – after which we couldn’t wait to start, we were so ready to make art!  Everybody but me seemed dressed for art school with dyed hair and clothes that should be questioned. The next few days were intense; Pnina’s life drawing lessons included different nude models everyday and a focused study of the human body. My lessons were very different, studying the outlines and designs of objects including texture and colour. This led to practising many forms of the printmaking medium; including mono-prints, plexiglass dry-points and acid etching.

By the end of the week, both Pnina and I had not only made a number of friends, but learnt heaps. After the immense amount of practice we are excited and exhilarated to return next holidays as we spend another week on final works.

Ronan Collins

Art Madrich

Night of Song

High School Sport Next Week

High School Sporting Events Next Week

Monday

Morning

• Running Club
• Year 7/8 Basketball Skills
• 14’s Boys Basketball Training

Afternoon

• Pilates

Year 10/11/12 Netball Trials

Tuesday

Morning

• Girls Fitness

Lunch

16s Boys Basketball Training

Afternoon

• Open Boys Basketball training
• Kickboxing/Box Fit

Wednesday

Afternoon

• Tennis
• Ice Skating

Thursday

Morning

• Boys Fitness

Lunch

• Open Boys Basketball Training

Afternoon

• Trampolining and Dodgeball at Skyzone

Friday

Morning

• Swimming Squad
• Senior Girls Touch Football Training
• Year 7/8 Netball Training
• 16’s Boys Basketball Training
• Year 7/8/9 Netball Trials

Sunday

• 14 Boys Basketball Competition
• 16 Boys Basketball Competition
• Open Boys Basketball Competition

AICES Athletics

Eight Emanuel students who qualified through to represent CDSSA at the AICES (Association of Independent Co-educational Schools Association) Athletics Championships held at Sydney Olympic Athletics Centre, Homebush last week all put in a fabulous effort. Many Emanuel students who had qualified were unable to compete due to Year 11 examinations and the Year 10 Zionist camp.

The AICES Championships attract sixty-seven schools from eight associations with representatives coming from all over NSW, creating a very high level of competition.

Our students all performed well with outstanding performances from Danielle Rutstein achieving second place jumping 1.45m in the high jump and Oskar Beck throwing over 33 metres with the javelin. Both students have qualified to compete in the CIS (Combined Independent Schools) Championships to be held at Homebush.

Congratulations also to Jared Elbourne, Tia Mallinick, Alon Erez-Rein, Nathaniel Spielman, Gabriella Goodridge and Romi Lapidge whom competed admirably and displayed outstanding sportsmanship on the day.

 Mazal tov to all.

Sharon Fairfax

PDHPE School Assistant

School Photographs

Music, House, Representative Sport and Co-curricular Photographs

It’s time to celebrate our students through photographs.

Photograph days will be:

Tuesday 13 September

o    Music – Primary and High School students

o    Co-curricular – Primary and High School Students

o    House – High School students

All students are to wear winter formal uniform.

Wednesday 14 September

o    Representative sport for both Primary and High Students

Students to wear sport uniform.

It will be a busy two days capturing the many activities in which our students participate.

Maxine Chopard – Assistant to Deputy Principal

From Nathaniel Knoll – Year 12

The Detrimental Movement to Amend the Racial Discrimination Act

Australia is an undeniably multicultural nation. According to the 2011 Census, more than 44% of Australia’s population were born overseas or have at least 1 parent who was born overseas. Also, 260 languages are spoken by Australia’s populous, and the people identify with some 300 ancestry groups[1]. It thus stands that we should, and do, have laws in place to protect the intercultural stability of our society. These laws can be found within the Racial Discrimination Act (hereafter RDA), which was introduced in 1975. This Act makes it unlawful to treat someone less fairly on the basis of their race, colour, descent or national/ethnic origin[2].

In recent Australian politics, one particular section of the RDA has aroused some contention and debate – Section 18C, which makes it unlawful to take an action in public that “is reasonably likely, in all circumstances, to offend, insult, humiliate or intimidate” based on one’s “race, colour or national/ethnic origin”[3].

In accordance with Section 18D, Such action is not however unlawful, if it is done reasonably and in good faith, say, in the “performance, exhibition or distribution of an artistic work” or “in the course of any statement, publication, discussion or debate made or held for any genuine academic, artistic or scientific purpose or any other genuine purpose in the public interest” or in making or publishing a fair report or comment on any event or matter of public interest.

In an address to the Australian Human Rights Commission early last year, Peter Wertheim (Executive Director of ECAJ) spoke on the topic of Section 18C, and has kindly offered me a copy of this address to help construct this article. In this address, one of the sections outlines the harms of racial vilification as “a direct attack on the target’s humanity and dignity… undermining the good standing of members of the target community with other citizens along with their basic sense of safety and security”. Wertheim also raised the point that “the target has a reasonable fear that a response will provoke further abuse.” For these reasons, among others, Australia needs Section 18C as it is, else we may be faced with increasing intercultural tensions.

Now the reason I am writing this article is as a response to a recent move by Senator Cory Bernardi, to amend Section 18C of the RDA, so that the words “offend” and “insult” would be removed , making it legal to offend or insult an individual based on their race, skin colour, spoken language, culturally relevant attire, etc. Senator Bernardi has collected a total of 20 signatures within the Senate – out of 39 needed to pass the amendment in the 78 seat Senate. It would then go on to the House of Representatives, and if it passes there, the amendment would come into force.

Cory Bernardi, on his personal blog, recently stated that freedom is under assault like never before in this country and goes on to explain that “Section 18C… is now being used as a tool to stifle speech on the basis it may offend or insult someone.” Whilst I don’t want to centre my article around deconstructing Bernardi’s argument, as that is not the purpose of this argument, I will point out one hole. Bernardi somewhat ironically presents his distaste for cherry-picking of information in that same blog post. His argument appears to revolve around the idea that these socially progressive laws, paired with the ‘age of political correctness’, will gradually reduce our freedom of speech to “Orwell’s frightening vision characterised in his book Nineteen Eighty-Four”.

The irony is that this is precisely what cherry-picking looks like, as Bernardi does not seem to have even considered Section 18D. In considering the effects of 18C’s full contents and 18D’s exemptions for 18C, we see that there aren’t any real threats to free speech. Firstly, in terms of the alleged subjectivity, 18C is objective in its implementation. If someone is ‘easily offended’ in such a way that others of the same background would not be offended, there is no violation of 18C. Nor does 18C provide recourse for “mere hurt feelings”. In Creek v Cairns Post Pty Ltd the Federal Court in 2001 decided that “insult, offend, humiliate and intimidate” only classifies action as unlawful under 18C if the act has “profound and serious effects, not to be likened to mere slights”[4].

Secondly, 18D means that if there is a contentious issue between different cultural groups, it is perfectly acceptable to hold a public debate that may otherwise cause some form of offense. As long as the points are put forward with reasons and in good faith, 18D creates an exemption that will allow the most robust public debate to lawfully occur.

I hope now that the effects of Section 18C and their scope/limitations are now clear. I would like to now propose the risks I see with altering Section 18C to exclude “offend” and “insult”. Should these words be removed, the following examples of abhorrent actions and statements would no longer be unlawful:

• Publicly shaming Arab women for wearing a hijab
• Spreading posters around a neighbourhood that blame Jews for the Holocaust or denying that the Holocaust happened[5]
• Actively and publicly discriminating against legitimate refugees and asylum seekers on the basis of their race or national origin

I would like to expand on these examples, which I have selected due to their relevance to Australia as it is now. Firstly, the point on discriminating against Arabs based on what some Arabs (who happen to be Muslim) wear. Australia has come a long way in terms of intercultural acceptance. For example, our school participates in the RUA Interfaith program, which aims to allow different religious school students to learn about each others’ cultures and religions so that any tensions between our communities would be reduced.

On to the second point about Holocaust denial. We are at a time where Holocaust survivors are aging, and soon may not be able to tell their own stories. The remembrance of these stories, and how we as a community will continue to remember and pass down these stories, form a pivotal part of our communal dignity. Active Holocaust denial is particularly offensive and insulting to the Jewish community. Removing “offend” and “insult” from 18C will create an avenue to further increase the occurrences of Holocaust denial, which will only beget unnecessary and avoidable public issues in the near future.

For the third point, insulting refugees picks on one of the weakest sectors in our society. Most refugees are having difficulty with cultural integration, making it harder for them to get accepted into a job that would allow them to contribute to the economy. Should “offend” and “insult” be removed from 18C, imagine how much more difficult it would be for these refugees who are granted their visas to fit in with our society. Australia currently budgets for approximately $400M in welfare payments for these unemployed refugees. If the changes are made to 18C, this would go up. Now I’m aware that this value is not that large in terms of the size of the budget, but imagine if instead we could not only make this value go down, but also allow refugees to contribute to Australia’s economic growth. That would be harder to achieve if 18C was amended as Bernardi and the other 19 Senators intend.

To wrap this up, I want to put some emphasis on my main opinion point. Amending 18C to exclude the words “offend” and “insult” will have several negative effects on our society, including rising racism, xenophobia, antisemitism and tensions between cultural groups within our exceptionally multicultural nation. The path forward is to protect Section 18C as it is, and stand together to allow multiculturalism to thrive, not perish. The Jewish Community, together with others successfully defeated a previous attempt to wind back 18C, and we will need to make a stand again if the movement to amend 18C progresses any further.

[1] https://www.dss.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/12_2013/people-of-australia-multicultural-policy-booklet_print.pdf

[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Racial_Discrimination_Act_1975

[3] http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/cth/consol_act/rda1975202/s18c.html

[4] Creek v Cairns Post Pty Ltd (2001) 112 FCR 352. The Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth) sch s 471.12 creates an offence for using ‘a postal or similar service’ in a manner that ‘reasonable persons would regard as being, in all the circumstances, menacing, harassing or offensive’

[5] Toben v Jones – (2003) 199 ALR 1

Biggest Morning Tea 2016

Rebecca Waalkens

Dana Rutner

Whilst it is a bit later than usual, we will once again be hosting the Biggest Morning Tea. For the past five years, we have sold cupcakes and cookies to raise money for the Cancer Council. We will once again be selling cupcakes and cookies for $2 on Wednesday the 14 September, to High School. In addition we will be having a Biggest Morning Party at lunch time.

All the money raised will be going towards the Cancer Council. This is our final year in which we will be hosting the BMT at Emanuel School. With your support we would like to make this year’s tea our best one yet!

If you want to place an order or want more information, don’t hesitate to email: 

Dana Rutner: rutner.dana@emanuelschool.nsw.edu.au

Rebecca Waalkens: waalkens.rebecca@emanuelschool.nsw.edu.au

Thank you for all your support over the years!

The Biggest Morning Tea Tea

Rashi Times

Last week Year 10s were on Camp. Below some Rashi students (and Morah Erika) told us about their favourite memories and overall experiences.

Camp Experiences

Year 10 camp was an enjoyable experience for everyone involved. I feel like we created incredible connections with people in our year group especially our family groups and cabins. I loved bonding with the Mads and having insightful discussions with them. Noa Blair

My favourite part of camp was Shabbat. I thought it was amazing to keep Shabbat and have everyone put in the effort and go out of their way to keep Shabbat. The service on Friday night was amazing. Listening to everyone sing together the sense of community was beautiful. Georgia Linetsky

The most amazing, memorable part of camp was hearing Sienna Amoils read from the Torah. It was amazing to hear the meaning behind the words and watch her put in the effort to learn her passage. It was also amazing as it was the first time I danced in Ruach so I was very proud. Morah Erika

I felt really connected to my Judaism and Zionism during the programs, especially the discussions. I always made sure to try to contribute my opinion and thoughts to the discussions. Ben Dobrin

I loved creating new friendships and building relationships with the Madrichim. I always wondered what the big fuss was regarding Year 10 camp, and now I completely understand why everyone loves it so much each year. It was an incredibly moving experience and I wish we could go back, we all miss it so much! Genevieve Goldman

I feel as though the Year 10 camp is quite possibly the most important camp in the School. It’s an incredibly eye opening experience that brings the entire year as a whole closer. It’s not simple to explain how it works but I think I speak for the majority of the year when I say that I absolutely loved camp. Tomer Belkin

Happy Birthday

We take today to commemorate the birth of the following people many years ago. It is a day of reflection; evaluating where one’s at and where they’re going. We hope you have an amazing day!

• Maxwell Keyser (Year 7)
• Aaron Lemberg (Year 7)
• Georgia Linetsky (Year 10)
• Jake Lewitton (Year 8)

Have a great week!

Lara Joffe, Joshua Amoils and Sienna Amoils

Careers

Claire Pech

Open Day Season

It has been great hearing the feedback from many of the students who have been to an open day. From what I have heard students who have gone directly to lectures and talks from the departments they are interested in have had some really key learning elements. This is where most of the learning takes place and also when decisions are made.

I hope students can share this knowledge around and discuss this with their peers. It is always interesting for me to hear that what one student loved (e.g. the new B Sociology and Film Production degree at Notre Dame) another student didn’t like at all. 

Some of the positive feedback I heard was:

• Loving the city feel of the UTS campus
• Enjoying the vibrancy and campus unity at ANU in Canberra
• Loving the green, beautiful, studious feel of University of Sydney
• Enjoying the International Studies and Global Studies talks at UTS
• Finding out more about Engineering at ANU especially the more rounded Systems Engineering degree they do
• Enjoying the smaller sized classrooms of Notre Dame
• Finding it so easy to get to UNSW
• Loving the Engineering talks and hearing from the Business faculty at UNSW
• Hearing the new initiatives from UTS and what makes them so cutting edge.

The list goes on. Discuss some of these at home and what you enjoyed.

Don’t under-estimate the feel you got at a University and whether it felt right for you. Also couple this with the course that you like the sound of, have investigated, have read about and done your research on. Just because your cousin didn’t like a topic at University doesn’t mean the department is rubbish, as they are not you!

Overseas US Talks

NYU on the Common Application, Mon 12 September, at Ascham, for Years 10-12. This will be held at Barnet Lecture Theatre in the Centre for the Sciences at 6pm. Please register to attend at www.trybooking.com/226456. There will be another session on Tuesday 20 September, for Harvard Admissions at the same location from 5:30pm.  Please register to attend at: www.trybooking.com/226957

UNSW: Portfolio Entry Art and Design

The Portfolio entry for UNSW Art and Design closes 30 September 2016 for Semester 1 2017. Students should submit a portfolio if they believe they will fall within ten points of the ATAR cut off for their desired course. Further information on where a portfolio is not accepted and what to include can be found by following the link below.

https://www.artdesign.unsw.edu.au/future-students/portfolio-entry https://www.artdesign.unsw.edu.au/whats-on/events/2015-portfolio-entry-workshops

Macquarie University Taster Day

This is for Years 11 and 12 students and will be held on Tuesday 27 September from 10am – 3pm @ Macquarie University, North Ryde. Get a taste of what a day in the life of a Macquarie science, medical science or human sciences student is really like. 

http://www.cvent.com/events/taster-day-science-medical-and-human-sciences/event-summary-0183dbd2dd054d3080678d421d2410f7.aspx

The 10 Happiest Jobs of 2016 from CareerFAQs (a very interesting critique on the happiness index for jobs)

http://www.careerfaqs.com.au/news/news-and-views/the-10-happiest-jobs-in-2016

Gesher

LIKE FATHER LIKE SON!

Most of you will know the name Ofer Levy, a parent here at Emanuel School and a professional, passionate photographer. We see the amazing photographs he has taken at a variety of School events over the past few years, including Pesach sederim and athletics carnivals as well as drama and music performances, to name just a few. What you may not know however, is that Ofer’s son Jonathan (Yoni) also has a passion for photography.

Here is Yoni’s image which made it to the finals at the prestigious Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year 2016, and they have used Yoni’s image to promote the exhibition.

All 100 finalists were selected from more than 2000 entries from all over the world and are presented at the Australian Museum in a magnificent exhibition which is on until 9 October.

Yoni,  in Year 3, is at the age of nine the youngest ever to reach the finals in the Junior Category. Ofer and Yoni are the first father and son who have made it to the finals! Ofer has two images in this exhibition. We wish them both Mazal tov!

Although Ofer loves taking photos of people, his true passion is nature and he has won numerous national and international awards for his amazing wildlife photographs. Check out his website: www.oferlevyphotography.com

We hope you will join us this Sunday, 11 September, here at School for an evening of song featuring Emanuel students past and present – see invitation below for details.

Many of our Emanuel Community will be part of the Friendship Circle Walk this coming Sunday morning. It is not too late to register and/or donate to this most worthy cause: www.sydneyfc.org.au/walk

Primary Grandparents and Friends Day is fast approaching. We hope our Grandparents will join us on Friday 23 September for a very special morning with their grandchildren and all the Years K – 6 students. Please see the invitation below for further details. We encourage grandparents to RSVP by 16 September at the latest to: snewell@emanuelschool.nsw.edu.au or phone 8383 7350. Morning tea will be served, so please RSVP for catering purposes.

“Remember September”, an initiative by alumnus Ben Wilheim to raise awareness and funds for pancreatic cancer research and ultimately a cure, is now well underway, with a great interview and article in last week’s Jewish News. Please support this initiative if you can: http://rememberseptember2016.gofundraise.com.au/

Sonia Newell

Development Officer

From the Parents and Friends

The P&F has had a huge week, kicking off with our traditional Fathers Days Breakfast and Gift Stall last Friday. It’s always an early start for our Fathers Day breakfast, and this year the rain decided to join us ….  but we filled the MPH with 320 dads and grandads who started their day with a hot breakfast lovingly prepared by our mum volunteers (and one dad) and wonderful coffee courtesy of BILLER PROPERTY.

An extra big thank you to those mums and dads that were up too early to even mention on Friday morning and the Canteen ladies for the use of the canteen.

Thanks also to NUDIE juices for supplying their yummy products yet again and to Michelle Stockley and her team of helpers at the Fathers Day Gift Stall who always have a huge smile on their faces when helping the kids choose from the great gifts we had on offer.

We sincerely hope you had a great Fathers Day!

Immediately after Fathers Day, we set up for the Trivia event 

What a tremendous night …..

Saturday night’s Trivia Night brought together over 270 families and friends of the Emanuel community to share in a night of fun, laughter, good food and fundraising. The MPH was spilling over with the sounds of laughter as we exceeded our target of attendees for the night – thank you !

We have been bowled over by the wonderful feedback and messages of thanks and gratitude – Everyone made a great effort with their theme and congratulations to the “CHESS” team that won best themed table and “THE BLONDES” team that won the Trivia.

Whilst there are too many people to thank individually, an extra special thanks must be given to Andrew Klein our MC/Trivia host who did the most tremendous job – as always!  He is a star in every way, volunteering his time to put together a wonderful night of entertainment.

Our volunteers worked tirelessly this weekend, over long long hours leading up to the event and Sharon and I must thank each and every member of the planning committee who hand-made cookies, prepared decorations, spent hours shopping, planning, sewing and printing. You are all the most amazing ladies to work with.

Thank you : Jen Opit, Michelle Stockley, Suzanne Itzkowitz, Andy Bromberger, Jo Rose, Dan Freed, Ruby Berkowitz and Samantha Butt.  Thank you also to Yvette Binneter who sold close to $2,000 worth of raffle tickets on the night and our team of 20 High School Madrichim who also volunteered their precious time on a Saturday night to help out –  you made our school proud.

We almost forgot – one more thank you to the wonderful Maintenance team !

Aladdin– The Hit Broadway Musical (Sunday 13th November 6.30pm)
Bookings will be closing next week for Aladdin the Musical.  Don’t miss out, so get online and book at :  www.trybooking.com/LJUI

Questions ?
Email : Emanuel.aladdin@gmail.com

P&F Camping Trip 28 – 30th October
One of the highlights of the P&F calendar, our Camping Trip is on again soon in a few weeks and bookings are now open. https://www.trybooking.com/NAKV 

Farewell …..

We would like to take this opportunity to bid farewell to Renee Levy who has been a member of the P&F for many, many years.  As her last child is in Year 12, last night she attended her last P&F meeting.  Renee, thank you for all your passionate work over the years, always turning up to meetings full of enthusiasm and wonderful ideas.  We will miss your happy face and contributions, and wish you and your son good luck with his upcoming HSC.

Thank you
Susie and Sharon

Parents and Friends Camping Trip

Thank you from Parents and Friends

Emanuel Midford Uniform Shop

Canteen Corner