Teachers, year advisers and careers advisers with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students: 

SydPIC is a fantastic opportunity for Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander students in Years 10 or 11 who are interested in science or health science to learn more about study and careers in pharmacy. Students will stay on campus for a four-day camp while they participate in workshops, lab sessions, and field trips. All costs are covered by the Faculty of Pharmacy. 

Pease click here for full brochure on the Faculty of Pharmacy's website. 

Dates: Sunday 20 - Thursday 24 January, 2013
Location: University of Sydney Camperdown campus 
Cost: All travel, accommodation, insurance, and tuition costs will be covered by the Faculty of Pharmacy.  
Registration: By application form, available here. 
Faculty contact and camp coordinator: Dr Nial Wheate is happy to answer any questions that teachers, students, or parents have about the camp. He can be reached on 9036 7647. 

Between 15 - 25 places are available, and this opportunity will be advertised throughout Sydney secondary schools. Applications are due by 26 October 2012 - don't miss out!

The Pinnacle Foundation was established to provide scholarships and mentoring for disadvantaged LGBTIQ youth. Scholarships will be provided for young LGBTIQ who desire to undertake full-time or part-time education at a public or private secondary school (final year) or public institution of higher education in Australia. It will be for the purpose of gaining an educational or vocational qualification in any profession, trade or the arts. The grant will sit alongside and complement other government funding rather than duplicate it.

The Scholarship will under certain conditions cover such vital needs as the cost of tuition fees or dues to an approved educational institution, laptop, textbooks, uniforms, professional membership or student union fees, professional tools of trade and public transport concession passes.

Applications close on October 15. 

Call (02) 9990 4708 or visit www.thepinnaclefoundation.org 

Culturally Diverse Music Programs

Saturday 10 November, 9am-12pm
Facilitator: Cassandra Brennan

• Participants will learn how to design extra-curricular programs that are culturally inclusive and draw on the skills, needs and interests of the students and members of the school community. 

School educators are teaching increasingly diverse school populations. The challenge of engaging students of all backgrounds in music classrooms is evident. Current research demonstrates that many programs end up alienating, rather than engaging students in some music classrooms. 

This workshop will examine current research in the field of music education and student engagement. Participants will learn how to design extra-curricular programs that are culturally inclusive and draw on the skills, needs and interests of the students and members of the school community. 

In this workshop examples of culturally inclusive extra-curricular program models that have been successfully implemented within schools will be given and examined. Practical activities will focus on building participants’ confidence in successfully integrating repertoire from unfamiliar cultural backgrounds with appropriate pedagogical strategies, to result in authentic, high-quality performances.

Cost: $60 Early Bird Rate (for enrolments prior to 26 October) 

$80 (for enrolments after 26 October)

Enrolments available until 8 November or until all places filled. Morning tea is included.

Click here to see the brochure, or for more information please call the Con on 9351 1240.

To register as a Compass Professional Learning activity, please use the Compass online registration form.

Oct 17, 24, 31 & Nov 7, 14, 21
Conversations about literary texts – module 1   Blended mode – 12 hours face-to-face at Homebush Boys High School + 8 hours reading/online activities
NSWIT Course Code C08360. 

• Teaching grammar in primary school and middle years.
• The teaching of literary texts as the context in which grammar is taught to support meaning. 
• Details and dates TBA

Mentoring - Module 1
Available all Term 4 2011 – Opens Week 1
NSWIT Course Code C08579

This course is designed to meet the needs of teachers who are involved in mentoring and all teachers interested in professional development related to mentoring, teacher induction and teacher accreditation issues.

The course will include:

• a critical overview of the research in the areas of professional development, mentoring and teacher induction
• a study of key issues related to the concept of mentoring and teacher induction identified through the review of literature
• analysis of the current developments around standards of professional practice
• opportunities for individuals to discuss and investigate specific mentoring issues and develop mentoring skill.

1 – 2 November

Dr Michael Ungar, ‘Resilience in the Middle Years’
Michael Ungar is a University Research Professor and Professor at the School of Social Work at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Canada. As the Director of the Resilience Research Centre, he currently leads a number of studies of resilience involving researchers from more than a dozen countries on six continents.He is also the author of eight books including:

• Strengths-Based Counseling with At-Risk Youth
• We Generation: Raising Socially Responsible Kids
• Playing at Being Bad: The Hidden Resilience of Troubled Teens, and
• Too Safe for Their Own Good: How Risk and Responsibility Help Teens Thrive.

See future Compass Directions for more information.