Principal’s Report
Principal’s Report – 13 November 2026
Celebrating Our Inaugural Duke of Edinburgh Award Students
On Tuesday evening, our inaugural Duke of Edinburgh Award students gathered with their families and teachers in our Performing Arts Centre to celebrate their personal and group achievements throughout 2026.
It was truly inspiring to hear our Year 9 Duke of Edinburgh participants, who affectionately refer to one another as ‘Dukelings’, share their experiences and reflections with such confidence, maturity and enthusiasm.
Throughout the year, these students have undertaken the Duke of Edinburgh program as a full-year Year 9 elective. Their presentations on Tuesday evening were truly inspiring as each of them openly shared the many challenges and opportunities that the program has presented to them. Throughout the program students are challenged to set personal goals, develop new skills, take on physical challenges, volunteer in their communities, and work collaboratively as a team on an ‘adventurous journey’. Our students have been truly admirable in their demonstrated willingness to step outside their comfort zones and embrace new experiences.
Each student set a vast array of personal goals, and it was particularly rewarding to hear them reflect on what they had learned along the way; particularly about their own strengths and what they have to offer others. Their insights highlighted that the greatest achievements were not simply the goals they reached. Students could celebrate their personal growth, their increased resilience, confidence and self-belief that they developed throughout the year. Their presentations on the night were a testament to this.
Our Duke of Edinburgh students epitomised through their efforts and achievements this year what it means to be curious and to embrace new opportunities.
One message that resonated strongly throughout the evening was, “Don’t stop doing hard things!” It is through challenge that we grow, discover our strengths and develop resilience. We never truly know what we are capable of until we are prepared to step beyond what feels comfortable and give something new a try. I encourage our students, with the support of their families and teachers, to always keep this mantra in mind. Learning is not always easy…life is not always easy. The trick is never giving up but also remembering that you are not on your own. This was very clear in the lovely sense of teamwork that has been developed with this impressive group of Year 9 students. They challenged each other, supported each other and together they succeeded. Our inaugural ‘Dukelings’ are wonderful ambassadors for our school’s values. They epitomise what can be achieved through commitment, courage, teamwork and a willingness to embrace the unknown.
Congratulations to every one of our students on this outstanding achievement. We are incredibly proud of what you have accomplished, but perhaps even more importantly, we are inspired by the people you are becoming.
A big thank you to Tim Bourke, affectionately dubbed ‘The Duke’ by his class, for his passion and drive that brought this elective to life and for his unwavering support of our students.
Remembrance Day
On Wednesday 11 November we paused at 11am to honour the courage and sacrifice of those who served in times of war and peace. Commemorating Remembrance Day is an important tradition. By observing Remembrance Day, our school community not only honours the past but also helps shape a generation committed to understanding, compassion, and peace.
I would like to recognise our Middle School Captains Aadya, Marcus, Ava and Zoe who conducted a Remembrance Day ceremony for the residents of Roseville Retirement Village on Tuesday morning. The residents of Roseville were grateful for the visit and in full praise of our students. Our connection with Roseville Retirement Village is one that has continued to grow over the past few years and one that our students and the residents mutually enjoy.
Back at school, we ended recess a touch early so that all classes were settled at 11.00 am to reflect upon the significance of the day. We believe it is important for us as a College community to ensure that we stopped our daily routine to reflect not only on the sacrifices made by those before us but also to appreciate the quality of our own lives and to recognise our responsibilities as citizens within our community,
Year 8 students, Ella and Damien, delivered the following reading to the College;
Today, we pause to reflect on Remembrance Day and its special place in Australia’s history.
On 11 November 1918, at precisely 11am, the guns of the Western Front fell silent. After more than four years of dreadful warfare, the Armistice brought an end to the fighting of the First World War. A conflict that began in 1914 and cost millions of lives had finally reached a moment of silence.
More than a century later, we can scarcely comprehend what those who served experienced, but the significance of that moment remains.
The First World War remains Australia’s costliest conflict in lives lost and casualties. From a population of fewer than five million, more than 416,000 Australians enlisted. More than 60,000 never returned home, while approximately 156,000 were wounded or taken prisoner. Almost every community and countless families felt the devastating effects of war.
At Gallipoli, on the shores of Türkiye, and across the battlefields of the Western Front, Australians endured unimaginable hardship: gunfire, disease, exhaustion and the constant uncertainty of whether they would see another day. Yet they showed extraordinary courage, resilience and loyalty to those beside them. This spirit of endurance, courage and mateship remains an important part of Australia’s national story.
Remembrance Day is not simply about Gallipoli or the First World War. It is about all Australians who have served in conflict and peacekeeping. From the Second World War to Korea and Vietnam, and through more recent service in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere, generations of Australians have answered the call. Their commitment and sacrifice deserve our enduring respect.
The consequences of war do not end when the fighting stops. For those who have lost a husband, wife, son, daughter, brother, sister or friend, the absence is permanent. For those who returned with physical or emotional scars, the experience may never truly leave them. These families and individuals are also part of the story we remember.
I would like you to think for a moment about your own lives.
As you walk through our school grounds today, laughing with friends, rushing to class or preparing for an exam, consider how different life might have been for a young Australian your age more than a century ago.
Imagine the trenches of the Western Front: the mud, fear and uncertainty. Imagine looking towards the horizon, knowing danger lay ahead and that you might never return home. Imagine families waiting anxiously for news, hoping the next letter would bring reassurance rather than heartbreak.
The same sun that warms us today once shone over Gallipoli and the ridges of France, where so many young Australians fought and fell.
These comparisons remind us how fortunate we are and why our freedoms must never be taken for granted. We can learn, pursue our ambitions, express ourselves freely and live alongside people from many cultures. These are privileges to value and protect.
Remembrance Day asks us to consider our responsibilities as community members and global citizens: to respect one another, value our differences, show compassion and seek to resolve conflict through understanding rather than violence.
Those who served were not simply statistics. They were sons and daughters, mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters, friends and neighbours: ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances. They were soldiers, sailors, airmen and women, nurses and support personnel who served in dangerous conditions. Their stories remind us that service is measured not only in military victories, but in courage, compassion, endurance and humanity.
So, why do we remember? We remember because the cost of war must never be forgotten; because the courage and sacrifice of those who served deserve our gratitude; and because the Anzac spirit of mateship, resilience and determination continues to shape our national identity. Above all, we remember because peace, freedom and the opportunity to live our lives should never be taken for granted.
Let us honour those who served, those who fell, those who returned and those who continue to serve, as well as the families and communities who carry the burden of their sacrifice.
I will now read the fourth stanza of Laurence Binyon’s poem, For the Fallen, known as the Ode of Remembrance:
They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old;
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning,
We will remember them.
Lest we forget.
I thank Ella and Damien for their articulate delivery of such an important message, and our students for the manner in which our students respectfully partook in our Remembrance Day tribute and commemoration.
Exam Update
The final Year 12 VCE examination period is well underway. Year 12 exams conclude on Wednesday 18 November with Chinese Second Language and Chinese Second Language Advanced exams taking place.
VCE results will be published on Thursday 10 December. It has been wonderful to see our students approach these exams so calmly. Our students are well practiced in exam expectations and protocols. Our Chief Supervisor, along with other examination supervisors, have all commented on the conduct, good manners and compliance of our students.
We now look forward to our Year 12 Final Assembly, for students and parents on Friday 20 November.
Year 11 exams commenced last week and will continue until mid-next week.
Our Year 10 exams will commence next week (Tue 17 November) and will continue to Wednesday 25 November. Year 9 exams (English and Maths only) will take place on Thursday 26 November.
A reminder also to families that we will have a student free day for our Assessment & Reporting Day on Friday 27 November
VCE Orientation Program to commence in week 9 on Monday 30 November. The Advance Program for Year 7-9 students also commences week 9 and runs for 2 weeks.
Looking ahead, just to note that our end-of year Presentation Event will be conducted on Monday 14 December.
Planning and preparation for 2027
This is another quick reminder to the Parents/Guardians of students who will no longer be attending East Doncaster Secondary College in 2027.
If you have not already done so, can you please contact the school to inform us that your child will not attending next year. This information can be communicated to the staff members in our General Office or the Year Level Coordinators.
This information is vital for our Year Level Coordination teams to plan and prepare classes and programs for next year.
Your cooperation on this matter would be most appreciated.
Karen Boyle
College Principal
