On 15 November, St Michael’s College will be honoured to have the last Rat of Tobruk, Mr Bill Corey visit the school to present a class of Year 9 History students the State prize for the Anzac Day School's Awards.
The College's Year 9 students studied the First World War as part of one of the compulsory topics covered in History. Year 9s with the guidance of teacher, Jane Sykes, researched and examined the first World War's effect on the local community. Via the National Archives, the RSL Virtual War Memorial and the Australian War Memorial they discovered two local soldiers from Henley Beach that had died on the war fields in France. Their names were Ernest Wallace and Philip Groves. Via partnering with a local French school called Lycée Giraux Sannier in Boulogne-sur-Mer the students were able to find in-depth information and personal stories about the pair.
Jane Sykes spoke of the value of the interaction with French students:
"…. it enabled the students to really get to know the two young soldiers and their families and help grasp the enormity of the horrors experienced on the Western Front," she said.
The students then created PowerPoint presentations and videos to share their discoveries with the French students, who visited Grove and Wallace’s graves. Furthermore, they created a memorial exhibition to educate the whole College about the connection between the First World War and the yearly Anzac Day commemoration. It featured information panels, images and artefacts and used the two soldier’s experiences to show their lives before the war, what it was like during enlistment & training, service at the Western front and their ultimate death on the war field.
Reception students who join a 2024 mid-year intake at a Diocesan Catholic school will get free tuition in Terms 3 and 4.
