Narrabundah College
 | This article needs more citations. (October 2018) |
| Narrabundah College | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Location | |
 | |
| , 35°20′10″S 149°8′52″E / 35.33611°S 149.14778°E | |
| Information | |
| Type | College |
| Motto | Discover, Develop, Excel |
| Established | 1974 |
Principal | Megan Altenburg |
| Enrolment | ~939 |
| Campus | Urban |
| Colours | Yellow and black |
| Website | http://www.narrabundahc.act.edu.au/ |
Narrabundah College is a government college that teaches the last two years of secondary education in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT).[1] It was the first school in Australia to offer the International Baccalaureate (IB), starting the programme in February 1978.[2][3]
History
[edit]Narrabundah College was formed as a result of the ACT developing its own education system in 1974. The new system meant that public high schools would only teach from year 7 to 10, and that years 11 and 12 would be completed at a separate school. The pre-existing Narrabundah High School was re-formed as Narrabundah College.[3]
Due to low enrolments, the ACT Schools' Authority threatened to close the school in 1978. This prompted the community into seeking backing for the IB programme. The then-federal Minister for Education, John Carrick, approved the commencement of the programme in 1979, ensuring the survival of the school.[3]
Campus
[edit]
The college campus is located in the suburb of Narrabundah, Canberra. It consists of several buildings including the large "S Block" which was originally the segregated senior building for years 11 and 12 prior to the school becoming a secondary college. Among other things, the school has a quadrangle, canteen, gymnasium, theatre, as well as playing fields.
Block B, Block C, and Block D were contaminated with friable crocidolite asbestos. As such, the ACT Government employed Robson Environmental to undertake regular inspections to ensure the safety of staff and students. Furthermore, the affected buildings were demolished after the 2018 school year, and are to be replaced with modern educational facilities. Transportable classrooms were installed in the college midway through 2018.[4]
Languages
[edit]As the IB programme is generally taken by students who wish to study internationally, Narrabundah College has a focus on languages. English as a second or foreign language and TIS (Translating and Interpreting Skills) are language related courses available at the school. Additionally the college offers the following languages:
Hindi was taken off of the curriculum during the 2018 school year, but was reintroduced by the 2019 enrolment period.
Indonesian was scheduled to be removed from the curriculum in 2019 due to low interest; however, due to a student-organised petition for the school to continue teaching the language, the college has continued to offer Indonesian as a class.[5]
Today
[edit]
In 2006, 918 students were enrolled at Narrabundah College, which had a capacity of 912 students. While 86% of college-aged students in the college's priority enrolment area attend Narrabundah, over half of total students do not live in the priority enrolment area.[6]
Narrabundah College traditionally performs better than other public colleges in the ACT. In 2017, the median ATAR gained by students of Narrabundah College was 83.7 while the median student at a public ACT college achieved a 77 ATAR. 86.75% of students from the college who were awarded Tertiary Education Statements in 2017 scored over 65 for their ATAR, while 144 students attained an ATAR above 90, and 86 students received a score above 95.[7]
Notable alumni
[edit]The following people are notable former students who attended Narrabundah College:
- Tim Ferguson, comedian, television presenter and member of the Doug Anthony All Stars[8][9]
- Sam Mostyn, 28th governor-general of Australia[10]
- Patricia Piccinini, artist[11]
- Helen Razer, writer[12]
- Ben Snow, special effects artist[13]
- Bill Stefaniak, Liberal Party politician[14]
- Timomatic, musician and dancer[15]
- Greg Walker, multi-instrumentalist (as Machine Translations), producer, composer[16]
- Warwick Fyfe, opera singer
Sister schools
[edit]References
[edit]- ↑ "ACT Department of Education and Training - Colleges". Archived from the original on 2 February 2008. Retrieved 27 November 2007.
- ↑ "Narrabundah College". Ibo.org. Retrieved 31 October 2018.
- 1 2 3 "ACT Schools Authority". Guides.naa.gov.au. Retrieved 28 November 2017.
- ↑ "Frequently Asked Questions - Narrabundah College". ACT Education Directorate. Retrieved 28 February 2017.
- ↑ College, Narrabundah (1 January 2003). "Indonesian at Narrabundah College will continue in 2019". www.narrabundahc.act.edu.au. Retrieved 10 February 2019.
- ↑ "Towards 2020" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 17 October 2007.
- ↑ "Welcome". Narrabundahc.act.edu.au. 1 January 2003. Retrieved 26 May 2018.
- ↑ "h2g2 - The Doug Anthony Allstars - Edited Entry". Bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 31 October 2018.
- ↑ Pryor, Sally (26 September 2013). "Short end of the stick". Archived from the original on 4 October 2013.
- ↑ Rolfe, John (16 August 2024). "Sydney Power 100: Where the city's most powerful people went to school". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 17 August 2024.
- ↑ Artist keeps mum on lofty theme, Canberra Times, May 7, 2013
- ↑ Griffiths, John (6 November 2014). "Celebrating ACT Public School alumni". CityNews.com.au. Archived from the original on 16 April 2016.
- ↑ Celebrating the Achievements of our Past Students, ACT Government, archived from the original on 30 January 2017, retrieved 31 January 2017
- ↑ Canberra Liberals Archived 2006-08-19 at the Wayback Machine
- ↑ Doherty, Megan (25 January 2013). "Timomatic and the local hero ... a dynamic duo for Australia Day". The Canberra Times. Fairfax Media. Archived from the original on 27 January 2013. Retrieved 30 January 2017.
- ↑ "Machine Translations: We Chat with J Walker". Coast. Coast Media Pty Ltd (Maria Reed). Summer 2009. pp. 30–32. ISSN 1833-3648. Retrieved 27 December 2013.
