Principal's Report 2026
The childhoods of a generation are at risk and our hearts are broken.
There are two notorious empires undermining education and childhood itself; the pharmaceutical companies along with their acolytes in the psychiatric and support systems, and then there are the tech companies.
Firstly, the range and reach of questionable diagnoses and the prescribing of powerful drugs to children has reached a zenith.
Ten years ago, we had no students with diagnoses taking prescription drugs. Today, almost half the students have at least one diagnosis and many are on multiple prescription drugs, some with serious side effects. All this at a time when children's brains and bodies are still developing.
What could possibly go wrong? From our observations, children develop ticks or suicide ideation, fall asleep at their desk, become anxious and depressed when previously they were ordinary teenagers with the expected teenage issues and behaviours.
Of course, young people experience events that cause them suffering; a death in the family, child abuse, family violence, poverty and behavioural problems can result. However, medicalizing normal adolescent development has not improved teenage behaviour. The issues that arise in adolescence are rights of passage that form an adult identity.
Another layer of harm is the resulting impact on young people’s education. The side effects of powerful drugs have a demotivating effect and being labelled with a disability creates the space for excuses not to try. Our teachers now have an extra layer of challenge in student engagement.
In addition, we continue to be extremely concerned about the impact of unregulated and unsupervised technology on children and young people who already who have devices when they begin Year 7 and are already exposed to images and content that is almost beyond belief.
Years ago, when students showed us social media messages from young people telling them to kill themselves, we were shocked. This was just the beginning.
In the intervening time, children have been given devices at younger and younger ages. Children are on devices at Year 3 in primary schools and, given the general deterioration of literacy and numeracy levels in last 10 years, educational benefits are a state sponsored myth.
In addition, parents have explained that health professionals have recommended devices for children as young as five. What medical purpose were these devices intended to provide?
Tragically, as a direct result of providing unsupervised devices to children they have innocently accessed hate sites including neo Nazi groups and sites such as Pornhub.
Following this, they have been inundated with terrorist propaganda, real time self-harm videos or free pornography containing images of extreme violence against women all funded by advertisements for both sexual functions and disfunctions. Increasingly violent content is what grabs attention and what makes money.
For clarification, children are not searching for those sites. Those sites and the tech empires that own them have monetised childhood and they hunt children for financial gain.
Today, a child with a device and without parental controls, will almost certainly be exposed to all of the above in the absence of any genuine age verification. We also know that parental controls have failed families who believed they had protected their children.
We do not have to look far for reasons for the rise of hate, the normalisation of violence towards women and the consequent stretching of the social fabric.
A generation of brilliant minds, largely rich white men from the west coast of the USA, have built lucrative careers capturing attention, destroying truth and creating forums to spread hate to maximise corporate profits. Imagine how much better society would be if they had worked to create a safer, more inclusive and more just society.
We are doing what we can. Addressing the issue of children taking psychiatric drugs is fraught with difficulty for a school, however, we have invited Dr Martin Whitely from Curtin University to visit Shepparton in the fourth term to raise awareness about the dangers involved in prescribing powerful drugs to children.
And we have removed access to screens for Years 7 and 8 with more changes planned for other year levels next semester.
We are grateful for the support and understanding of our teachers in dealing with these preventable outcomes of the rise of tech and pharmaceutical empires. We are also seeing a slow shift in the attitude of parents, particularly to the use of technology.
Finally, there is one thing we can all agree on. No one asked for any of this.
Bronwyn Rose
Principal
Assistant Principal's Report 2026
Visiting new and unfamiliar places - from local, to Australia wide, to overseas – enables people to experience diverse cultures, and the opportunity to engage in new and different activities. These are significant learning experiences for students.
In 2025/26 Shepparton ACE Secondary College has continued to its extra - curricular activities for students - all at no or very little monetary cost for families. All year levels have attended overnight camps in various parts of Victoria with the 10 day overseas Year 11 tour to Vietnam and Cambodia currently being organised as well as a 2 day trip to the snow for the Year 7 students. Year 12 students have enjoyed their Cairns tour and their year will culminate in a tour to Tasmania.
2026 sees the introduction of 2 new senior school subjects - Unit 1 VCE Health and Human Relations - giving the Year 10 students an opportunity to fast track a Year 11 subject and VCE Food Studies Unit 1 and 2 at Year 11.
VET Certificate II has very keen musical students, with music also being taught to interested students at junior level. Students have a choice of learning ukulele and guitar. Our school band will be signalling the end of term 2 with a performance to be conducted at the Vault on the last day of term.
An interesting decision made by the college earlier on this year was to no longer allow Year 7 and 8 students to use computers for research, and to handwrite all writing pieces. It is hoped that such a measure will prevent time wasting on irrelevant sites and go some way to reinstating the importance of legible handwriting. As this will mean digital technology will no longer be integrated into their curriculum, digital technology as per Australian Curriculum guidelines will be timetabled at Years 7 and 8 as a separate subject.
Many thanks go to all the staff members at Shepparton ACE Secondary College – from the office staff to teachers. The respectful atmosphere, the feeling of belonging, the willingness to “go the extra mile” are a result of the strong collegial feeling and environment.
Rosemary Hocking
Assistant Principal
Chairperson’s Report 2026
"Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world." – Nelson Mandela
Teaching and learning are at the heart of every school community. Over the past year, it’s been clear just how important education is, not just for grades, but for helping students build confidence, think critically and adapt to new challenges. Good teaching gives students the skills to ask questions, solve problems and apply what they have learned in real life.
It’s also important to recognise that shaping students isn’t just the job of classroom teachers. Everyone at ACE Secondary College plays a part. Office staff and cleaning staff all contribute to the overall environment. A friendly greeting at the front desk, support in the classroom, or a safe and welcoming school space can make a big difference in how students feel and learn each day. Each interaction you have whether in the classroom, office, or on excursions helps foster a sense of belonging, respect and community.
Remember why you chose to work in the Education system in the first place. Whether it was to inspire, to make a difference, or to support young people in finding their path, that purpose continues to guide the work you do each day.
Learning is a lifelong journey, and when the whole school works together, students are better supported to grow, succeed, and feel like they belong. Personal rapports and encouragement from staff remain just as important as ever.
Georgie Schofield
Chairperson
The childhoods of a generation are at risk and our hearts are broken.
There are two notorious empires undermining education and childhood itself; the pharmaceutical companies along with their acolytes in the psychiatric and support systems, and then there are the tech companies.
Firstly, the range and reach of questionable diagnoses and the prescribing of powerful drugs to children has reached a zenith.
Ten years ago, we had no students with diagnoses taking prescription drugs. Today, almost half the students have at least one diagnosis and many are on multiple prescription drugs, some with serious side effects. All this at a time when children's brains and bodies are still developing.
What could possibly go wrong? From our observations, children develop ticks or suicide ideation, fall asleep at their desk, become anxious and depressed when previously they were ordinary teenagers with the expected teenage issues and behaviours.
Of course, young people experience events that cause them suffering; a death in the family, child abuse, family violence, poverty and behavioural problems can result. However, medicalizing normal adolescent development has not improved teenage behaviour. The issues that arise in adolescence are rights of passage that form an adult identity.
Another layer of harm is the resulting impact on young people’s education. The side effects of powerful drugs have a demotivating effect and being labelled with a disability creates the space for excuses not to try. Our teachers now have an extra layer of challenge in student engagement.
In addition, we continue to be extremely concerned about the impact of unregulated and unsupervised technology on children and young people who already who have devices when they begin Year 7 and are already exposed to images and content that is almost beyond belief.
Years ago, when students showed us social media messages from young people telling them to kill themselves, we were shocked. This was just the beginning.
In the intervening time, children have been given devices at younger and younger ages. Children are on devices at Year 3 in primary schools and, given the general deterioration of literacy and numeracy levels in last 10 years, educational benefits are a state sponsored myth.
In addition, parents have explained that health professionals have recommended devices for children as young as five. What medical purpose were these devices intended to provide?
Tragically, as a direct result of providing unsupervised devices to children they have innocently accessed hate sites including neo Nazi groups and sites such as Pornhub.
Following this, they have been inundated with terrorist propaganda, real time self-harm videos or free pornography containing images of extreme violence against women all funded by advertisements for both sexual functions and disfunctions. Increasingly violent content is what grabs attention and what makes money.
For clarification, children are not searching for those sites. Those sites and the tech empires that own them have monetised childhood and they hunt children for financial gain.
Today, a child with a device and without parental controls, will almost certainly be exposed to all of the above in the absence of any genuine age verification. We also know that parental controls have failed families who believed they had protected their children.
We do not have to look far for reasons for the rise of hate, the normalisation of violence towards women and the consequent stretching of the social fabric.
A generation of brilliant minds, largely rich white men from the west coast of the USA, have built lucrative careers capturing attention, destroying truth and creating forums to spread hate to maximise corporate profits. Imagine how much better society would be if they had worked to create a safer, more inclusive and more just society.
We are doing what we can. Addressing the issue of children taking psychiatric drugs is fraught with difficulty for a school, however, we have invited Dr Martin Whitely from Curtin University to visit Shepparton in the fourth term to raise awareness about the dangers involved in prescribing powerful drugs to children.
And we have removed access to screens for Years 7 and 8 with more changes planned for other year levels next semester.
We are grateful for the support and understanding of our teachers in dealing with these preventable outcomes of the rise of tech and pharmaceutical empires. We are also seeing a slow shift in the attitude of parents, particularly to the use of technology.
Finally, there is one thing we can all agree on. No one asked for any of this.
Bronwyn Rose
Principal
Assistant Principal's Report 2026
Visiting new and unfamiliar places - from local, to Australia wide, to overseas – enables people to experience diverse cultures, and the opportunity to engage in new and different activities. These are significant learning experiences for students.
In 2025/26 Shepparton ACE Secondary College has continued to its extra - curricular activities for students - all at no or very little monetary cost for families. All year levels have attended overnight camps in various parts of Victoria with the 10 day overseas Year 11 tour to Vietnam and Cambodia currently being organised as well as a 2 day trip to the snow for the Year 7 students. Year 12 students have enjoyed their Cairns tour and their year will culminate in a tour to Tasmania.
2026 sees the introduction of 2 new senior school subjects - Unit 1 VCE Health and Human Relations - giving the Year 10 students an opportunity to fast track a Year 11 subject and VCE Food Studies Unit 1 and 2 at Year 11.
VET Certificate II has very keen musical students, with music also being taught to interested students at junior level. Students have a choice of learning ukulele and guitar. Our school band will be signalling the end of term 2 with a performance to be conducted at the Vault on the last day of term.
An interesting decision made by the college earlier on this year was to no longer allow Year 7 and 8 students to use computers for research, and to handwrite all writing pieces. It is hoped that such a measure will prevent time wasting on irrelevant sites and go some way to reinstating the importance of legible handwriting. As this will mean digital technology will no longer be integrated into their curriculum, digital technology as per Australian Curriculum guidelines will be timetabled at Years 7 and 8 as a separate subject.
Many thanks go to all the staff members at Shepparton ACE Secondary College – from the office staff to teachers. The respectful atmosphere, the feeling of belonging, the willingness to “go the extra mile” are a result of the strong collegial feeling and environment.
Rosemary Hocking
Assistant Principal
Chairperson’s Report 2026
"Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world." – Nelson Mandela
Teaching and learning are at the heart of every school community. Over the past year, it’s been clear just how important education is, not just for grades, but for helping students build confidence, think critically and adapt to new challenges. Good teaching gives students the skills to ask questions, solve problems and apply what they have learned in real life.
It’s also important to recognise that shaping students isn’t just the job of classroom teachers. Everyone at ACE Secondary College plays a part. Office staff and cleaning staff all contribute to the overall environment. A friendly greeting at the front desk, support in the classroom, or a safe and welcoming school space can make a big difference in how students feel and learn each day. Each interaction you have whether in the classroom, office, or on excursions helps foster a sense of belonging, respect and community.
Remember why you chose to work in the Education system in the first place. Whether it was to inspire, to make a difference, or to support young people in finding their path, that purpose continues to guide the work you do each day.
Learning is a lifelong journey, and when the whole school works together, students are better supported to grow, succeed, and feel like they belong. Personal rapports and encouragement from staff remain just as important as ever.
Georgie Schofield
Chairperson
|
VISIT US
123 - 129 Maude Street Shepparton, Victoria 3630 
|
Shepparton ACE Secondary College - Small School
|
Contact UsSubscribe |