Illumine

Earlier this year, a group of students and staff visited Italy, exploring places of significance in Western culture, from ancient societies through to the Renaissance … and of course, some of the nation’s gelaterias.

In this episode, Principal, Ms Jacinda Euler Welsh, sat down with students Charlotte, Ruby, and Grace to hear about the highlights, experiences, and learnings from the Latin and Roman World Study Tour.

Few of us can say that, in our lifetime, we have fulfilled a dream we have harboured since we were seven years old. One lucky person who can make that claim is celebrated writer and Brisbane Girls Grammar School alumna, Anna McGahan (2005).

Earlier this year, Anna was awarded one of Australia’s most prestigious literary awards for young writers, The Vogel Prize, which was won by her uncle, Andrew McGahan, in 1991.  

In this conversation with Principal, Ms Jacinda Euler Welsh, Anna reflects on the challenges, victories, and unexpected detours that have characterised her journey and career so far. 

In this episode, we’re flipping the script: Head Girls for 2024, Iha and Aoife, interview our usual host of Illumine and Principal of Brisbane Girls Grammar School, Ms Jacinda Euler. 

If you've ever wondered what daily life is like as a Principal, what a career path into teaching can look like, and how Principals manage competing priorities, this episode is for you. 

Australia's National Financial Capability Survey 2021 has found that 94 per cent of young Australians aged 14 to 17 feel it is important to learn how to manage their money, but only 42 per cent felt confident to do so. 

A few of our students here at Brisbane Girls Grammar School are taking their financial wellbeing seriously, through the establishment of a new Financial Literacy student club. 

In this episode, hear from founders Maddie and Lily as they discuss their goals and inspiration behind the club with Principal, Ms Jacinda Euler. 

Should artefacts currently in museums be returned to their country of origin? 

In recent years, the debate has been gathering momentum, kick-started again in 2022 in light of the death of Queen Elizabeth. Reconciling the actions of those acting in the past with our values in the present is an issue fraught with tension, and no easy answers are apparent. 

In this episode, Head of Ancient History, Dr Rashna Taraporewalla, discusses this topic with Principal, Ms Jacinda Euler, and explores some of the factors at play when teaching History to secondary school students.

It's no secret that true crime podcasts are hugely popular, but why do we find historical murders so interesting? 

In this episode of Illumine—Grammar Women, host and Principal of Brisbane Girls Grammar School, Ms Jacinda Euler Welsh, interviews two alumnae of the School: Rosalind Crone (1998) and Anna Whip (2016). Both graduates share a love and keen interest in the study of history, having each forged unique career paths following their time at Brisbane Girls Grammar School. Reflecting on these experiences, Professor Crone and Anna share some of their fascinating discoveries and offer advice for budding historians.

Choosing subjects for Years 11 and 12 can be a challenge for many students, as they balance subjects they are passionate about with the need to fill prerequisites for certain tertiary degrees.

 Although at BGGS we value the Creative Arts as part of our broad, liberal approach to education, sometimes external pressures, misconceptions, and worries about scaling can lead students to hesitate before committing to studying Art, Music or Drama in the senior years.

In this episode of Illumine: from the students, Ms Jacinda Euler Welsh speaks to Music student, Jacqueline Trappett (12O), Drama student, Chloe Martin (12W), and Visual Art student, Melissa Bucknill (12W), about why they adore their studies in the Creative Arts, and what benefits it brings them.

What makes an excellent teacher? According to acclaimed educational researcher, Professor Dylan Wiliam, it’s about regularly checking for student understanding.

Professor Wiliam is passionate about the practice of formative assessment—the assessment that many people say ‘doesn’t count’. Over the course of many decades of research, Professor Wiliam has established that there is nothing teachers can do that has a greater impact on student achievement than by making teaching more responsive to students’ needs through consistent, formative feedback. This is a particular focus in Year 7 at Girls Grammar, with students undertaking a ‘Philosophy of Teaching’ course that sets a foundation for students to embrace academic challenges and benefit from struggles they may encounter. 

Professor Wiliam sat down with Principal, Ms Jacinda Euler Welsh, to discuss how teachers can prioritise formative feedback.

Have you ever wanted to be an astronaut? 

Here at Girls Grammar, one of our most popular and longest-running international programs is Space Camp, where students get the chance to take one step closer to that dream.

In this episode, Principal, Ms Jacinda Euler, speaks with three students who recently returned from Space Camp—about what they encountered, learned, and hope to achieve in aerospace and aeronautics.  

In early 2023, social media furore erupted after publisher, Puffin, employed sensitivity editors to rewrite parts of Roald Dahl's books deemed offensive.

Throughout history,  artists, authors and musicians have been censored by various authority figures, but in recent decades, activists and social media campaigns have called for pieces to be edited, 'cancelled', or removed from exhibitions.

How do we decide when—or if—it is appropriate to change or remove a published work? 

To discuss this complicated issue, Principal, Ms Jacinda Euler, is joined by Deputy Principal (Academic), Dr Bruce Addison, Director of English, Ms Jo Genders, and Visual Arts teacher, Ms Kirsten Eadie.