OP DREAM ACHIEVERS
■ How your school performed Far North among state’s best
A CAIRNS college is among the state’s top performing schools after posting its best results in almost 90 years.
St Augustine’s College was ranked best Far North school for OP results. Sister school St Monica’s College joined it in a list of top 50 schools in Queensland.
Today, the Cairns Post can reveal which of the region’s schools are our best performers.
St Augustine’s College principal Matthew Brennan said the results were “arguably the best performance of the school to date”.
SEVEN Far North high schools have been ranked among Queensland’s top 100 performing educational institutions.
With its record eight OP1s last year, St Augustine’s College unsurprisingly topped the list of the region’s best schools.
A third (33 per cent) of the Parramatta Park school’s OP eligible students received a score between 1-5.
Sister school St Monica’s College followed closely behind with 30 per cent of its 97 OP-eligible students receiving OPs of 1-5.
Cairns School of Distance Education, Malanda State High School, Trinity Anglican School, St Stephen’s Catholic College in Mareeba and Freshwater Christian College were also top achievers.
St Augustine’s College has historically been placed among the best schools in the Far North for OP results and principal Matthew Brennan said last year’s results were “arguably the best performance of the school to date”.
“The school was very, very proud of the boys’ achievements last year,” he said.
“Every year group has its own talents, so there’s no pressure from the school for the boys to perform a certain way (this year).
“We want to provide an environment that lets the boys be the best they can be.
“Aside from OP results, the school is also very proud of the social justice and social service work our boys have done, as well as in the sporting arena and in arts and drama.”
Mr Brennan, who started this year as St Augustine’s College’s first lay principal, said the introduction of the Australian Tertiary Admission Ranking next year was challenging.
“For the first time in Queensland, the class of 2020 will sit external exams. It’s a very changing landscape for education across the state,” he said.
“There’s a new curriculum for Year 11. The staff is feeling different pressures around that curriculum.
“(But) we try to drown out the white noise around OPs and ATARs and focus on letting the boys be the best they can be.”
Outside the bigger schools, Kuranda District State College in Myola performed notably. Four of its six OP-eligible students received an OP 1-5.
At Babinda State School one of its six OP-eligible students received an OP 1-5.
WE TRY TO DROWN OUT THE WHITE NOISE AROUND OPS AND ATARS AND FOCUS ON LETTING THE BOYS BE THE BEST THEY CAN BE. ST AUGUSTINE’S COLLEGE PRINCIPAL MATTHEW BRENNAN