New Promise on show

May 22, 2013 by Brenton Stacey

Launch to unite current and former members of vocal ensemble

The launch of the third album from an Avondale vocal ensemble will unite current and former members in a free concert this Saturday (May 25).

The recording of The Promise’s Give Thanks late last year served as an acclaimed swan song for five members—Clansi Rogers, who has reviewed the previous two albums, describes Gives Thanks as a “noticeable step up” and proof of “an evolving and maturing musical ensemble.” However, it is the five’s replacements, plus two alumna and a new member, who are now performing the album’s repertoire.

New Promise members Joshua Page and Dat Nguyen rehearse for the album launch.
Credit: Ashlee King.

The new Promise—Jordan Cassie, Luke Fotheringham, Kimberley Jones, Dat Nguyen, Joshua Page and Dayna Petrie join alto Emily Thomas and soprano Laura Hill in continuing the tradition of musical excellence—has already performed at Australia’s largest Christian music festival, Easterfest, and at the annual camp meeting of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Greater Sydney.

The Promise, founded in 2005, produced its self-titled debut album in 2006. The ensemble signed with Psalter Music in 2010, the partnership producing the albums Faithful in 2011 and Give Thanks this year, the latter under the directorship of Avondale’s new music strand coordinator Aleta King. Her decision to record Give Thanks in the acoustically friendly chapel at Morisset Hospital gives a fuller sound to the vocals. Producer and engineer Dale Willis minimised any editing of the album’s 13 tracks to preserve its musical integrity.

Two of the tracks are originals—“O Give Thanks,” written by Aleta, and “My Yes,” written by Emily and former soprano Jana Aveling with friend Kate Hollingsworth. Former tenor Benjamin Milis and former bass Ezekiel Kingston arranged another, “Day by Day,” with Aleta. A fourth, “For the Beauty of the Earth/This is my Father’s World,” is an arrangement of Avondale Jazz Ensemble director David Pudney.

The launch of Give Thanks, in Avondale College Seventh-day Adventist Church from 6.00 PM, will feature performances by all members of the 2012 and 2013 ensembles and collaborations between the two. Entry is free. Drinks will be available in the foyer from 5.30 PM. Albums will be available at a launch-only price of $15 ($10 for Avondale students).

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Kaleidoscopes, conversation and hot cuppas

May 22, 2013 by Brenton Stacey

Exhibition illustrates practical nature of communication projects

Brenton Stacey
Public relations officer
Avondale College of Higher Education
Cooranbong, New South Wales, Australia

It is a Sunday evening and all retailers bar the supermarkets and restaurants at Charlestown Square shopping centre are closed. Except for one shop on level two. Coffee Culture is hosting an exhibition of work by eight young artists. Organiser Sabrina Cruz, a final-year Bachelor of Arts student at Avondale College of Higher Education, is a regular and knows the manager—he has given the space for free.

Even the programs had an artistic bent at Sabrina Cruz’s Kaleidoscopes exhibition, held at Coffee Culture in Charlestown.
Credit: Luke Bacon.

Kaleidoscopes reflects Sabrina’s interest in event management and in visual arts. It not only serves as her communication project—the “capstone” unit “enables students to apply their knowledge of communication in real life,” says senior lecturer in communication and English Dr Carolyn Rickett—but also as an act of altruism. “As an artist myself, I know how intimating it feels to go into galleries,” says Sabrina.

The exhibition gives clothing company Sämo, illustrators Jimmy Carson, Marc Cruz, Sabrina and Emma Fagan and photographers Adam Crainean, Joshua Moses and Ashleigh Wrankmore a space to show their work in public. The quality of the work, the relaxed atmosphere in which it appeared and the number of people viewing it surprised supervisor Bruna Tawake. “The event exceeded my expectations.”

The lecturer in communication says the unit teaches students about the importance of understanding audiences, drafting clear objectives, consistency, creativity, organisation and self-discipline. “The multi-faceted projects become self-esteem boosters. The students learn they have the skills to ‘do this.’”

Sabrina agrees. She describes the experience as “invaluable” and, it seems, enjoyable. “You get to work on something you’re passionate about rather than on something you’re assigned.”

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Text helps students help themselves

May 15, 2013 by Brenton Stacey

Makes learning literacy and numeracy simple

Brenton Stacey
Public relations officer
Avondale College of Higher Education
Cooranbong, New South Wales, Australia

A new literacy and numeracy textbook by two Avondale lecturers is helping students improve their skills and their understanding of how to support those they teach.

Co-authors Dr Marion Shields and Lorinda Bruce.
Credit: Ashlee King.

Dr Marion Shields decided to write Basic Literacy & Numeracy three years after being asked to teach a new unit, Literacy & Numeracy for Teachers. She added information about punctuation and text types to an initial outline in the first year and other information in the second year. “By the third year I thought, This is ridiculous. We are using so much paper. So, I put it all together, called it a draft textbook and asked the students to work through it with me.”

She also tested the students and realised most of them needed to improve their literacy and numeracy skills—students struggled to achieve the 75 per cent to pass the test. “After I finished teaching the unit in 2011—[co-author Lorinda Bruce taught the unit this past year]—students were seeking me out and saying, ‘You’re the one who wrote that book, aren’t you?’ I said, ‘Yes. They said, ‘It’s so simple. This is the first time we’ve ever really understood this.’”

To ease understanding, Basic Literacy & Numeracy features a bigger font size, a graphical icon to identify practice exercises—answers are in the back of the book—simple headlines and white space. “If a student struggles with numeracy, having a page crammed full of information terrifies them.”

The book also features a section, provided by Lorinda, on information and communications technology resources. The section includes lists of interactive resources, iPad and iPhone applications and websites.

Marion will share her reasons for writing the book at a seminar on Literacy Support for Struggling Readers in the Classroom organised by the Hunter branch of the Australian Association of Special Education in Charlestown tonight. “I see the value of giving students a fair go,” she says. “When intelligent students understand why they can’t do something, it’s not so frightening. Research shows that if motivated students with literacy and numeracy learning disabilities have a sympathetic, supportive teacher in an encouraging environment, they will always do better than the same students whose teachers just don’t bother. Attitude and a sense of self-empowerment are big factors in helping students overcome their disabilities.”

Basic Literacy & Numeracy (David Barlow Publishing) is available from the Avondale College of Higher Education bookshop for $44.

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Big offering makes big difference

May 8, 2013 by Brenton Stacey

Response not only restores but enhances Music and Greer Halls

Brenton Stacey
Public relations officer
Avondale College of Higher Education
Cooranbong, New South Wales, Australia

The response to an offering collected in Seventh-day Adventist churches last year has enabled Avondale to not only restore but enhance two historic buildings.

Music Hall’s facelift comes from a larger than usual offering given by Seventh-day Adventist Church members in the South Pacific.
Credit: Jaidan Humphries.

The biannual Avondale College of Higher Education Offering raised $144,000, which is giving Music and Greer Halls on the Lake Macquarie campus a much needed facelift.

The response reflects the profile the music program gives to Avondale, says vice-president (finance) Paul Hattingh. He is referring to events such as the Avondale Concert Series, which includes the meditative and reflective music program, Evensong, and to last year’s Homecoming concert, Music for Royal Occasions, which filled Avondale College Seventh-day Adventist Church. “It has enabled us to do more than just the basics.”

These basics have included: repainting exteriors and interiors; replacing broken windows, guttering and rotten timber beams; repointing mortar between bricks; and re-plastering ceilings. However, the response has also enabled Avondale to: improve drainage; increase storage; install air conditioning in every classroom, office and rehearsal room; install swipe card access to each rehearsal room; and re-polish floorboards. “Two old buildings look good again,” says property manager Bruce Cantrill. “I like to fix things up.”

Music strand coordinator Aleta King says the restoration and enhancement is giving students a stronger sense of ownership of and pride in their space. “It says something about the value we place in them, and they respond accordingly.”

It also says something about those who have supported the offering. “You choose to give more than you normally would,” says president Professor Ray Roennfeldt. “Your generosity is now improving the Avondale experience for our music students. They thank you, and I thank you.”

All work on Music and Greer Halls, including landscaping and re-coating roofs, should be completed by the end of July.

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Seeking truth

May 8, 2013 by Brenton Stacey

Lecturer’s PhD offers new reading of literary journalism

Brenton Stacey
Public relations officer
Avondale College of Higher Education
Cooranbong, New South Wales, Australia

Differentiating between an epistemological and an ethical reading is more helpful in verifying the truth claims of literary journalism, argues an Avondale lecturer in her PhD thesis.

Lindsay Morton.
Credit: Ashleigh King.

Criticism of those who use a narrative and the techniques of a storyteller in their representation of truth “has at times conflated ethical and epistemic concerns,” writes Lindsay Morton in Epistemic Responsibility and the Literary Journalist. She notes how many of the concerns stem from epistemic “blind spots,” which are often characterised as ethical lapses. “Framing criticism in this way inhibits progress in sound practice.”

Lindsay, a lecturer in English in the School of Humanities and Creative Arts, uses Lorraine Code’s “epistemic responsibilist” approach as an alternative to assessing the truth claims in six contemporary texts, three by Australian writers and three by US writers. She found the Australians relied more heavily on “self-presentation as seekers, rather than discoverers, of knowledge and truth.”

Understanding the intent is important, particularly if the writer is using transparency tools, such as an author’s note or footnotes, which can “hide more than they illuminate.”

“If you’re not reading critically, the truth claims can overwhelm you because you get immersed in the reading experience,” says Lindsay. “I was very emotionally involved with the books, but when I re-read them, I was as critical as I could. It makes for a deeper experience because you’re engaged with how you’re being emotionally positioned, and reading against that.”

Lindsay will graduate from Victoria University of Wellington in December this year.

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