For the Whole of Their Life.

Stage 5 Electives

St Philip’s Christian College Cessnock seeks to promote an engaging and challenging learning environment where students are able to develop their strengths and pursue their passions and interests. Stage 5 Electives present an excellent opportunity for students to exercise choice over their learning by choosing subjects that align with their interests, learning goals and potential future educational pursuits.

What are Electives?

While students in Years 9 and 10 continue to do compulsory NESA subjects such as English, Mathematics, Science, HSIE and PDHPE, they also have the opportunity to choose subjects that relate to their interests and strengths. At St Philip’s Christian College Cessnock, we offer School Developed Courses that have been designed to be engaging and reflective of student interests, whilst also maintaining academic rigour. Our College also has compulsory Christian Studies sessions alongside our electives.

How many Electives do I participate in?

In 2024, students in Years 9 and 10 will have the opportunity to choose three, 12-month long Electives. All courses will run as 12 month courses in 2024, which means students will not have the opportunity to swap subjects in Semester 2. However, students will have the opportunity to re-select Electives at the beginning of each year. Over the course of Years 9 and 10, students will therefore have the opportunity to study 6 Electives.

How many periods does each Elective have?

Each elective subject has 5 periods per fortnight. Therefore, students spend a quarter of their time at St Philip’s in subjects which they have chosen. This is designed to improve student engagement and increase their ownership over their learning.

How do I choose my Electives?

Students will have the opportunity to choose their Electives from the above list, by order of preferences. While students will only study three Electives, it is important that they choose up to 9 Electives to allow for additional choice in the event that a subject does not run due to low numbers, or in the event that a class is full. If a student is unable to choose a subject in Year 9 due to high class numbers, they will be given preference to study that elective in Year 10 if they still wish to do so.

When choosing preferences, it is very important that students order their subjects from 1 as their highest preference (the subject you most want to study) to 7 as their lowest preference.

Can I study the same elective on two different lines if there are multiple classes?

In the event that a significant amount of students wish to do an elective, it may run on two separate lines to allow for more students to choose the subject. However, a student is not permitted to do the same subject on two different lines. Students must study three different electives.

After I have made my preferences, what happens next?

Your preferences will go into a timetabling program which will generate classes based on your selections. Once completed, you will be emailed your electives for 2024. We will endeavour to ensure that students get their top preferences, but this may be affected by class size or Electives not running. Once you receive your confirmed Electives, if you wish to make a change, you must discuss this with Mr Adams who will look at possible changes.