When Helen Keller said, “alone we can do so little, but together we can do so much” she was emphasising that when we work together on a common goal, we can achieve things beyond our greatest imagination. In the Year 9 Strive Course, we challenge our students to do just this: work together to create a positive and measurable change in their local community. In week 5, 106 Year 9 students embarked on an immersive excursion into the City of Rockingham to investigate and find positive solutions to various community issues.
Tasked with the challenge of finding a solution to the big question of, “How can I make a positive impact in my local community?” the day of enquiry invited the Year 9 students to engage with and learn from various community representatives from the Rockingham Police Station, The Crew, and the City of Rockingham. In addition to this, the students had the opportunity to conduct a street audit where they measured Rockingham’s street safety and assessed the recreational spaces, aesthetics, accessibility, and functional spaces. All of these experiences provided our students with authentic exposure to the services available in Rockingham, but more importantly, highlighted that there are many community needs.
Building citizenship is a key capability of the Year 9 Strive course where the aim is for our young people to think like global citizens, considering issues based on a deep understanding of diverse values and worldviews. Listening to the voices and views of local Rockingham representatives from law enforcement, community support, and local government meant there was a diverse range of perspectives offered. When students understand and appreciate the perspectives of others, they can communicate better, empathise, and build meaningful connections with others.
This excursion marked the beginning of a semester-long project for the Year 9 Strive students which will culminate in a proposal for a positive and measurable solution that addresses a specific issue in their local community. When the students were asked about the excursion, Aiden said, “going to The Crew and seeing how much work is put into supporting people who are homeless made me realise how difficult some people’s lives are. It makes me want to help them.” Eleanor shared that she “learned a lot about how the community projects being run by the City of Rockingham, such as the murals tackling graffitiing.”
The Year 9 Strive students will now spend the rest of Term 3 and the duration of Term 4 ideating answers to the big question and challenge, delivering a pitch to College officials, and will finish with a formal presentation of their solution at a community expo. We are incredibly excited to see the solutions that our students come up with and how they will tackle community issues.
