There are few things that light me up like education and farming. Bring them together and I am little girl in a candy shop! While schools across Australia are closed, that does not mean you cannot visit them. Well, or so I decided! I urged my friends abroad to put me in touch with folks in Australia. I cold called some of them myself and wrote emails galore. I have had the chance to visit two fantastic places -- a progressive school in Melbourne called Preshill and the Sustainability Learning Center in Hobart.
There is absolutely no way my words can describe the full richness and completeness of these programs. So, I must do the only thing I can -- to share some key takeaways --
- The arid Australian climate allows for incredible indoor-outdoor learning spaces. Being outside is integral to education in Australia
- Australian curricular guidelines place a great emphasis on nature play and sustainability education
- There is a great emphasis on all-round, holistic, social-emotional growth and play in early childhood education
- Public schools in Australia, at least those in Melbourne offer options that include Reggio schools, Steiner schools
- Not unlike in the United States, Australian education is still coming to grips with the intention and significance of STEM and STEAM education
- The level of teacher motivation and commitment in Tasmania's public schools is high
- There is an overall emphasis on child-centered learning in Tasmania
- Kitchen Garden programs are fairly ubiquitous in public and independent schools
- Many schools require uniforms
I visited the Sustainability Learning Center in Hobart with Jenny Dudgeon, a public educator who runs the center as learning space for preschool through high school students. In the afternoon, we spent time on Jenny's family's cherry orchard -- 7 hectares of cherry cultivation!
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