CYBERclass

NESTLED among verdant hills and valleys in the state’s North-East is the Winnaleah District High School.

Agriculture teacher Keeley Lester, with the support of principal David Lietzau and fellow teachers, has been building an educational framework to support strong digital technologies connections to support the educational opportunities for students at the school.

The Winnaleah District High School Farm is close to five hectares in size and runs both animal and plant enterprises.

Animals are farmed for meat and egg production while the extensive and well-established vegetable garden produces small-scale crops for the students to study and to supply the school kitchen.

Ms Lester said the agriculture staff and farm board were working to support and supply students with learning opportunities and practical experiences that allow them to engage with current and future digital technologies especially within the field of agriculture.

“In our high school area in particular we aim to ensure that they have adequate knowledge and skills to be able to use modern farming technologies and easily transfer such skills from a school to work context,” she said.

The staff and students have been exploring aspects of technologies and farming to support the engagement and understanding of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) and its importance in agriculture.

Students attended Agfest earlier this year to examine the most ef- ficient and latest research in irrigation equipment and technologies.

In class, students were asked to research and report on a particular method of irrigation along with equipment needed and costings for possible use on the school farm.