Horsham workshop
The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award Australia – Victoria will host a series of workshops across regional Victorian centres, including in Horsham.
The workshops, in partnership with the State Government’s Advance program, are designed to foster resilience and motivation in young people.
Workshops help teachers foster these attributes by providing tools they need to support and motivate young people to become proactive members of their local community.
The idea is that by engaging with the community, young people are empowered with skills and opportunities to create positive change in their lives. These skills and opportunities enhance pathways to education and increase employment opportunities.
Advance and Duke of Edinburgh Victoria have joined forces to present the workshops, based on a common goal of getting young people involved in their communities.
Through Advance, the State Government gives Victorian public secondary schools almost $10,000 in annual funding to provide engagement opportunities for young people to participate in their communities, while developing teamwork, communication and projectmanagement skills.
Additional life skills gained through co-curricular activities and service are becoming increasingly valued by universities as a way to measure student potential.
An example is the Australian National University announcing it would become the first university in Australia to include a measurement on skills gained through experience outside the classroom, including community engagement and service, in a formal application process.
Similarly, universities such as Latrobe and ACU have developed early admissions programs that recognise experience and skills gained through contribution to the community and rewarded this with conditional early offers into university.
Each year more than 250 students across nine schools, such as Horsham College, Edenhope College and Ballarat Grammar, participate in the Duke of Edinburgh award in a Grampians education administration region.
At Horsham College, students participating in the award volunteer at Home Work Club, a program run by Wimmera Development Association’s Settlement Program.
Student volunteers
Students volunteer as part of their service requirement of the award. This activity also counts as part of their community-engagement activity for Advance.
Each week migrant children complete their homework with help from volunteers, followed by crafts, games and afternoon tea. This service is run free of charge.
Development association settlement officer Emily Telfar said the number of participants in the homework club had increased since Horsham College students started volunteering.
“I have found students have been able to connect more with the young volunteers, especially males who usually refuse to do their homework. They bring a fresh new life to homework club,” she said.
College year-seven group teacher and award leader Paul Denson said he believed community volunteering provided a way for students to give something back to the community and also had a positive impact on the student cohort.
“Through the program, all of a sudden we’re strengthening one of the most valuable local commodities out there – a sense of community. It’s so important because a lot of our rural social life revolves around this,” he said.
“By volunteering in the local community, the students make their peers aware of what they are doing, which helps bolster these ideas. It helps change the culture and attitude within the whole year group.”
The Horsham workshop will be at Horsham College on September 5.