Show time at Woollamia
A swarm of ideas
Year 9 boys uncommunicative?
Try watching them on presentation day at Trinity’s Field Studies Centre (FSC).
One large room at the south coast campus sounds like a busy middle eastern bazaar, or a voluble buy-swap-and-sell meet.
Sixty boys are going at it hammer and tongs, either demonstrating their knowledge of a chosen topic, posing questions to other presenters, or giving feedback to each other about what they see and hear.
They do it 30 at a time, one half arranged around the perimeter of tables answering questions, the other half asking the questions. Then they swap around. They are joined by FSC staff, some staff from Summer Hill, and other visitors, adding an extra layer of adult inquisitiveness.
It’s like a boat and caravan show, with facts and ideas replacing the boats and caravans.
Where else could you enjoy informative conversations – on topics ranging from fishing and sporting injuries to laser printing and bees – all under one roof, where teenagers are the font of knowledge?
The students are challenged to make an artefact to help illustrate their inquiry – such as a poster, a website, a video, a model or a game. The idea is to engage their audience and invite the opportunity for questions.
“We’re aiming for conversational mastery, not a pre-prepared, scripted presentation,” said Leah Arthur, FSC academic programme co-ordinator.
“The aim is for a boy to have such a deep knowledge of a topic that he can hold a conversation about it with an adult or a peer and demonstrate his knowledge.
“They pick their own topics. Our guidance gives them the scaffolding to develop an individual project; then they are given the freedom to research, investigate, and present it.
“There’s room in that to fail, but there’s no assessment involved, so they can ‘fail’ safely.”
The educational philosophy underpinning the projects is called Place Based Inquiry (PBI). The idea is to immerse students in local landscapes, culture, and experiences, using them as a springboard for studying subjects across the curriculum, including Maths, Geography, Science, Christian Studies, and PDHPE.
Advocates say its benefits include making learning more authentic and relevant, and building connections between students and their communities.
“We teach boys to learn deeply about a place, to protect and value a place. For us, here at the Field Studies Centre, that’s the Shoalhaven. They learn about it, from it, and for it,” said Leah Arthur.
“We teach them to use that lens to look at one of their passions. For example, one boy is looking at electric cars but he’s doing so using ideas about sustainability, infrastructure, the urban/regional divide. He’s coming at it from a geography and science perspective.
“Another boy looked at brain function while people pray. He asked, ‘What’s the function of prayer in daily life?’ That morphed into, ‘How does prayer influence wellbeing and brain chemistry?’ He tied it all to brain chemistry and physiology, which gave him an insight into neuroscience.”
One student researched how listening to music can help concentration, and how the advantages can be transferred to non-music conditions.
“It really helps me,” he said. “My parents still think it’s bad, but it works for me.”
Head of the FSC Tim Knowles said the projects gave the boys a lot of agency.
“They choose the topic, they develop an expertise in something, and are then able to share that.
“They have worked really hard and part of the pay-off for that is that someone is listening.”
They also spend a session together reflecting on how it went. They are asked questions such as: How comfortable did you feel giving and receiving feedback? What questions do you need to ask to get better feedback? How can you be a more effective learner back at home?
Their answers included setting up a “no distractions” area, managing their time better, starting assessments earlier, making up a work schedule, doing schoolwork before other activities, and seeking help more often.
