Classes no more: student 'villages' connect with community

Samantha Deasy

By Samantha Deasy
Community contribution / May 11, 2018

Year 7 teachers at Campbelltown Performing Arts High School don’t take classes.

Rather, they work alongside ‘tribes’ of youngsters to craft inventive, real-world projects that give back to the community.

After 10 ...

This story appeared in the June 2018 edition of Australian Teacher Magazine.

Casual Educator

Coming Soon – Story House Early Learning Forest Hill Forest Hill VIC

Explore how we enhance and support our Story House-ers at our Nunawading service, proudly certified as a Great Place to Work!

Childcare & Outside School Hours Care / Jun 02, 2026

EOI - Head of Department - Student Support - MacGregor State High School

Department of Education and Training (Queensland) Brisbane

An exciting temporary opportunity exists for a motivated and dynamic Head of Department - Student Support to join the leadership team at MacGregor State High School un...

Teaching - Secondary / Jun 02, 2026

Facilities Coordinator - Crestmead State School

Department of Education and Training (Queensland) Logan

Crestmead State School is seeking an experienced, highly organised and strategic Facilities Coordinator to join our leadership team. This exciting opportunity is ideal...

Teaching - Secondary / Jun 02, 2026

Opinion / Explicit instruction: what works, what doesn’t, and why it matters

Explicit instruction has become a familiar term in Australian education. But as the saying goes, familiarity can breed contempt.

School news / Empathy, inclusion and confidence: new game to change way kids learn about periods

Menstrual stigma remains a significant issue in Australia. Rooted in a culture of secrecy and poor education, it often leads to widespread embarrassment, “period poverty”, and a delay in seeking medical help for symptoms of conditions like endomet...

School news / Male entrepreneurs are capitalising on rising misogyny in Australian schools: study

A host of male entrepreneurs are essentially profiting off ‘resurgent masculinity’ in Australian schools and sidelining the authority of female teachers in the process, some researchers say.

School news / Parents push for expanded scrutiny at Tas jumping castle inquest

Families of children who died in a primary school jumping castle tragedy in Tasmania want teachers and the then-principal to give evidence at a looming inquest.

School news / ‘Leadership did nothing’: women teachers gaslit amid rising manosphere abuse

Too often the misogynistic language and behaviour fuelled by the manosphere that women teachers face in the classroom is downplayed by school leaders, unchallenged by male colleagues and framed as an isolated student behaviour issue, new research ...

School news / Better equipped: experts call for honest, empowering climate education

A host of concerned Australians have signed an open letter calling for honest, age-appropriate climate science education in schools, saying knowledge equips children to cope with the climate reality they are already experiencing.

Opinion / We don’t know how the social media ban will impact our kids: opinion

In December 2025, Australia banned young people under 16 from having social media accounts. France, Greece, Spain, Denmark, Malaysia, Norway, India, Egypt, Canada, Türkiye, and the United Kingdom are hot on their heels.

Community / A model for schools: Gym buddy program breaks barriers for young people with disability

Many young people enjoy going to the gym as a recreation and fitness activity. For young people with disability, accessing and participating in gym-based fitness can have some barriers which make enjoyment, skill development and improvements in fi...

Community / Here and now: Why surrendering to life’s flow restores our spirit

Recently I saw a huge pod of dolphins playing in the waves at my local beach. Not many things get people to get their faces out of their phones these days (yes, even at the beach!) but once the word started to get around, we were all mesmerised.

School news / Growing wellbeing literacy in early childhood ed through Noongar culture and arts

Noongar culture and arts can play a powerful role in strengthening young children’s capabilities to experience and communicate about their wellbeing, new research suggests.

Comments