Case studies of schools that have integrated sustainability in to their education programmes.

 

Albert Park College

Albert Park College has undertaken a number of initiatives to reduce the impact of school operations in the environment.

Initiatives the school has taken to date include:

• installing solar panels which have contributed to a 20% reduction of electricity consumption.
• agreeing to take up the option (available to all schools) to have 100% electricity sourced from sustainable methods.
• installing technology to monitor energy consumption and carbon emissions.
• implementing an effective resource recovery and waste management system, including composting, soft plastics, paper/cardboard and comingled recycling to ensure waste production is kept to a minimum.
• applying policies to reduce the environmental impact of procurement and resource transfers in the school’s operational decision-making.

• Reservoir East Primary School

  Sustainability initiatives at Reservoir East Primary School are led by a motivated and determined sustainability committee, consisting of families, teachers and members of the broader school community, who are constantly seeking to consolidate best sustainable practices and introduce new sustainable initiatives.

  Thanks to the leadership of the committee, the school has been able to minimize its waste. Achievements include:

  • 4 fully functioning worm farms for food scraps
  • compost bins for all remaining food scraps (that is, bread crusts, meat and citrus) – the school no longer sends any food to landfill.
  • wicking garden beds for the compost and worm tea to fertilize.
  • going paperless with bi-weekly newsletters
  • soft plastic recycling.

  • Newham Primary School

    Each term Newham Primary School chooses a topic for the whole school to focus on that intersects with all areas of the curriculum including the Sustainability cross-curriculum priority. A recent focus was water which provided valuable opportunities to explore different dimensions of climate change and its impact across the world. Students explored different experiences of water shortages across different countries, connecting this to understandings of social justice and the historical legacies of colonization, economic development, and conflict. The learning sequence included a focus on solutions for water shortages, such as sand dams and methods to mitigate erosion and improve water quality, providing students with a positive message.

    Camp Hill Primary School

    Camp Hill Primary School has used its participation in Resource Smart Schools to embed the Sustainability cross-curriculum priority. The schools’ RSS facilitator led professional development for teachers, presenting a range of resources and activities for teaching Sustainability. Teachers found this useful for identifying ways to integrate sustainability into lessons across the curriculum, including literacy, reading, Science, Geography, Design and Technology, Civics and Citizenship and the Arts.

    The 2022 school concert reflected sustainability teaching and learning at the school through the theme of ‘Wilderness’. Each grade level had a specific natural environment and group of animals to explore for their characters in the concert including:

    • river and ocean creatures (Foundation)
    • wetland insects and reptiles (Grade 1 and 2)
    • birds and forests (Grade 3 and 4)
    • mammals from different habitats (Grade 5 and 6).

    Students learnt about the flora and fauna of each habitat, the sustainability challenges and solutions for each environmental or sustainability issue. Linking to the art curriculum, students created items for their costumes as well as the props and the backdrop for the concert depicting the different animals, plants and habitats. Students explored the movements of different animals and used this to inform their class dances in the concert. The music repertoire was developmentally appropriate and chosen to be relevant and to connect to the animal themes. Grade 5 and 6 students developed soar.

    Their characters had the responsibility of addressing specific environmental challenges, such as how to prevent litter from going into river and ocean waterways, protecting and revegetating habitat for migrating birds, preventing and mitigating the effects of climate change for mammals. These roleplays allowed students to connect with Sustainability, Science, Civics and Citizenship curricula.

  • t drama sketches that tied into the concert narrative together by taking on the role of kid rangers from different locations around the world.