Minnis Journals

ET News Digest

Your Weekly Education Newsletter

Apprenticeships need to beat parent stigma
When asked what they needed to get more youth and disadvantaged jobseekers into apprenticeships, most business leaders said that apprenticeships needed better promotion and that there were stigmas stopping parents and youth from considering these options. Read more

Principals want data and insights into teacher wellbeing
The link between a school’s workforce and its results is often undervalued and overlooked and increasingly principals want data driven insight into teacher wellbeing which has a marked effect on student outcomes.
Tracking that workforce data requires a software tool and there are a few, a new one though is PeopleBench which launched in June with 74 school signed up already. The company was named as a finalist position in the Brisbane Lord Mayors Business Awards. The software offers Principals the chance to track and benchmark workforce data.
Read more

Gardening helps kids stay in school
Gardening has been proven to have the same calming influence on children as it does on adults and leads them into other positive directions like eating fresh food and trying new things.
The ‘What’s Cooking’ study from the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Foundation – in conjunction with the University of Melbourne and funded by principal partner Medibank – is the first to measure the Foundation’s long-term impact during its 15-year history. Read more

F1 in schools goes to western Sydney
TAFE NSW Mount Druitt hosted 40 students from across Western Sydney to compete in the Greater Western Sydney Regional F1 in Schools STEM Challenge.
The world’s foremost student competition for science, technology, engineering and mathematics saw 34 teams from 12 local schools take on the challenge set by Re-Engineering Australia of developing the world’s fastest miniature F1 car.
Held in TAFE NSW Mount Druitt’s specialist CAD design lab, the multifaceted challenge provided students with access to real-world technology.
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Gippsland teachers getting plenty of fibre
A series of free professional development events across Gippsland will give teachers there the ability to incorporate ‘food and fibre’ concepts in class.
GIPPYAg, a unique project which aims to link schools, teachers and industry across Gippsland to improve knowledge and appreciation for local food and fibre industries, will build the capacity of primary and secondary teachers to introduce hands-on STEM learning experiences about the science and technology used in agriculture and horticulture. Read more

100+ bright Bondi kids shine a light on PNG
115 Bondi Junction primary school students were guided by volunteers from the Origin Foundation to build solar powered lights, providing new learning opportunities for children living in Papua New Guinea in energy poverty.
38% of children under the age of eight in PNG can’t read or write, due in part to lack of access to lighting after dark. Without the opportunity to study, a child’s education stagnates.
The SolarBuddy workshop at Holy Cross Primary School will form part of the school’s STEM programs. Read more

Oscar Wilde’s giant new opera
A young writer partnering with a young composer, both Victorians, have created a hit with their adaptation of Oscar Wilde’s The Selfish Giant.
The 131-year-old short story which is now an opera, will be making its world premiere as Victorian Opera’s Youth Opera with a sold-out season at Gasworks Arts Park from 16-19 October. Read more