The Power of Place-Based Learning

Director of Student Experience Mike Gregory speaks with The Age ‘Independent Schools Guide’ about how a month or two immersed in nature can help students gain new perspectives on the world and provide them with skills that last a lifetime. 

When Caulfield Grammar School students swap the classroom for Kakadu National Park, the effects on young minds are far-reaching and long-lasting.

The award-winning Year 9 program immerses students in communities where they learn first-hand about living in one of Australia’s remotest regions. First Nations people teach students about Indigenous languages, living on Country and the harshness and beauty of the environment.

Year 9s stay on a working cattle property near Katherine, learn about the culture and histories of the Jawoyn people and visit community and social justice organisations to understand the challenges the resident population faces.

Mike Gregory, Director of Student Experience, says the 24-day experience is profound. 

““The philosophy behind it is that it’s really important for young people, in their development, to take them away from their normal routines, and to provide them with really different, contrasting experiences. 

“We force them to see that there’s more to themselves than they thought possible when they were in the comforts of home and in the familiarity of school.” 

Mike believes programs such as this can help students build resilience, gain perspective on different cultures and walks of life and learn all-important life skills, from doing their own laundry to cooking their own meals.  

“Kakadu National Park is dual World Heritage listed, for its natural and cultural values. Taking students to this iconic location, where they can soak up the scale of the wilderness and gain insights into how people live in a remote part of Australia, provides them a great sense of proportion about their own lives,” says Mike. 

“They get an awareness and an understanding and am appreciation of how vast and wonderful Australia is.” 

What the Year 9 students say:

Student 1: “Community was an important factor that helped me grow and alter my identity for the better. We frequently interacted with the Jabiru Area School and I’m grateful we got to bond with and help the students in JAS. It helped me gain a new perspective that everyone’s life is different.”

Student 2: “Two life-changing things I found [were] the importance of relationships and friendships, and discipline. The trip was the longest time I’d been away from home and the things that helped me through were my connections to the staff and my peers, and my determination to get through. Staff and friends supported and encouraged me, which I’ll remember when going through any challenge.”