Many organisations offer educational activities for students, which may complement school cultural exchange programs, or which may assist in developing intercultural understanding.
Included in this section are excursions and educational activities that are available to NSW schools and students. If you would like to recommend a program or educational activity for this section, please contact us.
Bournda Environmental Education Centre – Aboriginal Programs
Bournda Environmental Education Centre is operated by the Department of Education and Communities and is located in Bournda National Park on the Far South Coast of NSW; an ideal setting for the delivery of environmental education programs.
The staff at Bournda EEC assist teachers to plan and conduct field trips for students from Kindergarten – Year 12, which are designed to specifically target KLA outcomes.
Bournda EEC’s school programs include two Aboriginal Programs, a “Boy’s Walk”, organised in conjunction with indigenous students from nearby Bega High School, and a NAIDOC Celebrations Program, in conjunction with NPWS, Eden Local Aboriginal Land Council, in which students have been introduced to traditional foods, dance & art, Aboriginal storytelling as well as hunting & gathering activities.
For further information visit the website.
Migration Heritage Centre
The NSW Migration Heritage Centre is a virtual immigration museum. The website is a gateway to learn about the State’s migration heritage through community collections, family belongings, people’s memories and special places no matter where they are located in New South Wales. The Centre presents exhibitions in partnership with the Powerhouse Museum, other NSW cultural institutions, and local governments. They are displayed in Western Sydney and rural and regional museums and libraries across New South Wales and centralised on the website.
Courage to Care
Courage to Care is a travelling exhibition which has been developed by B’nai B’rith, designed to convey a message of communal tolerance and living in harmony. It has operated in NSW since 1999 and is designed to travel to regional areas with showings of around 4 weeks in each location. The exhibition emphasises the importance of standing up against racism and persecution, especially in relation to minority groups. This is done by focusing on rescuers of Jews during the Holocaust, with the overriding theme that just one individual can make a difference. Survivors, Facilitators, Guides, maps, memorabilia, and audio-visual presentations are included. Entry to the exhibition and associated workshops is FREE. Transport cost for school groups for Government and Catholic schools are paid for travel to the Courage to Care exhibitions.
For further information visit the website.
DRUMBEAT Drumming Workshops
DRUMBEAT promotes social understanding and connection through a team drumming experience. It is taught to young people and adults across Australia in schools, youth services, drug and alcohol rehabilitation facilities, child protection residential facilities, mental health services, refugee trauma associations and prisons. The program explores relationship issues such as: peer pressure, bullying, identity, social responsibility, teamwork and diversity. The program is suitable for young people from 11 years of age up to adults, including single gender and mixed gender groups, as well as racially and culturally diverse groups.
For further information contact drumbeat@holyoake.org.au, or visit the website.
Bangabaoui: Aboriginal cultural harbour cruise
Step aboard the Deerubbun with the crew from The Tribal Warrior and explore the environment and history of Sydney Harbour from an Aboriginal perspective. The tour includes a visit to Clark Island in Sydney Harbour, a traditional welcoming ceremony and the opportunity to learn a traditional dance.
Bangabaoui is a partnership between Sydney Learning Adventures and The Tribal Warrior Association. The Tribal Warrior Association is a non-profit community group initiated and directed by Aboriginal Australians.
For further information visit the website.
Cooling Conflicts
Cooling Conflicts is a program facilitated by the NSW Department of Education and Communities that trains school students to manage their own conflicts and to become leaders in conflict management. The program is designed by drama educators drawing on conflict mediation theory. With a focus strongly on peer teaching, a number of NSW schools have chosen to use Cooling Conflicts for cultural exchange, with students from an experienced Cooling Conflicts school performing for and/or training students from another, interested school.
To find out more about this program or to contact a participating school to propose a peer training cultural exchange with your students, visit the website.
Mahboba’s Promise
Mahboba’s Promise enables Australian schools to support a school in Afghanistan. Students gain insight into the different lives of other young people in developing countries and have the opportunity to build ongoing relationships with their sister school students.
Schools decide on their own level of involvement, from an ongoing exchange-style relationship with an individual school, to one-off fundraising support for the education of girls and boys in the region. Coordination of a full-year project offers outstanding opportunities for student leadership development in public speaking, event management, team building, planning, monitoring, project management, communication etc.
For further information, contact Mahboba’s Promise by direct email: schoolspromise@mahbobaspromise.org or phone (02) 9887 1665, or visit the website.
Together for Humanity – Valuing diversity workshops
Previously the ‘Goodness & Kindness Project’, the Together for Humanity Foundation conducts cross-cultural and interfaith programs in primary and secondary schools that challenge cultural misconceptions and encourage children to focus on common values. TFH teaches children and adults to replace prejudice, largely religious and cultural, with mutual respect and cooperation via resources and workshops for students and teachers across Australia that address HSIE and PDHPE syllabus outcomes. Programs are run by teams of Muslim, Jewish, Christian, and often indigenous presenters.
For further information visit the website.
Jewish Board of Deputies Social Harmony Projects for Schools
The NSW Jewish Board of Deputies runs a number of successful and ongoing interfaith and intercultural programs involving over 2,000 students across the state annually. These include “Youth Encounters”, a year-long interfaith project for grade 10 students, the “RUA” (Respect, Understanding, and Acceptance) project, and “Sports for Harmony”, an interfaith cultural exchange project for grades 4-6.
To join any of these programs or instigate new ones, email suzanne.green@nswjbd.com or visit the website.
Casula Powerhouse Arts Centre
Casula Powerhouse is an arts centre responsive to its local and global communities, producing and hosting exhibitions that represent culturally diverse stories that allow its audiences to reflect on the world. With over 150 languages spoken in the local area, the Centre also helps to grow the creative industry in South West Sydney, providing opportunities for new, emerging and established artists mainly from the South West Sydney region. The Centre offers both primary and secondary school education programs that bring a variety of cultural exhibitions to life: guided tours, hands on workshops, artist’s talks.
For further information visit the website.
Mphatso Foundation
Your students can help the children of Malawi simply by collecting five cent pieces from friends and family…5 cents can buy a bowl of porridge for a hungry child. Mphatso Foundation representatives are available to come and talk with and present to your students, covering the people and country of Malawi, the basic needs and problems of these people, the work of Mphatso Children’s Foundation, and the way lives can be changed by just 5 cents. Your school also receives a kit consisting of a dvd, Mphatso Children’s Foundation cans and stickers to raise money, and information on how the school can make a difference to these communities.
For more information visit the website.
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