Engaging with Community: How Schools Are Helping Their Students Become Informed, Responsible and Compassionate Citizens

Abstract

In Tasmania, high school students sit with senior citizens and individually tutor them in computer skills. At a school in Victoria, Year 9 students studying hospitality serve a meal to community guests and provide dinner entertainment. In a small rural New South Wales primary school, the children are busy in their HOPE gardens, harvesting vegetables for charity groups who take food packages to families in need. Each of these scenarios represents a deliberate attempt to connect students with their community through service.