UC+SSC+Lake+Ginninderra

Lake Ginninderra College is a Public (Government) Secondary College catering for students in Years 11 and 12. It is located in the Australian Capital Territory, Australia, situated on the lakefront of Lake Ginninderra (Google Maps: Lake Ginninderra College) and was established in 1987. The Australian education system has a three-tier structure: primary schools to secondary schools to tertiary institutions (universities or "Technical and Further Education Systems"). Lake Ginninderra has strong links with the University of Canberra and the Australian Institute of Sport, which offers benefits to both staff (such as through the sharing of resources) and students (allowing opportunities such as the Elite Sports Program). During our visit at the school it was officially renamed as UC Senior Secondary College Lake Ginninderra, officiating the links with the university.



The school is very well equipped; offering facilities such as a dance studio, editing booths, a television studio, and a theatre. It offers multiple computer labs, one specialised for Computer Assisted Design, and was the first school in Australia to have its own wind tunnel for scientific experimentation. The building itself is well designed, spacious, and has even received an ACT architecture merit award.

The most striking feature of Lake Ginninderra, for us, was the wide range of courses on offer to the students. As well as academic options, the school offers courses in practical subjects from “furniture making” to “outdoor education.” This is to ensure that students are given the opportunity to develop their skills wherever their talent may lie:

//'Students are supported by their teachers and the college’s student support services to help them select individual pathways to success and academic, vocational and personal growth....Whether students intend to go to a university, CIT/TAFE, take a gap year, work, or pursue a vocational option the college is dedicated to helping all achieve their goals.' // //Martin Watson – Principal. //

When we first came to Australia we sat down and looked at what we had done so far and what areas we needed to look more into. We also read trough the UC SSC Lake Ginninderra curriculum handbook and spoke to a couple of teachers to find out what was unique about this school. We noted the ties with the university and the range of practical options, and found these things very interesting because they related to our existing research.

Whilst in Canberra we also visited Kaleen High School, a feeder school to Lake G. For more about this school, please follow the link: Kaleen High School Listed below, you will find links to some of the work we observed and carried out in UC SSC Lake Ginninderra. Our observations have been linked back to our previous research on 'the future of learning, teaching and schools' and we have been inspired by some of the things we have seen.

Case Study - ESL class Case Study - Media Rich Task Case Study - The Flag Rich Task Case Study - Architecture Rich Task University Links Choice in Education Practical Options