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General capabilities and career education
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Career Education: linking with community through social enterprise

General capabilities and career education Illustrations of practice

Career Education: linking with community through social enterprise

School context

This Illustration of practice demonstrates how Bunbury Cathedral Grammar School incorporates career education in an annual event tailored for students in Years 7 to 9. ‘IMPACT Week’, provides students with opportunities to engage in ‘real world’ problem solving experiences designed to develop social enterprise skills and entrepreneurial understanding. The student projects highlighted in this illustration include ‘The Business of Art’, ‘Newsroom’ and ‘Trail Building’.

Bunbury Cathedral Grammar School is located in a semi-rural suburb ten kilometres south of Bunbury, and almost 200 kilometres south of Perth, in Western Australia. The school caters for approximately 900 students from Foundation to Year 12. The school, founded in 1972, aims to provide an all-round education offering a wide range of co-curricular activities.

Career education focus

The career education program provided at Bunbury Cathedral Grammar School focuses on the development of the general capabilities in the middle years of high school during IMPACT Week. In Years 11 and 12 students engage in a range of career education experiences such as mentoring and work placement which enable them to make informed choices in relation to further study or work choices beyond school.

The IMPACT Week projects for Years 7 to 9 students are designed to promote creativity, problem solving, innovation and teamwork and provide opportunities for students to engage with local industry and community organisations. As part of IMPACT week experiences students self-select a focus project which enables them to develop new ideas, encourage innovation and research skills including the use of data to inform thinking, and to develop skills in relation to collaboration and communication. Students showcase their projects at the end of the week at the Exhibition Fair.

Curriculum connections

The Bunbury Cathedral Grammar School career education approach aims to develop students’ general capabilities through special projects such as social enterprise activities and entrepreneurial experiences. IMPACT Week experiences are aligned to all areas of the curriculum. The projects highlighted in this illustration incorporate the Australian Curriculum learning areas of The Arts, Technologies and Health and Physical Education.

Questions for teachers

In the illustration of practice:

Describe how the school uses the Australian Curriculum learning areas and general capabilities to develop a career education program.

Identify the school's approach to the key objectives of Future Ready: A student focused National Career Education Strategy.

How does the school identify and engage with a range of stakeholders in the development of their career education program?

In your school context:

Identify how a school-based career education program would benefit your students.

What aspects of the Australian Curriculum could be included in your school-based career education program?

What elements of the Future Ready: A student focused National Career Education Strategy would you include when developing your school-based career education program?

How would you identify and include appropriate community stakeholders when developing a school-based career education program?