Councillor Instructs Year 7s in Liveability

Written by Carrie Smith, Teacher - Senior School

Year 7s were fortunate to be part of a presentation by our alumnus, Councillor Hermann Vorster. Councillor Vorster outlined the processes that our Gold Coast City Council follows, to ensure our city is liveable. He also outlined the Council Plan and explained how each Division has an available budget to improve the liveability of its area. Constituents are encouraged to inform Council of areas in need.

The cohort has been studying the concept of ‘Liveability’ and using their understanding to make connections within their own suburb. Students were asked to identify an area for improvement by using the factors of liveability as criteria to evaluate their surroundings. Combining the task with skills learnt in Design, Media Studies and Art, they took a photo and annotated both the issue/s and possible solutions.

To engage in action, students wrote a letter to the Councillor of their Division stating their concerns and possible ideas of improvement with an attached, annotated photo.

The project proved to be a valuable exercise in being proactive and making connections in the real world.

Your age does not matter, everyone at any age can make a difference.