2006 project recipients
Community Engagement Grants Scheme
Learning and teaching creatively (Awarded: $9,750)
Project Leader: Dr Alison Wicks, Director, AOSC, Honorary Fellow, Centre for Health Services Development
Partners: Arthur & Yvonne Boyd Education Centre, UOW Shoalhaven Campus, Faculty of Education and Australasian Occupational Science Centre (AOSC).
This project will provide Graduate Diploma of Education (Primary) students at Shoalhaven Campus with the opportunity to experience the creative process in campus–based master classes led by local artists and in studio-based master classes provided by artists-in-residence at the Boyd Education Centre at Bundanon. By ‘living it as a learner’, students will not only understand the transformative potential of creativity, but also experience the ‘spirit’ that pervades Bundanon. During school-based practicums, students will become conduits between Bundanon and the Shoalhaven community, applying their practical understanding of the creative process and sharing their knowledge and experiences with school students and teachers.
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Developing community language resources (Awarded: $8,300)
Project Leader: Dr Ken Cruickshank, Faculty of Education
Partners: Association of Illawarra Community Schools, various Community Schools, Illawarra Ethnic Communities Council and Faculty of Education.
This project will involve the development and sharing of skills, resources and expertise between Community Language Schools and Faculty of Education staff and students. Community Language Schools are non-profit groups run by parents and community members which aim to develop young children’s knowledge and fluency in their heritage language and culture. Locally there are 24 such schools catering for over 600 children in more than 17 languages. The project will include workshops and development of reading resources, including the translation of a set of books into the various community languages for publication and distribution. Third year education students will help out in the school classes and learn about the running of the schools and the teaching of the children as part of a project-based subject.
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New ways to engage the community and prioritise economic development (Awarded: $9,000)
Project Leader: Tim Coltman, SITACS, Informatics
Partners: Shellharbour City Council, Illawarra Area Consultative Committee, NSW Department of Industry, Science and Tourism, UOW Faculties of Informatics and Commerce
This project will evaluate the effectiveness of the Economic Gardening initiative being piloted by Shellharbour City Council. Economic Gardening is an endogenous growth strategy that focuses on support services to locally based SMEs. A total of 100 small business operators are expected to be involved in the selection process. Key elements of the UOW project will be to evaluate (1) the metrics used in selection of entrepreneurial business operators; and (2) the effectiveness of support provided to selected entrepreneurs. These selected entrepreneurs will receive an advanced program of development that includes specialised information and operational assistance (e.g., business planning, GIS to identify target markets, IP management and leadership skills). The research findings will be used to directly inform Council’s Economic Development Plan (2006/2007) and advise other Local Government Councils of ways to implement the Economic Gardening model.
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Community Education: Taking UOW to a broader community through web-casting (Awarded: $8,300)
Project Leader: Dr Ric Caladine, CEDIR
Partners: Other education providers, University of the Third Age, Alumni, broad community, CEDIR, UOW
This project will establish an introductory web-casting service which will be used to determine if a UOW web-casting service is an appropriate and effective tool to communicate with the wider community and to demonstrate its value to other potential providers of content within UOW. The proposed service will provide members of the community with access to video and audio programs of University activities including public lectures, selected lectures of interest to U3A, Alumni, etc. The system will also contain an archive of recordings of previous media-worthy events, selected lectures, graduation ceremonies and other programs. These will be available as streams podcasts or vodcasts (video podcasts).
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Making science more accessible to disadvantaged kids (Awarded: $3,000)
Project Leader: Glen Moore, Director, Science Centre
Partners: Salvation Army, PCYC, Rotary, other like community groups, UOW Science Centre and Planetarium
This project will see the Science Centre work with community support organisations like the Salvation Army, PCYC and Rotary to run a special free access program for children and their families from ‘disadvantaged’ backgrounds. Research indicates that children from ‘disadvantaged’ groups in the community become alienated from education and do not access the Science Centre’s weekend and holiday programs. A typical program will include a science show, a planetarium show and the hands-on exhibits.
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Getting girls interested in science and engineering (Awarded: $1,650)
Project Leaders: Dr Ian Porter/Carroll Graham, Faculty of Engineering
Partners: Guides NSW, Faculty of Engineering, Faculty of Informatics.
This project will see the Faculties of Engineering and Informatics develop a partnership with Guides NSW through an on-going series of experiential, engineering and science (in particular, physics), one-day workshops, aimed at Guides aged 10 to 17 years. These workshops will be offered up to three times each year, with the aim being to promote engineering and science as possible study and career options to school girls. An evaluation of the pilot project will be conducted at the end of 2006 to obtain feedback and determine the appropriateness of activities. UOW students and staff will be involved in the workshop activities.
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