"Building aspiration in the Creative Arts": a reflection on a collaborative project between regional low SES high schools and the University of Newcastle School of Creative Arts

This paper is a reflection on a project funded by the Commonwealth Government’s Higher Education and Participation Program National Priority Pool in 2015 at the University of Newcastle. The aim of the project is to raise... [ view full abstract ]

This paper is a reflection on a project funded by the Commonwealth Government’s Higher Education and Participation Program National Priority Pool in 2015 at the University of Newcastle. The aim of the project is to raise aspirations and build capacity in low SES students in high schools in Newcastle, the Hunter Valley and the Central Coast as representative areas of regional New South Wales. These three zones hold some of the lowest socio-economic demographics in Australia and contribute to the University of Newcastle’s student base which is 24% low SES as compared with 14% as the national average. The purpose of this project is twofold. Firstly, the project aims to address comparatively low enrolments in the School of Creative Arts at the University of Newcastle from low SES students in our region. It does this through a hands-on project that involves working ‘with’ rather than ‘for’ schools categorised as low SES, at the same time creating working links between university and high school communities. Secondly, this project aims to develop an awareness of the potential of an approach to learning and achievement for some students that is not based primarily on a “text-centric” learning style. The project, initiated through a series of workshops with University student mentors is then developed within each school and comes to fruition in a Term 4 performance at the University of Newcastle. Project evaluation will employ qualitative methods comprising measuring student wellbeing through questionnaires, teacher and mentor focus groups, audience feedback and a web-based questionnaire/blog. In addition, aspects of the process and performances will be captured on video. This session will reflect on the performances and process of collaboration with school communities, drawing on video footage and the results of the wellbeing questionnaire.