Hill Top public school takes sustainable approach to education

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Hill Top Public School has integrated sustainable practices through its education curriculum.

School principal Mark Gardiner said that while the program started after the Black Summer Fires as a resilience project for the students, the school had a vested interest in sustainability education.

"We put solar panels in, and we practice reduce, reuse, recycle," he said.

"We've got all of those processes that function within the school, but for us to create a meaningful opportunity for kids to learn we established a sustainability education in our programming.

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"What differentiates our school from other schools is the way that we actively report on sustainable education through maths, science and English.

"It's included in our semester reports as a key component."

Mr Gardiner said the key learning outcomes were threaded through the maths and English outcomes and were designed to not add to the teacher's workload.

"It's not an extra assessment," he said.

"It's about your mindset and focusing on what you're teaching, the content and the impact of what you're teaching and the sustainability through those key learning.

"As a component of teaching mathematics, you can phrase the questions in and around sustainability.

"It's quite a subtle shift. It's not just about putting your cardboard in the recycling. It's actually about how you think about it.

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We went through a consultation process with staff, we made sure that we chose the right, the right outcomes that we could report on."

The school also has its garden and regularly uses its harvest in the school canteen.

"We grow and harvest product locally," Mr Gardiner said.

"It's a conversation we have with students, that it's from paddock to plate, but our paddock is there."

As well as fresh produce, the school canteen also offers a free breakfast program for students and receives donations from Foodbank and Hill Top Bakery to help reduce costs.

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The money saved and the mode made from the products sold in the school's canteen goes towards the school community.

Mr Gardiner said the money they make goes towards resources for the students.

"It could be iPads, computers, or employing additional staff to help," he said.

"We have one Chromebook per student in years three to six.

"Our Chromebooks are more expensive than a textbook, but it gives students access to learning through subscriptions and websites that suit us.

"It gives us a lot more scope to broaden a child's educational experience to learn more at their point of need.

"If children are having more difficulty learning, then the teacher can use and implement the Chromebooks to tailor learning specifically."

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