St Stephen’s Service Learning: Building a Better World
By Marnie Adams, Contributor @ Kids In Perth | In Collaboration with St Stephen's School 28 Jul 2024
Image/Video Credit: St Stephen's School, Facebook, YouTube, Online.
Schools and the community of staff, students and families surrounding them profoundly shapes a child's character and values.
By incorporating Service Learning into its curriculum, St Stephen's School is consciouly shaping its students to making positive impacts beyond the classroom and academics.
So... what is Service Learning?
Service learning at St Stephen's is about embedding the values of empathy, compassion, and social responsibility into the heart of the educational experience. Students are encouraged to step beyond the school boundaries and apply their knowledge and skills in real-world settings. This approach helps them to understand complex social issues, develop critical thinking, and become proactive contributors to society.
The programs are diverse, ranging from local community service initiatives to international outreach projects.
For example, students might engage in environmental conservation efforts, support local charities, or participate in global education programs. These activities are thoughtfully designed to connect academic learning with practical application, ensuring that students gain a deeper, more meaningful understanding of the subjects they study.
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The impact of service learning on students is profound. It not only fosters a sense of global citizenship but also helps them to develop leadership skills, cultural awareness, and a lifelong commitment to helping others. These experiences are invaluable, shaping students into well-rounded individuals who are not only academically competent but also socially and ethically responsible.
Among the many alumni stories, Caleb Macauley’s work with foster children and families is challenging and inspiring at the same time, reflecting on his childhood memories of welcoming foster children into his own family.
Caleb, who graduated from Carramar in 2017, works as a case manager with foster children while finishing his Honours in Psychology at Curtin Uni. His family has been involved in fostering for a long time, particularly when Caleb was a Secondary student at St Stephen’s School, which was a big reason why he pursued working with young people.
Image/Video Credit: St Stephen's School, Caleb Macauley | Facebook, YouTube, Online.
“I’d love to go into school or youth counselling once I’ve finished my degree,” he says.
“I find fulfilment in the youth work I’ve had the opportunity to do over the past two years, and have really felt able to make a difference in the lives of the children and young people I have worked with.”
“Seeing their progress in all facets of life, be it academically, emotionally, behaviourally or culturally, is a very humbling thing to experience.”
He’s quietly proud of his achievements since graduating, saying being accepted into the Honours program at Curtin, with the hope to continue his studies to complete a Masters coursework, and building his own home in 2021 were his top highlights so far.
Reflecting on his time at St Stephen’s School, he credits a great deal of his social skills to the relationships he built with many of his teachers.
“I think the practise of taking new knowledge and applying it somewhere else was a very valuable skill I also learnt at St Stephen’s.”
Image/Video Credit: St Stephen's School, Liam Peeters & Prem Aghera | Facebook, YouTube, Online.
Another impressive example of Service Learning is that of Liam Peeters and Prem Aghera, both graduates from the Duncraig Class of 2014, used their passion for tech and entreprenuerialism to raise nearly $100,000 towards animal welfare and wildlife conservation causes.
MoonPaw, their startup company, launched in May 2021 as a social impact project to leverage blockchain technology and raise money for animal welfare agencies.
It’s one of the pair’s sideline projects in addition to working at Capgemini together.
“We met at school and then we both studied at UWA. I graduated with a degree in Software Engineering and Prem in Data Science and Computer Science. After graduating we both started our careers as Business Application consultants for Empired,” Liam explains.
“Now, we’re both working at Capgemini, I’m a manager and Prem is a senior consultant. As well as our consulting day jobs, we work on exciting blockchain start-ups such as MoonPaw,” Liam says.
"We’ve founded many exciting start-ups together including a digital marketing agency and have developed apps and Chrome extensions, with 10,000s of users worldwide.” Prem says there are some exciting prospects ahead for MoonPaw with the company venturing into the NFT space.
"Recently announced our official partnership with Immutable X – a 100 per cent carbon neutral NFT platform. Immutable X, based in Sydney, is one of Australia’s fastest-growing Web3 companies”.
St Stephen's School's philosophy of Service doesn't only apply to students but also carries through to staff members.
Image/Video Credit: St Stephen's School, Caleb Macauley | Facebook, YouTube, Online.
Take the story of Niki Gibson, a founding staff member of St Stephen's School, who along with her husband Alex were recognised as St John WA's metro volunteers of the year- the first time that this honour has been bestowed on a couple!
“We chose volunteering activities that we were interested in to try before retirement, and since we retired, we’ve stuck with St John and Rottnest Island Volunteer Guides” Alex and Niki are part of the Morley Division and work across multiple areas in St John including Logistics, Community Transport and Youth and Community work.
“We both do youth and community First Aid Awareness which involves going to events to demonstrate how to do correct CPR, snakebites and bandaging as well as getting children into the ambulance to make them feel comfortable. This year we even worked the Teddy Bears Picnic for 7000 kids!”
Niki has brought the same kindness and compassion that made her one of the most well-loved teachers in St Stephen’s School history to her role as a volunteer, so it’s no surprise that she and Alex were acknowledged with the 2023 Volunteer of the Year award.
Moreover, the success of these programs at St Stephen's School has set a benchmark for Service Learning in education. It exemplifies how schools can play a crucial role in addressing societal challenges by preparing students to be thoughtful, engaged, and compassionate citizens.
Service Learning at St Stephen's School is more than just an educational strategy; it's a transformative experience that prepares students to make a positive impact in the community. Through these programs, the school isn't only educating the mind but also the heart, nurturing the next generation of leaders and changemakers.
Image/Video Credit: St Stephen's School, Caleb Macauley | Facebook, YouTube, Online.
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Principal's Welcome | Mrs Donna Beare
It gives me great pleasure to welcome you to St Stephen’s School.
We are a Christ-centred, student-focused and community-based School. Our personalised approach to learning and strong tradition of high-quality teaching encourage St Stephen’s School students to lay foundations for their chosen pathways.
Students flourish when values are aligned and the relationship between home and school is strong.
We welcome not just students but their whole families into our close-knit community. Together we cultivate success and produce mature and balanced young men and women.
The School’s motto to Serve God, Serve One Another is supported by our Service Learning program where St Stephen’s School students work with groups and communities on a local, national and international scale, to make their world a better place. These service opportunities, combined with our mission to inspire learning that transforms lives, shape our students into well-rounded graduates, ready to take their next step into the world.
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Academic results provide a great foundation, and are encouraged at St Stephen’s School. However, it’s qualities like flexibility, teamwork, service, leadership and humility – all acquired from a St Stephen’s School education – that prove most attractive and sought-after by employers in this constantly-changing world.
As a parent of two wonderful girls myself, our goal is to provide your child with a place where they belong to a community that gives them the best platform for their future.
I encourage you to attend one of our School tours where you can meet staff, talk to students and see the facilities and talents of our community.
I hope to see you soon.
Mrs Donella Beare
Principal
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