University of Western Australia: Children’s University students celebrate love of learning
The University of Western Australia is celebrating 183 Children’s University students graduating and the program’s upcoming partnership with WA Museum Boola Bardip.
The Children’s University aims to inspire a passion for lifelong learning in young people, aged seven to 14 years, and is committed to widen the participation and support of students from diverse backgrounds to access higher education.
The students, from 12 schools across Albany, the Peel region and Perth, completed more than 30 hours of extracurricular learning activities. At the inaugural ceremony at UWA Albany on November 22, 86 children graduated and another 97 pupils will take part in a ceremony at UWA Crawley next Monday December 6.
Mr Colin Pettit, the Commissioner for Children and Young People and honorary Vice-Chancellor of Children’s University in WA, will announce the new partnership with WA museum Boola Bardip at the Crawley graduation.
The museum will work with Children’s University to promote and facilitate access to its outstanding experiences for students and their families. Students will be able to earn stamps in their Passport to Learning by exploring the museum’s permanent exhibitions – ranging from WA’s history, Indigenous culture, local STEM innovation, geology and wildlife – as well as special exhibitions and family events.
Ruth Morris, manager learning and engagement at WA Museum Boola Bardip, said the museum was excited to become a Learning Destination.
“The Museum is an ideal atmosphere for students to create connections between world-class research and their developing knowledge of the world,” Ms Morris said.
Following the Museum of the Great Southern, Boola Bardip is the second WA Museum site to become a Children’s University Learning Destination partner.
Professor David Sadler, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Education) at UWA, is a passionate advocate for the Children’s University program.
“Children’s University is all about the community coming together to support children through high quality and engaging extra-curricular learning experiences,” Professor Sadler said.
“It’s about making learning fun for children because we know that when it’s fun, it inspires children to achieve more and gives them a sense of what they would like to achieve in later life.”
Last year, UWA partnered with Edith Cowan University to form the Children’s University WA Partnership as part of Children’s University Australasia. Children’s University at UWA is generously supported by Rio Tinto.