2021 QCE winners use prize to educate and celebrate Mazenod culture and community
01 September 2022
Students from Mazenod College in Lesmurdie have taken to the airwaves with a podcast project funded by their 2021 Quality Catholic Education (QCE) Awards prize.
Recording for Welcome to My Country began on an iPad with clip-on microphones but has now shifted to a Rode Pro Caster Bundle System, with the podcast series now also being hosted with Riverside FM.
Mazenod College Assistant Deputy Principal Beth Murphy explained, “The project commenced with discussions about a podcast conversing about country with the Year 12 Aboriginal students. They immediately wanted to share their cultural knowledge with the community in their own words. The excitement after the initial podcast was released through Spotify, saw more students offer to sit down during their lunch times to discuss Country, Mob and legacy due to the supportive learning environment.
Episodes feature both staff and students chatting about students’ involvement with the Year 9 Rite Journey, Autism Awareness Month with our Learning Diversity students and Teaching Assistants and Harmony Week.
Inspired by NAIDOC Week, the podcasts series has helped raise awareness of the world’s oldest continuous living cultures, and in doing so ensured students are meeting learning aims outlined by ACARA (Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority). The podcast series has also helped promote leadership, knowledge and learnings as outlined by the Alice Springs Education Declaration.
“It took a collaborative effort between staff and students to create quality relationships and support parents in their critical role in education, which is at the heart of CEWA’s Vision for Learning,” Ms Murphy said.
“My favourite episodes are the episodes where the students have taken the lead. They have moved outside of their comfort zone and developed questions, learned the technology, and worked together with other students to produce some quality episodes,” she said.
The success of Welcome to My Country led to the creation of a new podcast, Leave Nothing Undared. Currently in it’s third season, with over 800 listeners, and audiences tuning from the community and beyond, including Mauritius, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, United Kingdom, Nigeria, United States and Malaysia.
To listen to the Leave Nothing Undared podcast, CLICK HERE
Voting is now open for the 2022 QCE People’s Choice Award. Visit CLICK HERE to place your vote. Please note the People’s Choice award is across all categories and each nominee is only entitled to one vote. Voting closes on Sunday, 11 September.
