Winner – Culture of Learning Category
Kath Buchanan – Community Engagement Officer – Brisbane City Council
The Brisbane City Council, in partnership with the Brisbane City State Emergency Service (SES) unit, led the development of the My Resilient Schools Program in 2016. This program has proved a huge success with Brisbane Primary Schools as it aligns with year 5 & 6 core curriculum and students enjoy visits from the SES and the interactive activities developed by Council as part of the educational delivery.
The impacts from the pandemic response have caused additional emotional and financial stress for residents, schools and business. With the stress of the coronavirus top-of-mind for parents, students and schools, in her role as the lead of the My Resilient Schools Program, Kath had to suspend the program delivery due to COVID-19 restrictions. At the same time, the Bureau of Meteorology were predicting a 70% chance of La Nina for the 2020/2021 storm season, meaning above-average rainfall and tropical cyclones.
Kath identified an opportunity to continue the program through an online resource, enabling students learning from home to access the resource as part of their studies, as well as when they returned to school, with teachers able to access the online resource to support students with their curriculum. In developing the content for the online resource, Kath ensured the content would continue to align with the needs of the target audience (year 5 & 6 students) so the resource could be utilised by either teachers or students working on their own. Kath coordinated market research into the relevant activities, language and information to ensure the program would continue providing value for primary school teachers and students alike.
