An innovative project for indigenous students at Thomas More College has opened new opportunities for positive connections.
CESA’s Living Learning Leading Framework encourages and empowers young people to thrive – in their education, their lives and their communities. But what does the word “thrive” actually mean? That was the question Aboriginal students at Thomas More College in Salisbury Downs set out to answer, with the help of indigenous artist Scott Rathman.
With the theme “thriving community” as their guide, the group of eight students worked with Mr Rathman to unpack their understanding of the term and its relevance to their own lives. “It’s really easy to say a ‘thriving community’ is about hope and respect but, unless you are exploring how you’re seeing hope and respect being demonstrated in your community, we really haven’t explored the theme properly,” he says. “So the idea was for them to dig deeper and explore exactly what those terms look like on a day-to-day basis in their school and their community.”
At the end of the collaboration, he incorporated the students’ responses into a striking mural spray painted onto a wall at the school. The centre piece represents a meeting or gathering place; green above and below link to the earth, while blue sections on either side represent water and a journey. “Water has a level we see – the surface – but below the surface there is much going on,” Mr Rathman says. “Within a community we see what people want us to see as well as what we want to see, but underneath there are a lot of other things happening. For me, that is a really powerful message.”
For the students, the project helped to renew connections with culture. “I have learned to be proud of my cultural heritage and this project has inspired me to explore this more,” Year 11 indigenous student Shaciara Marron says.
As assistant principal religious identity and mission, Ruth Taylor has also been touched by the success of the project. “My motivation is to see students connecting with their spirituality, so it has been an honour to witness and share in this experience,” she says. “It’s a beautiful piece of artwork sitting in the centre of our school.”
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