Learning Mentor

Program

Returning to onsite learning this year has meant that our Learning Mentor Program can be delivered face to face once again.  During the past two years, this allocated time was used for mental health and wellbeing check-ins during remote learning.

The Learning Mentor program in the junior years has focused on teaching and developing skills such as:

• Resilience: What it is and the importance of perseverance when faced with setbacks, hardship or adversity.
• Growth mindset: Recognising and accepting that failures and setbacks are part of any learning experience and provide us with the most opportunity for development and growth.
• Problem solving: A step-by-step framework for finding solutions to everyday problems.
• Wellbeing: It’s importance, prioritising it and strategies to enhance it.
• Mindfulness: Taking some time to focus on the here and now and the benefits of practicing mindfulness both in and outside of school.
• Celebrating national days of action including the national day of action against bullying and violence and IDAHOBIT week.

This semester, our Year 7-9 Learning Mentor program will continue to focus on student wellbeing, bullying and cyber safety and will promote intercultural understanding where students learn about recognising, understanding, respecting and celebrating cultural differences.

Learning Mentor in our senior years has focused on developing our students’ abilities to cope with and manage stress, creating positive study habits, equipping students with effective study skills, road safety and the importance of being an upstander. Our senior students have also participated in Respectful Relationships days throughout the year which focus on a variety of topics including: the gendered nature of violence, the media’s influence in how we see the world, consent, identifying red flags in relationships, coercive control, developing assertiveness, supporting your friends and consent. Our Year 10 students will be trialling completing Respectful Relationships over six Learning Mentor sessions this term as opposed to a one-off day so the content is more enduring. 

Ballarat High School is a leading school in delivering this program and the overwhelming consensus from our students is that we need more of these days because the issues discussed and the skills taught in these sessions are directly relevant and applicable to their lives.

A huge thank you to our dedicated Learning Mentors who go above and beyond to support our students to develop skills outside of the mainstream curriculum so that they can continue developing as happy, healthy and active young adults.

James Warke

Learning Specialist – Learning Mentor Program