PENINSULA ONLINE

Issue 10
Tuesday, 6 October 2009

Art reaches out to local schools

The Faculty of Education's Arts Reach Workshops had students from local primary schools developing their creative sides helped along by early childhood education students.

The Year 1 and 2 students from Frankston Primary School spent two hours at a time in the studio art room on campus undertaking various art, music, drama and multimedia activities. The children brought wild animals to life through making masks stories, illustrations, music and animations, as well as a number of other activities throughout the entire art room.

Arts Education lecturers Geraldine Burke and Clare Hall explained that the project is a great opportunity to the education students to further develop their creative arts teaching skills.

"This kind of activity gives our students the opportunity to work creatively with kids outside the class room setting, helping them develop ideas about what engages children's interests in a creative sense," Geraldine explained. "It also provides another string in the development of their own learning experience."

The Monash students said it was amazing how capable the children were with comments like: "it was surprising to see children so open and keen to immerse themselves in new things" and "their art work has helped give me another perspective on children's thinking."

 

Health Symposium focuses on collaboration

More than 80 health professionals, educators and researchers attended the 2009 Health Professional and Health Sciences Education Research Symposium at the Peninsula campus last week

The symposium was coordinated by the Centre for Medical and Health Sciences Education (CMHSE) in conjunction with the Peninsula campus and focussed on ‘Building the culture of educational research in the health professions and health sciences.'

The collaborative forum explored the many issues shaping the future of the healthcare workforce particularly the delivery of clinical education within a university setting and preparing work ready graduates.

Symposium conveners, Dr Margaret Bearman and Dr Liz Molloy, explained that issues surrounding the future of health in Australia such as the ageing population, provide exciting opportunities for educational collaboration and research into best practice and new initiatives.

"This is an important time for health sciences' educators and researchers," they said. "The symposium allowed us to support and understand the current culture surrounding education and research across a diversity of health professions while developing new ideas for collaboration."

Campus Director Professor Phil Steele, said the Peninsula campus provides an ideal location for such a discussion with its core focus on healthy, active, communities and diverse combination of health education fields.

The campus's current expertise in the field was recognised at the symposium with the inaugural CMHSE Educational Research Prize being presented to Brett Williams from the Department of Community Emergency Health and Paramedic Practice.

Brett won the award for his work into: ‘The development of a paramedic graduate attribute instrument using exploratory factor analysis: a national study', which explored developing a tool that could measure the most important graduate attributes for paramedics.

Peninsula students support bush fire communities

A group of first year physiotherapy and occupational therapy students recently spent three days in Gippsland participating in a bushfire workshop to advance their knowledge and awareness of how communities respond to disaster.

Students assembled in the Moe Town Hall to hear residents describe their experiences in the Black Saturday fires in Gippsland. They were given insights into the very personal accounts of representatives of the CFA, Red Cross, DHS, local government and the local community caught up in the tragedy.

They were particularly touched by the policemen who spoke about the difficulties of "policing" in their own community, turning friends back at roadblocks who were desperate to reach their properties, and the heart wrenching events that occurred in places they drive past every day.

Key messages from the presentation were the crucial role of community volunteers and the importance of support services that enable communities to lead and sustain their response to disaster.

The students enjoyed the catering of the bowls club and then spent a night sleeping on the Moe town hall floor, experiencing a small taste of life without familiar comforts.

On the second day of the camp students did what they could to assist fire affected communities in Labertouche, Callignee and Boolarra. They helped with activities including cleaning a large multi-purpose hall at Boolarra Primary School, tidying up fallen trees and branches at properties, gardening and re-building a cattle pen. They were able to hear first hand about the struggles of community members trying to rebuild their properties and their lives.

Health and fitness for all

Monash Sport has introduced a new class into their fitness program timetable aimed at people with disabilities.

About 15 people participate in the classes held Monday and Wednesday. The classes provides low impact weight movements, cardio work outs and a relaxation program, which has seen an increase in participant's fitness, health and wellbeing. The participants range in disability from intellectual to physical and most come in groups from local care centres.

The fitness classes are supported by Leisure Link Up, a service provide by the Sport and Recreation Victoria funded, Options Victoria program, which runs the Access for All Abilities. Promoting the benefits of active participation for people of all abilities, the program supports the development of recreation facilities and services that encourage inclusive partnerships.

Experience Monash Peninsula

Seventy five prospective students visited the Peninsula campus during semester break to get a taste of university life.

Experience Monash Peninsula gave students an opportunity to speak to current students and faculty staff as well as see and hear about the opportunities available at the campus.

Peninsula campus On-shore Student Recruitment Coordinator Ali Terai explained that the Experience program provides a futher opportunity for many prospective students thinking about future study options.

"We run a number of events during the year all aimed at giving students the opportunity to explore the campus and courses so as they can make an informed decision about the best, most suitable course for them," he explained.

"It is often these opportunities to see the campus and experience uni life that cements their decision to undertake a course."

Ali explained that prospective students are often very keen to make sure they have all the information especially leading up to submitting their VTAC prefences, and those who choose to attend a program during the school holidays are generally very committed to the idea of university study.

Feedback from the event was overwhelming positive with all students indicating that they were keen to apply for a Monash Peninsula course.

Blood Wedding

By Federico Garcia Lorca

Directed by Peter Oyston

Would you take a knife to a wedding?

Based on a true story of a blood feud between rival gypsy clans in Spain, Blood Wedding presents a raw and highly charged theatre experience.

This is a story of betrayal: two young lovers are torn apart, the man marries another, his lover is betrothed to a different man. They make a desperate and secret bid to elope; she flees from her fiancé on her wedding day with fatal consequences.

Federico Garcia Lorca uses Blood Wedding to expose an inflexible and intolerant peasant culture. Highly superstitious himself, Lorca weaves into this tragedy the vague dark forces of blood feuds, sex, death and the moon, which manipulate his characters and unravel a tale of intense passion and primitive ritual.

When: 28, 29 & 30 October - 8pm, 1 October - 2pm & 8pm *
Where: Gasworks Arts Park, 21 Graham Street, Albert Park
Tickets: $10-$25
Book tickets: 8606 4200
www.gasworks.org.au