Passion-driven projects take students to career pathways

An Auckland high school has adopted a novel approach to learning: self-driven projects for students to pursue their passions.

Called Impact Projects, the course gives Albany Senior High School (ASHS) students advanced employability skills.

The school offers an option of structured projects linked universities, gateway opportunities and work experience.

Deputy principal Miranda Makin said said the Impact Projects course enables the students to participate and contribute to the community.

The experience and learning it provided was important for all students to have skills that students need for a work environment, she said.

Miranda Makin is one of the four deputy principals at ASHS. Photo by: Queenie Jose

“Impact Projects gives you key future focus skills our students need to be successful.”

More than 80 per cent of students were actively engaged with the course, and many had gained confidence, she said.

To illustrate: students Ben Lewyns and Callum Smyth have high hopes.

Ben Lewyns (left) and Callum Smyth's project is due to take off in May. Photo: Queenie Jose

They are promoting the New Zealand landscape by sending a weather balloon to space.

The pair’s project will have been nine months in the making before the proposed lift-off in May.

The boys have created contacts and scholarships with other companies.

They been granted $700 from the school, a camera from Nikon, the helium for the balloons from National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) and many more.

Year 13 students, Nana Aborampa-Mensa and Helena Lunt record every Wednesday at the ASHS sound booth. Photo: Queenie Jose

Another two students, Nana Aborampa-Mensa and Helena Lunt, are mixing songs with different ages and genres for research on music memory therapy for rest home residents.

They have collaborated through their passion for music and care for the elderly.

Mr Aborampa-Mensa said working with singers, arranging melody and composing songs had been useful for his music career.

Another student, Aaron Quiat, has taught himself basic coding, and is creating a website with tutorials for public access.

The course, which allows students to leave high school with more hands-on experience and soft skills, is compulsory.

Fifteen-year-old Aaron Quiat says he enjoys self-directed learning. Photo: Queenie Jose

Said Mrs Makin: “We are working with [students] to identify something that they have ownership and agency on – when we get that right, projects fly. If we take over projects and try to impose things on students, often it doesn’t work.”