Toronto High School’s vision is to be a school of inspiration, innovation and excellence, and serves the local Toronto community on the western side of Lake Macquarie. Toronto High School has a student enrolment of just over 1000 students.
Toronto High School was experiencing issues within their student body that concerned a lack of connection amongst students, and feelings of disillusion around their place in a changing society.
At the start of a new school year the Student Representative Council was formed with confident students across Years 7 to 11. The leadership team wanted a creative, impactful project that would bring the diverse cohort together as a team, and allow students to think locally and act globally.
Members of the school leadership team reached out to Creating Chances to explore the Gamechanger program.
Head Facilitator Samar delivered the The 10-week program to the SRC and ensured sustained engagement with the students during their SRC allocated time, and using a design-based approach through research, planning and consultation, students could develop a program, event or product to raise awareness, or advocate for change for a social issue they feel strongly about.
Samar and her team of experienced facilitators guided the students week by week through the program by allowing them to explore Design Thinking, Advocacy, Creative and Critical Thinking, Project Planning and Review, and Self Evaluation. The program is peppered with active sessions to bring the more complex concepts to life through experiences.
The Program has reflective and active sessions for Years 9-11 students to explore how they can affect positive change in their communities based around a social issue. They design a project which contributes to their community and take part in many active sessions using the experiential learning model to experience the outcomes.
The program culminated in a shark-tank style pitch where students presented their ideas to a panel of CEOs, Ministers and the school principal, with the winning team securing a $250 prize to bring their project to life.
“We have seen a huge impact on the students individually, but what is most pronounced is the team-building for our school’s SRC. They worked extremely well together across the year, showcasing empathy and active listening skills, whilst also thinking creatively about how best to represent the student cohort” – Leadership Team
“I have faced challenges like not being able to speak comfortably with other people and talking to people at school. I struggled with making friends. Now I am able to speak with people all around the school and am confident in talking about myself and doing public speaking. [The program] helped me achieve more things in life and be more confident.” – Taylor, Student
Evidence garnered from the students and teachers who took part in Gamechanger programs report student improvement of 11.9% in Optimism, 6.5% in Resilience, and 7.2% in Self-efficacy. There was also a 6.6% increase in students feeling that they “belong” at their school, with a 12.5% increase in “liking school”.
Student feedback mirrored this data, with Seth noting that “a thing I struggled with before the program was teamwork. I now feel like I can both tell people my ideas and listen to others’ ideas and work as a team to make something amazing. This program also motivated me to come to school because I felt like I had a voice to speak with and present.”
At Creating Chances, we connect ideas, inspire growth, and empower young people to build confidence, resilience, and optimism for a brighter future.
