Project Wayfinder Inspiring students to live with purpose and belonging

OverviewEducation has the power to transform lives by supporting young people to realise their potential by providing skills they need to be active participants in society. In this vein, the Alice Springs (Mparntwe) Education Declaration aspires for young Australians to be “confident and creative individuals who have a sense of belonging, purpose and meaning that enable them to thrive in their learning environment.”

Independent Schools Victoria has partnered with Project Wayfinder to help create lives of belonging and purpose for both students and educators. The Wayfinder journey is about encouraging students to take a step back and ask a simple yet profound question: What kind of life do I want to lead?

The program encourages students to focus on self-awareness and increase their self-worth, develop a growth mindset and cultivate self-compassion. At the end of the toolkit, students declare new practice goals aligned with their core values, building upon personal strengths that contribute to something bigger than ourselves.

In the midst of a worldwide pandemic it is more important than ever to have a life with meaning, support and authentic relationships.

Founded at Stanford University’s d.School, Project Wayfinder brings an innovative approach to a year-long curriculum using the Belonging and Purpose Toolkits. These toolkits are inspired by cutting-edge, academic research and draws upon practices of traditional wayfinding navigation as a metaphor for stepping into life with belonging and purpose.

ISV delivers Project Wayfinder to all schools Australia-wide.

The Wayfinder ToolkitsProject Wayfinder is made up of two curriculums developed with social and emotional learning at its core. They focus on self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills and responsible decision-making skills. The toolkits use metaphors from the natural world to honour the values we share – reverence for the earth, wonder and curiosity and deep respect for our ancestors and future generations.

Focuses on self-awareness by addressing self-regulation from a brain and body perspective. Increasing perceived self-worth, developing a growth mindset and self-compassion.

Belonging | Years 7-9

Students explore who they are and what matters to them, how their identity shapes their perspective and behaviour. It offers small daily practices students can apply to their everyday lives.

Purpose | Years 10-12

ADOLESCENT EDUCATION REIMAGINED TO FOSTER BELONGING + DEVELOP LIVES OF PURPOSE

BEGIN THE PURPOSE LEARNING JOURNEY

Project Wayfinder is a beautifully crafted program which brings the latest research into youth purpose to life with highly engaging, experiential learning experiences. My colleagues and I thoroughly enjoyed participating in the Project Wayfinder training and we are loving teaching the program.

Rhiannon McGee, Head of Positive Education Geelong Grammar School

More informationWill HanleyAdvisor, Innovation Independent Schools Victoriawill.hanley@is.vic.edu.auPhone: (03) 9825 7216

Student Wellbeing Since launching from Stanford University’s d.school in 2015, Wayfinder has journeyed to over 15,000 students, 1000 educators, 200 schools across 25 U.S. states and 18 countries.

This year, a successful pilot took place in three Victorian Independent Member Schools. These are some of the comments from the educators involved and students.

Becoming a Project Wayfinder educatorIn order to teach any of the Wayfinder toolkits you must first complete training with ISV. Becoming a Project Wayfinder educator is about training to be the caring adult mentor every student needs.

Project Wayfinder has provided our college with a wellbeing program with a deep, meaningful range of activities to form a cohesive and contextual year-long course. The design of the lessons builds brilliantly from one session to the next, giving students the feeling of being on a journey of self-discovery and team building.

Zac Jeffries, Director of Teaching and Learning Bayview College

Project Wayfinder has allowed my students to connect with their values, what makes them happy in life, their strengths and skills, and work on combining these into projects or careers that will give them purpose.

Sarah Dekiere Melbourne Montessori School