Asia Education Foundation is proud to announce the launch of our 2022 cohort of HarvestED.

This 3-day, immersive, online, cross-curricular, agricultural learning program is for Year 7 to 9 Victorian students in regional and rural areas of Victoria. Places are fully funded thanks to the generous contribution of The William Buckland Foundation. Places are limited.

HarvestED provides students with collaborative, investigative, and innovation-driven experiences, linking them to agricultural experts and professionals across the state, Australia and the Asia-Pacific region and from a range of agricultural industries.

Click the menu tabs below for further information and how to apply for your students to participate.

What is HarvestED?

HarvestEd is designed and delivered by educators at Asia Education Foundation (AEF), Asialink at The University of Melbourne. It is as a cross-curricular online learning experience that brings students from across Victoria together to learn collaboratively about the agricultural sector, its significance to the state, Australia and the Asia-Pacific region. 

HarvestEd is agricultural education for global citizens. Students hear from a range of guest speakers, experts and professionals. They explore current opportunities and challenges in agriculture, and develop their own solutions and action-oriented ideas. Students will explore cross-curricular content in agriculture such as sustainability, environmental consciousness, technology, automation, ethics and urbanisation. 

The program has been intentionally designed to support the Australian and Victorian Curriculum Cross-Curriculum Priorities and strengthen the General Capabilities in all students. All Australian Cross-Curriculum Priorities are supported within the program design with content focused on Indigenous agricultural practices, environmental sustainability, and in particular, Asia and Australia’s Engagement with Asia.

The program design also utilises a range of pedagogies including, design-thinking, inquiry-based learning, collaborative-inquiry, visible thinking routines and dialogic learning, students are supported to develop global competence, skills and capabilities. Students are scaffolded through activities that require them to utilise and strengthen Critical and Creative Thinking Sills, Intercultural Understanding, Personal and Social Capability, ICT Capability, Ethical Understanding. 

The Phases of Learning:

The program runs in 4 distinct phases of learning across 3 consecutive days –

1. Past, Present and Future Farming - Exploring agricultural industries past, present and the potential of the agricultural future in Victoria, Australia and the Asia-Pacific
2. Connecting Communities - Hearing firsthand from agricultural professionals, experts and guests - students collaborate and reflect on the opportunities, insights, and problems worth tackling.
3. Seeding Change- Using design-thinking processes, teams generate ideas to problems or opportunities in agriculture that they have explored through the program, developing initial prototypes of solution-oriented ideas
4. Harvesting Potential- Students pitch their prototype ideas to each other and a guest panel for feedback and further actions. 

How will it be delivered?

The program will be delivered online synchronously using our secure Learning Management System (LMS) and Videoconferencing. It will be delivered over 3 consecutive days. 

Cohort 2 will run in Term 4 – Monday 7th November to Wednesday 9th November - 9am to 3pm

Teachers will not need to facilitate any of the learning sessions, but teachers are asked to actively supervise all students in the program, just as typical excursions.

Who can participate?

HarvestEd is open to all Victorian students from Years 7-9. The program may form part of a school cross-curricular program, curriculum elective program, careers pathway program or through the VET or VCAL program.

Each cohort will have up to 100 students participating together online. Applications from schools in the Barwon South West, Grampians, Hume, Loddon Mallee and Gippsland are strongly encouraged.

What is the cost?

Thanks to the generosity of The William Buckland Foundation all costs are covered. As such, places are limited and interested schools must submit an expression of interest.

How do we apply?

To express your interest in participating in the NOVEMBER cohort of this program please click the link below and submit your expression of interest form.

Cohort 2 November applications close 5pm 21st October