Sustainable leadership in STEM

“Penrhos is proud to pioneer the way in STEM leadership for girls in WA,” says Principal Kalea Haran. “Our programs stretch far beyond the pursuit of study options in STEM areas and the complementary development of those supporting skill-sets in collaboration and problem solving, communication and lateral thinking. Our approach is further designed to inspire strong female leaders in ethical and environmental priorities - this is the increasingly critical layer of additional awareness and knowledge our young women need to achieve a lasting positive difference in our world”.

Penrhos’ state-of-the-art facilities – including its outstanding new Science Innovation Centre – are a stimulating physical extension of the College’s educational philosophy. Opened in January this year, the $11M Science Innovation Centre is a flagship testament to Penrhos’ commitment to excellence in learning and sustainability. Its social, environmental and architectural design presents students with the opportunity to engage with science and engineering in a range of age-appropriate STEM experiences – from building wooden plants in Year 2, through to experimenting with farm-bots on the roof-top garden in Year 11. The impressive new building is designed with a north-east façade screen for plants to grow through, whilst the rooftop deck houses solar panels, a solar battery and a wind gauge (not to forget the resident farm-bot!). The overall focal piece is a large glass central ceiling, designed and fabricated in Germany to reduce the use of electricity, which floods the entire building with light.

Penrhos carefully maps its STEM leadership journey for girls, combining the use of outside learning spaces and environmental initiatives, with cutting-edge lab, break-out and research facilities. Co-curricular STEM clubs run across both Junior and Secondary Schools to fuel the interest of girls who love to design, build, invent and experiment. Junior School students are introduced to the programming of Sphero robots and the use of Virtual Reality goggles from Year 2, and Penrhos’ Year 11 girls are annually invited to combine their passion for Maths and Science by participating in the ground-breaking medical research program Profs@Perkins (at the Harry Perkins Institute of Medical Research in Nedlands) in what, for many, is considered to be the pinnacle of their STEM leadership journey.

Penrhos is also celebrating its recent success in further underlining the M in its STEM leadership program. The College’s Maths Department is proud to have just been awarded the Gold standard in Australia’s national Maths Active School Program, a robust initiative which requires schools to demonstrate how they actively extend both students and teachers beyond normal mathematics classroom expectations. Penrhos has long been established as a frontrunner in Maths for girls in WA - now in its 13^th year, its Maths Mentor program continues to attract international recognition for both students and the College, as well as to enjoy consistently increasing participation. As the only one of its kind in Australia, Maths Mentor typically attracts up to 75 girls per year in a program in which students are engaged, challenged and mentored by their peers, former students and teachers. Notably, 90 percent of Maths Mentor participants go on to further studies in STEM-related areas after they finish school. “The culture of Maths in schools can be one dimensional, but it doesn’t have to be,” says Tim Birrell, Head of Mathematics. “At Penrhos, we challenge the norm by initially querying whether students have to always get excellent results to be good at Maths. Discovering a joy and curiosity in this fascinating subject is somewhat more important in our view – and, where genuine interest is inspired, success will follow.”

“The growing sense of urgency in the Penrhos student community around environmental issues is a great extension of the critical thinking and problem-solving approach we nurture in our girls throughout their learning journeys via STEM leadership initiatives and programs like Maths Mentor,” says Principal Kalea Haran. “We want our students to relate what they learn to real-world challenges and to constructively confront current practice where it might not be quite working.” Student groups have been set up at Penrhos to look at how the College can most sustainably manage its energy, water, waste and biodiversity resources, under 2021 School Captain, Goly Tarom, who has championed a whole College vision for sustainability this year. With support from the Student Leadership Team, Goly has introduced a range of student-led initiatives such as the introduction of ‘turn off the lights’ audio-prompts in classrooms, a Secondary School recycling hub, sustainability gardens and ‘waste-free Wednesdays’. “These simple and practical ideas not only reduce the College’s carbon footprint, but they raise awareness of the difference every student can make in ways that are relevant to everyone from Pre-Kindy to Year 12. They will hopefully encourage our community to live in a more sustainable way,” says Goly.

“Today’s young people are growing up through recession, pandemic and fast-paced technological advancement. The challenges they face are real, complex and thought-provoking. Our students want to problem-solve in the context of impactful real-world projects, in which the aspects of ethics and sustainability are increasingly relevant and pressing – they want to be equipped to act decisively,” continues Principal Kalea Haran. “Penrhos instils the *mental toughness girls need to compete effectively in STEM areas which might historically be dominated by males; to stand up for themselves and for others; to constructively challenge the status quo and – ultimately - to follow their dreams in whatever direction they choose.”

*Mental toughness is explained by psychometrics consultancy AQR International as a mindset that is closely related to character, resilience, grit and learned optimism; it is also strongly correlated with performance, wellbeing, positive behaviours, aspirations and employability. Like a growth mindset, AQR considers mental toughness can be nurtured, learned and developed over time.