The overarching goal of the Footscray High School Community Inquiry program is to equip students with skills that will help them thrive in the rapidly changing workplaces of the future.

Problems that matter: Sustainability, Wellbeing or Social Justice

From Year 7-9, students engage in our Community Inquiry program which challenges them to tackle real-world, local problems alongside teachers and community members in one of three themes: Sustainability, Wellbeing and Social Justice. 

Through student-driven collaborative projects and using the Stanford Design Thinking Framework, students are given the opportunity to develop in the Victorian Curriculum’s general capabilities: Personal & Social Capability, Ethical Capability, Intercultural Capability and Critical & Creative Thinking. 

Students use Design Thinking to find and address a ‘problem that matters’ with the assistance of our diverse and generous Footscray community. These experiences lead into our middle years Community Action programs and senior school electives. The focus on the general capabilities supports students’ wellbeing and academic success across their schooling. 

At FHS, our ongoing work in developing these STEAM and Inquiry programs centres on developing skills for the future. Our programs are designed to develop students’ ability to thrive when there is uncertainty, with skills such as problem-solving, communication, critical thinking, creativity, personal and social skills, decision making and collaboration at the heart of every program.