Outdoor Education

The Edge is a four week programme undertaken by all Year 9 students at St Andrews. The purpose of this programme is to provide students with opportunities to learn more about themselves, the needs of the community around them and how they could meet these needs using their own gifts and talents. It forms a rite of passage as Middle School students move on to Senior School and as they grow and mature into young adults. The Edge Programme enables students to develop physically, emotionally, socially and spiritually through personal challenges, reflection and service to others. St Andrews believes The Edge is a vital experience for all students and therefore it is a compulsory part of the Year 9 curriculum.

 The four weeks of the programme comprise Service-Learning, outdoor education and reflection. Students undertake a Service-Learning project during the first week at a not-for-profit organisation on the Gold Coast in order to learn more about the needs of the local community. The central experience of The Edge programme is two-weeks of outdoor education which allows students to develop their personal and social skills. Activities include high-ropes adventure courses, a 3-day hike, community living  (washing, cooking and cleaning in dorm groups), pioneering and spiritual reflection. The culminating week of The Edge presents students with an opportunity to reflect upon their experiences so far and to look forward to the future. This involves learning about their own personality, writing a personal mission statement and preparing a group presentation to express what they have learnt about themselves, others and the world during The Edge programme.