Loreto College Marryatville, a leading independent girls’ school in South Australia, is set to become the first Australian girls’ school to build an immersive edutech lab when they establish an innovative Lumination Learning Lab later this year.
The state-of-the-art Lumination Learning Lab will enable students to put theory into practice and step outside the classroom to solve real-world issues, think critically and develop the skills needed to become the next generation of female leaders.
Construction for the Loreto College Lumination Lab is set to commence in March and will be ready to welcome students from Term 2.
The Lab will house a state-of-the-art learning environment equipped with leading virtual and augmented reality to provide new opportunities for students to engage in immersive learning experiences with an emphasis on STEM-based applications.
According to Ms Shai Coggins, Registered Teacher, and Learning Design Lead at Lumination, the Lumination Learning Lab will expose Loreto College’s students to world leading education technology.
“The automated, multi-purpose and immersive smart classroom. can be transformed into a variety of learning environments. The space will reshape transform the way teachers teach and students consume curriculum material at the College, supporting students in achieving improved learning outcomes,” said Ms Coggins.
Speaking to the impact of the Lumination Lab implementation for students, Loreto College’s Principal, Dr Nicole Archard said: “We pride ourselves on being a future looking school, ensuring our girls have access to cutting edge technology is important for developing students with both the knowledge and skills to engage creatively and critically in the world. We’re excited to house a space that fosters ingenuity and creativity on our school grounds.”
In line with Loreto College’s Award-Winning Strategic Plan, the school remains at the forefront of driving change, continuing to develop innovative learning spaces that reflect contemporary pedagogical approaches.
“In a society where we see an under representation of women in technology based tertiary studies and careers, it is important to provide girls with a range of experiences through the use of technology so they can develop not only the skills but also an identity as future programmers, analysts, designers, artists, and engineers,” said Dr Archard.
The future-focused, award-winning strategic plan has guided Loreto College’s most recent initiatives and innovative approach to educating strong, passionate, and confident girls and young women who have the knowledge and skills to make a difference in their world.
“By offering a new dynamic learning environment for young women who are drawn to a career in STEM, we will keep student curiosity alive and our students up for real-world success. The single-sex school model is integral in supporting a positive environment where girls are excited and curious about STEM-based careers and are encouraged to challenge the gender stereotypes placed upon them,” said Dr Archard.
Dr Archard’s comments are in line with research that consistently highlights girls in single-sex schools perform better in STEM subjects and have more confidence to engage at rates far higher than in co-ed schools.
A group of Loreto College students were given a taste of the new learning environment on a visit to the Lumination Lab headquarters in Thebarton on the 15th of February. The immersive experience provided students an insight into the technology and practical applications they will soon see on their own school campus.
After visiting the Lumination Lab headquarters Year 10 Loreto College student Erin Schulz commented: “I am so excited to have the opportunity to use this technology to further develop my understanding and learning across multiple subjects. It will allow me to be more creative in how I present information such as creating a 3D model to showcase my design thinking, instead of writing an essay. The technology allows us to be immersed within our learning, as we can step into the subject to expand our thinking and tap into new ways of understanding information.”
The construction of the Loreto College Lumination Learning Lab will be completed and welcome students to discover new learning experiences from May 2023.
Click here to watch the Loreto Lumination Lab teaser video.
About Loreto College
Loreto College Marryatville is South Australia’s leading all-girls day and boarding school, catering for students from Early Learning to Year 12.
Established in 1905, a Loreto education is built on a 400-year-old tradition first inspired by the founder of Loreto schools worldwide, Mary Ward, and encapsulates her beliefs in delivering an education which inspires strong, passionate, and confident girls and young women.
In delivering this view, Loreto College Marryatville provides girls with a well-rounded education where students are presented with a broad range of opportunities and given the support and encouragement to become confident and engaged learners with the knowledge and skills to make a difference to their world.
About Lumination
Lumination is a world leader in immersive technology, creating Artificial Intelligence (AI), Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) software to revolutionise the way we teach, learn and work. Founded in 2016, the Company started in a garage in Semaphore, Adelaide, with the goal of disrupting one of the oldest practices in history — the conventional classroom.
With a growing team of over 60 employees, Lumination has served over 2 million customers nationally and is rapidly expanding into the defence, government and enterprise sectors. Increasing access to emerging technologies, Lumination is committed to strengthening the future of the workforce and taking learning to the next level on the world stage.
This article was originally published on Loreto College Marryatville here.
