The School Without Walls (SWOW) was a
public alternative school in
Canberra
Canberra ( )
is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...
, the capital of Australia, which operated from 1974 to 1997.
History
In 1973, a group of students, teachers and parents voluntarily met to establish the school to cater for educational needs they considered were not being met by the mainstream public education system in the Australian Capital Territory.
The school's original location was on Childers Street within the campus of the
Australian National University
The Australian National University (ANU) is a public research university located in Canberra, the capital of Australia. Its main campus in Acton encompasses seven teaching and research colleges, in addition to several national academies and ...
, where the meetings to establish the school were held. Later in 1974, the school relocated to what is now St Patrick's Church in Braddon, which had previously housed the Catholic schools St Patrick's School and St Mary's School–Our Lady of Mercy. In 1980, the school moved to what was formerly the infants building at Ainslie School in Braddon (now the Ainslie Arts Centre), where it was co-located with the
Questacon science centre.
In 1995, the ACT Education Department conducted a review which recommended the School Without Walls be restructured, and in 1996 a pilot program was established, with a full parallel programme established at
Dickson College
Dickson College is a public two-year secondary college located in the Canberra suburb of Dickson, Australian Capital Territory. It was established in 1976 on the former Dickson High School campus when it closed.
It was set to close after bein ...
in 1997.
Notable people
People who attended SWOW includes
Tim Ferguson
Timothy Dorcen Langbene Ferguson is an Australian comedian, film director, screenwriter, author and screenwriting teacher.
Early life and education
Timothy Dorcen Langbene Ferguson grew up in Singapore, and later on a rural property near t ...
.
Ned Manning spent a short time there as a teacher.
Further reading
*
References
Alternative schools in Australia
Public schools in the Australian Capital Territory
1974 establishments in Australia
1997 disestablishments in Australia
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