Our VCE Environmental and Outdoor Education students are investigating Australian outdoor environments before humans, the impact of indigenous communities, European colonisation and their relationship with Australian outdoor environments. To contextualize their learning, students visited the Heytesbury and District Historical Museum where local historian Peter Younis was able to provide local, historical context for their queries. Peter was able to describe historical sea levels, the effects of such an active ocean on our limestone coastline, the impact of indigenous people on our coastal vegetation and the changes that have ensued since colonisation. Students learnt about early settlers in Victoria, European history in our region, land use changes and the settlement of Timboon in the 1860s. The major events that had significant impact on our region affecting it’s social and economic growth included the lime works, railway, WW1, the Great Depression, and WW2 with extensive land clearing occurred during the Bailey Settlement from 1929-1932 and the 1960s Heytesbury Settlement. Mark Cuthell from the Port Campbell Tourist Information Centre then took the students on a coastal walk where they learnt about various landforms and the uniqueness of the Australian landscape. Mark explained that the cliffs select plants that can adapt to the wind and salt spray with plants and shrubs more vigorous in more sheltered aspects. He described how the vertical cliffs are often eroded into bays that can eventually form sea caves, or arches and then result in stacks such as the 12 Apostles. Did you know, that the limestone in the limestone pit near Timboon is made up of the same vertical layer as the stacks that make up the 12 Apostles! How fortunate are our students to have this local expertise so readily available? Comments are closed.
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April 2024
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