09 Dec 2021
Left, Peter at a Birrigai Indigenous weaving workshop
On Tuesday Principal at Birrigai Outdoor School Peter Kent, was recognised with the National Excellence in Teaching Award for Leadership (NEiTA), which recognises outstanding stewardship of student education and welfare, and exemplary teacher and school community leadership.
Birrigai Outdoor School is the ACT’s greatest outdoor classroom – nestled amongst the Tidbinbilla Range and Namadgi National Park in Ngunnawal Country. The school offer includes a mix of cultural learning and safe, enriching outdoor adventure, delivered by a team of specialist outdoor education teachers.
In his time as the school’s leader, Peter has had a strong focus on building high quality, authentic On Country Learning, centred around Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories, knowledge and cultures.
Peter is thrilled to receive the award and credits his entire team with the outcomes that the school has achieved to this day.
“It is an honour and very humbling to receive a NEiTA award. My work at Birrigai is very much part of a vibrant and diverse team and so I feel that the award is an acknowledgement of the entire team,” Peter said.
This is not the first time that Birrigai has been recognised at a national level for its rich cultural learning. In 2019, the school was a national finalist in the CSIRO Indigenous STEM School Award, recognising how Indigenous knowledges became the foundation for the teaching of STEM at Birrigai.
Birrigai has developed 11 standalone programs that combine Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives and STEM content for all students, aged Kindergarten to Year 12. Combined, these programs encompass more than 36 unique Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander science elaborations.
Peter has had a diverse career, both in education and other sectors. He started teaching 28 years ago as a secondary science teacher and for the past 19 years has predominately filled primary school leadership roles. It’s this breadth of experience that have broadened the perspectives Peter brings to the role and deepened his leadership capacity.
In what was another truly unusual year in education, Peter said he has been reflecting on the inherent potential in all of us to adapt, improve and overcome noting that true growth can only be achieved in the face of life’s challenges.
“Let’s be positive – during the COVID period there were countless occasions where students, teachers and parents rose above the circumstances in which they found themselves. Occasions where individuals and teams displayed creativity, ingenuity, grit, optimism, and bucket loads of empathy. COVID was full of instances where I saw the best of teachers, the best of students and the best of the community,” Peter said.
To learn more about Birrigai Outdoor School, visit: Birrigai Outdoor School 
.