Learning Communities

Bruce Hall is playing a lead role in the development of learning communities at the ANU. Check out the ANU learning community project website for a complete list of learning communities you can join to meet other people who share your interests, participate in a wide range of 'real-world' projects and learn new skills.

What are the Bruce Hall Learning Communities?

Our learning communities:

• Encourage students to be excited by learning
• Build community by bringing students with common interests together
• Increase academic success and enhance personal development
• We have four learning community themes at Bruce this year

1. Arts  Learning Community For students studying or interested in arts, new media arts, music, performing arts, design and communications. Activities this year included: Theatre sports Visiting visual artists, digital artists, musicians and poets Art room, Dark room, Music rooms Inter Hall Arts Shows Theatre trips The Bruce Hall Play Dinner with the Bell Shakespeare Company Musical performances Digital and Visual arts exhibitions around the Hall
2. Rhetoric Learning Community For students studying or interested in law, philosophy, politics, research, debating, critical analysis and academic writing. Bruce Hall also invites non-residential students to join the Rhetoric Learning Community theme.  Activities this year included: Academic themed high table dinners Cross-sections, the Bruce Hall Academic Journal The magazine Ignis Draconis The ANU Public Lecture Series Inter-Hall Debating Discussion forums on topics such as indigenous health, the Gardasil vaccine, prosecuting international crime, terrorisim and human rights abuses and a review of the outcomes of last year's APEC forum Bruce Hall Library
3. Sustainability Learning Community For students studying or interested in environmental science, geography and sustainability as well as economics, management, sociology, political science and engineering that are related to sustainability. Bruce Hall also invites non-residential students to join the Sustainability Learning Community theme. Activities this year included: Bruce Green education on recycling, including the Bruce Green dinner with the recycled band. The Great Green Debate SLC Coffee meetings every fortnight Collaboration with ANU Green to work on projects across campus Field trips to an organic farm, community garden, sustainable house, etc Tree planting on campus Established an organic community garden on campus Clean up Australia Day campaign
4. Asia-Pacific Learning Community For students studying or interested in Asian studies, languages and linguistics and international relations as well as for international students studying in Australia, exchange students and students who want to travel and learn more about cultures and nations of the region. The Asia-Pacific learning community is interested in important isses affecting the region, including economic development, the movement of peoples, religion, climate change and cultural change. Bruce Hall also invites non-residential students to join the Asia-Pacific Learning Community theme. Activities this year included: Welcomes and farewells for international and exchange students   Iron Chef competitions and events such as Intermnational Mela, Hawker Night and MSO's Dessert Night International Office contacts, including an information night for students interested in exchange programmes An evening of Indian storytelling and music Dinners and discussion forums on topics such as the impact of the US sub-prime crisis on the region, how Islamic law co-exists with other forms of law, China's investment in Australia, micro-finance, and Pacifika peoples in Australia.