St Brigid's College, a Catholic secondary school in Horsham in Victoria's Wimmera region, has opened a dedicated virtual reality lab and made VR a permanent part of classroom teaching for its year 7 to 12 students. The college says it is the first school in the region to run VR as a standing part of the curriculum rather than as a one-off demonstration.
The rollout began as a pilot across four year levels and subjects: year 7 English, year 8 science, year 9 humanities and year 10 careers. Teacher and VR co-ordinator Tamika Burdett said the aim is to give students experiences that would otherwise require travel to Melbourne, interstate or overseas — exploring locations around the world, moving through the human body, running a farm simulator used in agriculture classes, and sampling career options.
The college announced the lab in July 2026 and began using it in term 3 of that year, framing it as a way to lift engagement, break down barriers to understanding and build skills for the future workforce. After the pilot, the school plans to open the lab to other staff who want VR in their own subjects, and it is also making the VR resources available to grade 5 and 6 students in the surrounding region.
Ms Burdett said the program is still in its infancy, but that engagement levels so far have been high.
