Facilities
School facilities
Featuring a blend of modern and historic buildings, the school is set on attractive grounds with two ovals and various lawn areas for students to relax, play, and learn.
Classrooms
Our classrooms are comfortable and inspiring places to learn and share knowledge. They include digital screens and full access to the school’s wifi network.
Science laboratories
Each of our four science laboratories is dedicated to a specific field: physics, chemistry, biology and general science. This focus ensures that equipment and teaching materials, such as posters, displays, word walls, and models, are subject-specific and focus students' attention on the specialist area they are working in.
The Howlett resource centre
The Howlett resource centre is the central location of school resources. It contains an extensive collection of fiction and nonfiction printed and digital resources, as well as SLR cameras, flip cameras, audiovisual equipment, and other ICT equipment.
Visual Arts studio
The visual arts studio encompasses four distinct teaching areas and offers all the modern facilities and equipment needed to provide rich and varied visual arts experiences.
Fully furnished to allow students to explore a wide range of traditional and new media, the studio includes a designated ceramics area; a computer graphics and multi-media suite equipped with Apple Macintosh computers, graphics tablets and high-quality printers capable of printing up to A1+; and general art rooms.
Specialist ICT facilities
Our school offers several dedicated computer rooms using dual platforms (Apple Macintosh and Windows). In addition, all teaching classrooms have full wireless internet access and digital screens.
The technology centre has developed a 21st-century technology area where students can learn the skills of CO2 laser cutting and three-dimensional printing.
Electrotechnology
The building, purpose-built to provide an industry-standard learning environment dedicated to the electronics industry, comprises an advanced computer room complete with Unitrain learning modules and sustainable energy systems.
An attached workshop contains tools and measuring equipment required to construct circuits and electrical devices.
Furniture Construction area
The specially designed furniture construction area replicates a modern industrial cabinet-making facility. It contains all the tools a professional cabinet maker requires, including a rip saw, panel saw, mortising machine, radial arm saw, 800mm continuous belt sander, 800mm thicknesser, planer, jointer, edge bander, multi-hole borer, inverted router, bobbin sander and drop saw.
Design and Technology area
The light-filled design and technology area embraces an open-space workshop where students can learn the skills involved in woodwork, plastics, metal machining, and welding. The facility also houses a dedicated digital photography suite.
There is a second specialist workshop for automotive studies for students interested in the automotive industry. Students benefit from access to a vehicle hoist, industry-level tyre-changing equipment, and a range of engines.
Home Economics area
The home economics area consists of four teaching spaces. The textiles room features modern sewing machines and overlockers, a programmable embroidering machine, a washing machine, and a dryer. The area also comprises two refurbished kitchens and a general classroom.
Agriculture farm
Our school has a long tradition of success in agricultural and horticultural studies. Spread across six hectares of land, the agriculture farm includes paddocks (for livestock), chicken hutches, plant nurseries, vegetable plots, a shearing shed, storage sheds, and equipment for irrigation and livestock management.
Access for students and staff with disabilities
Despite some of our buildings' age and multi-level nature, Mount Barker High School is committed to providing efficient and unrestricted access to all teaching areas for students, staff and visitors with restricted mobility.
A ramp accesses each ground-floor room in the school, while a lift and ramp allow access to the upper floor of the school’s main building.