Parents of children in Years 3, 5, 7, and 9 in Latrobe Valley schools will be contacted by their schools in the coming weeks to ask permission for them and their children to take part in the 10-year longitudinal study.

The aim of the study is to see if there were any ongoing psychological impacts of exposure to smoke from the Hazelwood mine fire in school-aged children, as well as exploring other educational and wellbeing outcomes.

The study will be approaching almost all schools in the Latrobe Valley and has received considerable assistance from the Department of Education and Training, the Catholic Education Office, and from the schools themselves.

“In addition to understanding the specific smoke impacts, a study of this size and length is likely to shed light on other factors impacting on the wellbeing and academic outcomes of local students, which has the potential to shape future educational policy for the region and beyond,” said lead researcher Professor Darryl Maybery.

“Parents are encouraged to keep an eye out for the Schools Study information and to take part so that we can better understand the impacts of the mine fire.”

Find out more about the Schools Study or ask your children’s school for details.

See the WIN News story about the launch of the Schools Study.

Schools StudyThe long term Hazelwood Health Study has begun researching the mine fire’s impact on young people. Almost every school in the Latrobe Valley will be approached to take part in the study, which will form a crucial part of the overall research. This item was posted on Facebook by WIN News Gippsland on Tuesday, 1 September 2015