In the shadow of Ningaloo Reef’s turquoise waters, a quiet revolution is taking place at Exmouth Library, where nine eager students are learning skills that could one day see them among the ranks of Australia’s tech innovators. It’s a scene that might surprise visitors who know Exmouth primarily for its whale sharks and pristine beaches rather than digital innovation.
Coding by the Coral Coast
The afternoon sessions, which kicked off earlier this month, introduce students to the fundamentals of coding through Scratch, a visual programming language that makes learning code accessible and engaging for young minds. The workshops are held after school hours, with the first session bringing nine enthusiastic students to the library at 3 PM, ready to build their own characters and games.
What makes this initiative particularly noteworthy isn’t just what’s being taught, but where it’s happening. The Creative Bytes program was specifically created to bridge the growing gap between digital literacy learning opportunities in regional or remote areas compared to metropolitan centers. While coding workshops have become increasingly common in Perth, such opportunities have traditionally been scarce in places like Exmouth.
Bridging the Digital Divide
For many Perth residents, coding classes and tech bootcamps have become almost commonplace, with options ranging from after-school programs to weekend workshops at venues across the city. But in regional WA, such opportunities have been limited, contributing to what experts refer to as the “urban-rural digital divide.”
Creative Bytes, founded in 2021 by Melbourne-based Stewart McMillan and Heath Gilham, aims to address this imbalance. Their program provides not just curriculum and access to the Scratch platform, but also laptops for students who need them—ensuring that financial constraints don’t become barriers to participation. This accessibility feature is crucial, as it ensures all interested students can participate regardless of their background or previous experience with coding technology.
The workshops are led by Shire of Exmouth staff who have undergone training through Creative Bytes lesson plans. This community-led approach ensures local ownership of the program while maintaining high educational standards.
Part of a Larger Vision
The Exmouth coding initiative doesn’t exist in isolation. It’s part of a broader push by the Shire of Exmouth to position the town as forward-thinking despite its remote location. Recent years have seen the community embrace several technology-driven projects, including Horizon Power’s electric vehicle trials and the development of EV charging infrastructure.
This balancing act—embracing technological advancement while maintaining connection to place—feels familiar to many Perth residents who have witnessed their own city’s evolution from a “big country town” to a modern metropolis without losing its relaxed coastal character.
Challenges and Opportunities
While enthusiasm for the program is evident, challenges remain. Western Australia’s digital inclusion index, which stood at 73.2 in 2023, reveals ongoing struggles with connectivity in remote areas. Internet access—something Perth residents might take for granted while using their devices at Elizabeth Quay or Yagan Square—remains inconsistent in parts of the regions.
There’s also the question of sustainability. Currently, programs like Creative Bytes rely heavily on grants and partnerships, raising questions about long-term viability without ongoing funding.
Yet these challenges are balanced by tremendous opportunities. The WA e-learning market has embraced mobile-first strategies and interactive content like gamification—approaches that Creative Bytes incorporates into its curriculum. As Perth continues its own journey toward becoming a technology hub within the Indo-Pacific region, initiatives like Exmouth’s coding workshops create potential talent pipelines that could benefit the entire state.
A Model for the Future
For Perth residents watching the evolution of regional education, Exmouth’s approach offers valuable insights. By adapting metropolitan-style tech education to fit local needs—through community-led delivery and attention to accessibility—the program creates a replicable model that could work across WA’s vast regions.
The ten-week program will cover key aspects of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM), all while students develop engaging games and characters. This approach makes learning fun and interactive, potentially increasing student retention and interest in pursuing further tech education.
The social impact of such initiatives extends beyond immediate skills acquisition. By empowering youth with future-ready digital literacy, the program may help reduce regional brain drain by creating local tech pathways and strengthening Exmouth’s appeal as a tech-friendly hub—a concern familiar to many regional communities across Western Australia.
As Perth continues to debate the balance between development and heritage, between innovation and tradition, communities like Exmouth demonstrate that embracing technological advancement doesn’t have to mean abandoning local character. In fact, by giving regional students the tools to solve local problems through technology, these programs might help preserve what makes regional communities special.
For the nine students currently building their first games and characters at Exmouth Library, the focus is on developing coding skills that could open doors to future opportunities. But with each line of code they write, they’re also participating in a broader story about digital equity and regional empowerment—one where postcodes don’t determine digital opportunities, and where innovation can flourish as readily beside the reef as it does beside the river.
un.perth is committed to highlighting stories of innovation throughout Western Australia. If your community has a similar initiative, we’d love to hear about it.
