Creative Learning and Critical Thinking in Commerce

Year 10 Commerce students had the opportunity to think critically and learn creatively when competing in the class Marshmallow Challenge. This innovative learning challenge required students to engage in decision making within real world business parameters under the pressure of time. A huge thank you to Vikki Cummins for designing this dynamic learning task to help students understand key commerce theories and apply business concepts.
Brigida Zagora
Head of HSIE (Humanities and Social Sciences)

Teacher Reflection

The Marshmallow Challenge was played in Year 10 Commerce as an experiential learning exercise to help students understand the benefits and challenges of different legal structures, including sole traders, partnerships, and private and public companies. By forming teams and allowing them to break spaghetti and cut string, students experienced firsthand the dynamics of collaboration and resource management. Each team, representing a different legal structure, had to innovate and strategise to build the tallest tower within 10 minutes. This activity highlighted the challenges of sole traders having limited resources and competing with companies, and the benefits of collaborating in a partnership, mirroring real-world business challenges of different legal structures.
Vikki Cummins
Commerce Teacher

Student Reflections

Participating in the Marshmallow Challenge in our Year 10 Commerce class was a fun and insightful experience! As part of a company team with ample resources, we quickly realised that our biggest challenge was the slow decision-making process. Every decision had to be discussed at length and agreed upon, which significantly impacted our operational efficiency compared to the partnership or sole trader teams who could make decisions swiftly.
Chiara Marando

Participating in the Marshmallow Challenge as a sole trader in our Year 10 Commerce class was both challenging and enlightening. Unlike the company groups, I didn’t have anyone to brainstorm or strategise with, which meant I had to rely on a lot of ‘trial and error’ on my own. This made the process more time-consuming and added a lot of pressure, as every decision and adjustment was solely my responsibility. Despite these challenges, the experience was valuable as it highlighted the difficulties sole traders face in real-world business scenarios and gave me a deeper appreciation for the collaborative advantages of other business structures.
Edith Barrett

Participating in the Marshmallow Challenge as a partnership highlighted the value of teamwork and the importance of clear communication. We learned that while combining our strengths led to innovative ideas to create a spaghetti tower, we also learnt that it was essential to agree in order to compete with those students in the company.
Siana Pinto and Emilie Tyson