The FizzicsEd Podcast Ben Newsome from Fizzics Education

Meet Russell Cairns, an amazingly energetic primary digital technologies teacher with a real flair for getting things done. From teaching robotics to over 900 students a week at his school through to driving change through community-building events for teachers and students in Makerspaces, Russell is making a huge difference in helping people discover & adopt Edtech in their classrooms.

Hosted by Ben Newsome from Fizzics Education

About Russell Cairns

Currently Rusty is developing a range of community-based STEM opportunities to nurture underrepresented students in coding, robotics, making and experiential learning through play and hybrid delivery of programs with LEGO, VEX, Dash and Micro:bit robotics. He delivers webinars, have presented at EduTech and many other conferences, judged Young Scientist, Inventors and Creators competitions and are piloting new tools for digital feedback and to empower student voice.

He believes computational thinking and robotics when employed in classrooms makes coding more tangible. He encourages all educators should be active innovators in technology-infused classrooms. Russel’s wish is to see schools transform into places of student wonder where a creative and innovative growth mindset is celebrated. he is a real champion of student voice and always focuses learning on real-world, authentic problems centred around students interests and enriched by the 6 C's
NSWICTE Leader of the Year
Microsoft Innovative Educator Expert.
Wonder Squad Robotics Coach
Sphero Lead Educator
Maker Empire 3D Learning Ambassador
co-creator of STEAMing in the Hills
Piloted a Girls in STEAM, Hybrid Robotics competition with 12 metropolitan and regional Schools, using free demo kits, remote teacher training, student video submissions, engineering drawing journals and showcase
Currently exploring hybrid and virtual remote robotics platforms such as Kais Clan, VEX VR, Wonder workshop Class connect and Block 42 World for AR and ED prototyping.
Coding ambassador for Osmo Play Sphero and KoddyBlock interactive education platforms.
Working with learning content providers Tynker Jnr, Tynker Pro, Education Perfect and ClickView, Rusty enrolled all students in online science, mathematics and computational thinking competitions and activities to supplement other content.

About the FizzicsEd Podcast

Hosted by Ben Newsome from Fizzics Education

With interviews with leading science educators and STEM thought leaders, this science education podcast is about highlighting different ways of teaching kids within and beyond the classroom. It's not just about educational practise & pedagogy, it's about inspiring new ideas & challenging conventions of how students can learn about their world!

https://www.fizzicseducation.com.au/

Know an educator who'd love this STEM podcast episode? 

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The FizzicsEd podcast is a member of the Australian Educators Online Network (AEON )

http://www.aeon.net.au/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Find out about FEAST, a interactive STEM program developed by OzHarvest that combines nutrition, food waste and sustainability in a curriculum ready package for Australian primary schools. We chat with Amelia Berner, OzHarvest’s FEAST Program Manager to learn more!

Hosted by Ben Newsome from Fizzics Education

About the OzHarvest FEAST program

FEAST runs for 7-10 weeks and is a STEM project-based learning program focusing on food and fibre and the cross-curriculum priority of Sustainability. The program teaches kids about sustainability, food waste and nutrition using hands-on cooking and inquiry-based learning. The culmination of the program is the ‘School Cookbook’ which brings to life everything the students have learnt about food waste and healthy eating. The program encourages students to influence their whole school community by hosting a Cookbook launch and sharing their knowledge on the topic.

Funding is available for eligible schools to sign up to the FEAST program and make a lasting, impact within their school community. Schools signing up will receive a curriculum package, kitchen kits to make cooking in the classroom easy, access to the online portal for teachers and students and accredited teacher training. For more information visit www.ozharvest.org/feast
FEAST in Action video:
https://youtu.be/F1R74U1Z99k
Video of School Cookbook Launch at QLD school
https://youtu.be/6-OaL8Pi5HA
How FEAST addresses the Sustainable Development Goals
https://youtu.be/va27wJmIZ9w
FEAST photos can be found HERE.
To sign up to FEAST: https://education.ozharvest.org/register-your-school/
OzHarvest Education Twitter Account: https://twitter.com/OzHarvestEdu

About the Amelia Berner

Amelia is OzHarvest’s FEAST Program Manager and has a passion for nutrition and environmental education stems from a decade of experience as High School TAS teacher and working as a practicing nutritionist. This enabled her to develop the FEAST education program that ensures all children have the ability to learn where food comes from, how it is prepared sustainably and not waste it.

About the FizzicsEd Podcast

Hosted by Ben Newsome from Fizzics Education

With interviews with leading science educators and STEM thought leaders, this science education podcast is about highlighting different ways of teaching kids within and beyond the classroom. It's not just about educational practise & pedagogy, it's about inspiring new ideas & challenging conventions of how students can learn about their world!

https://www.fizzicseducation.com.au/

Know an educator who'd love this STEM podcast episode? 

Share it!

The FizzicsEd podcast is a member of the Australian Educators Online Network (AEON )

http://www.aeon.net.au/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Discover how your school can replicate an experiment on the International Space Station with ExoLab in your school as we chat with Ted Tagami, User Advisory Committee - Education Chair at ISS US National Laboratory & co-founder of Magnitude!

Hosted by Ben Newsome from Fizzics Education

Want your school or library to join the ExoLab project?

Find out more here!
Primary schools
High Schools
Libraries

About ExoLab

ExoLab is a science experiment where students from across the world compare their results with an identical growth chamber on the International Space Station. Schools have the opportunity to use the same equipment used on the ISS to give students an opportunity to participate in real-time research in a connected global school community.
Students collect and analyze data to identify the optimal combination of legume, bacteria, and soil to produce nodulation in the harsh environment of the space.
They engage in experimental design, data collection and analysis, writing and revising hypotheses, and communicating about what they’ve learned using evidence from their experiments.
Direct curriculum outcomes for high school
Guided by experienced educators from Fizzics Education & Magnitude.
Available globally for schools

The experiments are initiated on the ISS in accordance with resupply missions. This allows for multiple experiments per year, giving options on when to align the classroom experiment with the ISS experiment. Students look for relationships between the environmental conditions, including the effect of microgravity on the growth of living things in general.

Further links

Australian high schools
Australian primary schools
For schools around the world

About Ted Tagami

Having built and sold his first dotcom in the 1990’s, Ted has been building Internet relationships since 1994. With leading work at Knight Ridder Digital and global brand experience at digital agency Millions of Us, Ted brings a unique perspective to modern experiential learning through the implementation of science and engineering based on the Next Generation Science Standards.

Further link
Twitter

About the FizzicsEd podcast

Hosted by Ben Newsome from Fizzics Education

With interviews with leading science educators and STEM thought leaders, this science education podcast is about highlighting different ways of teaching kids within and beyond the classroom. It's not just about educational practise & pedagogy, it's about inspiring new ideas & challenging conventions of how students can learn about their world!

https://www.fizzicseducation.com.au/

Know an educator who'd love this STEM podcast episode? 

Share it!

The FizzicsEd podcast is a member of the Australian Educators Online Network (AEON )

http://www.aeon.net.au/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Be inspired as we chat with Maree Timms, founder of Digital Technologies Advisory Committee Wangaratta. DTAC Wangaratta helps students across the region & beyond connect with STEM in a variety of ways!

Hosted by Ben Newsome from Fizzics Education

About DTAC Wangaratta

The Digital Technologies Advisory Committee is a collection of organisations and individuals who are working hard to fix the problem our region is facing with Digital Inclusion. it started as a collaboration between the NE Tracks LLEN ( Local Learning and Employment Network), Local GOTAFE & Charles Sturt University.

When DTAC commence in 2016, the local Digital Inclusion score was 43.8. In the most recent report they've shot past the 50% mark with a new scoring of 50.8 - an increase of 7%! (By comparison Melbourne moved from 62.5% to 63.6% in the same period).

In Maree's words:
We do our own teacher workshops, and now collaborations for regional workshops with DLTV ( Digital Learning & Teaching Victoria, STAV Science teachers association, MAV maths teachers association & OZgrav at Swinburne)
Also a big focus is “girls in STEM” – we have had a number of these workshops including one of the coolest, where we have had FORD engineers travel to Wangaratta to work with our local girls.
Last year with COVID put a bit of a halt on things, but we have created another partnership with One Giant Leap Australia Foundation, who have many cool space projects. The Kibo Challenge, seeds in space program – check out their website for more info.

"The formation of DTAC has to sit high up there with creating change and innovation in our community. We would never had thought we would have achieved all this.  There has been so many wonderful outcomes."

Further link

www.DTAC.zone

About Maree Timms

Maree grew up in Wangaratta and attended Monash University, becoming a science teacher & started teaching in 1986 in a very multicultural school. At 25 years old she taught in Turkey for 10 months and then backpacked across a variety of countries during a 2.5 year period. She moved to the Northern Territory to teach at Taminmin College for 4 years followed by Gunbalanya Community School for 10 years in Arnhemland where she "learnt more than I ever taught!!". She returned to Wangaratta following this and has now been teaching at Galen Catholic College for past 14 years.

In her words...

I’ve had way too many cool things happen in my teaching career.
Taking a group of students from Humpty Doo ( Taminmin College) to Open the National Science week way back in 1994’s at Parliament house. Infront of Dr Karl Kruszelnickii!!  We created the Taminmin Magic Science Show!
Taking a group of Indigenous kids ( Gunbalanya) to the Paralympic Games for the whole two weeks
Taking a group of Indigenous Kids/parents and Elders ( Gunbalanya) to accept an award for a Claymation we created to Melbourne. ( It won NT film of the year!!)  https://vimeo.com/139298727
Winning the right to represent Australia at the VEX Worlds Robotics Championships, in 2018, 2019 and 2020 ( we couldn’t go in 2020)
Being invited to have lunch with the Lead Scientist of Victoria in her office – with our robotics team
Winning the Right to represent Australia in the 1st Kibo Challenge 2020 and see our student's code control NASA’s Astrobee robot on the ISS.
I still don’t know how to code…or build robots – but have taken teams to the highest level. I gather good allies/colleagues that have the skills I don’t have and compliment mine. Kids who are willing to learn and have a go and teach themselves! They are the YouTube and online forum generation! I coordinate, facilitate, and “hammer’ them on the communication, teamwork, organisation skills that helps to lead them to success.

Further links

On twitter: https://twitter.com/mareetimms

STEM Map (Dr Amanda Caples)  -  https://djpr.vic.gov.au/

Meet Victor Minces, a researcher at the University of California, San Diego, who has applied his background in physics, neuroscience and the cognitive science of music to create Listening to Waves, a project sponsored by the National Science Foundation. It's all about inspiring students to develop a deeper appreciation of both science and sound!

Hosted by Ben Newsome from Fizzics Education

About Listening to Waves

Based at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD). Listening to Waves has been investigating the relationship between music performance, brain function, and general aspects of cognition. The group is deeply involved in teaching students the science of sound and music, including their physical, perceptual, and neural aspects. The Listening to Waves program developed from our work at the Temporal Dynamics of Learning Center (TDLC), a National Science Foundation sponsored conglomerate of laboratories committed to bridging the gap between the scientific study of learning and the educational system. The program is now funded through National Science Foundation grant Innovative Technologies for Students and Teachers (ITEST).

Listerning to Waves has now served more than 3000 students across San Diego County, including students in the High Tech High School System, the Boys and Girls Club of San Diego, the Museum School, and the Sweetwater School District.

Further links

 www.listeningtowaves.com
To access the tools: www.listeningtowaves.com/sound-exploration
Facebook
Twitter handle: @ScienceOfMusic1 

About the FizzicsEd Podcast

Hosted by Ben Newsome from Fizzics Education

With interviews with leading science educators and STEM thought leaders, this science education podcast is about highlighting different ways of teaching kids within and beyond the classroom. It's not just about educational practise & pedagogy, it's about inspiring new ideas & challenging conventions of how students can learn about their world!

https://www.fizzicseducation.com.au/

Know an educator who'd love this STEM podcast episode? 

Share it!

The FizzicsEd podcast is a member of the Australian Educators Online Network (AEON )

http://www.aeon.net.au/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Find out how Prairie STEM is changing lives by empowering kids to use Esports as a vehicle to raise money for charity. Plus, learn about Prairie STEM's philosophy when it comes to teaching kids critical thinking skills using STEM as we chat with CEO Alan Wang, COO Jeffrey Ingraham & Community Outreach Director Jen Miller. 

Hosted by Ben Newsome from Fizzics Education

About Prairie STEM

Prairie STEM’s model combines the rigour and innovation of instructional leadership programs with authentic community partnerships and family engagement to transform regional economies through the talent development of all urban and rural students. This effort will cause for old paradigms to die. Transformational system-wide reforms will be needed which are driven by the needs of the future economy.

Further links


https://prairiestem.org/home

About the FizzicsEd Podcast

Hosted by Ben Newsome from Fizzics Education

With interviews with leading science educators and STEM thought leaders, this science education podcast is about highlighting different ways of teaching kids within and beyond the classroom. It's not just about educational practise & pedagogy, it's about inspiring new ideas & challenging conventions of how students can learn about their world!

https://www.fizzicseducation.com.au/

Know an educator who'd love this STEM podcast episode? 

Share it!

The FizzicsEd podcast is a member of the Australian Educators Online Network (AEON )

http://www.aeon.net.au/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.