Last night I travelled to Canberra to attend the awards ceremony for the Prime Minister’s Prizes for Science with Mrs Francesca Calati of St Helena Secondary College. For me there were two themes that shone through.
Firstly, several of the prize winners praised science as a team activity, one that could not be done in isolation. Ms Majorie Colvill, winner of the primary teaching award, stressed the importance of meeting with other science professionals.
Secondly, both Prof Mandyam Srinivassan, winner of the Prime Minisiter’s Prize for Science and Dr Naomi McClure-Griffiths, winner of the Malcolm McIntosh Prize for Physical Scientist of the Year emphasised the importance of curiosity-driven science. In their opinions, asking the ‘why’ and ‘how’ questions were of primary importance. With freedom to do this, it is then possible to use this understanding to examine potential practical applications.
These observations resonate with the work we are doing to provide support to St Helena Secondary College with the introduction of their nanotechnology curriculum. The nanotechnology elective aims to spark curiousity and the development of the curriculum has necessitated a cooperative appraoch with industry and academia.
Post a Comment