TAG 166 - Geological Society of Australia

Special Report 2Earth Science Western AustraliaEarth Science Western Australia (ESWA) has four main areasof operation: outreach to schools, development andprovision of classroom resources, professional developmentof teachers, and publications. Thanks to the skills, energy andenthusiasm of our staff and Board, ESWA achieved very significantadvances in the 2012 year for Earth Science education in WAschools. In addition, the broadening of our supporter base, andfinalisation of new initiatives funded by Woodside Energy Ltd andBHP Billiton, give us cause to look forward to more progress in2013.The year began with analmost 30% increase in theenrolments of Year 11 and12 students in Earth andEnvironmental ScienceEES), to more than 800students at 28 schools(see graphs at left). Thisencouraging increase raised the demand for teacher and studentsupport, both in the classroom and in the field, but did not impedea vigorous outreach program in WA primary and secondary schools.ESWA outreach has two objectives:1. Continue to build on the increasing interest in Earth Sciencein WA schools.2. Assess the needs in Years K–10 that follow from inclusion ofEES as the fourth science subject in Years 11 and 12 of theAustralian Curriculum. This development has led to an Earthand Space Science component in the new K–10 curriculum,a requirement that is challenging for many primary schoolteachers. The development is also an opportunity to embedEarth Science deeper into the education system.Outreach highlightsJoanne Watkins (Executive Officer) and Julia Ferguson (ProjectOfficer) travelled throughout WA presenting to over 6000 studentsfrom Kindergarten to Year 12. They provided professional developmentto more than 900 teachers (including repeat visits onrequest).Students at the Jigalong Remote Community School learn about fossils withJulia Ferguson.TAG March 2013| 33