Gonski 2.0 The recent release of David Gonski's second report into education notes that Australian student's performance in reading, science and maths has been declining for years. Many of the recommendations were particularly interesting from a STEM perspective as they called for many things that STEM proponents have been saying for some time. For example one recommendation is to strengthen the development of the "General Capabilities" which is directly related to the STEM proponent's call to improve student's ability to use the 4Cs of 21st Century Learning of Collaboration, Communication, Critical Thinking and Creativity. Two other standout recommendations were for more individualised learning and use of technology to help children achieve their full potential. Flipped Learningand Project Based Learning are two approaches that could help meet these objectives.  The report noted that there were too many "cruising schools" which weren't being innovative in their teaching practices nor in the way they delivered the curriculum. School's have to be nimble in what they teach children about technology as this is a rapidly changing field. This is one of the Gonski report's priorities "Equip every child to be a creative, connected and engaged learner in a rapidly changing world". Clearly a pre-requisite for this is comprehensive and ongoing teacher training and this was called for when the "Innovation committee recommends teachers get schooled on STEM".. Articles such as "STEM needs all the help it can get" and "STEM education in primary schools will fall flat unless serious issues are addressed" have previously highlighted issues with the education system that hopefully will get some attention as a result of this landmark report, Sir Ken Robinson in the followup to his fabled 2006 talk called for us to Bring on the Learning Revolution! We simply must move away from the way we have always done things and get creative. Make learning real world and integrate the subjects instead of teaching in a siloed manner. All of these ideas were covered in this video from 2014 "STEM Education Overview" This isn't new stuff yet traction is anaemic. David Gonski said in an interview "There is never time to waste and I think it would be wonderful if we could get cracking with it straight away." I think so too.

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Stuff in the News Science-nonfiction: Robotics author says AI will affect all children - It is important for young children to be familiar about big changes that may occur during their lives. An article from the Brisbane Times 14 May 2018 Re-envisioning NAPLAN: use technology to make the tests more authentic and relevant -  Experts look at options for removing, replacing, rethinking or resuming NAPLAN. An article from The Conversation 14 May 2018

Stuff to buy STEM Story Books - Queensland University Professor and father Michael Milford has been producing a number of story books for children with different STEM themes. Great for presents! *At this point in time I earn no money from any product I list and I am not affiliated with any other company.

Stuff in education Gonski review attacks Australian schooling quality and urges individualised teaching approach - The Gonski review into the quality of Australian schooling has highlighted declining academic performance and recommended school education be radically reformed to tailor teaching and assessment to individual students. An article from The Conversation 30 April 2018 How Victorian principals responded to the Gonski 2.0 report - Critical thinking and STEM skills are vital for survival in the future workforce and can not simply be tacked onto the existing education system. An article from the Sydney Morning Herald 30 April 2018 Two articles from the Sydney Morning Herald highlighting schools which are embracing STEM: Belle Vue Park Primary Merrylands East Primary

Stuff to do Australia Wide 2018 Australian STEM Video Game Challenge - The Australian STEM Video Game Challenge is completely free to enter. This year’s competition will run from Tuesday 20 Feb – Friday 3 August 2018 CSIRO CREST Program - CREativity in Science and Technology. Engage your students with open-ended science investigations and technology projects through the CREST program. - - - Fizzics Education - Mobile workshops & shows by dedicated science educators NSW, VIC & QLD & ACT Bricks 4 Kidz® | Awesome Fun With LEGO® Bricks  Young Engineers Australia - Provides an engaging, hands-on learning platform using LEGO® and K’nex® assembly kits CoderDojo - A volunteer run programming club Code Club Australia - A global network of coding clubs for kids aged 9 to 11.

Stuff to do in Brisbane RoboGals Brisbane Robotics Days - Robogals has various workshops programmed throughout the year. QLD Premier's Coding Competition - Students need to create a digital solution that meets the theme of ‘stand up to cyberbullies’ using Anti-Bully Girl - one of the Cyber Heroes. Closes 19 June 2018 - - - Street Science - Street Science provides captivating and curriculum aligned school Incursions and community entertainment, to excite and engage Australia's youth! STEM in a Box has ongoing coding, robotics and 3D printing activities Brisbane Library Service has purchased the very flash NAO Robot and is showing it off in various libraries. The Cube at QUT has a number of changing programs.  Brisbane Planetarium - Features entertaining and informative shows for adults and children STEMPUNKS STEM classes for kids in Brisbane STEAMPUNX - Not to be confused with the organisation above! Offers in-school and out of school workshop programs Flying Fox Studios - A studio offering programs in the arts, music and construction areas from babies to teenagers in Brisbane Building Block Studio | Learning Activity Centre in Brisbane For Budding Coders And Engineers Fun Chess Classes For Kids in Brisbane | Chess Mates Red Cat Science | Kids get to do what they can't at school It's Rocket Science School Incursions - Educational and fully interactive project based rocket science incursions for primary and secondary schools in a safe and empowering learning environment.

How to do a successful 1:1 device program (Part 1)?

Stuff this week - How to do a successful 1:1 device program (Part 1)? A 1:1 device program is one where each student has access to their own device throughout every school day. I am actually not particularly in favour of schools embarking on such a program at this time. I don't mean that I am opposed to it fundamentally but I do think that time, effort and money would be better spent elsewhere. Specifically I think that STEM related resources and teacher training should be where funds are expended right now and I think this would result in better educational outcomes overall. I would also make the point that I am not saying that schools should have no devices but just not 1:1, yet… However, not everyone shares my view so if a school is going to spend tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars on a 1:1 device program then it should be done properly. By properly I mean as I wrote in a previous blog post that considerable planning is required to establish SMART goals by asking questions such as we are doing X which is great but it would be even better if we could do Y. For example, a goal might be that students are to be able to collaborate in real time on a project and teachers are able to provide feedback directly also in real time. Once that goal is established then various software solutions can be examined which in turn leads to the hardware on which that software will run When it comes to 1:1 devices the importance of doing this planning cannot be understated. In 2015 the OECD released a report which found, in part, that a poorly implemented 1:1 device program can actually have a detrimental effect on educational outcomes over having no program at all. This is therefore not something that should be rushed into. So where should schools start? There are actually a number of excellent frameworks that could be used. The QLD Government has one called 21 steps to 21st Century 1-to-1 success, Microsoft has their Education Design and Deployment Guide and Google has their Chromebooks for Education Pilot Guide. All of these broadly follow the same process. First, considerable work needs be done on investigation, research, engagement and planning. After that comes device selection and teacher training. Finally, planning for and actual roll-out. The planning phase is so important and covers the majority of the time from inception to completion of the program. Too many schools simply pick a device and stick it in the classroom and wait for the teachers to work out what to do with them. I have asked many parents of high school kids about their experiences and typically they are required to spend over $1000 on a laptop (sometimes every three years!) and then find the kids merely do word processing, research and read their PDF textbooks. It is no wonder that the headmaster of Sydney Grammar called the laptop roll-out in his school a “scandalous waste!” Unless students are doing CAD, video editing, computer program compilation or other CPU intensive tasks there is no need for such an expensive device. It is also likely that no one device will meet all of a student’s requirements. If you consider your own device use, for a given task, you might choose to use your phone, a tablet, a laptop or a desktop computer. Students should have the same opportunity to choose the device which is best to solve the problem they have. So instead of spending over $1000 for a single device primary schools could choose to purchase a cheaper device in the range of $500-600 and ALSO a tablet and give the students the best of both worlds. So in summary a 1:1 device program can be valuable but only after detailed planning has been done. I would expect that parents would be shown the research that has been done to justify the program and exactly how it is envisaged that the program will improve the educational outcomes and how that will be measured. Transparent reporting of whether the program is meetings it stated goals would then follow. Next week I will wrap up this look at 1:1 programs and discuss the infrastructure requirements and teaching training considerations. So do you think primary school kids should all have their own device? Should they have devices which are north of a grand or would cheaper suffice? Have you seen any awesome examples of successful 1:1 device programs?

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Stuff in the news Mentoring program helps foster love of science in kids and teachers - An article from The Australian 30 January 2017 A warning from Bill Gates, Elon Musk, and Stephen Hawking - An article describing the effects of automation on the future job market. Strong STEM skills will be needed for the remaining jobs of the future. 19 February 2017

Stuff to buy Tickle App - This is actually free and is awesome as it allows multiple different platforms to interact. So if you have Dash and Dot, Lego WeDo 2.0, BB-8, Sphero or many others then kids can write code so they work together.  LightBlue Bean - A programmable micro-controller for introducing physical computing. Yes you can do a similar thing with the Raspberry Pi but this is smaller, runs off a battery and can be programmed from an iPad (including using the Tickle app above!). Fantastic! *At this point in time I earn no money from any product I list and I am not affiliated with any other company.

Stuff in education Are We Innovating, or Just Digitizing Traditional Teaching? - An article from Edutopia about blending technology with traditional teaching. 22 February 2017 Kids Don’t Fail, Schools Fail Kids: Sir Ken Robinson on the ‘Learning Revolution’ - An article from Edsurge 23 February 2017 Sharing the Screen in 1:1 Classrooms - 1:1 is great but don't forget about collaboration. An article from Edutopia 1 April 2016

Stuff to do Australia Wide Young ICT Explorers -  A non-profit competition, which has been created by SAP to encourage school students to create their best Information and Communication Technology (ICT) related projects. Registrations open in February. See the YouTube video here! - - - Bricks 4 Kidz® | Awesome Fun With LEGO® Bricks  Young Engineers Australia - Provides an engaging, hands-on learning platform using LEGO® and K’nex® assembly kits CoderDojo - A volunteer run programming club

Stuff to do in Brisbane STEMies - This event is open to all girls in years 4 to 6, offering the opportunity to participate in a series of workshops with STEM topics. To register visit www.flexischools.com.au and search for St Aidan's then select GUEST in the top right class list. Stuartholme STEAM Residential - A STEAM Residential program for gifted girls in Years 5 – 6, which will be held from the 2nd – 5th April during the school holidays The Luminarium Festival - Fun and illuminating workshops and events for children aged 5-13. Wizarding World Weekend is on 4-5 March 2017 World Science Festival Brisbane - 22 - 26 March 2017. Dr Karl for Kids is a FREE event in the South Bank Piazza on 25 March. Whats happening at the Queensland Museum during World Science Week - Loggerhead turtle hatching! Taxidermy and Street Science! Brisbane Library Service has purchased the very flash NAO Robot and is showing it off in various libraries. - - - The Cube at QUT has a number of changing programs.  Brisbane Planetarium - Features entertaining and informative shows for adults and children STEMPUNKS STEM classes for kids in Brisbane Flying Fox Studios - A studio offering programs in the arts, music and construction areas from babies to teenagers in Brisbane Building Block Studio | Learning Activity Centre in Brisbane For Budding Coders And Engineers Fun Chess Classes For Kids in Brisbane | Chess Mates Red Cat Science | Kids get to do what the can't at school

Why focus on STE(A)M?

Stuff this week - Why focus on STE(A)M? STEM is an abbreviation for Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths. Often it is expanded to STEAM with the A standing for Arts. The acknowlegement of the importance of the Arts is two fold I believe. Firstly, there is a natural degree of creativity in any STEM related activity and it is important to recognise this directly. Secondly, the proponents of STE(A)M education are not suggesting that these fields of study are intrinsically more important than the arts or humanities indeed you can't have one without the other. Sir Ken Robinson gave a fantastic Ted Talk titled “How to escape education’s death valley” in which he challenged everyone to value the skills and desires of every student no matter what their field of endeavour. Having said that there are students who enjoy learning about the STEM subjects that need to be supported. Furthermore, there is a strong and growing view that the modern technological age needs a population that have strong STEM skills. In my previous two blog posts I concentrated on the area of Technology but this is not more or less important than the other fields. In 2015 Australia’s Chief Scientist published a position paper titled “Transforming STEM teaching in Australian primary schools: everybody's business”. In that paper it was argued that countries such as Australia will only prosper economically in the future through STEM. This is because across the world, nations will be competing for the high-growth technology firms and highly capable workers of the future who will have strong STEM skills. The paper states that “The vision for Australia must include an education system that expects and achieves a high level of student achievement, mastery, enjoyment and innovation in science, technology and mathematics…” Also in 2015 PwC produced a report titled  “A Smart Move”. In it PwC suggests that up to 44% of existing jobs (5.1 million) will be lost due to “digital disruption”. This is not exactly new as we can all think of many jobs that have disappeared over the last 30 years but the pace of technological change suggests that the rate that jobs will disappear will increase. New jobs will be created of course, however they will be in the technical and creative fields. Salman Khan who created the “Khan Academy” was asked to give his thoughts on how education will look in the future. He also suggests that the breakdown of job types will change as shown in the following graphic. The Government of Australia agrees with these assessments and has signalled its determination to act by restoring the focus on science and mathematics in the curriculum. In December 2015 a “National STEM School Education Strategy” was agreed upon by all Australian Education Ministers. The first guiding principle from that strategy is “Create a school culture where the importance of STEM is recognised and valued, and there are high expectations for all students to engage with STEM education opportunities.” So there is no question that action is required. The challenge is to identify what exactly should be done and how to upskill the teachers to enable it. Next week I will talk about how globally STEM has come to mean more than just a simplistic focus on the STEM subjects and has become a metaphor for the significant improvements in the education system which are required to provide our children with the skills they will need in the world of the future. Do you agree that there should there be a focus on STEM in primary school? Can such a shift bring about better outcomes for students and the country?

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Stuff in the news Explainer: STEM, and what it means to Australia's education system Article from The Age newspaper 5 January 2017. New report shows need for greater STEM focus Article from The Educator website 18 January 2017 Why STEM Education Is Important For Everyone Article from Science Pioneers website Chinese parents mired by hefty costs for tech-focused education Article from China News Website 28 December 2016 90s TV show The Magic School Bus is being rebooted by Netflix and will focus on STEM education http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/tv/magic-school-bus-reboot-tons-cameos-article-1.2930954

Stuff to buy Best STEM Books List - The National Science Teachers Association of America has produced an inaugural list of books for all ages. My girls are fans of Hello Ruby and there are lots more! Extraordinaires Design Studio -  A creative thinking game for problem solvers. If you've ever wondered what it's like to invent a music player for a robot, a remote control for a pirate, or cooking utensil for a vampire teen, this is definitely the game for you. Goldie Blox - Through the integration of storytelling and STEM principles, GoldieBlox creates toys, books, apps, videos, animation and merchandise; the tools that empower girls to build their confidence and dreams. *At this point in time I earn no money from any product I list and I am not affiliated with any other company.

Stuff in education The following are a series of three articles written by Jane Hunter who is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Education at UTS and is conducting postdoctoral research in STEM. STEM education is everybody's business http://au.educationhq.com/news/35941/stem-education-is-everybodys-business/ STEM and PBL: it’s a good fit http://au.educationhq.com/news/36568/stem-and-pbl-its-a-good-fit/ STEM and assessment: what’s important? http://au.educationhq.com/news/37561/stem-and-assessment-whats-important/

Stuff to do Australia Wide Young ICT Explorers -  A non-profit competition, which has been created by SAP to encourage school students to create their best Information and Communication Technology (ICT) related projects. Registrations open in February. See the YouTube video here! - - - Bricks 4 Kidz® | Awesome Fun With LEGO® Bricks  Young Engineers Australia - Provides an engaging, hands-on learning platform using LEGO® and K’nex® assembly kits CoderDojo - A volunteer run programming club

Stuff to do in Brisbane World Science Festival Brisbane - 22 - 26 March 2017. Dr Karl for Kids is a FREE event in the South Bank Piazza on 25 March. The Cube at QUT has a number of changing programs. Brisbane Library Service has purchased the very flash NAO Robot and is showing it off in various libraries. - - - STEMPUNKS STEM classes for kids in Brisbane Flying Fox Studios - A studio offering programs in the arts, music and construction areas from babies to teenagers in Brisbane Building Block Studio | Learning Activity Centre in Brisbane For Budding Coders And Engineers Fun Chess Classes For Kids in Brisbane | Chess Mates Red Cat Science | Kids get to do what the can't at school