A program supporting the implementation of Queensland’s new senior secondary curriculum has earned The University of Queensland a prestigious Peter Doherty Award for Excellence in STEM Education.
UQ’s Faculty of Science secured the STEM Education Partnership Award at the Queensland Government’s annual Peter Doherty Awards - ceremony on Friday.
The award recognises the Faculty for their contribution to the successful implementation of Queensland’s new senior science, mathematics, geography and food science curriculums.
Executive Dean of the Faculty of Science, Professor Melissa Brown said the award is tremendous recognition for the Faculty’s commitment to furthering the STEM education experience for both teachers and students throughout Queensland.
“We addressed a need to assist teachers with subject specific content knowledge to support the implementation of the new senior science, mathematics, geography and food science syllabuses in Queensland schools,” Professor Brown said.
Partnering with discipline-specific professional teacher associations, the three educational systems and the Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority, teachers were able to access the Faculty’s academic content experts to master unfamiliar knowledge in the new curriculum.
As the implementation rolled out over 3 year period, the Faculty delivered face to face workshops spanning 11 syllabuses across the state to over 6000 teachers, creating an active community of practice between university academics and teachers.
“The program also provided a catalogue of learning resources for students in years 10, 11 and 12 which was accessed by over 15,000 students.
“The $5,000 award we receive as part of this recognition will go straight back into continuing to support and facilitate the education of the next generation of STEM students.”
Professor Brown accepted the award on behalf of over 20 of the Faculty’s academic staff who contributed to the success of the project.
The Peter Doherty Awards for Excellence in STEM Education is a Queensland State Government initiative which recognises students, teachers, support officers, schools and education partners such as volunteers, mentors and organisations who demonstrate outstanding and innovative contribution to STEM education in Queensland.
2021 marks the 18th year of the awards named after Professor Peter Doherty, a Brisbane-born Nobel Prize-winning scientist, who was educated at Indooroopilly State High School and the University of Queensland.
