AUSTRALIAN ACADEMY OF TECHNOLOGICAL SCIENCES AND ENGINEERING (ATSE) NUMBER 147 DECEMBER 2007 Bringing relevance to STEM education Contributors focus on education – including ATSE’s role – and key aspects relating to engineering, mathematics, curriculum, technical education and skills development FOCUS www.atse.org.au CONTENTS 10 MaTHS MaTTERS 12 THE FUTURE OF SCHOOLING 3 FROM A STEM PERSPECTIVE Bringingrelevance 14 EDUCATION SHORTCOMINGS toscienceeducation LIMIT OppORTUNITIES throughSTELR By Alan Finkel 17 TECHNICAL SKILLS DEMAND AND SUppLY 19 URBAN WATER PLANNING BELOW paR, SAYS ATSE 5 21 DO PUTS HOLD THE KEY TO Education:acore URBAN TRANSPORT? ATSEpriority By Lesley Parker 7 Page1Anewapproach RethinkingAustralian tourbantransport–the engineeringeducation interioroftheNissanPivoII. By Robin King and Mary O’Kane 22 ISSUES IN NANOTECHNOLOGIES FOR AUSTRALIA 24 HENZELL’S REMARkaBLE HISTORY Front cover: A proud tradition in education. Photo: University of Adelaide 27 ATSE IN FOCUS ATSE is an independent body of eminent Australian engineers and scientists established to promote the application of scientific and engineering knowledge to practical purposes. Focus is produced to serve this goal. Opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views of ATSE. Material published in Focus may be reproduced provided ATSE Focus is produced to stimulate discussion and appropriate acknowledgement is given to the author and the Academy. public policy initiatives on key topics of interest Cheif Executive Officer: Dr Trevor Evans to the Academy and the nation. Many articles are Editor: Bill Mackey contributed by ATSE Fellows with expertise in these Technical Consultant: Dr Vaughan Beck FTSE areas. Opinion pieces on topics of national interest, AUSTRALIAN ACADEMY OF TECHNOLOGICAL SCIENCES AND ENGINEERINg (ATSE) particularly the Academy’s key interest areas – climate Address: Ian McLennan House, 197 Royal Parade, Parkville Vic 3052 change, water, energy and education – will be Postal Address: PO Box 355, Parkville Vic 3052 considered for publication. Items between 800 and Telephone: 03 9340 1200 1500 words are preferred. Please address comments, Facsimile: 03 9347 8237 Email: [email protected] suggested topics and article for publication to ACN 008 520 394 [email protected]. ABN 58 008 520 394 Print Post Publication No 341403/0025 Deadline for the receipt of copy for next edition of ISSN 1326-8708 Focus is8February 2008 Design and production: Coretext 03 9670 1168 www.coretext.com.au www.atse.org.au FOCUS EDUCATION Bringing relevance to science education through STELR ATSE has initiated a science and technology education program for secondary schools with the ultimate aim of building the basis of a national science curriculum By Alan Finkel [email protected] they are, the innovative extracurricular activities on offer s professionals, Academy Fellows are con- suffer from several limitations. First, they do not reach all cerned about the education of their succes- secondary school students. Second, they mainly appeal sors, the next generation who will underpin to students who already have a commitment to science Australia’s long-term ability to capitalise on and technology. Third, they are of limited duration. Aits current economic prosperity. Beyond this job-skills Inside the classroom, some well-resourced and high- need, it is important to broaden the reach of science initiative schools have been able to modernise their education within the general population to maximise secondary school science programs and are enjoying the viability of Australia’s participatory democracy. participation rates in Year 12 science in excess of 50 per The future voters of this country need an appre- cent, several times the national average. However, the ciation of science and technology in order to interpret majority of secondary schools do not have the equip- and contribute to national debates about issues such as ment or personnel to reform their curricula to intro- vaccination, water desalination and recycling, medical duce contemporary science and technology into their therapies, nuclear energy, environmental sustainability programs in a way that will engage students’ interest. and genetic modification. To positively influence declining national partici- It is well known that participation rates in second- pation rates, new curriculum- ary school science have been declining steadily, espe- level initiatives based on a cially in the so-called ‘enabling’ disciplines of physics, highly relevant context are chemistry and mathematics. There are many reasons needed, and ultimately should for this, not the least of which is that there is little rea- be made available to all sec- son for students to choose ‘difficult’ subjects in Year 12 ondary schools. Further, to given that, at most universities, physics, chemistry and compensate for whatever lack mathematics are no longer prerequisites for entry into of expertise teachers may have science; even engineering faculties, in many cases, have in contemporary science and only a single science subject as prerequisite. technology, it is necessary to Numerous studies have been published on the rea- help them acquire the knowl- sons for the decline in participation rates in secondary edge they need and to facili- school science and they all share a common theme: the tate their efforts by providing problem of lack of motivation. Time and again it is re- curriculum support material ported that students do not see science and technology and professional training. as relevant, either to their daily lives or their future ca- To address the issues of reers, despite living in a world driven by and dependent relevance and the facilitation on science. For example, Goodrum and Rennie’s 2006 of teacher training and re- Capturingstudentinterest-Professor IanFrazerFAAFTSE,formerAustralianof issues paper said: “Many students find the school sci- sources, the Academy has initi- theYearand007FloreyMedalandATSE ence curriculum on offer to be unimportant, disengag- ated a novel, curriculum-based CluniesRossAwardwinner,workswith ing and irrelevant to their life interests and priorities.”1 secondary school science and studentsatthe007ExtremeScience Experience. One way to tackle this problem is through the pro- technology education pro- vision of extracurricular activities. However, as good as gram known as STELR, an FOCUS www.atse.org.au 3 EDUCATION Practical classes based on the use of wind and teacher-support materials based on modern peda- turbines and solar panels to create electricity, gogical principles. Our two projects are independent and based on the conversion of vegetable but loosely linked through an exchange of ideas and oils and sugars to biodiesel and bioethanol funding, and in future there may be a merging of ideas. can be combined with inquiry-based learning The STELR project is at a fledgling stage. Since methods to stimulate students’ interest in physics, securing funding for the proof-of-concept program, chemistry, biology and mathematics. we have established a steering committee of teachers, university education specialists and nominees from acronym for Science and Technology Education Lever- the various representative associations concerned with aging Relevance. If all goes as planned, the educational science and technology education. In 2008, the proof- modules in STELR will serve as a testbed for elements of-concept program will be offered in four schools for of a future national science curriculum. Years 9 and 10. If, after an evaluation process, the proof- The first challenge for the STELR program is the of-concept program is deemed to be successful, further matter of relevance. There are numerous science and funding will be sought to broaden the reach into more technology issues that attract substantial press cover- schools in all states. The eventual goal is for the tech- age, including genetic modification, nanotechnology, nology and the teacher-facilitation materials developed cancer therapies, stem cells and human genetics. But in the STELR program to contribute to a national sci- none of these has such extensive media coverage as ence curriculum. climate change. Further, climate change is a topic that Further, while the STELR approach is expected to students care about. A survey this year by the Austral- work well for Years 9 and 10, there is so much scope ian Childhood Foundation found that 52 per cent of within the renewable-energies context for teaching children were worried about not having enough water the fundamental principles of science, technology and in the future and 44 per cent were worried about the mathematics that it should also be highly applicable in impending impact of climate change. Years 11 and 12. Yet climate change, in its broadest context, is not a There are so many competing choices for students suitable subject for teaching the enabling science and when selecting subjects, and so many high-tech prod- technology disciplines, because it is highly complex ucts such as iPods and PlayStations fill their lives, that and multidisciplinary. There is, fortunately, a subset unless we add a modern, extremely relevant context to of climate change that is simpler than the whole, but secondary school science and technology education nevertheless sufficiently sophisticated that it forms a there is no reason for the majority of students to choose powerful platform for teaching the fundamental sci- science subjects. ence and technology disciplines.