School: Lucas Heights Community School (NSW)
Partner: The Australian Society for Microbiology
Lucas Heights Community School is a K-12 school that provides academic/supportive links and access to resources and facilities not normally found in other school environments. It is the lead school in a group of four schools - Gymea Technology High School, Heathcote High School and Cronulla High School - who are involved in a partnership with the Australian Society of Microbiology (ASM), the University of Wollongong and the Sutherland Business Education Network.
In late 2008, the ASM was looking to partner with secondary schools in 2009 to provide hands-on microbiology activities for students and their teachers, and asked Sutherland Business Education Network to assist them. Their aim was to engage the interest of young people in Microbiology and raise awareness of exciting and rewarding career pathways in the industry.
The ASM was concerned at the skills shortage that exists in the industry, Science teachers in local secondary schools wanted to link students to industry mentors and increase awareness of career pathways in science, and the University of Wollongong was seeking to encourage secondary school students to undertake studies in science during their HSC with a view to undertaking their degree courses in the future. The project, therefore, was designed to meet a mutual need.
The University of Wollongong has an under-utilised science laboratory at one of their campuses close to the schools and is making it available for use by the teachers, students and mentors involved in the partnership. They will also be hosting an excursion for the students to their main campus in Wollongong. The ASM is providing industry mentors and materials and the Sutherland Business Education Network (SBEN), a not-for-profit local community partnership will assist with project coordination, communication and evaluation, ensure that students have access to relevant career advice, and enable the project to become self sustaining in the future.
The pilot project was carefully planned with clear objectives based on the needs that the partnership is designed to address. This is planned to be completed in September 2009, and the project itself will be launched in 2010 with 180 to 200 students plus teachers from four secondary schools participating. This engaging project will involve activities that align with the work enterprise and employability skills listed in the Year 7 to 10 Science Syllabus. It will involve students in real and exciting experiments, give them contact with state-of-the-art laboratory technology, and provide engagement with industry mentors.
Through such a broad partnership, it is hoped that students will develop a better understanding of the microbiology industry, become interested in a career in science and develop technical abilities through working with industry mentors.
Interested students and teachers look to gain substantial advantages from this project through the range of exposure it gives to the industry and professional practice.
