School of Science

Engagement activities

Overview

Edith Cowan believed that education was the key to growth, change and improvement. We are proud to continue her legacy by actively advancing the role of women in science, technology, engineering, and maths (STEM).

Mission: Our mission is to advance students’ knowledge of, and aspirations for careers in the sciences.

Our Vision:  s to increase student participation rates in STEM and foster their aspiration for Higher Education.

Values: Innovation, Scholarship, Integrity, Respect, Rational Inquiry, Personal Excellence.

The School of Science operates several engagement programs for school students and adult learners across the Science discipline. Our activities have been developed to showcase STEM, skills and attributes needed to work in these fields, foster a passion for the discipline and highlight career opportunities. At times, we engage with other Schools within the university such as Medical and Health Sciences extending this to STEMM. We have several student associations who as subject ambassadors, mentors and tutors deliver these engagement activities.

“It was a great opportunity, thoroughly enjoyed the workshops and interaction with peers”
“Very enjoyable and the students were nice!”

Annual School of Science Engagement Programs -  Michelle Austin (Coordinator)

• ATSE Eminent Speaker series – A free and engaging lecture and day of science and discovery, facilitated by the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering (ATSE) and hands-on workshops delivered by the ECU science community for year 9-11 students.  For 2018, we are delighted to welcome Professor Kingsley Dixon to ECU, along with the Kaarakin Black Cockatoo Conversation Centre.
• LabRats ‘Schools Out!’ – Explore, discover and enjoy all that the ECU campus has to offer during our full day of free science activities during the September/October school holidays.
• ConocoPhillips Science Experience – New for 2018, ECU will be offering the science experience at the Joondalup AND Bunbury campus.  The Joondalup experience will run 4-days, 5-18 January 2019 and Bunbury for 3-days, 4-6 December 2018.  Students will experience university science, campus life and future careers.  The experience includes exploring a variety of STEM disciplines through engaging presentations, demonstrations and hands-on workshops for year 9-10 students.
• ATAR Revision Sessions – Free ATAR revision sessions for Year 12 students, to boost their examination techniques and hints specific to the revision subject, held at our Joondalup and Bunbury campuses during the September school holidays, from Monday 24 to Friday 28 September 2018.

Additional School of Science Engagement Programs -  Dr Michelle Ellis (Coordinator)

• Making IT w/ Science – Workshops for high school students on computer science concepts and principles. Learn how to code in Python using Micro: bits to represent data and communicate securely.
• Cyber Security for Schools – Workshops on cyber security principles and practices. Learn how to undertake digital forensic investigations, crack codes, strengthen passwords and encrypt data.
• Girls Programming Network - ‘Girls teaching girls how to code’ – free coding workshops for female high school students held each school term on a Saturday.
• I - Ops – Workshops for high school students learning about security intelligence strategies and intelligence gathering techniques.  Examine information for clues on who or what is the person or object of interest!
• STEMM fields – Tailored workshops for high school students exploring each of the STEMM disciplines. This includes the Medical and Health Sciences.
• WA CodeMakers – After school python coding club for High School students. Learn principles of programming on Micro: bits.
• Sensei Samurai’s – Learning opportunities for parents, university students and/or educators on digital technologies and programming principles. Suitable for beginners who want to learn computational thinking.
• Tools of Innovation – Tailored learning opportunities for parents, university students and/or educators. Using python and ECU’s Makerspace website, we explore computational, design and systems thinking using BBC Micro: bits.

ECU is proud to be a member of the SAGE Pilot of the Athena SWAN charter in Australia. This initiative promotes gender equality and encourages opportunities for girls in STEM careers.