Every day I am acutely aware that I have the privilege and honour of being the President of the Australian Academy of Science, in part because of the transformative nature of education and the generosity of spirit of my teachers.
I grew up in India and if it were not for the generosity of my maths teacher who believed in me and in the power of education, I would not be where I am today. My teachers inspired me and helped me develop a passion for maths and physics. My life journey was transformed because of that opportunity.
It is in this context that you can imagine my pride in sharing with you that the Academy has launched its reimagined primary science and maths education resources for teachers: Primary Connections and reSolve.
They exemplify everything that our Academy stands for. They are: rigorous, evidence based, built on pedagogical best practice, co-designed with teachers, and responsive to the modern-day classroom which comprises students who learn differently and teachers who have different levels of experience and confidence teaching science and maths.
I regretfully could not be at the launch of our new STEM professional learning resources; however, I was ably represented by Secretary for Education Professor Lyn Beazley AO and our Chief Executive Anna-Maria Arabia. I encourage you to read the launch speech in this newsletter to familiarise yourself with our new education resources.
We are thrilled that Federal Education Minister Jason Clare was there and in his own words recognised how fundamental science and maths education is to our present day and our future. I thank Minister Clare and the Australian Government, especially the Department of Education, for their long-standing support of STEM education. Their contributions mean that the Academy’s trusted education resources are available to all teachers and schools free of charge.
This month, I would also like to extend my congratulations to three Academy Fellows recognised in the King’s Birthday Honours List: Professors John Furness, Thomas Maschmeyer and Kate Smith-Miles.
Enjoy this June edition of the Academy newsletter.
Professor Chennupati Jagadish AC PresAA FREng FTSE
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