It’s a sad fact that schools in rural, regional and remote Australia struggle to maintain equivalent education standards in science and maths, compared to those in metropolitan areas.
And I can’t blame the quality of the teaching staff. The
simple fact is that these areas lack infrastructure and support for teachers,
have a high staff turnover, and have difficulty filling vacancies with
specialist staff.
It’s for these reasons, CQUniversity has committed to working
with state high schools in Bundaberg and Mackay areas as part of a Regional
Universities Network (RUN) pilot project to overcome barriers hampering maths
and science education.
RUN has been awarded a federal grant of $898,880 for the
one-year pilot project: RUN Maths and
Science Digital Classroom: A Connected Model for all of Australia.
As part of this project, RUN will be developing a virtual
centre for school support in mathematics and science that will deliver
innovative modes of engagement, support and expertise to students and their
teachers in schools in regional and rural Australia. The connectivity of the virtual
centre will also form the basis for professional development of teachers.
I believe this project will foster a keen interest in
science and maths amongst regional students and their teachers, and allow
students to apply knowledge to real world tasks and challenges.
Meanwhile, CQUni’s project management specialist Richard
Egelstaff has already been working with high school maths teachers in Gladstone,
providing real world examples of maths at work on the job.
This is particularly useful in a city such as Gladstone
where industry continues to grow and the call for project managers is no doubt
increasing.
I am so pleased we’re a part of two fabulous initiatives
that will inspire our young people to work with maths and science in the
future.
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Richard
Egelstaff with Gregory Hage from Toolooa State High School and Farshid Paymon
from Tannum State High School.
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