Powerhouse Museum and Vandi Tompkins

On the morning of Thursday 27 February, the Powerhouse Museum’s Mars Lab team linked up with eight Australian high schools and NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California to speak with Vandi Tompkins, driver of the Mars rover Curiosity.

There was quite a bit of excitement around this event. The Minister assisting the Premier on Western Sydney, Executive Director Public Schools for the Department of Education and Communities and the Powerhouse Museum’s director, Rose Hiscock, all gathered at Casula High School (one of the schools joining in the video conference) to watch the event unfold.

From here at the Powerhouse in the Mars Lab studio, the Mars Lab team chatted with Vandi and invited young people at the participating schools to ask her some questions. Vandi told us about the latest news on Curiosity, having recently crossed Dingo Gap, a region on Mars named after a place in Western Australia, and heading over to a steep rocky region called Kimberley (also named after an Australian region!).

Vandi spoke about her dreams as a young girl in India to one day work in a space related job, to studying robotics and finally ending up working for NASA. She shared some of the maps and planning tools they use to prepare for each drive, showed us images of Curiosity and told us about what she does in her free time – drive motorcycles and rock climb (you know, the usual!)

One of the most memorable questions came from a year ten student: “What if I want to pursue a career in science and am not smart enough”. It made us realise what an important role we play at the Powerhouse Museum in building confidence and career paths for young people, and of course anyone smart enough to want a career in science has taken the first step!
Vandi then connected to our Museum’s Mars Lab rover, Mawson, via the internet and drove Mawson around the Mars Yard. She performed a few manoeuvres as she giggled excitedly saying how much fun it was to drive a rover in Australia through a web browser. She made a few comparisons between Mawson and Curiosity, saying that many of the functionalities were very similar.

The experience was a truly inspiring and memorable one, not only for the lucky young people who participated in the video conference link up, but also for everyone all over the world who watched the event live online as well.

February 23, 2014March 24, 2020

Pi Day 2014

Pi Day is celebrated on March 14th (3/14) around the world. Pi (Greek letter “π”) is the symbol used in mathematics to represent a constant — the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter — which is approximately 3.14159.

Pi has been calculated to over one trillion digits beyond its decimal point. As an irrational and transcendental number, it will continue infinitely without repetition or pattern. While only a handful of digits are needed for typical calculations, Pi’s infinite nature makes it a fun challenge to memorize, and to computationally calculate more and more digits.

The Powerhouse Museum, The Australian Mathematics Trust and the Australian Museum are pleased to offer a series of session celebrating Pi Day. Join us on the 14 March 2014 to learn more about this amazing constant.

International Pi Day- Primary School

Time: 10:00

Overview: To celebrate what has become known as International Pi Day, the Australian Mathematics Trust is presenting a special video conference event for school children hosted at the Australian Museum

International Pi Day: For Good Measure: Fun with measurement and standards
Time: 10:00

Overview: What do ‘Peter Piper’ and ‘Jack and Jill’ nursery rhymes have to do with maths and measurement? What are gills, bushels, pecks and the smoot? Find out in this special hands-on maths video

International Pi Day: For Good Measure: Fun with measurement and standards
Time: 11:30

Overview: What do ‘Peter Piper’ and ‘Jack and Jill’ nursery rhymes have to do with maths and measurement? What are gills, bushels, pecks and the smoot? Find out in this special hands-on maths video co…

International Pi Day – High School
Time: 13:00

International Pi Day: Babbage and his Difference Engine
Time: 14:00

Overview: Celebrate International Pi Day with an exciting session on the inventor of the computer, Charles Babbage! Powerhouse Museum’s Principal Curator, Matthew Connell, introduces students to one o…

See the Pi Day website for other ways your students can celebrate Pi Day

www.piday.org/2011/things-to-do-for-pi-day/

February 22, 2014March 11, 2014

Sea Week Video Conferencing Festival

_{Sea Week Video Conferencing Festival 2014}

Sea Week is the Marine Education Society of Australasia’s (MESA) annual education campaign to increase understanding and appreciation of the ocean and its living organisms.

The theme for 2014 is Sustainable Seas! Are there really plenty more fish in the Sea?

Human activities are putting pressure of the ocean and marine environments in many ways. Direct impacts like overfishing, chemical pollution and litter lower water quality and threaten wildlife. Less direct activities such as carbon pollution leads to climate change and ocean acidification. It is important to recognise that people have the power to make positive impacts on the ocean in their everyday decisions.

Join the Australian Museum, Manly Environment Centre and the National Maritime Museum in a week long festival highlighting our marine environments

There are a variety of sessions on offer with topics to suit every school.

Sea Week – Meet the Experts

Monday 3 March at 2pm

The Australian Museum is bringing our scientists to you! This is your chance to come face to face with an Australian Museum scientist and ask your questions. Meet Mark McGrouther Collection Manager; Ichthyology (Fish) to talk about the collection and some of the exciting field trips he’s been on.

Sea Week – Catchment Health

Wednesday 5 March at 10am

The Catchment Health video conference explores some of the impacts facing our marine environments. This session looks at the importance of catchments and how everything we do on land has impacts in our marine environments.

Sea Week – Claws, Tentacles and Spines

Wednesday 5 March at 11am

The Claws, Tentacles and Spines session explores the fascinating diversity of marine invertebrates. Join the Australian Museum to discover some of the amazing adaptations of these spineless wonders.

Sea Week – Meet the Experts

Thursday 6 March at 2pm

Australian Museum is bringing our scientists to you! This is your chance to come face to face with an Australian Museum scientist and ask your questions. Amanda Hay will talk about her research into the ecology of larval fishes.

January 20, 2014January 27, 2014

ITEC 2014 Call for Papers

Interactive Technology in Education Conference Call for Paper

ITEC 2014 is fast approaching and an exciting program of international and national keynote speakers and a range of other presentations is currently being developed. The programming committee is currently calling for submissions to present in a number of different strands.

Papers may be submitted in a number of strands:

Strand 1 (Wednesday 9 July)

Industry Professionals, Interactive Technology Experts, and/or Innovators in Content or Program Design and Delivery – this is your chance to share your valuable experience and insight. We particularly encourage papers which deal with innovation, experimentation, new uses for technology and are forward-thinking in their approach; with real case studies and real solutions used as examples.

Strand 2 (Thursday 10 July)
Teachers, Education Providers or Practitioners, Policy Makers, Academics, Research and Training Organisations are encouraged to make submissions for this strand. Papers could focus on: case studies demonstrating of exciting digital educational projects; innovative uses for technology in educational practice; benefits of using technology for education; evaluation and research; policy decisions and developments affecting digital education.

Showcase Sessions (Thursday 10 July)
Schools engaging with interactive, real time education partnerships (i.e cultural/ language exchanges, cross school projects, virtual delivery of lessons) and providers of interactive, real-time educational programs from cultural institutions, museums, science organisations and libraries are encouraged to submit a proposal to be part of a ‘Showcase’ session. Successful submissions will be offered 7-minutes to showcase their programs. Presentations are encouraged to feature live, interactive demonstrations and/or utilise AV to fully demonstrate the programs in a short space of time.

See the 2013 conference video for paper ideas.

SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS
Paper submissions close 7 April 2014 and all papers must be submitted electronically using the Conference’s Online Submission System.

For more information see the full ITEC 2014 site

November 24, 2013March 24, 2020

Marine Day 2013

To recognise Ocean Care Day on Sunday 1 December Virtual Excursions Australia is presenting Marine Day on Friday 6 December. Join us for a range of video conferences promoting healthy waterways and marine environments.

Participate in sessions from OceanWatch, Taronga Zoo and the Marine Stewardship Council and the Australian Museum. There are a range of topics to suit every school.

Photographer: Lyle Vail and Anne Hoggett Rights:© Australian Museum

Marine Day – Catchment Health

Time: 09:30

To recognise Ocean Care Day on Sunday 1 December the Australian Museum is participating in the Marine Day video conferences. The Catchment Health video conference explores some of the impacts facing our marine environments. This session looks at the importance of catchments and how everything we do on land has impacts in our marine environments.

Marine Day – The World Of Commercial Fishing

Time: 11am

Learn all about commercial fishing and the NSW seafood industry from those who know it best. Join Sydney fisherman Paul Bagnato and OceanWatch’s Brad Warren to get an up-close and personal view of an important local industry that puts food on our plates and export dollars in the bank. Paul and Brad will also discuss the marine environment, sustainability and how fishing is managed.

Marine Day – Meet the Experts

Time: 13:00

Meet the Experts brings Australian Museum scientists to you! This is your chance to come face to face with an Australian Museum scientist and ask your questions. Mark McGrouther the Collection Manager; Ichthyology (Fish) will talk about the collection and some of the exciting field trips he’s been on.

Marine Day – Claws, Tentacles and Spines

Time: 14:00

The Claws, Tentacles and Spines session explores the fascinating diversity of marine invertebrates. Join the Australian Museum to discover some of the amazing adaptations of these spineless wonders.

Marine Day – Fish For Good, Schools-TEACHER video conference

Time: 15:30

Taronga Zoo and the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) have teamed up to educate students about healthy marine life, sustainable seafood and how their choices matter. We are holding FREE teacher video conferences to informally introduce the 2014 student based project.

Join us on Friday 6 December

October 26, 2013April 16, 2020

ClickFest 2013 Program Spotlight: Australian Museum

ClickFest 2013 Program Spotlight.

ClickFest is an annual video conferencing festival run in November each year. Clickfest highlights the diversity and scope of video conferences available to schools across Australia.

The Australian Museum has been involved in ClickFest since it started in 2011 and is proud to be part of this exciting event. In 2013 ClickFest will be launched with Dinosaur day on 4 November 2013.

Join Winny the Australian Museum’s Muttaburrasaurs as she opens ClickFest and Dinosaur day.

^{Dinosaur Day}

Meet Winny
The Australian Museum launches the 2013 Dinosaur Day with Winny our Muttaburrasaurs. Come along to meet Winny to learn more about Australian Dinosaurs
10am Monday 4 November

Australian Giants
Giant animals from dinosaurs to megafauna have roamed the Australian continent at different times. Find out about some of these Australian giants. Look at fossils and learn what they tell us about these extraordinary animals.
11am & 1pm Monday 4 November

Dynamic Earth
The Video conference will look at the dynamic earth forming processes. There will be experiments highlighting different earth processes. You will also see Australian Museum specimens and there will be opportunities to ask questions, so have some ready.
2pm Monday 4 November

ClickFest

Geology Rocks
The Video conference will look at the dynamic earth forming processes. There will be experiments highlighting different earth processes. You will also see Australian Museum specimens and there will be opportunities to ask questions, so have some ready.
11am 5 & 19 November

Minibeast Magnified
Minibeasts Magnified explores the exciting and diverse world of invertebrates. Students will learn how to identify common groups of invertebrates and why they are important.
10am 5 & 19 November

ClickFest – Life in Freshwater

This event provides a glimpse into life in freshwater. You will find out how to use water quality collecting and testing equipment and we will look how we impact our water ways and what we can do take to improve our catchments.

10am 6 & 14 November

Meet the Experts – FREE
The Australian Museum is bringing our scientists to you! Meet the Experts aims to provide quality science education and research resources. This is your chance to come face to face with an Australian Museum scientist and ask your questions.
10am 15 November

ClickFest – Museum Secrets Revealed

Become a detective and discover how scientists collect, preserve and display the many extraordinary specimens in their collection. Explore the Australian Museum specimens to investigate how they were discovered and why they are important.

10am & 2pm 20 November Bookings can be made through the Dart Connections or See Share Shape

The Australian Museum has been involved in ClickFest since it started in 2011 and is proud to be part of this exciting event.

ClickFest will be launched with Dinosaur day on 4 November 2013.

Join Winny the Australian Museum’s Muttaburrasaurs as she opens ClickFest and Dinosaur day.

Winny

See below for Australian Museum session throughout ClickFest

Dinosaur Day

Meet Winny
The Australian Museum launches the 2013 Dinosaur Day with Winny our Muttaburrasaurs. Come along to meet Winny to learn more about Australian Dinosaurs
10am Monday 4 November

ClickFest

All booking can be made through the Dart Connections website dartconnections.org.au/home

– See more at: http://australianmuseum.net.au/blogpost/Lifelong-Learning/ClickFest-2013#sthash.KMCQwsdr.dpuf

July 20, 2013July 20, 2013

SciFest 2013

SciFest Video Conferencing Festival

SciFest is a video conferencing festival promoting science and technology. SciFest links up with National Science week and in 2013 we aim to be the biggest video conferencing festival in Australia.

National Science Week is an annual celebration of science in Australia. Join in to enjoy and explore the wonders and benefits of science. The 2013 National Science Week theme for schools is A Century of Australian Science. You can find more National Science week events on the website at www.scienceweek.net.au/

There will be a variety of activities for students and teachers across the 5 day video conferencing festival. This means there will be something to interest every student. See below for some of the great sessions available:

SciFest – Meet the Experts
Date: 5 – 9 August 14:00
Australian Museum is bringing our scientists to you! Meet the Experts aims to provide quality science education and research resources. This is your chance to come face to face with an Australian Scientist

SciFest: Creative chemistry workshop for primary students
Date: 5 August 12.00 & 14.00
Designed to cover a broad range of chemical concepts that is accessible to primary students.- kitchen chemistry found at home- physical changes vs. chemical reactions

SciFest: K – 2 Science in Art
Date: 5 August 9:30am & 10.30am
Explore chemistry in colourful art creations you can make in your class! Your class participates in a number of activities as a series of group activities run in class

SciFest: Primary PD Session – Simple science experiments for Staff Development
Date: 5 August 15:30

The presenter will cover simple ways to demonstrate forces, light, sound and chemistry in your primary classroom. A strong focus is on using cheap materials easily obtainable materials

SciFest – Bugwise
Date: 6 & 7 August Time: 10:00, Date: 8 August Time: 13.00

Bugwise explores the exciting and diverse world of invertebrates. Students will learn how to identify common groups of invertebrates and why they are important.
06Aug

SciFest – Explosive Geology
Date: 6 & 7 August Time: 11:30
The Video conference will look at the dynamic earth forming processes. There will be explosive experiments demonstrated.

SciFest – Life in Freshwater
Date 6 August Time: 13:00, Date: 8 August Time: 11.30
Overview: Overview: Life in Freshwater provides a glimpse into life in freshwater. You will find out how to use water quality collecting and testing equipment and we will look how we impact our water ways and w…

SciFest: Light & Colour Show
Date: 6 August Time: 09:30, 10:30 &12:00
Students learn about properties of light in this fun interactive science show- Investigate rainbows using the visible light spectrum, plus learn about colour addition and subtraction.

SciFest – Snail, Slugs and Slime
Date: 7 August Time: 13:00, Date: 8 August Time: 10.00
We encounter Slime in our environment everyday. Some animals use slime for movement, others for protection, to catch food and to keep their skin hydrated.

SciFest – The Wonderful World of Fishing
Date: 9 August Time: 11:00
Learn all about professional fishing and the NSW seafood industry from those who know it best. Join 4th generation Sydney fisherman Richie Bagnato and OceanWatch Chairman Brad Warren

SciFest: Science of Sound
Date 9 August Time: 09:30, 10.30
What do sound waves look like? Do soundwaves always travel at the same speed? How does the Doppler effect work? What is resonance? How does a soundwave change with pitch and increasing volume?

SciFest Science Week Slam – narrative writing with Paul Stafford
Date 16 August Time: 09:30 & 11.00
Use science as a springboard for ideas to write fast, ferocious and fun narratives. The Scattered Bones team with author and literacy consultant Paul Stafford will present a one-off workshop

SciFest topics and programs will vary over the 5 day to provide flexibility. Bookings are available at DART connections

SciFest event is proudly supported by Virtual Excursions Australia.

July 6, 2013July 12, 2013

Professional Development

Meet Virtual Excursions Australia content providers in a series of teacher Professional Development video conferences on Monday 15 July. These Professional Development sessions connect you with a panel of content providers. The sessions are designed to enable you to ask your questions about video conferencing content and technology.

These Professional Development sessions are being run as a follow up from the ITEC 2013 being held on 10 & 11 July. ITEC 2013 will feature national and international educators, innovators, researchers and industry leaders in the field of interactive and real-time technologies and techniques. Presentations will focus on technologies and programs that facilitate the delivery of rich content and the sharing of expertise and experiences across the network and directly into places of learning. See the full ITEC 2013 program.

During these 45 minute sessions you will join members of Virtual Excursions Australia to share your experiences with video conferences, tell us how we can better meet the needs of your students or ask us questions about our content or technical issues.

On Monday 15 July there are sessions throughout the day including:

All these session are availablenow on the DART connections website.

This event is proudly supported by Virtual Excursions Australia.

May 30, 2013June 4, 2013

ITEC 2013 program

ITEC 2013 features national and international educators, innovators, researchers and industry leaders in the field of interactive and real-time technologies and techniques. Presentations focus on technologies and programs that facilitate the delivery of rich content and the sharing of expertise and experiences across the network and directly into places of learning.

Keynote Speakers include:

Dr Kate Cornick

Kate Cornick is the General Manager, Health and Education at NBN Co, the company rolling out the National Broadband Network. In this role Kate is working with the health and education sectors to drive adoption of broadband applications and services that will result in improved services to consumers. From 2009-2012, Kate was the inaugural Executive Director of the Institute for a Broadband-Enabled Society (IBES) – an interdisciplinary research institute established at the University of Melbourne focused on broadband applications, including in health and education.

Graham Smith

Graham Smith has been inventing and exploring new forms of telepresence, robotic, virtual reality and media technologies since the early 1980’s as both a university researcher, entrepreneur and artist. From 1992 to 1996 he directed the VRAAP program (Virtual Reality Artist Access Program) at the McLuhan Program in Culture and Technology at the University of Toronto which explored the effects virtual technologies may have on society.

Anita Kocsis

Anita Kocsis is Head of Design, Society and Culture in the Faculty of Design and Co Director of the Design Factory at Swinburne University of Technology in Melbourne, Australia. Anita’s creative, commercial and academic achievement spans a design and technology nexus evidenced by intermedia exhibitions and launches in commercial and public Institutions. Anita’s articulation across research and teaching focuses on how design can facilitate the multilateral process of meaning construction that unfolds between industry, content providers, design & audiences.

Aaron E. Walsh

Aaron E. Walsh is Director of the Immersive Education Initiative, a non-profit international consortium of universities, colleges, research institutes, consortia and companies that work together to define and develop open standards, best practices, platforms, and communities of support for virtual reality and game-based learning and training systems. In 2007 he was named one of the forty most innovative people in the Information Technology (IT) industry by Computerworld, the premier source of news and analysis for the IT industry.

This conference will be of interest to:

Content Providers, Museums, Galleries, Libraries and Cultural Institutions.
Schools, Teachers, and Classroom Practitioners.
Higher Education.
Government or Enterprise Business.

See the full ITEC 2013 program

May 15, 2013June 16, 2020

VEA Provider Profile – Fizzics Education

Virtual Excursions Australia is please to bring you the first in a series of provider profiles in which we will showcase each of or excursion providers and demonstrate what they have on offer for you and your students. The videos below give you just a sample of what Fizzics Education can bring to you via video conferencing.

Fizzics Education is a premiere science education organisation that offers engaging hands-on experiments and fully interactive demonstrations designed to improve students understanding and appreciation of science.

Additional videos of Fizzics experiments can bee seen at their Viemo channel

Highlights Chemical Capers VC from FizzicsEd on Vimeo.