Meeting Her Excellency Professor Marie R Bashir AC, CVO, Governor of NSW as a 2013 Churchill Fellow.

I have recently been given the honour to represent Australia as a Churchill Fellow on a study tour to Canada and the USA to examine best practices in science education via video conference. During this trip I will be visiting a variety of Museums, Zoos, Aquariums and Science Centers to learn how they are using video conferencing technology to bring science to students around the world. The knowledge I gain from this will be spread throughout the Australian video conferencing community through the Virtual Excursions Australia and via the various school teacher networks.

Specifically during the study tour I will be looking to learn about:

– Standard uses of VC systems (interactivity ideas etc)
– Content sharing to interactive whiteboards and via smart notebooks or similar
– Use of chroma-key
– VC meshed to iPad and desktops
– Module based sessions to schools and flipped learning ideas
– Teacher PD and training for local staff
– Reaching audiences outside of schools (retirement homes, libraries, clubs etc)
– Collaborations with content providers plus software and hardware vendors.
– Sound/lighting/AV
– Where might the future lead?

I also want to create lasting links with each of these organizations and the Australian community; there is a lot of expertise to be shared both ways! I will be undertaking the trip in mid-May 2014 and will have much more to say once the trip starts! Already it has been a whirlwind as recently at a function at NSW Government House I had the privilege to meet Her Excellency Professor Marie R Bashir AC, CVO, Governor of NSW as a 2013 Churchill Fellow.

What is a Churchill Fellowship?

The Winston Churchill Memorial Trust is a company limited by guarantee that was established in 1965 after the death of Sir Winston Churchill. The Trust was formed with the principal objective of perpetuating and honouring Sir Winston’s memory by the awarding of Memorial Fellowships to be known as ‘Churchill Fellowships’. No prescribed qualifications are required in order to apply for a Churchill Fellowship. The subject of the proposed project is limitless provided a benefit to Australia is evident and a willingness to share the research findings with the Australian community is displayed. 109 fellowships were awarded for 2013.

I highly recommend that if you are working on something that could benefit all Australians and are happy to share your knowledge that you consider applying for a Churchill fellowship. Applications open in November each year.

With my wife Peta at NSW Goverment House