About Jackie Randles

Jackie Randles finds interesting and creative ways to bring science and technology experts out of the lab and into the community through collaborative outreach and engagement projects, including during National Science Week. A state manager with the Inspiring Australia initiative, the national strategy for community engagement with science, technology and innovation, she brings stakeholders across the community, business and cultural sectors together to promote the relevance of science and innovation to everyday life and the value of STEM careers. A cofounder of Sydney Science Festival, Jackie has also established a network of Regional Science Hubs that regularly present entertaining science experiences for their communities.

Top 3 learnings

1. Join in citizen science initiatives! There are many opportunities for your students to be working with real scientists in real research across Australia.
2. Encourage entrepreneurial thinking! A business creates opportunities for people to make a positive impact in their world and teaching students to adopt a growth mindset can set them and their local community up for a brighter future.
3. Get involved in science events… or even better, create your own! A science event doesn’t have to be bigger than Ben Hur, it can be as simple as opening up your school hall or community centre to display science experiments and posters that depict how our world works. Reach out to local scientists to get involved and create a buzz.

Education tip

Create a longitudinal science experiment. Have students setup an ongoing science project where they take measurements and photographs over several days or even weeks to find out a result

Further contact details for Jackie Randles

Email: inspiring.nsw@sydney.edu.au

Support links

• Inspiring Australia
  http://inspiringaustralia.net.au/
• National Science Week
  https://www.scienceweek.net.au/
• NSW Regional Science Hubs
  http://sydney.edu.au/science/outreach/inspiring/hubs.shtml
• Australian Science Teachers Association
  http://asta.edu.au/
• Australian Citizen Science Association
  http://csna.gaiaresources.com.au/wordpress/
• Citizen Science ideas
  http://www.fizzicseducation.com.au/Blog/x_post/Ideas-for-citizen-science-for-your-students-00115.html