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Education Centre Updates is Geoscience Australia's newsletter for teachers in Australian schools. It is designed to keep you informed of recent developments in geoscience, teacher resources, upcoming events, and competitions for school pupils.

Cape Denison - 'the Home of the Blizzard'

This year Geoscience Australia celebrates the 100th anniversary of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition (AAE, 1911–1914) which was organised and led by the eminent geologist Dr (later Sir) Douglas Mawson. This expedition marked the start of Australia's long engagement with Antarctica, a productive and active involvement that continues to this day. Read more in AusGeo News.

Antarctica - marine ecosystem paradise

The Mertz Glacier region is one of the 'biological hotspots' of the Antarctic and Southern Ocean ecosystem. The ice-free waters allow light to reach the ocean surface and stimulate primary production. The high biological productivity attracts whales, penguins and seals to feed on plankton in one of the few areas not covered by ice during the Antarctic winter. The region is also home to some unique marine communities such as deep water hydrocorals. Read more, and see images, in AusGeo News.

Resources for Educators

Geoscience Australia

• Classroom activities - Year 6 Earth and Space Science
  For those teaching about natural hazards, Geoscience Australia has the Tsunami: Teacher Notes and Student Activities booklet. It now includes updated information, colour figures and photographs as well as separate student activities and answers. Teachers should determine if the activities are suitable for their cohort of students. It is available for download in low and high resolution from our website. Keep an eye out for future updated booklets on topics such as landslides and coastlines.


• The Olympic Games of geology
  The 34th International Geological Congress (the 'Olympic Games of geology') has joined Facebook, and researchers from Geoscience Australia are populating the site with items on recent developments in the geosciences written in an easy-to-read style. Join in showing the world the unique and incredible geology that Australia and the region has to offer. You can share your ideas and post your favourite geoscience photographs.
  Keep up to date on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/34IGC or Twitter using #34igc.

• Careers in geoscience
  The Geoscience Pathways website is part of a project aiming to change attitudes towards the geosciences by demonstrating their essential contribution to modern society. The website is a repository of teaching resources including the Teaching Earth Science Education Programme (TESEP) resources about rocks and the rock cycle.


• Videos and digital interactives
  It can almost be guaranteed that a proportion of your students play Minecraft and related games. What if they could also learn about natural hazards and how to guard against them in the form of a game? Stop Disasters does exactly that. Freely available on the internet, with varied levels of difficulty. Ideal for problem solving in a contextual environment.


• Networking opportunities - TESEP
  All teachers of Earth Science are encouraged to participate in the Teacher Earth Science Education Programme (TESEP). TESEP is designed to help middle school teachers make better use of their time teaching Earth Science in their classrooms through professional development workshops, ideas for field trips, and most importantly, access to teachers experienced in this field.


• Seismometers in Schools
  The Australian Seismometers in Schools project (2011-14) is an outreach program to put 40 earthquake-measuring seismometers in Australian Schools, and thereby raise awareness of geoscience through observing our dynamic earth in motion. Students are required to look after their own seismometer and in doing so be a part of a national science experiment. The project aims to promote science as a possible career choice and provide a tool to teachers to assist in teaching physics and earth science to high school students.


• More ideas than you can poke a stick at
  GeoEdlink is an all-encompassing earth sciences teaching resource from the Australian Geoscience Council.

For more information on anything in this newsletter, contact education@ga.gov.au.