Meet A/Prof Joanne Jamie and Dr Emma Barnes, two university biochemists from Macquarie University who have created the incredibly successful National Indigenous Science Education Program, an initiative designed to place Indigenous youth in leadership positions so they gain the confidence, motivation and skills to stay in school and consider pathways to higher education. NISEP brings together Indigenous elders, school students and educators together via a series of in-school, community and university science events and at the time of the interview incorporates 13 high schools from low socioeconomic rural, regional and metro areas and 3 universities, and annually places around 150 Indigenous students in leadership roles. 

Hosted by Ben Newsome from Fizzics Education

About A/Prof Joanne Jamie

Joanne is a bioorganic/medicinal chemistry academic in the Department of Chemistry and Biomolecular Sciences at Macquarie University with over 20 years of experience in tertiary teaching, research and community science engagement.  She is Co-Director of both the Indigenous Bioresources Research Group (IBRG) and the National Indigenous Science Education Program (NISEP).  Her IBRG research activities include biological screening and isolation of medicinally important (bioactive) compounds from Australian Aboriginal 'bush' medicines and the preservation of cultural knowledge.  Her teaching spans from first year to postgraduate studies with a focus on organic, biological and medicinal chemistry.  She has also designed a unit, Engaging the Community in Science, that allows Macquarie students to increase science understanding in the wider community as well as promote higher education pathways.  Joanne is particularly passionate in building in her students a lasting understanding and interest in science, especially chemistry, and through both her teaching and NISEP, in enhancing educational outcomes and showcasing the achievements of Indigenous youth within rural and regional communities.

About Dr Emma Barnes

Emma is a natural products chemist within the Indigenous Bioresources Research Group (IBRG) and the program manager for the National Indigenous Science Education Program (NISEP), both based at Macquarie University, Sydney. The IBRG works in collaboration with Indigenous groups to preserve traditional knowledge, investigate the bioactivity and chemical constituents of medicinal plants, and provide capability strengthening strategies for Indigenous communities. NISEP, meanwhile, places Indigenous secondary students in leadership roles so they gain the confidence, life skills and aspirations to finish school and consider pathways to both higher education and STEM based careers. In particular NISEP works with youth from low socioeconomic and rural/regional areas. Being from a rural area herself and having had to move from home to complete a PhD at Griffith University, Brisbane, and a postdoctoral position in Jena, Germany, Emma is passionate about encouraging rural kids to have the confidence to pursue education and positive employment pathways that allow them to do the things they love. 

Top 3 learnings

- Hasten slowly. Whilst it can be tempting to scale an education project quickly when you get a few wins, growing your project too fast too early can put a strain on your resources that could endanger the viability of a fledgling program.

- Connect the dots! There are many interest groups in education and not all of them are in a school setting. By listening to community needs Joanne and Emma were able to setup an educational program that brought together Indigenous elders, University researchers, schools and other education partners into one collaborative effort that could help youth.

 - Don’t underestimate your impact. During this interview Joanne recounted a story where she recognised one of her tertiary students as being one of the same students who had been through the NISEP program during high school.

Education tip of the week

So you want to teach your students how biologists classify organisms but you're a bit short of materials to use? Get creative! You don't have to have a bunch of museum quality plastomount specimens on hand to teach kids how to group things based on similarities. There are plenty of things you could use that still allow students to learn about how Linnaean taxonomy works, even if they have nothing to do with living things!

Some ideas;
An assortment of old buttons
A pile of different cookies
A variety of Lego® pieces
Nuts, bolts & screws
A mixed pile of the above and more...

For more information check out the following link: http://www.fizzicseducation.com.au/Blog/x_post/How-to-teach-classification-with-simple-stuff-00128.html

Further contact details for NISEP

Website: http://nisep.com.au/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NISEP.MQ/

Contact Fizzics Education

Web: http://www.fizzicseducation.com.au/

Phone: +612 9674 2191

STEM Teaching support resources

NEW Primary STEM teaching book! http://www.fizzicseducation.com.au/be+amazing+book.html

>100 Free Science Experiments http://www.fizzicseducation.com.au/Free+experiments.html

>100 Free Science Ideas and Tips
http://www.fizzicseducation.com.au/Blog.html

Know an educator who'd love this episode? Share it!
If something grabbed your attention in this STEM podcast please leave your thoughts below.

Meet A/Prof Joanne Jamie and Dr Emma Barnes, two university biochemists from Macquarie University who have created the incredibly successful National Indigenous Science Education Program, an initiative designed to place Indigenous youth in leadership positions so they gain the confidence, motivation and skills to stay in school and consider pathways to higher education. NISEP brings together Indigenous elders, school students and educators together via a series of in-school, community and university science events and at the time of the interview incorporates 13 high schools from low socioeconomic rural, regional and metro areas and 3 universities, and annually places around 150 Indigenous students in leadership roles.&nbsp; Hosted by Ben Newsome from <a href="http://www.fizzicseducation.com.au/">Fizzics Education</a> About A/Prof Joanne Jamie Joanne is a bioorganic/medicinal chemistry academic in the Department of Chemistry and Biomolecular Sciences at Macquarie University with over 20 years of experience in tertiary teaching, research and community science engagement.&nbsp; She is Co-Director of both the Indigenous Bioresources Research Group (IBRG) and the National Indigenous Science Education Program (NISEP).&nbsp; Her IBRG research activities include biological screening and isolation of medicinally important (bioactive) compounds from Australian Aboriginal 'bush' medicines and the preservation of cultural knowledge.&nbsp; Her teaching spans from first year to postgraduate studies with a focus on organic, biological and medicinal chemistry.&nbsp; She has also designed a unit, Engaging the Community in Science, that allows Macquarie students&nbsp;to increase science understanding in the wider community as well as promote higher education pathways.&nbsp; Joanne is particularly passionate in building in her students a lasting understanding and interest in science, especially chemistry, and through both her teaching and NISEP, in enhancing educational outcomes and showcasing the achievements of Indigenous youth within rural and regional communities.
About Dr Emma Barnes Emma is a natural products chemist within the Indigenous Bioresources Research Group (IBRG) and the program manager for the National Indigenous Science Education Program (NISEP), both based at Macquarie University, Sydney. The IBRG works in collaboration with Indigenous groups to preserve traditional knowledge, investigate the bioactivity and chemical constituents of medicinal plants, and provide capability strengthening strategies for Indigenous communities. NISEP, meanwhile, places Indigenous secondary students in leadership roles so they gain the confidence, life skills and aspirations to finish school and consider pathways to both higher education and STEM based careers. In particular NISEP works with youth from low socioeconomic and rural/regional areas. Being from a rural area herself and having had to move from home to complete a PhD at Griffith University, Brisbane, and a postdoctoral position in Jena, Germany, Emma is passionate about encouraging rural kids to have the confidence to pursue education and positive employment pathways that allow them to do the&nbsp;things they love.&nbsp;
Top 3 learnings - Hasten slowly. Whilst it can be tempting to scale an education project quickly when you get a few wins, growing your project too fast too early can put a strain on your resources that could endanger the viability of a fledgling program. - Connect the dots! There are many interest groups in education and not all of them are in a school setting. By listening to community needs Joanne and Emma were able to setup an educational program that brought together Indigenous elders, University researchers, schools and other education partners into one collaborative effort that could help youth.
&nbsp;- Don&rsquo;t underestimate your impact. During this interview Joanne recounted a story where she recognised one of her tertiary students as being one of the same students who had been through the NISEP program during high school.
Education tip of the week
So you want to teach your students how biologists classify organisms but you're a bit short of materials to use? Get creative! You don't have to have a bunch of museum quality plastomount specimens on hand to teach kids how to group things based on similarities. There are plenty of things you could use that still allow students to learn about how&nbsp;Linnaean taxonomy&nbsp;works, even if they have nothing to do with living things! Some ideas;
<ul>
<li>An assortment of old buttons</li>
<li>A pile of different cookies</li>
<li>A variety of Lego&reg;&nbsp;pieces</li>
<li>Nuts, bolts &amp; screws</li>
<li>A mixed pile of the above and more...</li>
</ul>
For more information check out the following link: <a href="http://www.fizzicseducation.com.au/Blog/x_post/How-to-teach-classification-with-simple-stuff-00128.html">http://www.fizzicseducation.com.au/Blog/x_post/How-to-teach-classification-with-simple-stuff-00128.html</a>
Further contact details for NISEP Website: <a href="http://nisep.com.au/">http://nisep.com.au/</a> Facebook: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/NISEP.MQ/">https://www.facebook.com/NISEP.MQ/</a>
Contact Fizzics Education Web:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.fizzicseducation.com.au/">http://www.fizzicseducation.com.au/</a> Phone: +612 9674 2191 STEM Teaching support resources NEW Primary STEM teaching book!&nbsp;<a href="http://www.fizzicseducation.com.au/be+amazing+book.html">http://www.fizzicseducation.com.au/be+amazing+book.html</a> &gt;100 Free Science Experiments&nbsp;<a href="http://www.fizzicseducation.com.au/Free+experiments.html">http://www.fizzicseducation.com.au/Free+experiments.html</a> &gt;100 Free Science Ideas and Tips <a href="http://www.fizzicseducation.com.au/Blog.html">http://www.fizzicseducation.com.au/Blog.html</a> Know an educator who'd love this episode? Share it! If something grabbed your attention in this STEM podcast please leave your thoughts below.

For educators and teachers working to make STEM amazing... no matter whether you're teaching science in grade 1, running a high school lab or delivering science shows in a museum, this education show helps you teach science & technology the way kids want to learn. The FizzicsEd Podcast brings in educators from across Australia and around the world to talk about tips, tricks, lessons and learnings they've had whilst working with students in the classroom and beyond. Hosted by Ben Newsome, a science teacher, author and founder of the multi-award winning science outreach team at Fizzics Education.

The FizzicsEd Podcast

For educators wanting to make STEM awesome! No matter whether you're teaching science in grade 1, running a high school lab or delivering  science shows in a museum, this show helps you teach science & technology the way kids want to learn.

The FizzicsEd Podcast brings in educators from across Australia and around the world to talk about tips, tricks, lessons and learnings they've had whilst working with students in the classroom and beyond. Hosted by Ben Newsome, a science teacher, author and founder of the multi-award winning science outreach team at Fizzics Education.

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