PHYSCON 2024

Innovate Inspire Invigorate

a conference for all teachers of Physics

23 February
Swinburne University of Technology and online

PHYSCON 2024 is a hybrid event proudly presented by the Vicphysics Teachers’ Network with the support of Swinburne University of Technology on Friday 23 February, 2024

PHYSCON 2024 is an innovative and exciting hybrid professional development event for secondary school Physics teachers featuring

live-streamed keynote addresses by Dr Liam Hall, Principal Research Scientist and Science Leader in Quantum Biotechnology at CSIRO speaking about the rapidly developing field of quantum technologies and innovative approaches to teaching quantum concepts in secondary schools and Dr Sara Webb from the Centre for Astrophysics and Supercomputing at Swinburne University of Technology speaking about Bringing the Universe into the Classroom
four sessions of workshops in person and online
access to exhibitors
networking opportunities over morning tea, lunch and post-conference drinks
presentation by Maria James, VCAA Science Curriculum Manager
review of the Nov 2023 exam by the Chief Assessor, Andrew Hansen
laboratory tours of cutting-edge facilities and visits to the Virtual Reality theatre
Saturday morning events: Excursion tasters to Australian Synchrotron and Victorian Space Science Education Centre (VSSEC)

Program

PHYSCON 2024 offers both in person and online only registration options.

In person registration ($350) includes live sessions and hybrid sessions, as well as access to all recorded sessions post conference.

Online registration ($300) consists of all the hybrid online only sessions, as well as access to all recorded sessions post conference.

Post conference registration ($135) consists of access to all recorded sessions post conference (discounts apply).

Hybrid sessions are live sessions that are simultaneously streamed to an online audience.

The opportunity for Q & A and interaction with presenters will be available at all live, hybrid and online sessions.

Both in person and online delegates will be able to visit and talk to all Exhibitors.

Registration discounts available to Vicphysics subscribers: Individual ($50), School ($10), Student ($100) and Retired ($100).

Friday February 24

8.00am

Registration Coffee Cart by anzuk education

8.30am

Welcome

Associate Professor Brenton Hall, Chair of Department of Physics and Astronomy,

Swinburne University of Technology

Dr Barbara McKinnon, President, Vicphysics Teachers’ Network

8.40am

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/Opening-Keynote-Sara-Webb-square-800×800.png

Opening Keynote

Dr Sara Webb

Dr. Webb is an astronomer who is passionate about applying novel machine learning techniques to large astronomical datasets, and exploring how it can be transferred to different disciplines. When Dr. Webb isn’t researching she is actively communicating science to the wider public via traditional and social media, and leading, as mission director, the Swinburne Space Challenge School programs. She will explore engaging and innovate ways in which astronomy and future space applications and experiments can be introduced to secondary students.

Bringing the Universe into the Classroom

9.30am

Workshop session A

A1 Hybrid

Elizabeth Piacquadio, Loreto Mandeville Hall

Elizabeth is the Head of Aviation and Assistant Head of Science at Loreto Mandeville Hall Toorak. She has completed a Bachelor of Science (Physics) at RMIT and a Master of Teaching (Secondary) at The University of Melbourne. Elizabeth’s goal is to create an environment whereby students and faculty members feel empowered, excited and enthusiastic when learning and teaching physics. She is passionate about improving enrolment numbers of young women pursuing physics at a secondary and tertiary level. Elizabeth enjoys teaching through real-world contexts and seeing expressions change when the world makes a little more sense for her students.

Using real world context and questioning to improve physics outcomes

Exploration of the impact real world context and questioning can have and has had on engagement, assessment outcomes, perception, and enrolment numbers in physics at Year 10 & VCE.

A2 Hybrid

Rick Zhang, Tilt Renewables Pty Ltd

Rick Zhang is currently the network connection manager working for Tilt Renewables which is the biggest Renewable generation and development company in Australia. He began his electrical engineering work after graduation from Xi’an Jiaotong University in 2000s. Since migrating to Australia in 2008, Rick has worked on power system analysis and renewables generation design as a senior power system engineer in Senvion and Principal Engineer in Siemens. His work focuses on the renewable generation connection to the power network and bringing positive impact to the network operation. Through more than 14 years working experience, he has designed over 15 renewable power plants including wind farms, solar farms and Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) in Australia, New Zealand and Southeast Asia. As a pioneer of BESS in Transmission network, he designed the first control system for Hornsdale BESS which is the first BESS in Australia on 2016. Rick is an active member of Connections Reform Initiative (CRI) a body leading Australia’s power system reform to meet renewable targets. He is also involved in several ARENA’s (Australia Renewable Energy Agency) funded projects to research future grid stability.

Opportunities and challenges in renewable electric generation transformation Australia, alongside most countries in the world, is transforming the traditional thermal power generation to a hybrid generation of renewables generators and Battery Energy Storage System. With an increasing penetration ratio of renewable generators, the power grid also faces new challenges from many aspects such as unstable power source and lack of inertia which triggers the frequency issues and voltage stability concerns.
To reach our 2050 carbon target, engineers and scientist are working on various solutions to provide reliable power generation and a stable grid to transmit the power.
This presentation will review the principles of major renewable generations including wind turbines and solar panels. It will explore project designs and design challenges in the real-life projects which have been successfully connected to the National Electricity Market.
This presentation will conclude with a discussion of the advantages and shortcomings of each generation mode and the reasons massive battery energy storage system will support the clean generation revolution.

A3 Hybrid

Joe Cossette, Minnetonka High School – Minnetonka, Minnesota, USAThe Physics Teacher Education Coalition (PhysTEC) has named Joe Cossette (MEd ’16) its 2023 Teacher of the Year! This award recognizes outstanding high school physics educators who demonstrate the impact and value of physics teacher preparation programs. Joe has taught high school physics and physical science for 8 years. Before becoming a teacher, he worked as a mechanical engineer and is passionate about helping students make real world connections with the science content in the classroom. He spends a lot of time brainstorming creative ways to make learning fun and interesting and shares many of his lesson ideas for free on his website “Passionately Curious” (passionatelycurioussci.weebly.com)Nature of Science TasksSo much of science is dependent upon making observations, looking for patterns, and creating predictions. In this session, we will explore three different puzzles in the classroom that kickstart conversations about the nature of science.

A4 Hybrid

Halid Takimoglu, De La Salle College

I realised that my vocation was teaching when I was coaching my university’s rowing team. After my initial overseas teaching experiences in Central Asia and Moscow, I moved to Australia in 1999. Since then, I have been teaching Physics, Science and Maths. Despite my senior administrative responsibilities since 2007, I have continued to teach. I always express ‘teaching’ as my career – a statement which I adhere to in communicating with my staff. In 2019, I have chosen to quit administrative jobs and commit my professional life to full time teaching. Since then, I have been teaching in De La Salle College, Malvern as Physics teacher. My students find me ‘extremely passionate’ – a consistent result of student surveys. I believe passion in teaching is viral. It spreads in every corner of the classroom to push students to achieve their personal best.

New Study Design – VCE Physics

As the new study designs will be commencing for Unit 3 and 4 VCE Physics in 2024, most of us are focused on adjusting our assessments to the new requirements.

However, adjusting our content delivery to reflect to the new study design is more important.

No one wants to keep teaching an extinct dot point. More importantly no one wants to miss teaching a new one.
In this workshop, we will be comparing the dot points of the new study design with the old one and classify each dot point as ‘exactly the same’, ‘completely new’, ‘modified’ or ‘deleted’.

A5 HybridEmma Barnett

Emma Barnett is the Student Excellence Program Coordinator at VSSEC, providing STEM programs in rural and regional areas and coordinating a radio astronomy program for secondary schools. She is also designing an indigenous astronomy education program suitable for Victorian schools, and is keen to share the existing resources within this field to ensure many teachers have the support needed to include Indigenous science in their curriculum.

Indigenous perspectives on teaching and learning in Physics

The new Physics VCE Study Design encourages teachers to include Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander knowledge, cultures and history within their teaching, as well as an explicit inclusion within Area of Study 2 (Option 2.15). However, the Study Design provides limited resources for how this can be accomplished. There are many interesting scientific practices from Indigenous cultures that can be explored, as well as knowledge and perspectives that are relevant to all areas of science. Incorporating these within the classroom allows Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students to see their culture reflected in the curriculum while encouraging all students to participate in reconciliation, respect and recognition of Indigenous science. This workshop discusses the resources available to teachers, as well as key issues that should be addressed when including Indigenous science in VCE Physics.

A6 HybridMaria James, Science Curriculum Manager, VCAA

Maria James is the Curriculum Manager for Science for Years Foundation-12 with the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority, overseeing curriculum for Chemistry, Environmental Science and Physics. She holds a Masters degree in Education (Curriculum) and has written a number of textbooks for Junior Science and Senior Chemistry courses. Maria has held a variety of positions in several independent schools, including Head of Science, Dean of Students and Head of Senior College. She is passionate about motivating and engaging students with science, and in encouraging them to take action in local and global contexts.

Planning for the new Units 3 and 4 SAC tasks

Implementation of the new Units 3 and 4 VCE Physics SAC tasks begins in 2024. All tasks must be compliant with the VCE assessment principles of validity, equity, balance, and efficiency. This session will provide an outline of these principles and will review past VCAA audit concerns in terms of future learnings since 25% of all schools offering VCE Physics will be audited in 2024. What are the traps that teachers should avoid? How can authentication be ensured each year while minimising teacher workload? The distinction between VCE external and internal assessments will be highlighted.

A7 In person only

Caroline Cotton, BioBrain

Caroline is an experienced and passionate educator who has taught Biology, Chemistry and Science for many years. She regularly delivers professional learning to teachers and revision lectures to students before the end of year examinations. Caroline is also the founder of BioBrain. She has developed curriculum for the past 20 years in various formats and created BioBrain to help students learn and revise key concepts in a format that they are used to interacting with all the time, their desktop and mobile devices! BioBrain is an interactive STEM learning platform for Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Science students and their teachers.

Flipped Learning in the Physics classroom (Commercial)

Note: This presentation promotes a commercial product.

By ‘flipping’ the physics classroom, students can learn content outside class and then utilise class time to understand the more difficult concepts and apply their knowledge to problems. The use of bite-size learning specifically constructed for the current Study Design, will be shown and effective methods of utilising this will be discussed. BioBrain, is an online learning platform that helps VCE Physics students understand key concepts and test their knowledge with real time feedback on their progress. With a teacher and student interface, BioBrain allows teachers to set work for students and then quickly and easily identify areas of strength and areas to focus on. Key Areas of Study are separated into topics and graded over three levels of difficulty.

All participants will receive a free trial of BioBrain.

A8 Hybrid

Sandor Kazi, Melbourne Girls’ College

Sandor has been a teacher at Melbourne Girls’ College for over 15 years, who has regularly given VCE lectures and been involved in exam marking. With a background in particle physics, he has worked at CERN during the construction of the LHC. In 2014 he was awarded the Hugh Rogers Fellowship which allowed him to visit renowned educator in physics Professor Eric Mazur at Harvard University.

Generating lively discussions in class: An example using electrostatics

Finding that you only get one or two students putting up their hand and answering questions in class? Wondering how you can get that quiet student to share their ideas? In this workshop I’ll go through a questioning technique that I use that generates lively discussion, has everyone answering questions, and gets students teaching each other. Each question builds upon the last. I have applied this at all levels, from year 7 to year 12 and the students really enjoy this way of learning and, particularly in years 9 and 10, it changes their perception of what physics is, from being a bunch of formulas to memorise, to being a dynamic and evolving human endeavour with the added bonus of developing a deeper conceptual understanding of the world.

I’ll explain this technique using electrostatic demonstrations requiring a few simple items, a PVC pipe, cloth, and some metal spheres.

A9 Hybrid

Spiro Liacos, Cheltenham Secondary College

Hi, I’m Spiro Liacos. I have been teaching Physics since 1990, but I feel that I’m still constantly learning new ways of teaching. My wife Georgina and I are the producers of the famous Shedding Light series of videos that are available on ClickView. We also write heaps of worksheets and pracs that can be freely accessed from our website. Just search for Liacos Educational Media.

Gallipoli Balloon Bursters (Drip Balloons) and Trip Wire Balloon Bursters (Trip Balloons): The Ultimate STEM Challenges.

Gallipoli Balloon Bursters: In this activity, students have to design and build a water-powered contraption that automatically bursts a balloon after a small time delay. They use retort stands, clamps, string, cups, pins, icy-pole sticks, and plasticine. The activity is based on the Drip Rifle, which was set up by Anzac soldiers in the trenches of Gallipoli in World War I.

Trip Wire Balloon Bursters: In this activity, students have to design and build a contraption that automatically bursts a balloon when a person walks through a trip wire which triggers the contraption, kind of like a booby trap.

Every device that has ever been invented from light bulbs to lunar landers had to be imagined, built according to existing knowledge, tested, redesigned, and rebuilt until the device worked consistently and worked well.

These fantastic activities introduce students to the engineering design process. So come along and learn how to run them in your classroom!

A10 HybridJackie Bondell, OzGrav

Jackie Bondell is Education and Outreach Coordinator for both the ARC Centre of Excellence for Gravitational Wave Discovery (OzGrav) and for the ARC Centre of Excellence for Dark Matter Particle Physics and is based in Melbourne, Australia. She develops educational content for public outreach events and curriculum for school programs, focusing on incorporating innovative technology and science content into in-depth and curriculum-aligned education opportunities for students and teachers. Prior to 2018, Jackie spent 15 years as a Physics instructor in the US. She holds a Masters Degree in Astrophysics and is a National Board Certified Teacher of Secondary Physical Science. During her teaching career, she was the recipient of multiple teaching awards, including the National Science Teachers Association Technology Award for Innovative Use of Technology in Science Teaching. She has led multiple workshops related to incorporating visualisation technology and current Physics research into the science classroom and has recently authored a chapter in a textbook on teaching contemporary Physics to secondary students. Jackie is the Chair of the Education and Outreach Chapter Steering Committee for the Astronomical Society of Australia and a National Astronomy Education Coordinator representing Australia to the Office of Astronomy for Education with the International Astronomy Union.

Pulsars, Black Holes, and Gravitational Waves: Contemporary Topics, Innovative Classroom Ideas

In 2023, the LIGO (Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory) started its fourth observing run (O4). This will mark the most sensitive search of the cosmos for gravitational wave signals to allow scientists to learn about the most extreme matter in the universe, such as black holes and neutron stars.

Also in 2023, a major scientific breakthrough was announced that scientists detected nanohertz frequency gravitational waves using pulsars as cosmic clocks.

In this hands-on session, we will review these latest discoveries that have opened new windows into understanding the universe. Then we will introduce teachers to multiple activities that can be used in the classroom to introduce secondary science students to some of the major concepts related to detecting and analysing gravitational waves.

Teachers will have the opportunity to participate in these activities and will receive materials with curriculum links to incorporate these activities in their own classrooms.

A11 In person only

Doug Bail, CiderhousePractical investigations of electromagnetic induction (Commercial)

Note: This presentation promotes a commercial product.

Some of the more confusing concepts for students come from the study of the generation of electricity. Traditional means of investigating or demonstrating key ideas dont help. This session will demonstrate how to use first hand data to derive Faraday’s law. If time permits we’ll look also at demonstrating or investigating transformer action with reference to an ideal transformer and other key ideas within the areas of Generating and transmission of electricity.

A12 In person only

Genevieve Lazzari, Swinburne University

Genevieve Lazzari has 26 years of experience developing and delivering engaging and effective
education programs. She worked in education and public programs at Scienceworks for 13 years where she managed the science programs for Museums Victoria’s multiple campuses. Genevieve has built and run her own successful science education business and also managed education programs for Monash University, South East Water and the In2science peer mentoring program at La Trobe University. Genevieve currently works as the Associate Director, School Engagement at Swinburne University of Technology where she oversees a range of educational outreach and equity programs as well as university level partnerships with schools. Leading a team of Program Coordinators she also provides organisation wide leadership and alignment through engaging with school leaders, industry partners, teaching associations and philanthropic partners. Genevieve’s passions lie in reducing educational disadvantage and increasing STEM engagement.

Virtual Reality Astrotour

This Swinburne excursion taster option consists of a 40 minute Astrotour in the 3D virtual reality theatre followed by a Q and A session.

10.30am

Morning tea Coffee Cart by anzuk education

11.20am

Workshop session B

B1 Hybrid

Colin Hopkins, OAM. Retired Senior Physics Teacher

Retired from HOS Bialik College 2016. Awarded OAM for services to Physics Education 2021. Since retiring Colin has worked supporting teachers across the state. Published author, VCE Exam questions, Creelman.

Tips and hints for beginning teachers and teachers returning to Physics

Colin will share tips and hints for engaging students in VCE Physics. The presentation will conclude with a question and answer session. The session is aimed at teachers new or returning to teaching VCE physics. Digital resources will be shared, so bring a device.

B2 Hybrid

Yuriy Verkhatsky, Bialik College

I’m teaching physics, mathematics, chemistry and science since 1989 in Australia and overseas. My students were winners of Australian Physics Olympiad, Australian Math Competition, Victorian Young Physicists Tournament, VCE Physics competition of University of Melbourne and so on. I’ve also worked in science research with my main area of interest being the interaction of electromagnetic and sound waves in solids as well as being an electronic engineer and author of articles and patents. (Some devices designed by me were used in the space stations)

Solving conceptual problems

This presentation is the second part of 2023 presentation. In 2023 conceptual questions on motion were covered. In 2024 other areas will be presented. Certainly, the way of knowing about the world that we label “physics” is characterized by precise relationships expressed through mathematical expressions. But exclusive focus on the mathematical relationships of physics doesn’t lead to the good understanding of physics. This doesn’t mean that there is anything wrong with numerical questions; it is just that they need to be supplemented with questions that develop conceptual understanding and critical thinking. In this workshop many conceptual questions related to different areas of physics will be presented and the way how to use them in teaching physics will be discussed.

B3 Hybrid

Campbell Wilson and Loukia Andrews, Montmorency Secondary CollegeCampbell Wilson has been teaching VCE Physics at Montmorency Secondary College since 2006. He has been Science Co-ordinator, Timetabler and Science Learning Specialist, has experience across maths, science and physics at all secondary levels and assessed the Year 12 Exam on two occasions. Key to teaching science and physics is experimental work that connects and extends conceptual understanding.

Loukia Andrews has been the lab tech at Montmorency Secondary College for the last decade and runs a supremely organised science lab complex. She brings her wealth of experience in supporting and sourcing resources, materials and equipment for this specialised practical.Constructing and analysing motors for assessment

Obtaining deep conceptual understanding of how motors operate from the line diagrams typically presented can be challenging for students. This session explores how construction of a single loop of wire can be used to create a motor, incorporating electromagnets, commutator, brushes and rotor, in the form of an extended SAC with associated analysis can engage students in a hands on way that supports stronger outcomes.

B4 Hybrid

Theo Hughes, Cornish College

Theo has been a high school teacher, a university lecturer (and Education Manager) as well as having worked in senior roles in publishing and IT. He now teaches physics and science at Cornish College, as well as supporting teachers through activities such as online courses – for example, the current course on Special Relativity in conjunction with VicPhysics.

Time Dilation

There was previously some confusion in exam questions about length contraction (what is “seen” vs what is “measured”). This now seems to be cleared up. However, there is similar, remaining confusion around time dilation – this talk is part of highlighting, and clarifying this confusion. [It gives an indication of the sort of things discussed in the VicPhysics online course on Special Relativity for Teachers.]

CANCELLED B5 HybridDeepa Jain, Kew High SchoolInvestigative Science Learning Environment (ISLE)

Everyone can learn physics given tools, time and support. Help students learn physics by engaging them in the process that mirrors scientific practice, and to improve their well-being while they are learning physics. Explore various ideas to create a investigative learning environment that have been developed over the last thirty years by internationally renowned Eugenia Etkina and that will encourage the students to help them develop perseverance, growth mindset and a physics identity.

B6 Hybrid

Andrew Hansen, Chief Assessor

Andrew came to teaching after a career in health care. He has been assessing for over ten years and Chief Assessor for the last eight years. Andrew believes that Physics is a discursive art and enjoys watching as students develop their conceptual knowledge through experience and discussion.

Merryn is a senior lecturer at the University of Melbourne. She teaches in the Master of Teaching (Secondary) course in the Faculty of Education and is active in developing initial teacher education in Victoria, as coordinator of the Master of Teaching (Secondary) Internship course, a position which supports change of career teachers as interns in schools and in her position as Physics Learning Area Coordinator. Merryn’s research interests focus on transition and retention of early career teachers, developing scientific reasoning competencies of pre-service science teachers, investigating the support required by change of career teachers, and supporting Vocational Education and Training Teachers and out of field Physics teachers in Australian schools. Prior to her current position, Merryn taught Mathematics, Physics and Science in government, independent, Catholic and faith schools in Victoria, NSW and the USA, including teaching in the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program. She has a strong interest in sharing her passion for using rubrics to assess student work.

Designing rubrics to assess VCE Physics SACs and Outcomes

In this workshop we will discuss the advantages of using rubrics to assess student work in VCE Physics and develop some rubrics to align with requirements in the new Study Design.

B8 Hybrid

Sandra Marwick, Swinburne University

Sandy Marwick has a background in Chemical engineering and computer science. After spending almost 10 years as a process design engineer with Qenos she moved into the world of education, joining Monash University in 2012 before joining the PrimeSCI! Science Education as a science communicator in 2014. Sandy is currently dividing her time between working as an education officer at the Australian Synchrotron, and her PhD research into Direct Air Capture of carbon dioxide. She is enthusiastic about passing on her love of all things science!

Synchrotron Science Education for Secondary School Curriculum

Boost your students learning with the Australian Synchrotron! Discover the range of curriculum linked programs and resources for year 9 to 12 students with our expert Educator and Synchrotron researcher.

The Australian Synchrotron in Clayton is a world-class science facility that supports a broad range of high-quality research across medicine, nanotechnology, manufacturing and mineral exploration. It uses a wide variety of applied physics techniques to support research in not only physics, but also engineering, chemistry, biological sciences, medicine, art, material science, geology, environmental science and more.

The Synchrotron Education Programs further students’ knowledge of interactions of light and matter, as well as an understanding of forces, electricity, radiation and motion. The programs also focus on the physics of the particle accelerator itself (magnetism, laws of motion, relativity, Maxwell’s equations), and the physics that supports beamline operation (diffraction, fluorescence, particle scattering).

B9 Hybrid

Prof Alan Duffy, Swinburne University

An astronomer at Swinburne University of Technology, Professor Alan Duffy is the inaugural Director of the Space Technology and Industry Institute at Swinburne, finding ways to use space to help companies and communities on Earth. His research background in computational astrophysics sees Alan model universes on supercomputers to understand how galaxies like our Milky Way form within vast clouds of dark matter. He is trying to find this dark matter as the Swinburne Node Leader in the $35M ARC CoE for Dark Matter Particle Physics and a Chief Investigator of SABRE, the world’s first dark matter detector in the Southern Hemisphere, at the Stawell Underground Physics Laboratory at the bottom on an active gold mine in Victoria.

Exploring radiation and relativity with classroom muon detectors (Commercial)Note: This presentation promotes a commercial product

Advanced physics concepts such as relativity, as well as the properties of radiation from absorption to poisson statistics, are challenging concepts to teach much less allow students to experiment with in the classroom. Thanks to naturally occurring high energy particles from space, known as muons, we can explore a range of advanced concepts with little equipment in the lab. Swinburne has trialed a new Australian-made classroom muon detector in its physics labs and this workshop will demonstrate how these can be used in high schools.B10 HybridAndrew Yen, Luther College, Eltham College and Dr Michael Fitzgerald, Las Cunbres Observatory

Mr Andrew Yen is a Physics teacher at Luther College, Observatory Curator at Eltham College and a has witnessed the growth of telescopic instrument capabilities over 40 years. He has taught students about astronomy under night skies, in classrooms and online and is intrigued by the possibilities that online robotic telescope imaging brings to both beginning and advanced student astronomers of all ages. Andrew notes that absolutely everyone is interested in Astronomy, be it stars, planets, aliens, Star Trek or horror scopes, you never meet anyone without interest in “what is out there”.

Dr Michael Fitzgerald is the Education Scientist at Las Cumbres Observatory and a key figure in the development of the Photon Ranch telescope Network. Michael is the instigator and principal organiser of the annual Robotic Telescopes Student Research and Education Conference. Michael was a post doctoral research fellow at Edith Cowan University and is a noted researcher in using astronomy as a gateway to engagement in investigative and inquiry based science in schools.

Photon Ranch – student access to robotic telescopes

Practical astronomy in Schools has always been limited by the need for specialised equipment, skills and after hours sessions (and the attendant forms that go with them!). State of the art robotic telescope networks have removed most of these hurdles. These networks provide students and teachers with access to professionally maintained telescopes in observatories across the world, during school hours, with little specialist technical knowledge required.

Photon Ranch is a network developed for education – it has a simple but powerful web interface and is currently free to use. It allows real-time imaging and programmed projects that can be run overnight or over multiple sessions and gives students access to professional grade telescopes located across the globe.

This hands-on workshop will show how easy it is to use Photon Ranch for interesting, engaging and in depth investigations of astronomical objects such as planets, galaxies, nebulae and star clusters. We will discuss previous student projects and options for processing data such as: photographing astronomical objects, producing an HR diagram from real data, detecting exo-planets, finding variable stars and detecting orbits of double star systems.

Dr Fitzgerald is a leading astronomy education researcher and has played a key role in designing and developing aspects of the Photon Ranch network. Mr Yen is a teacher at Luther College and observatory curator at Eltham College. He has taught student teams to use robotic telescopes for curricular and extracurricular activities,

B11 In person only

Doug Bail, CiderhouseLight as a wave and a particle (Commercial)Note: This presentation promotes a commercial product

This session demonstrates equipment and techniques that allow students to investigate practically, or demonstrate, key experiments in outcome 1 of Unit 4, namely: diffraction, interference and the photoelectric effect. It also Includes suggestions for equipment and approaches that yield good results and develop deeper, better understanding of key ideas.

B12 In person only

Genevieve Lazzari, Swinburne UniversityAdvanced Technology Laboratory Tour

This session consists of a walking tour of advanced technology research laboratories including the Strong Structure Laboratory, Factory of the Future and Nano-fabrication Laboratory.

12.20pm

Workshop session C

CANCELLED C1 Hybrid

Rachael Gore, Albert Park College

Rachael is an experienced Physics and Mathematics Teacher with expertise in both VCE and IB curriculums. She is passionate about developing teacher excellence, data informed practice, technology rich classrooms, and researched backed pedagogy. Rachael is a recipient of the Outstanding Secondary Teacher Award from the Department of Education Excellence Awards.

Communicating Concepts: How students can ground their ideas in a clear understanding of “first principle” ideas in physics

This workshop will canvas various pedagogical strategies for students to develop robust and flexible understanding of the big ideas in physics. Participants will learn how they can leverage technology and interactive classroom activities to support student’s development of deep understanding of physics. Questioning, reflection, and metacognitive strategies will be showcased. Participants will leave with classroom ready resources to support their teaching.

C2 Hybrid

Catherine Bellair

Catherine Bellair has taught secondary Science, Mathematics and VCE Physics for over 15 years at a range of schools across Melbourne. She is interested in developing STEM and literacy courses for secondary school students to help students improve their science inquiry skills. Currently, she is also a member of the STAV Science Talent Search (STS) community as part of the games team.

Literacy Strategies for Physics Classes

Physics is often seen as a mathematical science, however, the literacy demands on Physics students are also high and have increased in the current Study Design. This session aims to provide a range of literacy strategies which teachers can use in the classroom or teach to their students to improve the literacy skills of high school Physics students.

C3 Hybrid

Spiro Liacos, Cheltenham Secondary College

Electricity: The Shocking Truth

How do engineers achieve the extraordinary feat of wiring up a car’s electrical circuitry so that the same courtesy light turns on regardless of which door you open? This session will give you prac sheets and worksheets that will allow your students to learn to design and construct a variety of electrical circuits that satisfy a range of design briefs. Currently, this series of pracs is without parallel. Ohm my goodness, I couldn’t resist including a battery of puns, but I will conductor powerful session with ample opportunities for you to learn watts of stuff that will transform your classes and generator lot of ideas!

C4 Hybrid

Theo Hughes, Cornish College

The Photoelectric Effect

There is confusing information about the photoelectric effect in VCE textbooks, and some confusing exam questions – specifically in relation to what happens to the saturation current when one changes ONLY the light’s frequency. This talk will cover the photoelectric effect in general, with a focus on clarifying what happens with changes in frequency.

C5 In person only

Kyla Adams and David Wood, University of Western Australia Kyla Adams is a physicist and science communicator who gained her Bachelor of Science (Physics) at QUT. She then moved to Melbourne to do graduate research in gravitational waves and quantum liquids. Throughout her studies she has been involved with various science and math outreach and mentoring activities with groups such as In2Science, the Australian Mathematical Sciences Institute and Science Gallery Melbourne. She is currently completing her PhD in physics and education at The University of Western Australia with the Einstein-First project. Her research focus is on creating ways to put our best understanding of the universe in classrooms by developing activities, learning sequences, and working directly with teachers and students.

David grew up on a dairy farm in regional WA and studied physics and education at UWA. For the first 20 years of his working life he taught science, physics and chemistry in several regional and metropolitan secondary public schools and was science head of department for 10 of those years. During this time he was involved in several curriculum reform initiatives. For the next two decades he worked in education administration in a range of senior curriculum and leadership roles including foundation principal of Sevenoaks Senior College; CEO of the WA Curriculum Council; and Chief Learning, Teaching and Innovation Officer with Catholic Education WA. Throughout his working years he maintained a close connection with the Science Teachers Association of Western Australia (STAWA). Since retiring he is volunteering on behalf of STAWA with the UWA-based Einstein-First initiative where he is one of the Chief Investigators. His focus is on strategies related to the development and implementation of programs that will ultimately see the Einstein-First initiative influence the teaching of the physical and earth and space sciences in schools nation-wide.Teaching quantum science the simple way

Light is the basis of our current and future technologies and students should be aware of its intriguing and useful properties by the time they finish compulsory science. This workshop will take you through several hands-on activities designed to introduce students to our best understanding of light. Concepts covered include photons as packets of light energy, wave and particle models (including an improved description), probability, and momentum. The activities have been designed for a Year 9 class and sits in a sequence of lessons from Year 3 to 10 as part of the Einstein-First program, but are adaptable for all students with no prior knowledge of the modern understanding of light.

C6 Hybrid

Maria James, Science Curriculum Manager, VCAA

Planning for the new Units 3 and 4 SAC tasks

C7 HybridColin Hopkins, OAM. Retired Senior Physics Teacher

Can the use of past exam questions enhance teaching and learning?Many teachers use past examination papers as their preferred method of revision for the end of year examination. Does research suggest ideas and strategies to improve effectiveness? Can the use of Zone of Proximal Development and Immediate Feedback Techniques be incorporated into an effective learning and revision process? Colin has looked at this over the last few years and will share his insights from trials in 2022 and 2023. Copious digital resources will be shared.

C8 In person only

Halid Takimoglu, De La Salle College

VCE Physics Experiments – A Different Approach

Performing experiments in VCE Physics is a challenge. Having decided which experiment to do (which is a hard task itself), you need to inform (or discuss with) the lab tech. The school may or may not have the equipment. Then you need to print pages for students. Then the experiment does not work, nothing works in physics lab! You need to collect the papers anyway to mark them. Students need to keep them for revision with hundreds of other pages they have accumulated throughout the year. They also need to keep all the practicals in one place so that they can revise. The whole saga is an impossible task! And as a result the practical aspect of Physics can easily be ignored…

In this workshop I offer to provide two things; 1) simple, tested and “real” experiments (not just “do this, record your observations” type) for each unit. 2) But more important than that, I will offer a method which will make experiments an integral part of your teaching.

After all the practicals are probably the only thing students look forward and will remember forever.

C9 Hybrid

Adrian Lam, Haileybury College

Adrian is a physics and maths trained teacher currently working at Haileybury as Head of STEM Programs. He has experience teaching science in government and private sectors throughout primary and secondary levels. He loves learning new things and is always looking for ways to improve educational experiences. Adrian has recently started a Masters by Research in AI applications in education.

Recreating viral experiments at schoolSharing some innovative cheap (and expensive) ways to make physics exciting for all ages from K-12. This workshop will give you ideas about ways to take advantage of popular or well known experiments to inspire aspiring physicists. By aligning educational content to the viral videos popularized online, we can generate discussion and reinvigorate interest in physics by showcasing applications that are more relevant to the modern environment.

The examples covered include my experiences designing a replica of the Melbourne Museum’s invisibility shield, making liquid nitrogen bombs and working with a local glass blowing workshop to create the Prince Rupert’s Drop.C10 HybridJodie O’Connor and Matt Dodds, Carey Baptist Grammar SchoolStories from CERN: Revealing our Experience and Takeaways

Following a two-week visit to CERN and the Large Hadron Collider with 42 other Physics teachers from around the world, Matt and Jodie have much to share. As well as discussing what we saw and did during our visit, we will also demonstrate or introduce a range of hands-on activities that can be used to engage your students in areas of Physics related to CERN, particle physics and particle accelerators. We will also share how you too (or your students) could get the opportunity to visit CERN.

C11 In person only

Kristina Hicks, IFlyA Physics Excursion of a lifetime (Commercial)Note: This presentation promotes a commercial product.

Guaranteed to engage the interest of your students! In secondary schools, student engagement in pursuing STEM content and related careers, particularly in physics, are often limited to the classroom with teachers hesitant to explore out of school excursions that do not directly relate to the curriculum. Highlighting the relevance of STEM content, iFly have designed excursions in line with Australian Achievement standards to engage students with inquiry and practical activities, that engage and provide artefacts that can be used for school assessment.

C12 In person only

Genevieve Lazzari, Swinburne UniversityVirtual Reality Astrotour

This Swinburne excursion taster option consists of a 40 minute Astrotour in the 3D virtual reality theatre followed by a Q and A session.

1.20pm

Lunch

2.10pm

Workshop session D

D1 Hybrid

Dino Cevolatti and Stuart Bird, Castlemaine Secondary College

Dino Cevolatti and Stuart Bird have known each other since 1993 during their undergraduate years in on-campus accommodation in Farrer Hall Monash University and later in share-house accommodation in Malvern and Richmond. They undertook their Post-Graduate Diploma of Education in the same year in 2004 at Melbourne University and have been teaching Physics on-and-off ever since. Dino has been a Leading Teacher at Castlemaine Secondary since 2009 and in 2018 took on the role of Learning Specialist. Dino and Stuart have also both written and collaborated on commercially available resources for “Quality Assessment Tasks (QATs)”.

DIRTSCAN – A Scaffolded Problem-Solving Strategy

We will present a scaffolded problem-solving strategy that we call DIRTSCAN that we use to explicitly teach students to use metacognitive strategies using worked examples and multiple exposures. In brief, DIRTSCAN includes stages of Diagramming, Identifying, Relating, Transposing, Substituting, Calculating, Answering, and, Noticing, that encourage students to document their thinking and communicate their understanding to support their active problem-solving of physics questions. We will provide some examples of how we use this strategy across multiple areas and provide opportunities for participants to share their approaches and reflect on how this strategy can be used to address common misapplications of physics.

D2 Hybrid

Dr Adele Hudson and Jill Forward, Aitken College

Adele Hudson is Head of Science at Aitken College and teaches middle school science, and senior chemistry, physics and mathematics. Coming from a background in research, Adele is passionate about providing students with opportunities to engage in real-world investigations; finding that when students understand the relevance of their learning, they are more likely to value the subject and invest time and energy. Using this approach has resulted in an average 30% increase in student participation in VCE sciences.

Collective learning in the Physics classroom

Is it possible to create a collective learning community where every student is working with others towards a common goal in our physics classrooms? We would say a resounding yes. By crafting problem solving experiences which promote collaborative learning, we have found that students are more engaged and invested in their learning. Building on the Solar Oven project which we presented in 2023, we bring three more collective learning assessment tasks for Unit 1 and 2 Physics. Investigating how transducers can regulate an appliance, the Transducer Project provided students with the opportunity to practically explore a range of electricity concepts in U1AOS3. The Mousetrap Car Competition challenged students to explain their car modifications through the concepts of motion. Finally, in the Practical Investigation, students applied their understanding of momentum and impulse to find and explain solutions to real world problems. In this presentation we will provide an overview of the projects, along with descriptions of what the projects looked like in our classrooms and detailed explanations of how to set each of them up from a laboratory technician perspective.

D3 Hybrid

David Wood and Kyla Adams, University of Western Australia David grew up on a dairy farm in regional WA and studied physics and education at UWA. For the first 20 years of his working life he taught science, physics and chemistry in several regional and metropolitan secondary public schools and was science head of department for 10 of those years. During this time he was involved in several curriculum reform initiatives. For the next two decades he worked in education administration in a range of senior curriculum and leadership roles including foundation principal of Sevenoaks Senior College; CEO of the WA Curriculum Council; and Chief Learning, Teaching and Innovation Officer with Catholic Education WA. Throughout his working years he maintained a close connection with the Science Teachers Association of Western Australia (STAWA). Since retiring he is volunteering on behalf of STAWA with the UWA-based Einstein-First initiative where he is one of the Chief Investigators. His focus is on strategies related to the development and implementation of programs that will ultimately see the Einstein-First initiative influence the teaching of the physical and earth and space sciences in schools nation-wide.

Kyla Adams is a physicist and science communicator who gained her Bachelor of Science (Physics) at QUT. She then moved to Melbourne to do graduate research in gravitational waves and quantum liquids. Throughout her studies she has been involved with various science and math outreach and mentoring activities with groups such as In2Science, the Australian Mathematical Sciences Institute and Science Gallery Melbourne. She is currently completing her PhD in physics and education at The University of Western Australia with the Einstein-First project. Her research focus is on creating ways to put our best understanding of the universe in classrooms by developing activities, learning sequences, and working directly with teachers and students.Why Einstein-First: Modernising the teaching of physics

This workshop will briefly describe the UWA-based Einstein-First program which aims to modernise the teaching of the physical sciences from Year 3 to Year 10 to help ensure teachers have the knowledge, skills, confidence and resources to introduce the language and ideas of the quantum sciences and relativity in a practical and fun way. We will provide access to the resources and invite participants to consider adopting the program in their schools.

D4 Hybrid

Stuart Fankhauser, Nossal High School

Stuart has been the Director of Digital Development and Innovation at Nossal High School for the last eight years and has worked in ICT-related leadership roles throughout his entire teaching career. He has been a senior Physics teacher for 25 years, has co-authored three textbooks for Mathematics in years 7, 8, and 9 through Heinemann and earned his Masters degree through educational research. Most recently his focus has been dedicated to exploring the pedagogical uses of Artificial Intelligence as well as specific use cases for school administration.

Navigating the Intersection of AI and Education

Many schools are looking for frameworks that guide the effective and ethical integration of AI tools into teaching and learning. Adopting a “Traffic Light System” emerges as an approach that offers clear and actionable guidelines for AI use for learners and educators. This presentation looks at the mechanics and benefits of such a system, which categorizes AI use into ‘Red’, ‘Amber’, and ‘Green’ zones for learners, each representing varying levels of recommended engagement. Attendees will gain insights into how this simple yet intuitive system aids in balancing innovation with responsibility, fostering an environment where AI enhances, rather than hinders, the learning process. By the end of the session, educators will be equipped with a practical roadmap to navigate the challenges and opportunities presented by AI in contemporary classrooms.

D5 Hybrid

Keith Burrows, Retired Senior Physics Teacher and Author

Keith has taught senior physics in Victorian schools since the 60’s. He is an author of the Pearson series of senior physics text books used around the country. Since retiring from full time teaching he has been active in presenting on climate science to schools, teachers and various other organisations. He has a website called “Climate Science for Sceptics” aimed at those who genuinely want to understand the science behind the issue. It is at www.cs4s.net

Education for a planet on fire – how do we help our students face up to the climate emergency?

‘I want you to act as you would in a crisis. I want you act as if our house is on fire. Because it is.’ These words, spoken by 16 year old Greta Thunberg to world leaders almost five years ago brought thousands of Australian students out on the street protesting about the lack of action to tackle climate change. As Physics teachers we can be key in helping our schools develop programs that will support and encourage our students in the face of the climate threat. This is not just an issue of teaching some climate science to our students, but of helping to develop school-wide consistent approaches that will give all our kids a feeling of hope in the face of a lot of confusion and misinformation.

D6 Hybrid

Andrew Hansen, Chief Asessor

Review of the 2023 VCE Physics examThis session reviews the key learnings from student responses to the 2023 exam. I will report on my question-by-question analysis and bring to you the principal take-home messages from the exam. This is an opportunity to engage in a discussion of strategies for improved student performance in 2024 and beyond.D7 HybridClaire Rollinson, The MacRobertson Girls’ High SchoolClaire Rollinson started teaching VCE Physics and Mathematics at The Mac.Robertson Girls’ High School in 2010 after working in research for 6+ years in the fields of photonics and fibre optics. As a researcher, she used spreadsheet software extensively to visualise and analyse data in order to draw conclusions and inform development. As a teacher, she is passionate about sharing the wonder of Physics and Mathematics while encouraging students to focus on the process of improving skills and knowledge rather than striving for perfect marks.Gathering assessment data to inform teaching and provide feedback to students

Each assessment task is a valuable learning tool that should be used to promote the consolidation of skills and knowledge, however, students tend to focus on their marks rather than what can be learned from the task. The identification of strengths and areas for improvement via a visual, achievement-by-topic grid can be more informative than a grade and help students to shift their focus to how they can improve. This workshop presents a method using Excel and Word’s Mail Merge function to generate achievement-by-topic reports with individualised comments for each student based on the marks awarded for each question on a task. Please bring aloing a sample assessment to try in the workshop.

D8 Hybrid

Julie Mulholland, ANSTONuclear medicine insights: the effects and uses of ionising radiation

Radionuclides have been used routinely in medicine for more than 60 years. Some provide information about the functioning of a person’s specific organs to determine what is causing the symptoms, disease or injury in a patient, whereas others are used to treat diseased organs or cancerous tumours. ANSTO produces between 75 and 80 percent of the radionuclides used in medicine in Australia. In this workshop, we will examine the production, use and properties of one of the most recent therapeutic radionuclides, Lutetium-177. We will also investigate the effects that ionising radiation has on humans, and how this is measured. The activities presented will address content from Unit 1 Area of Study 2, as well as ICT skills, critical and creative thinking, and problem-solving.

D9 In person only

Dr Man Lam and Duncan Hillier, Mount Alexander Secondary CollegeMan, the laboratory technician at Mt. Alexander College, is not your average test tube enthusiast. He’s the life of the lab coat party! When he’s not concocting wild experiments, he’s a card-carrying member of the Victoria Laboratory Technicians Association (LTAV), and rumour has it, he occasionally moonlights as the lab’s stand-up comedian in a few physics workshops. But beneath the laughter lies a true passion for whipping up mind-blowing science experiments and dazzling demonstrations that make complicated concepts as clear as a freshly washed beaker.

Duncan Hillier is a Physics teacher, from Mount Alexander College in Flemington with a passion for STEAM education. Duncan is also a Mechanical Engineer and has 10 years experience in education. Duncan loves sustainability, the environment, physical activity and sports and is always looking for ways to bring these interests to life in the classroom.Electrifying Education: Harnessing Innovative Demonstrations to Illuminate Electricity and Magnetism

This presentation aims to empower secondary school physics educators with a wealth of innovative teaching tools, enabling them to electrify the classroom experience, deepen student understanding, and ignite a lifelong enthusiasm for physics. We will employ innovative demonstrations to aid in the comprehension of electricity and magnetism. This presentation delves into a range of hands-on experiments and interactive demonstrations that bring these intricate subjects to life. These activities are designed to actively engage students, allowing them to visualize and explore the fundamental principles of electricity and magnetism. These demonstrations aim to demystify complex concepts and nurture a profound appreciation for the subject.

D10 HybridPaul Butler, Lauriston Girls School

Paul Butler has been teaching VCE and IB Physics for many years. He has introduced many students to astronomy and astrophysics through a range of practical activities which include observing eclipses and transits and receiving data and images from satellites. He is actively involved in radio astronomy using his own radio telescope at home and through online radio telescopes around the world. Paul was recently elected as a Society of Amateur Radio Astonomers Director and Board member.

Radio astronomy in schools

Radio astronomy offers a range of activities in which school students can participate by building equipment, making observations and sharing ideas with radio astronomers around the world. This session will provide an introduction to radio astronomy and outline entry-level projects which are practical and affordable to schools. Reference will be made to the work in this area by the Astronomical Society of Victoria and SARA, the Society for Amateur Radio Astronomers.

D11 In person only

Amanda Lovett, Modern Teaching Aids

Amanda is an experienced secondary teacher with a passion for engaging students in science. She has worked at MTA for over 3 years and loves to share her experience & knowledge with teachers and schools. Amanda is connected with multiple teaching and lab tech networks and is always striving to find ways to help schools improve student engagement and learning outcomes. Amanda is passionate about students having authentic and real-life learning opportunities in science and has run her workshop at local, state, and national conferences and professional learning days.

Exploring Data Logging in Middle Years Science (Commercial)Note: This presentation promotes a commercial product.

Explore exciting hands-on experiments and see how students can bring their own investigations to life while producing meaningful results using the latest in wireless data logging technology. We will simulate car accidents to demonstrate how airbags reduce impact forces, explore how to design an energy efficient house, investigate the forces involved in Gonzo’s bungee jumping adventure, and more!

D12 In person only

Genevieve Lazzari, Swinburne UniversityAdvanced Technology Laboratory Tour

This session consists of a walking tour of advanced technology research laboratories including the Strong Structure Laboratory, Factory of the Future and Nano-fabrication Laboratory.

3.10pm

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/Closing-Keynote-Liam-Hall-square-800×800.jpg

Closing Keynote

Dr Liam Hall

Liam is a Principal Research Scientist and Science Leader in Quantum Biotechnology at CSIRO, whose research is focused on the development on precision diamond-based quantum technology for biomedical applications. He is an internationally recognised pioneer in the development and use of quantum systems to interrogate biological phenomena at the nanoscale, having authored over 40 peer-reviewed papers spanning the theoretical/experimental spectrum. Liam has been a Chief Investigator on grants totalling more than $40M in research funding, and leads a team of researchers across CSIRO and the University of Melbourne. He is deeply passionate about quantum physics education, having lectured numerous quantum courses at the University of Melbourne; and enjoys communicating quantum concepts to non-specialist audiences by appealing to familiar and related ideas in music. Outside of quantum physics, he likes to enjoy other wave-related phenomena with his family; typically in the form of music and surfing.

How we can educate for the quantum technology revolution, and what I wish I’d known.

4.00pm

Post conference drinks

Meet our speakers

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/C5-and-D3-Kyla-Adams-1-1-600×800.jpgKyla Adams

University of Western Australia

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/B3-Loukia-Andrews.jpgLoukia Andrews

Montmorency Secondary College

Doug Bail

Ciderhouse

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/A5-Emma-Barnett.pngEmma Barnett

VSSEC

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/C2-Catherine-Bellair.pngCatherine Bellair

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/D1-Stuart-Bird-1-1.jpgStuart Bird

Castlemaine Secondary College

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/A10-Jackie-Bondell.jpgJackie Bondell

Swinburne University of Technology

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/B5-Keith-Burrows-1-1-400×533.jpgKeith Burrows

Retired Senior Physics Teacher and Author

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/D10-Paul-Butler-1-1.jpgPaul Butler

Lauriston Girls School

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/D1-Dino-Cevolatti-1-1.jpgDino Cevolatti

Castlemaine Secondary College

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/A3-Joe-Cossette-800×1067.jpgJoe Cossette

Minnetonka High School – Minnetonka, Minnesota, USA

The Physics Teacher Education Coalition (PhysTEC) has named Joe Cossette (MEd ’16) its 2023 Teacher of the Year. This award recognizes outstanding high school physics educators who demonstrate the impact and value of physics teacher preparation programs. Joe has taught high school physics and physical science for 8 years. Before becoming a teacher, he worked as a mechanical engineer and is passionate about helping students make real world connections with the science content in the classroom. He spends a lot of time brainstorming creative ways to make learning fun and interesting and shares many of his lesson ideas for free on his website “Passionately Curious” (passionatelycurioussci.weebly.com)

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/A7-Caroline-Cotton.jpgCaroline CottonBioBrain

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/B7-Merryn-Dawborn-Gunstone-600×800.jpgDr Merryn Dawborn-GundlachUniversity of Melbourne

Matt DoddsCarey Baptist Grammar Schoolhttps://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/B9-Alan-Duffy.jpgProf Alan Duffy

Swinburne University of Technology

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/B8-Corey-Evans.jpgCorey Evans

Swinburne University of Technology

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/D4-Stuart-Fankhauser.jpgStuart Fankhauser

Nossal High School

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/B10-Michael-Fitzgerald.jpgDr Michael Fitzgerald

Las Cumbres Observatory

Jill Forward

Aitken College

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/C1-Rachael-Gore-1-800×1067.jpgRachael Gore

Albert Park College

A/Prof Brenton Hall

Chair of the Department of Physics and Astronomy at Swinburne University of Technology

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/Closing-Keynote-Liam-Hall-rectangle-800×1067.jpgDr Liam Hall

Principal Research Scientist and Science Leader in Quantum Biotechnology at CSIRO

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/B6-and-D6-Andrew-Hansen.jpgAndrew HansenChief Assessor, VCE Physics

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/C11-Kristina-Hicks.jpgKristina HicksiFly Australiahttps://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/D9-Duncan-Hillier.jpgDuncan Hillier

Mount Alexander Secondary College

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/B1-and-C7-Colin-Hopkins.jpgColin Hopkins, OAMRetired Senior Physics Teacher and Author

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/D2-Adele-Hudson.jpgDr Adele Hudson

Aitken College

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/B4-and-C4-Theo-Hughes.jpgTheo Hughes

Cornish College

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/B5-Deepa-Jain.jpgDeepa Jain

Kew High School

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/A6-and-C6-Maria-James-3.jpgMaria James

Science Curriculum Manager, VCAA

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/A8-Sandor-Kazi.jpgSandor Kazi

Melbourne Girls’ College

Shanti Krishnan

Swinburne University of Technology

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/C9-Adrian-Lam.pngAdrian LamHaileybury College

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/D9-Man-Lam-1-800×1067.jpgDr Man Lam

Mount Alexander Secondary College

Man, the laboratory technician at Mt. Alexander College, is not your average test tube enthusiast. He’s the life of the lab coat party! When he’s not concocting wild experiments, he’s a card-carrying member of the Victoria Laboratory Technicians Association (LTAV), and rumour has it, he occasionally moonlights as the lab’s stand-up comedian in a few physics workshops. But beneath the laughter lies a true passion for whipping up mind-blowing science experiments and dazzling demonstrations that make complicated concepts as clear as a freshly washed beaker.

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/A12-Genevieve-Lazzari.jpgGenevieve Lazzari

Swinburne University of Technology

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/A9-and-C3-Spiro-Liacos-800×1067.jpgSpiro Liacos

Cheltenham Secondary College

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/D11-Amanda-Lovett.jpgAmanda Lovett

Modern Teaching Aids

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/B8-Sandy-Marwick.jpgSandra Marwick

Swinburne University of Technology

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/Barbara-McKinnon-1.jpgDr Barbara McKinnonVicphysics Teachers’ Network Inc

Barbara is currently the president of Vicphysics. She has taught Physics and science in secondary and tertiary settings and is most interested in effective pedagogies to achieve conceptual understanding. She reads and plays music to relax.

Julie Mulholland

ANSTO

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/C10-Jodie-OConnor.jpgJodie O’Connor

Carey Baptist Grammar School

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/A1-Elizabeth-Piacquadio.jpgElizabeth Piacquadio

Loreto Mandeville Hall Toorak

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/D7-Claire-Rollinson-3.jpgClaire Rollinson

The MacRobertson Girls’ High School

Claire Rollinson started teaching VCE Physics and Mathematics at The Mac.Robertson Girls’ High School in 2010 after working in research for 6+ years in the fields of photonics and fibre optics. As a researcher, she used spreadsheet software extensively to visualise and analyse data in order to draw conclusions and inform development. As a teacher, she is passionate about sharing the wonder of Physics and Mathematics while encouraging students to focus on the process of improving skills and knowledge rather than striving for perfect marks.https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/A4-and-C8-Halid-Takimoglu.jpgHalid Takimoglu

De la Salle College, Malvern

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/B2-Yuriy-Verkhatsky-1.jpgYuriy Verkhatsky

Bialik College

I have taught physics, mathematics, chemistry and science since 1989, both in Australia and overseas. My students have been winners of the Australian Physics Olympiad, Australian Math Competition, Victorian Young Physicists Tournament, VCE Physics competition of University of Melbourne and so on. I’ve also worked in science research with my main area of interest being the interaction of electromagnetic and sound waves in solids as well as being an electronic engineer and author of articles and patents. (Some devices designed by me were used in the space stations).https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/Opening-Keynote-Sara-Webb-rectangle-800×1067.pngDr Sara Webb

Swinburne University of Technology

Dr. Webb is an astronomer who is passionate about applying novel machine learning techniques to large astronomical datasets, and exploring how it can be transferred to different disciplines. When Dr. Webb isn’t researching she is actively communicating science to the wider public via traditional and social media, and leading as mission director the Swinburne Space Challenge School programs. She’ll cover all the resources available to begin teaching astronomy in the classroom, and the speciality programs Swinburne runs to give high school students even greater insight into the future of space applications and experimentation.

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/B3-Campbell-Wilson-1.jpgCampbell Wilson

Montmorency Secondary College

Campbell Wilson has been teaching VCE Physics at Montmorency Secondary College since 2006. He has been Science Co-ordinator, Timetabler and Science Learning Specialist, has experience across maths, science and physics at all secondary levels and assessed the Year 12 Exam on two occasions. Key to teaching science and physics is experimental work that connects and extends conceptual understanding.

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/C5-and-D3-David-Wood-1.pngDavid WoodUniversity of Western Australia

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/B10-Andrew-Yen.jpgAndrew Yen

Luther College, Eltham College

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/A2-Rick-Zhang-2.jpgRick Zhang

Tilt Renewables Pty Ltd

Event Partnerhttps://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/Swinburne-1.png

Gold Sponsor

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Silver Sponsor

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Bronze Sponsors

https://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/Modern-Teaching-Aids-bronze-1.jpghttps://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/PearsonLogo_Horizontal_Blk_RGB-bronze.jpghttps://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/iFLY_LD_Melbourne_RGB_013-bronze-1.jpghttps://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/CUP-Landscape-Black-Logo-bronze.pnghttps://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/BioBrain-Logo-bronze-2.pnghttps://www.vicphysics.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/TAC-Logo-scaled.jpg

Frequently Asked Questions

There are several options for car parking both short term and all day, including a multi-storey car park, which is generally not full before 9:00 adjacent to the campus. In addition, the venues are conveniently located close to Glenferrie Station and trams.

A session list as “in person” will not be recorded. If the session is listed as “hybrid” then it will be recorded and the recording made available for viewing after the conference.

Please view our exhibitor and sponsor information here and fill in this form to register your interest and/or email Exhibitor Coordinator vincent.conserva@gmail.com

Please view our exhibitor and sponsor information here and fill in this form to register your interest and/or email Sponsor Coordinator vincent.conserva@gmail.com

Our conference team would be delighted to hear from you. Please email projects@vicphysics.org and we will be in touch with you to discuss possiblities.

Physcon 2024

PHYSCON 2024

Innovate Inspire Invigorate

a conference for all teachers of Physics