I am leading a team that has been awarded $186,478 through DFAT‘s Australia Awards Fellowship scheme (Project number R17003). Colleagues working with me from UTS School of Education are Kirsty Young, Kimberley Pressick-Kilborn, and Anne Prescott. This year’s round was publicly announced by Foreign Minister Hon Julie Bishop on 7 September 2017.
The project aims to enhance the quality of teaching and learning in science and mathematics in these two Himalayan countries. We have a particular focus on increasing the engagement of girls and learners with diverse accessibility requirements in these subjects.
A collaborative approach will be taken, working with:
Kathmandu University School of Education
Tribhuvan University Faculty of Education
Royal University of Bhutan – Paro College of Education
Royal University of Bhutan – Samtse College of Education
Sunrise Education Foundation (SEF)
In Australia we are also pleased to be working with the Australian Himalayan Foundation, who will play an important role relating to the gender-focused aspects of the project.
Fifteen Fellows from Nepal and Bhutan will be visiting UTS in late November for a two-week intensive program to initiate the project.
The means to meet our aims is through an adapted change laboratory process. This involves using mirror data to examine current practices and conditions. Then we will collaboratively develop new resources and classroom practices for use in schools as well as in teacher education and training programs. These will be trialled and their impact assessed.
As well as using follow-up visits to Nepal and Bhutan to support integration of new resources in practices, we will be working with the SEF’s online platform (in English and Nepali) to ensure outputs are freely available to users across the Himalayan region.
Nick Hopwood 