With the support of the Arconic Foundation, Monash Tech School is bringing the Puzzling Play program back in 2020 with an increased scope.

Last week, fifty-one year nine students from Brentwood Secondary College and Wellington Secondary College started engaging in the design process to create an escape room that conveys a message about waste and sustainability.

An escape room is an entertainment space that is designed for participants to collaboratively solve puzzles in order to "escape" in a given time. Designing an escape room provides a rich oppor

tunity for students to explore and develop their creativity, critical thinking, and empathy, as well as combine curriculum areas of humanities, science and technology. Students were invited to 'EscapeXperience' in Oakleigh South to reflect on their own experience as part of the design process. Following this, they spent two days at Monash Tech School exploring puzzles and prototyping their own puzzle boxes.

We are looking forward to working closely with our partner schools in supporting the student's escape room creations, ready for presentation.

The Year 8 Superpowers program at Monash Tech School aims to introduce students to a multitude of fascinating concepts and ideas framed by the Design Thinking approach.

During the initial phases, students focus on research and ideas generation. Proceeding past these points requires rich thought, discussion and engagement with the topics and concepts. These portions of the program culminate in the use of two digital programs, allowing students to prototype a potential renewable energy idea. Leading on from the initial portion of the tutorial, the class is introduced to CoBlocks, a coding interface within the program; this allows students to code animation into their designs. It is a fascinating introduction to computer design and the digital prototyping world.

What is truly inspiring is how the students immediately understand the design of the site, opening the library and understanding how to obtain objects that are then manipulated. Once they understand how to access several menus to alter their object, they begin to execute more complex tasks outside of the tutorial. Due to the intuitive design and accessible nature of the interface, students can then build upon the tutorial rapidly.

The creativity of students flourishes here. One notable example was how students developed animated water for their hydro plant, as CoSpaces — the second digital program — has no blocks to show water flowing. The group experimented and brainstormed the alternatives, eventually deciding upon using a series of blue objects to simulate water flowing. The blocks bounced up and down emulating waves and water moving along a plane. This was a fantastic example of problem solving where, through an inspiring level of creativity, the group accomplished their imagined design concept.

Through the use of a completely cost-free design program with a limited suite of options, students were profoundly creative. Through their imagination and problem solving abilities they achieved their design concepts.

If you are looking for a unique placement to enrich your learning and

teaching experiences as a pre-service teacher, you've come to the right place.

Many pre-service teachers with no science background might have concerns about teaching at Monash Tech School; myself as an example, was worried that I

would perform poorly at this placement because I know nothing about renewable

energy. Spending these three weeks with our lovely program leader Veronica, peer teachers and students, has taken all my tensions away and allowed me to think about my specialisations from a different perspective.

We live in the 21st century and green energy has become a global trend in protecting our planet. The Superpowers program I was in, guided students to come up with new energy solutions and hopefully encourages them to develop a more sustainable lifestyle in the future. Tasks are very fun, practical and innovative in a digital learning environment, encouraging engagement from students.

This program removed my prejudice that “all subjects are separate” and inspired me to incorporate sustainability into my future Japanese and media lessons. The design thinking approach is also an effective strategy for teachers to plan lessons in a logical flow and build students’ knowledge step-by-step.

This is a valuable opportunity for pre-service teachers to conduct facilitation and co-teaching, not often seen in secondary schools. Rather than simply delivering all content to students, the learning process of our program is student-centred. Facilitated teaching allows students to take control of their learning, collaborate with peers and to think critically and creatively.

Meanwhile, pre-service teachers collaborate through open communication at all times to learn from each other. Cooperative teaching allows us to decide on appropriate learning approaches and content based on our strengths.

At Monash Tech School, pre-service teachers gain an in-depth understanding of

engaging students and continue to practice their professional skills.

Monash Tech School invites teachers and students to engage in Design Thinking; an innovative and creative way of thinking and communicating curriculum, beyond the confines of traditional teacher-led classrooms.

Design thinking is a mindset and an approach to problem solving that is human-centred as it focuses on empathy and understanding the needs of people; collaborative in recognising diversity and engaging multiple perspectives; optimistic in the unwavering belief that change can be created; and, experimental as it promotes creativity and innovation through experimentation, feedback and redesign.

To capture these ideologies, the Design Thinking process at Monash Tech School features five phases: Discovery, Interpretation, Ideation, Experimentation and Evolution. As students engage in each phase, they are challenged with an issue that requires resolution. They're invited to reframe the issue as opportunities to explore, create and refine ideas; then experiment those, make prototypes and collaborate through feedback. This culminates in the evolution of innovative yet practical solutions to real-world problems. During this process teachers engage with their students through facilitation and thereby become transformational designers of their own learning.

Monash Tech School is currently running various programs providing schools with the opportunity to put Design Thinking in action including: Superhumans which combines materials science with advanced manufacturing; Superpowers which provides a new look at energy solutions; Superhealth where students can design solutions for health science; Superproblems where solutions are designed for real-world problems; and VCE: Superminds, which provides a masterclass for VCE students to enhance their understanding of relevant fields of study.

Monash Tech School is an amazing institute that continually provides students with innovative technologies and resources to expand their learning. In the Year 9 Superhealth program students have the opportunity to do experiments in our on-site Bio-Lab.

As a pre-service teacher I was able to explore the lab and view all the equipment and experiments students experience throughout the course of the program. Students use an array of biotechnology equipment, ranging from the simplest of pipettes to the more complex thermocycler. Access to this kind equipment allows students to get a better understanding of their functions and applications in research.

Year 9 students have an opportunity to use the facility to develop their laboratory skills and step into the shoes of a scientist. Using the tech provided, students perform polymerase chain reactions (PCR), gel electrophoresis, and analyse bacterial growth on petri dishes. These processes are generally taught during the year 9 and 10 curriculum, but unfortunately many students are not given the equipment and opportunity to trial the process until university.

Today’s classrooms have a variety of learners, so textbook teaching is no longer applicable to the diverse needs of students. The experiments undertaken in the Bio-Lab allow students to obtain information about the processes from multiple exposures (which is a high impact teaching strategy used to enhance teaching). The practical and hands on work doesn’t just work as a visual representation of the process; it also prompts students to analyse the outcome of the experiments and extend their metacognition.

The Superhealth program encourages students to understand science as a human endeavour through its real-life applications, thereby valuing the content they learn in class. During the program students are also introduced to a variety of courses and career pathways they could pursue if they enjoyed the experiences in the Bio-Lab. This gives students an insight into the field and potential ideas for their future pathways.

Coming from France, English is not my native language, nor is it the language I speak

at home. As a result, I developed an interest in teaching students with different language backgrounds.

The facilitators at Monash Tech School implement several strategies and use various resources to cater for students with language backgrounds other than English. During my placement, I interviewed the facilitators of the Superhumans, Superpowers and Superhealth programs (Tori, Veronica and Chava), who were very happy to share their different practices with me.

Using hands-on activities & external tools

Facilitators at Monash Tech School use different hands-on activities, and their explanations include a lot of visuals that students can connect with, and learn from, while overcoming the language barrier. Some parts of the content, such as medical conditions, are represented through tangible representation; for example, looking through goggles to represent an eye condition. To make the program inclusive, every video showed on the program also comes with closed captions. Furthermore, students are provided with iPads and laptops so that they can use Google Translate (where they can look up a list of key terms given by facilitators), or visit additional websites to get more knowledge on the topic at hand.

Scaffolding through group work & peer teaching

As the program at Monash Tech School is done through collaborative work, students with different language backgrounds can select activities and questions they are more comfortable with, and answer questions in simple English as well, using bullet-points for example. Scaffolding is also provided through the peer teaching strategy. Students with different language backgrounds can be paired up or work alongside peers who speak the same language as they do (but at a more advanced level), or with native English speakers who can help them during the different activities.

Getting help from the staff or from preservice teachers

As they know their students very well, the school teachers accompanying the students can be of great help for those with a different language background. Sometimes, pre-service teachers also understand the language that students speak, so they can translate the content for the students, or the questions that EAL students may have.

While Monash Tech School boasts state-of-the-art technology for students to explore, this modern classroom still demands handwriting of its students.

I cannot deny my own personal bias for handwritten cursive expression. Maybe I’m alone. Receiving a handwritten postcard seems more personal. Sending a handwritten letter to a politician or influencer can persuasively express more concern or anger. But like fingerprints on an old handrail, the artform appears increasingly forgotten and irrelevant.

Computers have despatched the acclaim and necessity of the handwritten word with a striking ctrl alt DELETE. Is this really a surprise? In the classroom, keyboards offer fantastic alternatives for students with learning difficulties such as dyslexia. Office workers are praised and even hired for their affinity with the tactile clicking of words to a screen. When we start to consider the characterisation of ICT as a second language for the younger generations of students, we ask ourselves a simple question:

Do we still need to learn handwriting?

The Monash Tech School offers one of the most engaging and integrated forms of ICT-STEM based teaching in the state. Nevertheless, the year seven Superhumans program requires handwritten brainstorming in every level of its design thinking process. Students create hand drawn diagrams and sketches during ideations that they will use in their pitch presentations. Handwriting, here, characterises students’ understanding of topics such as diseases, as well as their conception of innovative solutions such as prosthetics, bionic devices, and working implants. Presentations demand a grasp of spatial relationships of words to pages; the foundations of handwriting.

For Ros Wilson, founder of Andrell Education’s Big Writing model for teaching writing, handwriting is a process of creating a mental picture of the world. Research conducted in France showed students who handwrote their notes in a lecture had a deeper understanding than those who typed. The students visiting Monash Tech School seemed only truly to understand designs and abstract ideas once they drafted sketches, created labelled diagrams on butcher’s paper and revisited these ideas multiple times. This reflects the observations of Indiana University researcher, Karin H. James.

“Pressing a key on a keyboard doesn’t really tell us anything about the shape of the letter... If you press A or B, it feels the same. But if you’re creating a symbol over and over again, it creates in the brain a kind of cognitive image of what that letter looks like. The writing of that letter is critical to producing that image and having it in your brain.”

On the one hand, the enduring impact of hand writing on physical-spatial skills, comprehension of abstract ideas and even posture is undeniable. The kinesthetic-based pedagogy differentiates tasks for students with different needs, such as dyslexia, while also helping students form useful mental pictures of their designs; better for every student.

On the other hand, computers are increasingly becoming the chosen avenue for diagnostics testing in schools. In any case, communication forms are still evolving. Even touchscreens more frequently replace the kinaesthetic click of the keyboard.

This is an era that should be characterised by compromise and growth. We should not cling to the past, just like we shouldn’t abandon it. We should learn from the approach by Monash Tech School where handwritten brainstorming and top-tier technology complement each other.

After months of anticipation, the Monash Mini Maker Faire finally arrived this past Sunday! A community celebration of all things 'maker', this event was organised by Monash Tech School and the City of Monash, with support from Monash University.

Local makers from across the Monash community came to show off their creations with the attendees, and share their knowledge of making. From blacksmithing to robotics to tailoring, it was an amazing coming together of Makers with a range of skills and talents. The faire saw the Monash Tech School facility transformed into a gallery of ingenuity, with student groups, video game developers, and exhibits run by our own staff.

We also held the grand finale for our Marvellous Machines program!bWith the audience of attendees eagerly watching, the teams, who had spent the last 6 months working on their Rube Goldberg machines, finally had a chance to demonstrate their wonderful creations at work. Despite some breakdowns and broken eggs, it was a brilliant display of engineering, and a real accomplishment for the students to complete the journey. Congratulations to 'Galaxy Z' from Glen Waverley Secondary College for winning the competition!

It was such a great experience putting together the faire, and we can't wait to do it again next year for Monash Mini Maker Faire 2020!

One of the most impressive sites on the Monash University Clayton campus is the Woodside Innovation Centre. Located within the gutter-striped New Horizons building, the research and development laboratory is where materials and engineering science meets academia, with amazing results.

Opening 3 years ago, the centre is a collaboration between Monash University and Woodside Energy which seeks to improve the Australian research and development (RnD) scene, says Lee Djumas, Research and Innovation Manager at the Woodside Future Lab.

“It really kicked off as a conversation between Monash University and Woodside about how they can do RnD better.

The focus of the centre is materials science and engineering, which Lee describes as sitting at the border of chemistry and physics. “What it really focuses on is developing new materials, and understanding existing materials, so as to improve them.” says Lee. “Whether that is making them lighter, stronger, tougher, or better at things like conducting electricity, a lot of the materials and products we see today wouldn’t be possible without the advances that have occurred in materials science engineering.”

From mobile phone technology to cutting edge aerospace designs, material science engineering is involved in most modern technological developments. Students visiting the Monash Tech School in Year 8 visit the centre as part of the ‘Superpowers Tour’. While there, they have the opportunity to touch and feel materials that have been developed at the laboratory. One of the most impressive sights they see is a bike completely manufactured from lightweight carbon fibre!

Being located on the Monash University campus, the centre provides the university community the opportunity to help solve some of the pressing technological issues of the day.

“Woodside is an extremely large company, and they want to be part of the conversation in dealing with the big problems we face,” says Lee.

“(The centre) offers an avenue to the community to see how this can be done, and how they can be involved. It’s happening on their doorstep, and many people don’t realise it.”

Lee says that materials science and engineering is a great area for students to pursue work in as it offers them a pathway to have a real impact on the world.

“Without advances in this area, we’re not going to realise a lot of the solutions to the challenges we’re facing, like climate change or population growth.

“If young people want to make an impact and solve the problems of the future, materials science really does present a tangible way in which they can be part of that solution.”

We were recently invited to visit the Glenallen School to deliver our updated Special Needs Superhumans program. This was our third engagement of the year with the school.

During this visit, students had the opportunity to use a range of new resources and technologies, such as the Merge Cube and Curiscope T-Shirt. These technologies use augmented reality to provide students with an unparalleled perspective of the human body. When viewed through a smart device, the Merge Cube transforms into a human body, which allows you to explore different parts of the human anatomy. Similarly, the Curiscope T-Shirt reveals an interior view of the human body, which can only be seen when viewed through an iPad. With the use of these technologies, the students were able to learn about the structure of the different body systems and their function.

To expand on student understanding of the human body, we also introduced them to technologies that could improve health. This included wearables devices, such as FitsBits and Smart Watches, which measures heart rates and step counts. To design the basic part of a watch the students used a Circuit Scribe Kit, which is a technology that allows students to build electronics with special pen ink, rather than wires. To enhance the students' watch design further, Little Bits circuits were used. This is a form of electronics that allows students to build sensors that could detect a person's temperature.

The students were intrigued and fascinated by the technologies that allowed them to look inside the human body. They were also excited to see their watch prototypes come alive. The Monash Tech School staff had a wonderful time and are looking forward to the future engagements that we will have with Glenallen School.

Each program at Monash Tech School utilises the design thinking model. This model is made up of 5 steps: Research, Empathy, Ideation, Prototype and Pitch. This method of thinking is used by big global companies such as Apple to create solutions, and is very beneficial for students too.

All of these steps are beneficial for creating an effective solution to a problem, but I believe that the empathy stage stands out amongst the rest. In the Superhumans program, students are tasked with finding solutions to help those suffering from a disease or crippling condition. During the empathy stage, students are asked to put themselves in the shoes of the person who needs this solution. They will feel what they feel, think what they think and do what they do. Only once they can empathise with the person, will they be able to truly understand why they need a solution. Additionally, by understanding the person’s point of view, the students will be more compelled to fix the client’s problem.

Monash Tech School makes sure to create both fun and creative empathy activities for the students. In the Superhumans program, students rotate through 4 different stations, simulating different diseases that one might have. There are stations for the hand, the eye, the kidney, and the heart. In each of these stations, students are made to feel what it is like to have these diseases or conditions.

In the hand station, students wear different types of gloves, each restricting movement in

Throughout all these stations, I believe that the students were able to feel how these

patients may feel. This empathy stage of design thinking not only gave the students insight into how people may feel, but also motivated them to try solve the problems for their patients, as they could understand the pain of living with them.

I had the privilege of visiting the BioFab3D labs at St Vincent’s hospital for a professional development session during my placement in the Superhumans programs. It provided insight into how two contrasting areas of study can be combined to create modern solutions to real world problems.

We were able to observe current medical applications of the lab’s 3D printers as we were shown around; which aim to recreate various body parts using living cells, called bioprinting, rather than metals and plastics. Learning about how this technology is being used to treat cartilage, bone and muscle regenerative problems has further demonstrated the importance of programs that have a strong focus on using technology like this to teach STEM related skills to students; Superhumans being a prime example of this. I feel it is crucial to inspire as many students as possible to pursue study in STEM fields from an early age.

Another noteworthy aspect of this lab are the strong connections it has with various tertiary institutions. There are 5 different institutions with connections to the lab: The University of Melbourne, RMIT, The University of Wollongong, Swinburne University, and the ARC Centre of Excellence for Electromaterials Science. All of these institutions had an important role in establishing this lab, and students from all these institutions are encouraged to use the facilities to conduct research during their studies. The lab values the collaboration between different disciplines, and it achieves this by allowing students from all these institutions a chance to come together and create exciting new ideas.

I am excited to see what future advancements will come from this lab. They are already doing research with stem cells in hopes of achieving feats such as organ regrowth and creating new brain cells to combat epilepsy. Perhaps these are feats the students of the future will be able to achieve after being introduced to these technologies from an earlier age. Personally, after participating in the tour I feel more inclined to incorporate alternative curriculums in my own units of work that I design for my students as a way of not only adding variety to my lessons, but also demonstrating the plethora of ways students can apply the skills they learn.

Year 9 students attending Monash Tech School take part in the Superhealth program, the first day of which involves a tour of facilities in the healthcare industry. The tour begins at the Yakult factory in Dandenong, giving students the opportunity to observe the manufacturing and packaging processes of Yakult’s only manufacturing plant in Australia and New Zealand.

The tour began by splitting students up into two groups, one group toured the facility’s manufacturing process of Yakult and the bottles, while the other group watched a video of Yakult’s history in Australia and had the opportunity to sample Yakult. The groups then swapped over once they were finished with their initial activities. If a student were to be asked about some of the connotations associated with the word ‘healthcare’, common answers would include the medical sector and associated professionals such as doctors, seldom would a student ever consider the health food sector. Therefore, this

tour is tailored to the Superhealth program in that students were able to gain a different

perspective on the variety of stakeholders operating the in the healthcare sector, where

extensive research into beneficial bacteria combined with cutting edge production technology by Yakult helps better the lives of individuals.

The objective of the Yakult tour is to help students understand the planning and the

technology required to provide quality products and services in healthcare. Some of the

planning students were able to observe is the how the production plant is laid out for

maximum production efficiency of Yakult, and the technology required to service consumers of Yakult efficiently. Students can utilize this knowledge during the Superhealth program when planning their own hospitals, considering the layout of a hospital for usability, and technologies they can include in a hospital to help improve patient care, but also provide world class training for healthcare professionals so they are able to provide high quality care.

The tour compliments Monash Tech School’s problem-based learning, wherein the research component of the design thinking approach is utilized for the tour. This approach will not only help the thinkers of tomorrow understand how to tackle a complex problem that is ill- defined, by re-framing the problem in human centric ways, it is also a necessary skill required for a rapidly growing STEM sector. As the world becomes a more globalized economy, students must have the problem-solving capacities to work in a competitive STEM sector.

MTS thus aims to expose students to areas where lateral thinking is required to provide

effective solutions, the tour of the Yakult factory is the first phase in apprehending how

processes observed in the factory can be applied into other human centered problems that need to be solved for the future.

Special needs students from Ashwood School came to Monash Tech School to take part in a modified version of the Superhumans program.There were three stations created to teach them about the human body.

BioDigital

BioDigital is a website which allows people to see inside the body using interactive 3D

technology. It has a profound impact on the way students comprehend their health.

Students are able to interact and view the human body in a way that deepens their

knowledge and helps them reach their learning objectives. In this tour of a virtual anatomy, students are asked to find the digestive, skeletal and nervous systems inside the human body, which teaches them what they are and what they look like. This activity helps students understand spatial relationships in the human body using the interactive anatomy models.

Virtual T-Shirt

The Virtual T-Shirt is a wonderful STEM educational resource that takes science to a

new dimension, enabling students to learn about the human body on a human body.

With beautifully designed augmented reality and amazing 3D learning experiences,

students can explore the digestive, circulatory, respiratory and unitary systems with

the fully immersive 360 degrees perspective on the iPad. Working in pairs, students help each other in finding various systems within the body, and discuss what our different body parts look like and their functions. Students light up when they see the body come to life, and love seeing what it looks like to dive inside the intestines.

The Body Cube

While anatomy is found in many AR and VR resources, the benefit of the Mr. Body

app is that the cartoon content is appealing to our younger students. Each body part

has a caption that can be opened to get further insight. The cube allows students to see the different functions of the heart, brain, lung and other body parts. With the descriptions of the body parts being labeled in text, students can enjoy the visual exploration of the body within the cube.

Using AR and VR products in the classroom not only engages students in active learning, but also give them powerful skills that prepare them for the future.

In the Year 9 Superhealth program students visit the Holmesglen Moorabbin campus, where they take part in activities which teach them the nature of the existing healthcare system in Victoria, and how the TAFE prepares its students to enter this high pressure field of work.

During this visit, students are introduced to the $250,000 humanoid simulation aid robot, and learn about and the important role it can play in training healthcare professionals. The advanced technology of it allows aspiring nursing students

to practice dealing with critical life or death scenarios, which previous generation of nurses would not have had the ability to attempt. The visit to Holmesglen opens students eyes to how advanced training of medical profession has become. The use of robots to

assist in practicing drills would have once seemed preposterous and may still seem

preposterous to some. This research aspect of this program primes students to

compare the existing healthcare system to the projected future and other possible futures of it.

The Superhealth program draws on design thinking when it challenges students to

incorporate several technologies into a hospital plan to improve patient outcomes. The visit to Holmesglen introduces students to the use of new ideas and technology, and how it has successfully improved the training of aspiring nurses. As such, this tour gives students a unique opportunity to interact with creative professionals working to improve the quality of the health professionals working in our hospitals. Students are able to see a successful attempt at utilising cutting-edge technologies when seeing the simulation aid robot. Monash Tech School encourages students to incorporate this new found knowledge when designing a hospital for the population of their assigned local government areas.

Students complete the research and empathy stage of the program at the Holmesglen facility, while the ideation, prototyping, and testing stages of the design thinking model are completed back at Monash Tech School. Students are encouraged to remember their experiences at Holmesglen while they are introduced to the simulation aid robot and other advanced technologies at Monash Tech School, which enables the facilitators to push their students to create a more sophisticated solution to the challenge of improving healthcare for their regions.

Monash Tech School aims to introduce students to many different careers that they could pursue in future, many of which they might not have been aware of. They do this by using the alternative futures model.

The alternative futures model helps students to consider the different possible outcomes the future may hold for them. It is visualised as a cone shaped diagram, which initially shows students only a narrow view of the future. For example, a student may only have a vague idea of wanting to be an engineer. What Monash Tech School does is expand this 'projected future' to include multiple potential alternative futures for the students to consider. As they progress through the program, students develop and extend their vision of possible futures. This vision includes 'plausible futures', which knowledge shows could happen, 'probable futures', which trends say is likely to happen, 'preferable futures', where the outcome is what is desired, and 'preposterous futures', which are near impossible to happen. The Year 8 Superpowers program achieves this by showing and teaching students the concept of design thinking through both theory and hands-on practice.

At the end of the program, students have a better understanding of all the alternative futures, including many that they may have not thought about before. For example, instead of wanting to be just an engineer, a student now might decide they want to be a mechanical engineer working with hydro energy. The results of the Superpowers program are recognized immediately through the comments the students make. Most of the feedback is quite positive, and many students admitted that the program has changed their mind. Some of the students’ comments include “I used to think that creating electricity was boring, and how could water flowing be interesting, but now I know about the different ways of conducting electricity can be fun”, and “I used to think STEM was boring but now I know how it relates to us, it’s fun”. These are proof that the program is effective in making the students realize the vast range of potential futures they can strive for and reach.

In 2008, Professor Graeme Clark delivered an oration for an audience of 250, recounting his history developing the bionic ear and celebrating the team, people, and partnerships that lead to its success. Due to its popularity and growing community interest in scientific advances, Graeme chose to make the oration an annual event. It is now held in the Plenary Hall at the Melbourne Convention Centre, seating over five thousand people including students, teachers, researchers, and industry professionals. The oration is now live broadcasted online and the hashtag #GCOration trends on twitter!

Following in Graeme’s footsteps, Professor Timothy Denison was the invited speaker this year. He shared his research and findings in the area of implantable bio-electronics. His bio-medical engineering career started in research and design, where he researched methods of decreasing the size of pacemakers, whilst maintaining functionality. His fascination with implantable medical devices led him to join a team pioneering the treatment of Parkinson’s Disease. The research he presented was astounding; the team were able to reduce tremors experienced by Parkinson’s patients by up to 30%. This was achieved by using implantable devices that send small electrical charges to sections of the brain, stimulating the synapses responsible for motor control; like how a pace maker uses electrical currents to regulate the heartbeat.

As incredible as the research is, for Professor Deninson, it is only the beginning. The brain machine interface technology used to treat Parkinson’s patients was specifically designed to be a universal implant, supported by open-source code. Professor Denison believes the same technology could, in theory, be used to treat a wide number of neurological disorders including Alzheimer’s, epilepsy and anxiety. He also mentioned the advances made in wearable biomedical devices, and hinted at the possibility of accomplishing these feats without surgery.

Quentin Mattiske is the Operations Manager for Arconic Fastening Systems in Clayton. He sat down with Monash Tech School to talk about his 34 years at the company and to share some wisdom he’s picked up during his career.

What does Arconic do?

Arconic is a manufacturer of speciality fasteners used in applications from truck building, to the aerospace, automotive, and electronics industries.

How did you get your start at Arconic?

It’s not something I really looked for at the time. I was looking for something to do and a friend of mine, who was working for Arconic, said ‘there’s an opportunity here. Do you want to come and try it out?’ I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do, so I said I’d do it for three months, and 34 years later I’m still here.

What was your first role?

I had a production planning role to begin with. Then I moved into quality, then technical support, sales support, product development, and then into a more purchasing and logistics type role. Eventually I moved into this operations management role, which I’ve been doing for about eight years now.

How would you describe an ordinary day in your job?

My standard day starts with me checking my emails. We are dealing with companies overseas in different timezones, so in the morning there’ll be emails from Europe, the United States, and parts of Asia. A lot of my job is dealing with those customers and translating those requirements; not literally translating the language, but translating what they want into what we can do.

I then have daily meetings with all the production people, where everyone does a report on how we’re going on a day by day basis. I’m based in the office, but I’ll got out on the floor everyday to wander around and see what’s happening. It’s important to get out there and talk to the people.

Do you enjoy your job?

I like the many different parts of the role, and getting to deal with many different things, from production issues on the shop floor, to purchasing problems with suppliers, to dealing with customers from all different parts of the world. It’s really exciting and pretty unusual for a company of this size to be doing so many things in so many different countries. In this job you have to understand when you’re dealing with other countries what things are important, as they’re very different. If you’re dealing with someone in Japan as opposed to an American, it’s a very different way of doing business. Relationships are very important, and I’ve spent a lot of time building those personal relationships with those customers in Japan and Korea.

Do you speak another language?

No, I don’t. That’s one area I probably could have worked more on. My excuse has always been ‘which language do I learn?’ We’re lucky that English is the common business language around the world, so most companies have someone that will speak at least reasonable English.

What skills do you value in the workplace?

In this kind of company, it depends on the role. There’s some people that have specific technical skills, such as mechanical, electronic, and materials engineers, and we hire specifically for those engineering skills. And then there’s the basic things like being a good worker, being diligent, and tying to do the right thing, and they're really important. If someone is keen and diligent and willing to learn, that is really key. Often we don’t have to have people come in with a huge skillset, because if they’re willing to learn and they’ve got some aptitude, we’re willing to work with them.

If you could give one piece of advice to students who might want to work in a career field like this, what would you say to them?

Get some kind of a qualification. Whether it is a degree or a certificate, get a qualification, and then start looking. The process of learning and having the discipline to pursue the qualification can set you up for whatever you want to do in the future. Don’t be afraid to try different things and build up your skills. If there’s something that you’re set on doing, go and knock on doors; there are opportunities out there.

There are many students who don’t get an opportunity to see why the content they are learning is important and, consequently, may not pursue further study in those fields; particularly STEM related fields. From my own experiences, much of my schooling consisted of the traditional whiteboard and textbook style of teaching where I learnt a lot of theories and concepts but never got to see them applied in practice. It wasn’t until very late in high school that I had the opportunity to see how some of what I was learning was relevant in the real world; and even then, it was very limited. This is why I believe it is very important to begin showing students how the ideas they are learning can be applied in real life and make a difference to the world around them. In doing this, I believe more and more students will be motivated to pursue further study in fields which are beneficial to their communities.

Monash Tech School provides an opportunity for students to step out of the conventional classroom and experience how various technologies, such as robotics, virtual reality, and 3D printing, can be used to create solutions to real-life problems in their local areas. Monash Tech School uses a design thinking approach in each of their three programs, Superhealth, Superpowers and Superhumans. They all provide students with context to many of the concepts they are already familiar with.

In my own experiences with the Superpowers program, students gained an in depth cross disciplinary understanding of various energy systems and learnt the growing importance of renewable energy in the modern world. Through different digital technologies students were encouraged to collaborate and create a learning experience based on their assigned renewable energy source; solar, wind, hydro or biofuel. Allowing students to do their own research helps them see how much more beneficial these types of renewable energy will be for the environment around us.

Modern digital technologies can have a profound effect on a student’s development if used in the right way. Incorporating these technologies in a meaningful way early in a student’s development will not only enhance their learning but also excite and motivate them to pursue these areas of study further. I wish I had the opportunity at an earlier age to see firsthand the many different career pathways that are possible for students who pursue STEM.

During my first week at Monash Tech School, I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to visit Monash Special Developmental School (MSDS) to deliver a modified version of the Superpowers program with my mentor teacher, Tori. The ‘outreach’ allowed students to interact with STEM and advanced technologies within a comfortable and familiar setting.

The students explored three different types of energy – motion, sound and thermal – through three different activity stations. The modified program ensured all the specialist students’ needs were being met; the activities were student-centered and primarily hands-on activities that allowed students to engage with the technology and explore the concepts through play.

The first activity consisted of students predicting what types of energy are involved in a cotton reel car, constructing it, and then investigating what energy was present as it ran. Students then used thermal cameras, sound detectors and coloured rulers to measure the extent of the energies formed. They repeated this experiment with bouncing rubber cups, and were able to compare and contrast the two sources of energy.

The students also learnt about two different types of renewable energies: solar and wind. They were shown how a solar car attains its energy, and evaluated how it utilises that energy to function through energy conversions. Additionally, the students designed wind turbines and critically examined which design optimised the amount of energy formed.

Throughout the program, students also had to follow through an alternate version of the Superpowers program booklet. The instructions had been condensed, the booklet included more images, and cut-and-paste options were available for student answers to make the program more accessible. This was very valuable, as a big challenge was how to address the diverse range of ability levels. Through problem-solving and adaptability, we made sure that the students were getting the most out of the program according to their individual needs.

The students were very attentive, engaged, and in awe with all the activities and experiences; the atmosphere of the class was lively and joyful. Walking around the room, you could hear squeals of excitement, laughter and clapping. The feedback we received from both students and teachers was positive and encouraging. It was incredible to see that students had enjoyed the activities and retained fundamental knowledge of the concepts covered, and I am so grateful I was able to play a small role in that.

Our society is constantly evolving and adapting, and as such there has never been a more crucial time to ensure students are exposed to the wonders that can come from an education in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). Monash Tech School strives to create a space in which all students feel comfortable to explore and engage with the latest technologies, regardless of gender, race or background.

One of the prevalent issues in STEM is the lack of gender diversity. Statistics indicate that women make up only 12% of the workforce in prime STEM fields, those being careers which involve engineering, ICT, chemical and mathematical sciences, and technician work. This means 88% of these jobs are held by men. That is a huge difference in representation, which can contribute to the gender pay gap, enforce gender stereotypes, and discourage young girls from pursuing these professions.

Research suggests that this pattern emerges as early as primary school. Young people formulate expectations based on what they’ve been exposed to. Many young girls are unaware that they can pursue a STEM career simply because they do not know any women who have done it. If you think back on all the famous scientists, technology entrepreneurs or mathematicians you know, who do you come up with? Albert Einstein? Bill Gates? Pythagoras?

Are you noticing a trend?

It is rare for women in STEM to be as celebrated as their male counterparts, however this does not mean that they are not doing some wonderful work.

Monash Tech School is attempting to re-write this narrative. They are currently hosting a ‘HerPlace’ exhibition within their building. The exhibition includes a set of stations, each corresponding to a woman who is currently doing excellent work in STEM. The stations include videos of interviews with the women, a short description of their work, and material examples of what their research entails to help student comprehension. Some notable inclusions are Dr Amanda Barnard, the first woman to win the Feynman Prize in Nanotechnology, and Professor Jenny Grave, who was presented the Prime Minister’s Prize for Science for her work on genetics.

As a pre-service teacher at Monash Tech School, I was able to see first-hand the positive effect HerPlace is having on student conceptions. During break times the students were encouraged to walk through and interact with the exhibitions. Many were in awe of the achievements of the women, prompting questions regarding study paths and possible careers, and this was not limited to female students! Boys also expressed amazement at the broad range of pathways available for people who pursue a STEM education. Additionally, seeing real world examples of experts in STEM helped students to contextualize the learning they were doing in class.

Raising awareness of the diversity of people in STEM fields is something that all institutions can aspire to. It encourages critical thinking and dispels common misconceptions surrounding the ‘suitability’ of certain groups to STEM studies. Hopefully more institutions will get involved in movements like Herspace to promote equity in STEM education!

“They were nodding their heads, but when I checked in on them, it was clear they did not understand me at all.” This is a phrase that every teacher will eventually say in their career. It is easy for teachers to make this statement and place the responsibility on the student to ask for help. I am sure we have all been guilty of this. However, what Monash Tech School is doing to ensure that this phrase becomes extinct is using 'exit tickets'.

Exit tickets are a formative assessment tool that encourages student voice, participation, and student-driven design. Here is how they work: Before the students leave at the end of the day, the teacher asks the students to write and hand in an 'exit ticket'. The ticket can be an answer to a question, a solution to a problem, or a response to what they had learnt that day. The prompts are specific, short and related to the pedagogical content and technology knowledge taught. For example:

What did you learn today?What was the most confusing part of today?Was today, a) too fast, b) too slow, or c) just right? Explain your answer.

For the student, it sparks a reflection on the day’s teaching and learning, and allows them to genuinely express their thoughts and feelings with anonymity. For the teachers, these exit tickets help assess student learning and shape the next day’s lessons - it immediately provides a deeper reading of the students’ minds going into the next class.

It was amazing to end each placement day 'reading the students’ minds' by reading their exit tickets. In the past, I always made sure to receive the students’ feedback at the end of each unit, but by then it was too late to make the changes they wanted during the lessons. By doing this everyday, as they do at Monash Tech School, the improvements can be made each day, ensuring the next class is always better than the one before.

Last night we opened the doors of the new Monash Tech School facility to the public for our Open Night!

The whole school was abuzz with activity, as parents, teachers, students and academics got the chance to explore the learning spaces and get some hands on experience with the technology we use in our programs.

From virtual reality to wind power, guests were able to get an understanding of what technology students get to use when they visit our school.

We’re glad that so many people from the City of Monash and beyond took the opportunity to visit us. We look forward to continuing our programs in our amazing new facility.

Monash Tech School facilitators were recently invited by the Monash Children’s Hospital teaching staff to visit the hospital and school. As a partner school of Monash Tech School, we explored the idea of incorporating the hospital into our Superhealth program, which would give students an insight into some of the spaces created for patients, family members and staff across the various facilities within the hospital.

The hospital is a state of the art medical hospital for the south-east region and situated within the City of Monash. It is designed to make young patients feel more comfortable visiting the hospital, and has its own school, Starlight Foundation rooms, and a Ronald McDonald House, so patients can participate in an array of activities. We are currently working on the logistics of the visits for this year and are excited to be working with Monash Children's Hospital School.

We kickstarted our special needs engagements for 2019 with a day at Monash Special Development School (MSDS), delivering our ‘Practising Superhealth’ program with three classes of students.

This is the second time we have been hosted at our one of partner schools to deliver this program, with our first ever 'outreach' back in November 2018 at MSDS.

Students were able to experience working with various technologies such as the ALEX simulation aide model, Bee-Bot, Lego Boost truck, and microscopes, and getting creative with designing their own hospital.

Overall, the students had a wonderful time (as did the facilitators), and we look forward to further engagements with our special needs schools throughout the year.

On the 22nd of January the Monash Tech School attended a workshop at BioQuisitive, an open community laboratory in Brunswick East. The workshop revolved around green fluorescent protein, commonly abbreviated to ‘GFP’.

The laboratory offers an environment where trained professionals and members of the public can explore the field of biotechnology. Community laboratories such as BioQuisitive help to break down the barriers to science, allowing more people to become involved in scientific research and exploration without needing university degrees or specific jobs.

Members of BioQuisitive can learn about biology and life sciences while building practical skills through workshops, classes and projects, such as the GFP workshop we attended. This began with a tour of the BioQuisitive site by Director Andrew Gray. The facility has Makerspaces and a fully functional laboratory available, allowing members to work with a range of advanced equipment and technologies.

Following the tour, we were introduced to the term ‘biohacking’, which means to upgrade living beings through biological alteration. Andrew Gray described how it has been used in maker communities around the world, with such results as making bacteria glow. We were then given an opportunity to try ‘biohacking’ for ourselves, participating in an experiment wherein DNA that encodes for the GFP in jellyfish was fused with the bacteria E, coli, allowing the bacteria to glow.

This visit to BioQuisitive was a great opportunity for the Monash Tech School staff to practise their laboratory skills, We are excited by the possibilities of laboratories such as BioQuisitive, and look forward to continuing our work with the wider community to engage them in STEM education.

Escape rooms put their participants to the test with intricate puzzles and challenging tasks, but the creation of these rooms is a rewarding challenge in itself. Our latest program, Puzzling Play, gives students the opportunity to design their own escape rooms from start to finish, with a theme of ‘Waste’.

Mount Waverley Secondary College, Glen Waverley Secondary College, South Oakleigh College, and Highvale Secondary College all sent teams of six students to participate in the three-day program.

Students began the program with a trip to escapeXpereince in Oakleigh, where they were able to experience an escape room for themselves. Whether travelling through time or solving a burlesque murder mystery, the students gained a great understanding on what makes for a great escape room, and a Q&A session afterwards with escapeXperience owners Jackie and Mark was a brilliant opportunity to learn about the creation of the rooms they just went through.

Returning to Monash Tech School, the expert knowledge continued to flow with a masterclass from Josh Hunt, Escape Room Manager at Strike Bowling. He gave students some brilliant insight into how to make an enjoyable escape room, and some of the puzzle types and technologies that students could incorporate.

After this, students were eager to begin designing and prototyping puzzles of their own. From geography quizzes to weight-based challenges, the students’ imaginations roamed free in creating intricate, but still solvable, puzzles.

With their puzzle creation underway, the students steadily incorporated the other key aspects of escape room design, such as story, theme and flow. Working across school groups, the students collaborated to build their escape room and pull all of their ideas into a cohesive experience. At the end of it, they had created a multi-stage escape room set in an apocalyptic, waste filled world, with Virtual Reality puzzles and plentiful locks. The students embraced the theme of waste, bringing in recycled bottles, boxes, and other resources to create their puzzles.

The true test for an escape room is the testing phase, and the students’ room was put through its paces when it came time for the teachers to test it. Watching via camera in another room, the students observed as their teachers traversed through the students clues and conundrums, and eventually escaped.

This was the first time we ran Puzzling Play, and we are buoyed by the positive feedback we received from students and teachers. We hope to run this again in future, and look forward to seeing more amazing escape room designs!

Professional Development is best achieved through cooperation.

That’s why we invited a group of teachers from our partner schools to come to Monash Tech School for a Professional Learning Planning workshop.

The purpose of the morning workshop was not only to reflect on past experiences with professional development, but to work with us to identify possible improvements and co-design different approaches that we can utilise in Professional Development workshops in future.

After recalling the ups and downs of their previous workshops, the teachers designed their own activity for such a professional development program. The ideas included incorporating The Victorian Teaching and Learning Model, a process for creating their own units of work, and strategies for improving teachers’ understanding of new technologies.

Working in teams made up of different schools, the workshop was a fantastic opportunity for the teachers to exchange their thoughts and ideas about professional development.

Last Friday Monash Tech School welcomed a group of teachers from Ivanhoe Girls Grammar School for a Makerspace Workshop. This was our first fee-for-service workshop outside of the usual Monash Tech School Professional Development Program.

The teachers had a chance to experience the range of technologies used at Monash Tech School, including VR, 3D Printing and laser cutting. Using what they’d learnt, they were able to design a pencil holder and a keychain, which would then be created and taken home as souvenirs.m

As well as developing an understanding of technologies education, the teachers were also taken through some of the Monash Tech School teaching and reflection methods, learning how we use modern teaching practices to make the most of students’ time here.

We hope the visiting teachers from Ivanhoe Girls Grammar School had a great day, and we look forward to hearing about how they’ve used what they learnt here back at school.

We were pleased to host a delegation of Indonesian educators at the Monash Tech School this Tuesday. Attending as guests of Monash University, the visitors sought to learn techniques and technologies that they could bring home to Indonesian classrooms.

Throughout the day the educators were immersed in the technology and experience of Monash Tech School. From the ALEX Simulation Aid to therapeutic VR, they were treated to an in-depth look at what tools are used to educate students here. The group was particularly impressed with our use of littleBits electronic building blocks, and had a brilliant time creating all sort of electronic contraptions with them.

The Indonesian educators were positive that they would be able to use the tools they had learnt of to improve their classes back home, and it was a pleasure to share that knowledge with them.

Solar panels and smart bins were the stars this week, as Mount Waverley Secondary College and Wellington Secondary College took part in our Superproblems - Optimising Superpowers Program. Last week also saw John Monash Science School, South Oakleigh College, and Brentwood Secondary College create a smart cooling and heating system, implement energy monitoring, and install solar panels that would save schools money.

The Superproblems Program challenges high school students to think of how they can reimagine energy usage in schools and make their schools more sustainable. Working with their classmates, students need to identify an area that their school could reduce and better their energy usage, and then create a plan for how they will achieve this improvement.

On the first day, the students analysed their schools to find what efforts had been made to be sustainable, and where improvements could be made.

Visiting Monash Tech the next day, they spent the morning learning about the technology behind solar power, how different materials can affect the temperature in buildings, and learnt how to analyse and minimise their schools’ power bills. With this new knowledge, students thought of an idea to make their schools more sustainable, and created a prototype to demonstrate it.

Wellington Secondary College put together a solar power system at their school, while Glen Waverley Secondary College came up with a plan to revolutionise their schools rubbish habits with smart bins.

On the final day the students pitched their ideas to a panel of experts, who gave them feedback and advice on how to proceed with the idea to make it a reality.

On Tuesday 20th November, I had the pleasure of attending Government House Melbourne to witness Pitch@Palace on Tour Melbourne in the presence of HRH The Duke of York KG and Her Excellency The Hon Linda Dessau AC, Governor of Victoria.

Founded by The Duke of York in 2014, Pitch@Palace provides a platform for Entrepreneurs to showcase their work and provides them with opportunities to meet people who can assist them to make their business dreams into a reality.

The Entrepreneurs were from a diverse range of industries:

Biotech & Medical TechnologyConsumer Technology & Internet of ThingsEducational TechnologyEnergy, Environmental & Renewables TechnologiesFitness TechHealth & Well-being TechnologyIndustrial TechnologyMaterials, Substances & By-productsMedia, Communications & Entertainment TechnologySmart Cities

Seventeen Entrepreneurs pitched their business to a very welcoming audience who in turn were asked to vote for their top three Entrepreneurs on the day. Each Entrepreneur had 3 minutes to deliver their Pitch which also included an ‘ASK’ - what they are asking the audience to contribute to their business. A unique part of this event was that a bugler acted as the time-keeper - ending the 3 minute allotted time for the Entrepreneurs with a blast from his bugle. Most got through without hearing the bugler, but some were not so good at keeping to time. They received something like the “charge of the light brigade”, which halted their pitch in its tracks!

A panel of judges had the ultimate decision to select eight Entrepreneurs to move onto the next stage of the event series, a Boot Camp in Brisbane. This will be followed by the final Australian event, where a the selected winner will travel to the United Kingdom to compete at St James’ Palace in December this year. Entrepreneurs from all around the world will converge to deliver their final Pitch@Palace at the event, ahead of a final winner being announced.

Who knows, we may see our very own Partner School students participating in this activity in future years to come, having had their first exposure to this delivery at the Monash Tech School.

Good luck to all the Entrepreneurs.

Student engagement is crucial to learning and teaching. When a student is disengaged it is impossible to teach them anything. It also brings to the surface any self-doubt and insecurities you may have in your own practice when a student would rather do anything else but engage in the learning task or topic at hand. So, what do we do? How do we avoid these awkward learning experiences? And how do we innovate education to improve student engagement, learning opportunities and practice?

Professor Kris Ryan Academic Director, Monash Education Innovation from Monash University presented his keynote speech, at Monash Tech Schools recent Principals Strategy Workshop, on this very topic. His response to these questions was simply “Why aren’t we asking the students?”. Students voice is becoming a popular term in education today and for good reason. Providing inclusive opportunities for students to have their say on matters of education not only engages students in deep and meaningful ways but provides the key to truly innovating education. So as Prof. Kris Ryan says Bring on the student!

At Monash University with the help of Prof. Kris Ryan, they have been doing exactly this. From areas such as campus design, course program design, and education technology design; voice and collaborative opportunities have been given to students all the way through. For example, students were involved in the planning of room layouts and even designing informal furniture for the new Learning and Teaching building at Monash University; students’ reshaped and co-developed Undergraduate Engineering course structures and program designs; students have also been assisting in the development of E-assessment exams.

What became clear from Prof. Kris Ryan’s presentation is the irony between education innovation and student engagement. To improve and innovate education, students need to be engaged in the process, however, engaging students in itself requires innovative educational practices. Although some may not see student voice as innovative, it is certainly not afforded by all educators or educational institutions. Student voice has been a consistent theme throughout my education training at Monash University to date. Listening to Prof. Kris Ryan there’s no doubt Monash University is at the fore of innovation in education, and it was just great to see an institution practising what they preach.

Bring on the student!

As part of the Monash Tech School’s ‘Superhealth’ program, Year 9 students from participating schools are invited to tour facilities at 3 of the school’s partners; the Yakult Factory in Dandenong, the Hudson Institute as part of the Monash Health Translation Precinct in Clayton and the Holmesglen Simulation Centre in Moorabbin. These tours introduce students to the advanced technologies used in health sciences, and to prepare them for the program activities in the following two days of the program.

Students were guided through the Yakult Factory and received an explanation on the Yakult production process, from the production of the iconic plastic Yakult bottles to the ingredients used to make the fermented milk drink. Students learnt how the signature probiotic ingredient of Yakult is cultivated and added to Yakult, as well as the technologies and environments required in food production and testing. They saw the machinery and work conducted on the production and packaging line and were allowed a glimpse into the laboratory where Yakult sample and test their products for quality, as well as receiving a tasty free sample at the end!

At the next tour site students were introduced to the Monash Health Translation Precinct (MHPT), through a visti to the Hudson Institute, a medical research facility connected to Monash University and Monash Health. The Hudson Institute at MHTP host a variety of clinical trials and equipment for researchers to use. Students were introduced to microscopy, cell therapies and medical genomics looking at high-tech gene sequencing instruments, stem cell treatment trials on premature babies and experienced a ‘patient’s journey’ from first seeing their GP to managing their condition. The visit allowed students to see first-hand how research in the medical field is done, but also how research results are used to develop new exciting treatments which improve the lives of patients.

The final tour stop was the Holmesglen Simulation Centre, where professionals in medical fields are trained in the human side of medicine using high-tech simulation aids and actors. The Year 9s were introduced to how technology can improve the patient experience by giving future nurses practice in interacting with their patients. Realistic simulation aids can mimic potential patients in a zero-risk environment and allow health professionals to improve their practice. Students also had the opportunity to engage with an actor playing the role of the patient to better emphasis with health professionals.

Each tour site gave the Year 9 students a different perspective of how the health sector operates, as each of the facilities and technologies contribute to improving health outcomes in their own way but combined produce a comprehensive health opportunity for an individual. This relates directly to the heart of the ‘Superhealth’ program: students designing solutions to improve patient experiences of tomorrow.

(Image Source: Royal Society of Victoria)

The National Science Week Event titled Humans 2.0, brought together different STEM enthusiasts and allowed them to participate in a one of a kind symposium. It encouraged attendees to bring their own perspectives on what the evolution of the human might mean and throughout the evening presented opportunities to internalise new technology experiences.

Humans 2.0 allowed start-ups to use emerging technologies as opportunities for publicity. Some even trialled new products and services on the crowd.

While a few exhibitors presented their vision for utopia, the MCs acted as provocateurs and infused a healthy does of dystopian concern.

Demonstrations included bionic hands, Virtual Reality, and AI that interfaced with the human brain. These exhibits encouraged the idea that Humans 2.0 will generate infinite possibilities and solutions for our civilisation.

This concept presented many challenges. For example, the challenge to educate the community is urgent; such as the need to expose young learners to the new technology trends. The curriculum appears to lag in the adoption of new tech trends, partly due to issues of funding, existing community values and professional development.

Schools have been a mirror of society in the past, but in this era, might schools be the vanguard that embraces new trends and a place to try out new ideas?

What role do Victoria’s Tech Schools have in this space?

Written by Monash Tech School with contributions from Ben You.

(Image Source: Image 1, Image 2, Image 3)

The Centre for Transformative Innovation, the Australian Academy of Technology and Engineering, and the Convergence Science Network hosted an evening lecture at Swinburne University titled ‘A Folklore Remedy for Skin Cancer’ by Dr. James Aylward on the 9th of August 2018. The talk revolved around Dr. James Aylward’s journey of discovering the active ingredient, ingenol mebutate, in the anti-cancer drug, Picato, and what process of drug development was involved.

Dr. Aylward’s anecdote of how he stumbled upon the herb that changed his career was entertaining and made me believe in “fate”. Through a newspaper article cut-out with the headline ‘Plant sap’ ‘cures’ man’s skin cancer’ that his mother showed him, Dr. Aylward proceeded to conduct some research on the background of this ‘miracle weed’. Euphorbia peplus, more commonly known as milkweed, was used in the 1700s as a herbal remedy to enhance life and treat some outrageous symptoms we would never think of today. Hence, Dr. Aylward had commonly referred to the remedy as a ‘folklore remedy’.

Filled with scepticism and doubt, Dr. Aylward still took his chances to explore the action and effect of milkweed on cancer cells. After successful tests, it was found that the mechanism of action involved ingenol mebutate causing primary necrosis of the cancer cells’ mitochondria, leading to the cell’s ‘powerhouse’ to swell and explode. Furthermore, the drug activates IL-1 (interleukin-1), which is a protein that is responsible for inflammatory responses. This leads to the upregulation of neutrophils, which are cancer cell killers.

After many business-related ups and downs throughout the 16-year drug development process, Picato finally made it on the market following the approval of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), New Drug Application (NDA) and Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA), Australia in 2013. This treatment for non-melanoma skin cancer was the first of its kind, being formulated as a non-invasive gel. Other achievements include it being the first ever cancer chemotherapeutic drug developed in Australia and a non-DNA-damaging agent, which is rare for cancer treatments.

Attending Dr. Aylward’s lecture was a valuable learning experience for me and my colleagues. An important lesson I learnt from the talk was to seize opportunities no matter how big or small. Without leaping at the chance to investigate the questionable effect of the herb, Dr. Aylward would not have invented such a ground-breaking treatment for cancer. Furthermore, I appreciated Dr. Aylward’s perseverance through such a long and tough fight to finally share his invention to the world.

The fourth Monash Tech School Creator Class, ‘Tinkering with LittleBits’, was held on the 17th of July. Creator Classes are designed to introduce attendees to new technologies that they might use in their future careers or hobbies. A focus of the classes is on teachers to allow them to take the opportunity to learn about different technological breakthroughs, and how they can take that back to their school are include it in their classrooms. These classes also represent a great opportunity for the wider community to get involved with Monash Tech School and learn about design and testing of new products.

Matt Jarvis, Technology Manager of Monash Tech School started the program by asking the question, ‘What is electronics?’ and we were given the traditional basic electronics materials, breadboards, shoulders, buttons, wires, batteries, and LED light to create our very own circuit. However, coming to the workshop without a background in engineering and technology, the task seemed complicated and time-consuming. Then we were introduced to LittleBits.

What is LittleBits? LittleBits is an open source library of modular electronics that snap together with tiny magnets creating infinite possibilities. This made the task simpler and we were able to light up the LED light in no time!

The class was divided into groups with each given a different challenge (light up a buzzer, make a fan spin, and a logic based one to makes circuits turn on and off). Each challenge demonstrated the versatile use of LittleBits. After mastering our problem we were given a design challenge - create an air conditioner with the help of LittleBits, which was quite challenge but working in our team we managed to create one.

Afterwards, Matt showed us what Year 7 students were able to achieve with this technology through the Superhumans programs. It was inspiring to see how this technology can so easily get students involved with electronics, something that would otherwise be out-of-reach for most students. I really enjoyed the pacemaker created by these students which had many commendable features

This workshop allowed us to engage with a new technology which wouldn’t otherwise be possible without the Creator Class. Additionally, this gave all the attendees a new tool to incorporate into their teaching career to make learning fun and hands on.

The annual Graeme Clark Oration lecture series celebrates advances within health and medical research that will impact people’s lives; showcasing world leaders in health-related research and facilitating discussions where different branches of science come together. The theme for this years tenth anniversary of this event was no exception, combining materials science with biology and medicine.

The guest for this year, Dr Paula Hammond, is a world leader in nanotechnology, specialising in developing nanotechnology innovations in the medical field. One technique that she is an expert in is ‘Layer-by-Layer’ nanotechnology. As Dr Hammond explained in her lecture, ‘Layer-by-Layer’ involves a simple scientific concept, positive and negatives attract each other, applied on not so simple scales. In this technology, alternating positively and negatively charged layers of medicines or other substances can be designed to release varying medications at different times and rates; and in some cases, designed to target specific regions or cells in the body such as cancer cells. After discussing a few analogies and explanations of the basis of her research, Dr Paula Hammond discussed what her team at MIT has been testing and designing for a few example treatments.

Results from the current research Dr Hammonds team is conducting seemed fantastic and displayed the sheer capability and potential of medical advancement if nanotechnology is embraced and further developed. Such feats included accelerated and complete bone regeneration of injuries to the skull without defects or infection; as well as targeted cancer cell treatments that allow chemotherapy to be used more effectively.

While the initial results have been obtained through lab testing on rats up until this point, the results show a lot of potential for future work in fighting and healing medical problems that we are not currently equipped to treat effectively. The mood of the room was very excited at the end of the night and we look forward to seeing where this research advances to in the future.

On Thursday the 31st of May Monash Tech School staff attended a guided tour of LAB 22 at the Commonwealth Science and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) in Clayton. The evening, titled “Opening the Vault”, showcased the working environment of Lab 22 scientists and the variety of high tech equipment they work with on a day to day basis. A wide array of metallic 3D printing technologies and techniques were shown throughout the tour with expert explanations provided by the Lab 22 staff.

Dr Keith McLean (Director of CSIRO manufacturing) and Daniel East (Director of Lab 22) introduced the site to guests, detailing the work and responsibilities conducted by Lab 22. They explained the possible applications for Lab 22's 3D printing technology and detailed two successful devices developed at CSIRO, a sleep apnoea device and unique implants for cancer patients. Of special note was the Lab 22 participant agreement, a policy designed to allow individuals or companies to come on site and use the technology available for commercial or personal use. This agreement seeks to allow small businesses and entrepreneurs to develop radical prototypes themselves without the risk of buying their own equipment.

From there, guests were introduced to the 3D printing machines themselves with a team of expert Lab 22 staff ready to explain their daily operations. The printers included:

A layer by layer printer that uses an electron laser beam to mould structures and allows for the development of devices previously too difficult to create through traditional mouldsA rapid alloy development tool that effectively welds particles to create new alloysA cold spray printer that uses supersonic speed rather than heat to stick particles together and can print much quicker than layer by layer printingA sand printer that removes the use of pattern designs for mould construction and is used for intricate designs including ‘rare spares’.

The evening was very insightful and certainly provided information pertinent to the Superpowers program currently running at Monash Tech School. We look forward to continuing our relationship with our partner CSIRO as we seek to deliver outstanding STEM education in Victoria.

Being exposed to ambitious projects and taking an active stance in pursuing big ideas are key factors in building innovation and making it successful. This is one example of the many insightful thoughts Dr John O’Sullivan presented at the lecture held by the Centre of Transformative Innovation and the Australian Academy of Technology and Engineering at Swinburne University on Wednesday 30th May.

Dr O’Sullivan is one of Australia’s science and innovation heroes. His achievements, along with colleagues from the Commonwealth Science and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), received many awards including the IEEE Masura Ibuka Consumer Electronics Award in 2017 (with David Skellern), the European Inventor Award (International) in 2012, and not to mention the Prime Minister's Prize for Science in 2009.

Indeed, the discovery and development of his findings have enabled citizens around the world to use a device that is now an integral part of our daily life: Wi-Fi. When you use a Wi-Fi network, be it at home, in the office or at the coffee shop, you are using patented technology pioneered from the work of Dr O’Sullivan and his team from the CSIRO. This invention came from the extensive research the team took into radio astronomy or the study of celestial objects from radio frequencies. As explained by Dr O’Sullivan, radio signals are seen to distort computer networks and communication systems through the phenomenon known as multipath interference. This interference occurs when radio waves bounce off indoor surfaces, causing an echo that distorts the signal. Through ongoing research, they were able to overcome this interference by building a chip that reduced the echo and significantly improved the signal quality of Wi-Fi.

During the lecture, Dr O’Sullivan also provided a number of insightful comments about the challenges involved with commercialising the product as famously experienced by the famous Wi-Fi litigation case. Although this is a very important case to know and has been the subject of many reports, it is worth reflecting on one aspect of the Wi-Fi story that is not as often recognised. Dr O’Sullivan emphasised a significant, unappreciated factor that contributed to this success story: the team of people who worked together. The group involved individuals with different backgrounds, experience and skills (be it mathematicians, physicists, engineers, business developers) all collaborating to work together.

Certainly, the biggest take away was the importance of building a team with breadth and depth. Dr O’Sullivan emphasised this through the work of all of his team members, as it is the skills of them all collectively, that enabled the idea to lead to such success and give us the internet access that we all are addicted to today.

Over the past three weeks, Monash Tech School has conducted trials of their three-day program Superpowers.Mapped to the year 8 Victorian curriculum, Brentwood Secondary College students were the first to experience the trial program, followed by South Oakleigh College, and Wellington Secondary College.

On Day 1, students took a tour of the buildings and the research facilities around Monash University Clayton campus. The day consisted of activities that allowed students to expand their understandings around renewable energy, energy efficiency and sustainability. A visit to The Woodside Innovative Future Lab allowed students to explore 3D printing at its best. Next at FLEET (ARC: The Centre of Excellence in Future Low Energy Electronics Technologies) students observed the equipment and experiments used by scientists in their research to develop new materials that are more durable and energy efficient.

The next stop was the CAVE 2; a circular wall of screens that transforms visualisation practice. Here the students experienced Virtual Reality that allowed them to explore and interact with the data on a whole other level. Next a look inside the Monash Wind Tunnel, a unique experience allowed the students to learned about aerodynamics. Students also learned about varieties of sustainable buildings around the Monash University Clayton campus, such as Green Chemical Futures smart window design, Menzies revolving doors, and Solar PV Array on the Learning and Teaching Building. The guided tour around the campus looking at the way Monash is implementing their Net Zero initiative by making and storing renewable energy, as well as the architecture of building to make them suitable and energy efficiency.

Day 2 and 3 of the program were at Monash Tech School; working in groups, students were introduced to renewable energy sources. Looking at how we use energy, students began to work as power companies, integrating Augmented and Virtual Reality. Lastly, students took a business approach and looked at how social media can be used to shift consumers awareness around renewable energy.

Astronomy is almost always conceived as a practice that studies celestial objects and phenomena to better understand their inception and evolution. However, as researchers Dr. Duane Hamacher and Krystal De Napoli explained at the inaugural address of the Monash STEM network, this is just one way of organising knowledge about the sky. During the lecture, Australian Indigenous Astronomy: 65,000 Years of Science, the duo described how Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have been using the stars, sun, moon, and planets to encode important information required for daily life. The lecture was hosted by Monash University, and conceived in conjunction with Monash Tech School and The Royal Society of Victoria.

Ms. de Napoli, a Kamilaroi woman from Wangaratta, shared the way Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples use the stars to navigate land. As opposed to cultures that share information by writing it down, she explained how Indigenous Australians record aspects of daily life in the dark constellations of the sky. This information is unpacked orally and shared among community members. For example, The Emu in the Sky, which can be found in the dark patches of the Milky Way, alerts inhabitants when emu eggs are ready for harvest. Torres Strait Islanders, as Dr. Hamacher added, observe a Shark (Baidam) in the stars of the Big Dipper. When the shark starts to appear over the horizon, Islanders know shark mating season is about to begin and it’s time to plant certain vegetation. When the shark begins to touch the horizon, they know to stay out of the water, as they will be infested.

The lecture examined the intersection of science and culture, and highlighted the importance of acknowledging knowledge is stored in different ways. Such themes are emblematic of the work The Monash STEM network aims to do. By bringing scientists and non-scientist together to share their interest in knowledge generation and human endeavor, the network brings everyday life into STEM studies.

If you want to know more, follow @AboriginalAstro and @RoyalSocietyVic on twitter, or tune in to Stargazing Live on the ABC, 8pm on Tuesday 22nd May.

On Tuesday, the 15th of May, Monash Tech School hosted a Creator Class workshop focusing on the arrival of the revolutionary technologies: Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) in the education sector and its future for other sectors. Matt Jarvis, the host of this event began the session by explaining the differences between AR/VR and how through generations this technology has advanced, making it an essential tool for not only educators and entrainment industries but also for medical professionals, retail and even sports!

In the workshop, we explored different forms of AR currently available and already in practice such as “Pokmon Go”,  Google’s “Draw and Dance”, and Uniqlo’s “Magic Mirror”. AR is everywhere now, and its advancement can only benefit humankind uncovering tasks that were once “too impossible” to do. Matt also explored how classrooms can adopt AR to make learning more interesting for students as they explore, use and understand a whole new side of technology.

Chava Rodriguez, co-host of this workshop then asked the audience to create their own app in less than 30 minutes!

We used Metaverse (an app creation website) with Chava guiding the audience on how to create an app experience in minutes. At first, it seemed a bit complicated but by the end of that 30 minutes, I had my OWN app experience on my phone, ready to be used!

It was absolutely shocking to see how easy it is to adopt new sources of technology and the things you can do with them in your classroom to engage students as well as assess their prior or post knowledge.

The workshop ended with us putting on a VR headset to “Walk in Space”. The use of a VR set and going into a whole new world was a thrilling experience, but it makes you realise the future possibilities these headsets can have for students or almost any individual. Using the headsets students can literally travel to space for a science project or visit Africa for a Humanities Assignment. It is impossible to set a limit on what these incredible technologies, AR & VR, can do for the world!

On the 9th of May, we had the pleasure of attending Spotlight on Couples in Biomedical Science hosted by the Convergence Science Network with keynote speakers Associate Professor Sarah Jane Dawson and Professor Mark Dawson from the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre. Both Sarah Jane and Mark are leading experts in the field of cancer research but with different research focuses. Associate Professor Sarah Jane Dawson is involved in the development of ‘liquid biopsy’, while her partner, Professor Mark Dawson's expertise is in the development of drugs for epigenetic therapy treatment.

There is a growing trend towards minimally invasive medical procedures to help treat cancer patients. One of these innovations is the development of a non-invasive biomarker known as a “liquid biopsy”. Unlike traditional tissues biopsy techniques the liquid biopsy uses the patient's blood sample reducing the complication, time and inconvenience for patients. Tumour cells are known to shed fragmented DNA as circulating tumour DNA (ctDNA) into the bloodstream. As shredded ctDNA differs from one tumour region to another using a liquid biopsy, it can better inform doctors about the profile of that particular tumour region and provide clues about which treatments are most likely to work for that patient. The process involves applying the biomarker to a sample of a patient’s blood and then analysing the results.

Associate Professor Dawson noted the biggest benefit of liquid biopsies is their potential to detect disease progression or treatment resistance long before it would trigger clinical symptoms or appear on imaging scans. This can also eliminate the “one size fits all” model of patient management and move towards a personalised treatment plan for each cancer patient.

Until recently, scientists thought genetic mutations played a bigger role in cancer risk than epigenetic changes to our DNA. However, it has become widely accepted that epigenetics potentially plays an equal if a not bigger role in cancer than genetic mutations. The difference between genetic mutations and epigenetic changes is simple and complex. In the simplest terms, genetic mutations involve actual changes in our genetic code, while epigenetic changes do not alter our DNA, but rather the expression of our DNA. Our DNA is the same throughout our bodies - but a skin cell expresses very different genes to a liver cell.

An epigenetic change is a normal and natural process, but it is affected by age, environment, lifestyle, disease state and toxic exposure. In our cells, DNA is bundled into a structure known as chromatin, which acts a little like bubble wrap, in which proteins called histones enclose, compact and protect it, exerting a significant influence on genes’ behaviour. Histones serve as a beacon for genes to be turned on or off. Professor Dawson explained that once a stem cell has chosen a pathway to become a particular cell in the body, it is not permanently set. The cell can be manipulated to reverse the process and encouraged to take a different pathway.

The power of epigenetics to tackle cancer-causing gene mutations is in using these processes to reverse a cell’s decision. This can be done by identifying genes have gone awry and targeting the epigenetic proteins with drugs to force that cell to take a different pathway. Professor Mark Dawson’s research adds to his partners, and now sees epigenetic drugs as central to any cancer treatment - by themselves unlikely to overcome cancer - but powerful when used together with other therapies like chemotherapy and immunotherapy (where the body’s own immune system is turned on to attack cancer cells).

Both Associate Professor Sarah Jane Dawson and Professor Mark Dawsons research and findings give us great insight into the latest innovations in biomedical science. And it is hopeful that soon these two different processes can become advanced enough to be used in clinical trials before moving further into mainstream cancer treatment. With this, hopefully, the future will change for many cancer patients.

On Monday, the 30th of April, Monash Tech School conducted its first Superpowers Professional Development program. This one-day program was held to give teachers and pre-service teachers insight into the upcoming year 8 program that focuses on new and renewable energy.

The Professional Development program started off with the Director, Ashley Van Krieken, giving a brief introduction of Monash Tech School and the programs it currently conducts. We were then taken to Monash University for a tour of the facilities held at Monash that currently undertake various projects around renewable energy.

Our first stop for the day was the Woodside Future Lab. Lee, the lab manager enhanced our understanding of the various research that Woodside is involved in, including data science and material engineering. We were also introduced to various 3D and metal printers housed within the labs and got to see some of the prototypes developed by the lab over the last few years.

We then visited the FLEET laboratories which stands for Future Low Energy Electronic Technologies. Their aim is to develop new types of transistors that do not lose energy and one of the ways that they test that is using the STM (Scanning Tunneling Microscope) which we got to see in person. We also got to see the laser labs located within FLEET and an interesting experiment on superconductors using liquid nitrogen and a magnetic track.

The Wind Tunnel located within the Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering wing at Monash was our next stop. Here, we got to see the largest wind tunnel in the Southern Hemisphere and was also able to witness the setup to test a vechicle within the facility.

We ended the tour at Monash with a visit to the CAVE2 site. This was one of the highlights of my tour as we got to see 2D and 3D virtual reality environments. We were able to observe the wind patterns across the city of New Orleans and also see parts of Victoria.

The professional development day concluded back at Monash Tech School where we were run through the content for Days 2 and 3 of the Superpowers program. This involved us getting hands-on experience with the solar, hydro and wind experiments for the program; creating an app and visual imaging through e-learning tools as well as how to promote our new renewable energy company.

Overall, the day was exciting and one that was valuable for teachers and pre-service teachers alike. Having just completed my placement rounds where I facilitated the Superhumans program, this professional development day was particularly rewarding for me because I was able to see what the students would do at a year 8 level if they came back after the year 7 program.

Nature is a wonderful thing and scientists have long looked to nature and how it solves problems to guide their own research and discoveries. On Thursday 26th of April, Monash Tech School staff attended a presentation by Professor Elena P. Ivanova discussing her team’s work on developing materials which fight Superbugs. She also noted her own journey from initially working on marine bio films to working and leading an interdisciplinary team at Swinburne University.

Professor Ivanova’s research builds on the increasing risk caused by superbugs becoming resistant to antibiotics and traditional chemical treatments applied to surgical instruments and implants. After taking us through some rather sobering statistics about superbugs and antibiotic and microbial resistance, we were taken through the experimental journey of Professor Ivanova and her team.

Looking to nature for inspiration led to the investigation of the wings of cicadas and dragonflies given their ability to not carry or allow bacteria to grow. The group discovered that the wings are composed of nano pillared arrays and therefore, do not rely on a combination of physical and chemical properties to combat biofilm build up. These arrays when studied, were shown to have combined their structure, height and distribution to kill by tearing up bacterial cells. As the process is so quick, the bacteria are unable to adapt to this unique defence mechanism and so cannot cluster, grow and develop colonies.

We were taken through a number of different structures, patterns and materials explored by Professor Ivannova and her team as they attempted to replicate this pattern in various materials. The most recent iteration used black silicon to replicate the nanostructures of the insect wings and the results showed it had a similar biocidal effect for gram-negative bacteria but did not damage larger, eukaryotic cells. This last finding is the subject of future research for the team.

The presentation was a fascinating example of science looking to nature for a solution. It also demonstrated the importance of incremental advances and building on successive failures. Finally and as depicted by her final slide it also demonstrated the diverse team, in both skills and geography responsible for undertaking the research. The project saw collaboration from biochemists, engineers and entomologists from Australia, Germany and Spain among others.

A mixture of pathways, occupations and industries was the common theme presented to year 7 and 8 students from Mount Waverley Secondary College at the Careers in the New Economy session. Organised by the Careers Coordinator, Head of Technology and MC’ed by the Head of Science for the school, the event comprised a keynote presentation, panel question and answer session and a cybersecurity workshop.

Students heard from a variety of industry professionals covering the banking, services, manufacturing and medical devices sectors. Panellists roles were also varied ranging from Head of Cyber Security to Project Engineer, Marketing and Channel Systems Engineer among others. The core message from all of these speakers was that focusing on STEM and Enterprise skills will be critical for careers in the new economy. The session also demonstrated to students the diverse nature and many different pathways speakers had taken to reach their current role.

The question and answer saw some interesting and thoughtful questions asked by students before students moved on to the Optus Cyber-Security Session for the remainder of the day.

It was exciting to be invited to the day and I was impressed with the focus, attention and interest in their future careers demonstrated by the Year 7 and 8 students present.

The asymmetric stage in Afghanistan has destabilised the tools of conventional warfare, with improvised explosive devices (I.E.D), being one of greatest threats to allied soldiers and Afghan citizens alike. Over half of soldier deaths  are from I.E.D.’s. Mr Smart and his team at DST are responding directly to this shift in warfare through the research and development of I.E.D countermeasure systems.

In 2010, the first prototype of a personnel protection device, light enough to carry, was supplied directly from DST to the Australian Defence Force. The protection device detects I.E.Ds within proximity to users and  greatly improved freedom of movement. The technology has been so successful that since its inception no personnel have died from a radio controlled I.E.D.

Following the success of the prototype rolled out in 2010, Mr Smart and his team were charged with another problem solving task. Developing a similar functioning technology, with a dramatically diminished budget and for a foreign police force to be able to easily use.

This started the Redwing project. Redwing is a technology similar to the one rolled out by Smart and the DST to protect personnel from exposure/contact to the dangers of I.E.D’s. A new solution to an existing problem, it had to primarily be designed for a foreign market, this meant the design had to be clear not only in application but cost effective enough for the Afghan police department to purchase.

By late 2014, 194,00 were manufactured and by the end of 2017 distributed to Australian Defence Force personnel, the Afghan police force and other allied constituents. The tactical benefits have been recognised by the international community with the United Nations acknowledging the efficacy of the technology.

The saliency of the work undertaken by the DST and the way in which it operates is heightened in the age of the information technology revolution that is the 21st century. With the emergence of tech such as Redwing there is of course a response to such tech from the opposing side, this makes the work of institutions such as DST even more important.

The first of our Creator Class workshop series was held on Tuesday 17 April. This series provides participants with an introduction to various technologies currently being used at Monash Tech School which are critical to the emergence and operation of Industry 4.0. The first focused on 3D Printing and Computer Aided Design (CAD). As you will read below in a short time participants were introduced to the types and theories behind these technologies in addition to being able to create their own 3D printed item.

With its magnificent variety of technologies, wide range of applications, ability to enable a creative and personalised design process, 3D printing has been intriguing the world for many years, particularly recently as the cost to entry has made it accessible to the broader community

Kicking off the workshop, facilitator Matthew Jarvis unveiled its beauty and power through a demonstration of the history of 3D printing, applications, materials and model design. In addition, the benefits and drawbacks of this technology were also introduced. We learnt that the earliest 3D printing technology can be dated to the late 1980s when it was deployed as a rapid and cost-effective technique for manufacturing and developing prototypes within industry. Great strides in 3D printing technology and material science have given rise to a number of sensational applications across varying subjects and industrial areas.

Biomedical engineering adopts 3D printing technology to create body parts, limbs and organs, while 3D printing technology enables aerospace and automotive companies to take less time to manufacture stronger, lighter products and advance more intricate designs. Architects integrate 3D printing technology with their designs to create vivid layout models and can even utilise the technology to construct entire buildings. Outside of manufacturing and fabrication, fashion designers and artists utilise 3D printing technology in various ways to prototype and refine their artworks. This new insight has allowed me to embrace the idea of 3D printing technology in my media arts learning and teaching practices supporting my creative thinking and design skills beyond 2D media arts.

While there are considerable benefits of 3D printing technology, they are not without limitations that constrain their practical implementation and challenge our thinking of how we may best utilise them, such as expensive hardware and maintenance, and the lack of colours.

After this introduction, we learnt about the entire process of 3D printing consisting of 3D model design, slicing, and printing. Then through a material matching game, participants identified and compared the features, physical properties, and practical uses of a diversity of 3D printer filament. The game prompted enthusiastic engagement and discussion about the similarities and differences among a range of plastic materials among participants.

To acquaint ourselves with the basics of 3D model design, we explored the TinkerCAD software and extended our understandings of 3D design techniques through the creation of 3D TinkerCAD models. The presentable workplace and manageable tools of TinkerCAD enabled me to create a customised 3D model with just a few clicks and moves.

As a media arts teacher, I have experienced the impressive application of 3D technology within and beyond media arts subjects. It was great for me to reflect on the prospect of how to encourage students with 3D printing technology and integrate the technology with media/arts teaching in a way that ensures student’ creative and critical thinking benefit from its implementation.

Overall, I, and my fellow Pre-Service Teachers, and the others who attended the workshop, really enjoyed the hour-long session. It gave us a deep understanding of 3D printing and how it works, and how we can start to implement it into the classroom. We only wish the session went longer because we were having that good of a time, and learning so much. We all loved the session, and are definitely hoping to attend the future Creator Classes.

On the 20th of March, several Year 9 students (Amelia, Oscar, Sarah, Sara, Edy and Lachlan) were given the opportunity to go to the National Gallery of Victoria for the day.

The trip consisted of learning about electronic waste and how we can recycle it, taking apart old laptops and brainstorming ideas of products the parts could be made into, talks about the new Tech Schools and finally a tour of some of the Triennial Gallery.

The day was a part of Tech Fest and focused heavily on STEM and Victoria’s Tech Schools.

We worked in groups to deconstruct laptops and find different components within them. We discussed what we observed and came up with different idea for products that could be made out of recycled materials from the laptops. Some of our ideas were jewellery and cuff links made from the keys. Then we pitched our ideas to one of the other schools there.

We toured some of the gallery and were taught about different artists and artwork that were created from recycled technology. The artwork made from recycled materials were a table and office set. Each piece had incorporated different parts of the waste they were made of into the design.

During the tour of the Triennial Gallery we viewed various artworks. Some were visual, others were auditory and one was olfactory. There were many different pieces that related to various cultures and ideas.

We are very thankful that we had the opportunity to attend the day. It taught us a lot about electronic waste and what we can do to combat it. Everyone really enjoyed learning about the issue and seeing different pieces of art within the Triennial Exhibit.