OUTCOMES FROM OUR VISITING TEACHING FELLOW PROGRAM IN THE SCHOOL OF PHYSICS

Abstract

In 2017 a visiting teaching fellow program was introduced in the School of Physics, University of New South Wales. Each year a high school teacher is seconded to the university to teach first year classes and develop outreach materials. This has led to a very fruitful partnership between teachers and academics. Projects that the teaching fellows have worked on include the introduction of online depth study resources to support the introduction of new Higher School Certificate syllabi; the opening of the first year physics laboratory out of term for school excursions; and the introduction of a summer school program, SciX, to support the extension science syllabus. Many of these projects expanded from physics to encompass the entire science faculty. The teachers have found the experience rewarding and refreshing while academics have benefitted from having a high school teacher’s insights into the background of our incoming students.