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NZASE president’s address Welcome to the 2015 print edition of your journal, New Zealand Science Teacher. The NZASE executive committee is extremely proud of this publication, which is a showcase of articles and contributions from our members around the country. You are holding a veritable treasure trove of inspiration and we sincerely hope you share this journal with your colleagues or circle of influence. Additionally we hope you frequently visit the digital NZST, which is a quality website that is updated daily. In July I was voted in as your new president after serving on the executive committee for 12 months as junior vice president. My background is in secondary education, having taught chemistry, biology and science for 15 years. The last two years have seen me step out of the classroom and start a new venture called the House of Science Tauranga. This is administered by a charitable trust and aims to resource and connect the local science community. I am honoured – and a little nervous – to be in this new role and hope to serve you, the NZASE members, as we together work towards representing and supporting the needs of all science educators in New Zealand. In July, BEANZ and NZIC ran their biennial conferences in tandem for the very first time. With a theme of: ‘Moving Forward; Pathways and Partnerships for Biology and Chemistry Learning’ we were treated to a spectacular opening event, a range of joint sessions and concurrent specialist sessions, a shared dinner at Te Papa and a capital range of field trips. There really was something for everyone and the large number of delegates ensured a positive buzz at the many networking opportunities. Finally, I would like to encourage feedback from you, our members. We will be seeking this from you over the next few months so please feel free to contribute and voice your thoughts. Below is a list of the services we provide – this may be a good starting point for the discussions. »» SCICON and special interest group conference sponsorship »» New Zealand Science Teacher journal and website »» Access to science tasks »» Notification of events and professional opportunities »» A national voice on issues affecting science teachers and technicians »» Representation on national committees »» Access to Ministry curriculum contracts Kind regards,
Chris Duggan
New Zealand science teacher ISSUE 134 Level 2, NZME. House 190 Taranaki Street Wellington 6141 New Zealand PO Box 200, Wellington 6140 T: 04 471 1600 © 2015. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be copied or reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording or otherwise without the prior written permission of the publisher.
ISSN: 0110-7801
New Zealand Science Teacher is published by NZME. Educational Media on behalf of the New Zealand Association of Science Educators. JOURNALIST: Melissa Wastney (@NZScienceTeachr) T: 04 915 9784 | E: melissa.wastney@nzme-ed.co.nz Production: Aaron Morey General manager & Publisher: Bronwen Wilkins Errors and omissions: Whilst the publishers have attempted to ensure the accuracy and completeness of the information, no responsibility can be accepted by the publishers for any errors or omissions.
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