Transcript
[Music plays as image appears of a Prime Minister’s Prize, for Excellence in Science Teaching in Secondary Schools medallion, and then images move through to show various views of Alice Leung pointing at a whiteboard, and text appears: Alice Leung]
Alice Leung: I've always been a very curious person, so that's why I loved science.
[Images move through to show two female students smiling at each other, Alice talking to the camera, and then Alice pointing at the whiteboard]
Science is just a way of understanding the world around you. It never ends.
[Image changes to show some students raising their hands, and then the image changes to show a medium view of Alice smiling and pointing at the camera and whiteboard]
There's always new facts to learn. There's always new ways of looking at things.
[Images move through to show a medium view of Alice talking to the camera, a close view of Alice talking to the camera, and then a 'Concord High School' sign on a brick wall, and text appears: Alice Leung]
My name is Alice Leung. I'm a science teacher. I teach Year Seven to 10 Science and Year 11 and 12 Chemistry.
[Images changes to show a student walking into the school Library, and then image changes to show students walking past in the foreground of a building]
Teaching was always something that I wanted to do.
[Image changes to show a whiteboard with science symbols around science words, and then image changes to show a close view of a 'Science!' sign on a door]
One of my main inspirations to become a science teacher was my own science teacher in high school.
[Image changes to show the Concord High School logo on a wall, and then image changes to show a medium view of Alice talking to the camera]
Concord High School is located in metropolitan Sydney. We've got about 1230 students.
[Images move through to show a close view of Alice talking to the camera, Alice teaching her students, students listening and smiling, and then two female students raising their hands]
Seventy % of our students are from non-English speaking backgrounds, and learning English for science can be very challenging for them.
[Images move through to show a medium view of Alice talking to the camera, Alice teaching her students, and then a female student smiling]
My approach in teaching science is to always make it as fun as possible.
[Image changes to show Alice holding a cookie while talking, and then image changes to show a student’s hands using a wire to pick at the cookie]
I love using food in science, especially in practical activities.
[Images move through to show a female student picking at the cookie, a student’s hands using a wire to pick at the cookie, and then a female student smiling while holding up a cookie]
We use choc chip cookies to explore the sustainability of mining practices. It allows them to have something very familiar to work with to explore unfamiliar concepts.
[Images move through to show Alice helping three female students using laptops, Alice smiling and listening to a female student talking, and then Alice helping two female students]
I am very passionate in encouraging girls to participate in science.
[Images move through to show various views of Alice talking to the camera, a hand pointing at the laptop game, Alice and a female student smiling, and then a video game on the laptop screen]
We run a girl's only Minecraft Club for them to explore coding, game design and how scientific concepts can be modelled and represented in an online digital environment.
[Images move through to show Alice smiling as a female student is pointing at the laptop’s screen, Alice talking to the camera, Alice talking to a student, and then the student smiling,]
We run a solar cars program and it's a really great way for students to get experience in engineering.
[Images move through to show Alice and a female colleague talking together over a laptop, the colleague’s hand holding a pen, and then the colleague talking]
Teaching is one of the most, I think, collaborative and collegial professions.
[Image changes to show Alice talking with the female colleague over a laptop as camera pans to the left]
When you are talking with teachers from different school environments, it builds up your toolkit.
[Images move through to show a laptop screen with Awesome NSW Science Teachers webpage, Alice talking, the female colleague listening, the laptop screen again, and then Alice and colleague talking]
There is a Facebook group that I started for science teachers called Awesome New South Wales Science Teachers. It is so important to have those links outside your school, to be able to grow as a profession.
[Images move through to show Alice and students putting on safety glasses and working in the lab,
Alice talking, and views of Alice and students holding material over a lit Bunsen burner with tongs]
To receive the Prime Minister's Prize for Excellence in Science Teaching in Secondary Schools is a very humbling experience, and I think it's an excellent opportunity to promote the importance of teaching, particularly science teaching.
[Image changes to show a close view of Alice smiling, and then image change to show a medium view of Alice smiling at the camera]
Without science teachers, we wouldn't have the next generation of scientists.
[Music plays as the image changes to show a Prime Minister’s Prize for Excellence in Science Teaching in Secondary Schools medallion with the Australian Government Coat of Arms in the bottom right, and text appears: 2024 Prime Minister’s Prize for Excellence in Science Teaching in Secondary Schools, Celebrating 25 years]
