Bush Blitz TeachLive West Kimberley Region 2022

Bush Blitz is a national partnership between the Australian Government, BHP and Earthwatch Australia that aims to discover, document and describe the unique flora and fauna of Australia. It is the world’s first continent-scale biodiversity survey providing the knowledge needed to help protect Australia’s biodiversity. www.bushblitz.org.au.

Bush Blitz TeachLive is an exciting and unique professional learning opportunity for teachers to participate as research assistants alongside leading scientists on Bush Blitz expeditions. They learn hands on scientific research skills while helping to document plants and animals and potentially discover new species.

While in the field teachers share the experience with their students through virtual lessons (crossing live to their class via video calls and other online tools) and regular blog posts on Bush Blitz TeachLive website (https://www.earthwatch.org.au/Blogs/teacher-blog).

The interactive nature of the Bush Blitz TeachLive program is an engaging way for teachers to improve their web-based teaching skills, learn current scientific research techniques, work in a team with world-class scientists and other teachers and learn more about unique Australian environments.

Watch the videos below to see the experiences of the teachers who participated in Bush Blitz TeachLive in the ACT in 2018 and Little Desert in 2019.

 The Bush Blitz TeachLive program seeks to:

• Educate teachers and students about Australia’s biodiversity and the importance of conservation.

• Inspire students to pursue further studies in STEM and geography subjects by exposing them to real and exciting scientific research in an Australian context and building their core skills and knowledge in science and biodiversity conservation.

• Inspire and build confidence of teachers to be scientific role models for their students.

• Increase the quality of STEM/geography teaching through building teachers’ scientific knowledge and research skills, and providing them with a transformational experience that motivates them to pass on this knowledge and skill to their students.

• Encourage teachers to share their Bush Blitz TeachLive experience with their schools and wider communities, through implementing biodiversity and conservation projects or activities.

* To be eligible for Bush Blitz TeachLive expeditions, you must be an Australian primary or secondary teacher currently based in an Australian school.

The Bush Blitz TeachLive team are looking for a committed but diverse range of teachers to assist scientists on the 2022 Bush Blitz TeachLive expedition.

Bush Blitz TeachLive provides the opportunity to broaden teacher knowledge and experiences beyond the classroom. You do not need to be STEM or geography trained nor an experienced teacher, you just need to be passionate and keen to share your experiences with your school community. We particularly encourage teachers who might benefit from participation. These could include early career teachers, teachers with limited experience in teaching the STEM disciplines, experienced teachers who are keen to improve their fieldwork skills in order to instruct their students and/or teachers that want to actively demonstrate to their students the biodiversity of Australian ecosystems.

To be eligible you must be an Australian teacher currently based in the state / territory of the expedition.

• If you have previously participated in Bush Blitz TeachLive, you will be ineligible to apply.
• Education providers outside of schools (such as environmental education providers) may also receive lower priority, as the program requires teaching “live” direct to a class.

Selection will be based on:

• A two-minute (maximum) video submission.  The video will form the main component of the application.
• Your response to three key selection criteria.
• A supporting statement from your Principal.

See below “How to apply” for further details about the application requirements.

The final selection of teacher participants is at the discretion of the selection panel, which includes representatives from Bush Blitz, Earthwatch Australia and ASTA.

Support from Principal (please refer your school Principal to this section)

The applicant must:

• Indicate they have their Principal’s endorsement of their application, through checking a box on the application form. 
• Provide their Principal’s contact details on the application.

A member of the Bush Blitz TeachLive selection committee will contact, by email then phone, the Principal of each shortlisted applicant. The purpose of this contact is to find out how the school will support the applicant to achieve the objectives of the program and more specifically what support will be provided leading up to and during the Bush Blitz survey and how the applicant will be supported to share the outcomes of the Bush Blitz Teach Live survey with the school and school community.

Due to the ongoing impacts of COVID-19 globally and Australian border arrangements, Bush Blitz has a number of controls in place:

• Vaccination:  our vaccination policy follows the latest Australian Government advice.  All Bush Blitz participants are required to produce verified proof of full COVID-19 vaccination (minimum double-dosed) unless medically exempt.
• A COVID-19 declaration form will need to be signed by all participants prior to arrival on the expedition.
• All activities on each expedition will be conducted in accordance with the relevant state guidelines.
• A COVID-safe plan has been devised for each expedition in the event that anyone displays sings or symptoms consistent with suspected COVID-19 illness.
• All COVID-19 safety measures will be included in the team safety briefing given at the start of each expedition.

A fully-funded place on the 2022 Bush Blitz TeachLive survey includes:

• Travel  reimbursement for getting to and from the Bush Blitz 
• Accommodation in the field
• All meals while in the field
• Full teacher replacement costs (6 school days)
• Training in field research methods
• Training in website content management
• Detailed briefing materials prior to the expedition
• Bush Blitz TeachLive merchandise.

This program will require a dedicated commitment by teachers. Successful applicants are expected to commit to the following.

Pre-survey commitments

• Be available for a group induction and web training seminar (via a Zoom video call).
• Have your own laptop available to bring to the Bush Blitz.
• Plan a couple of suitable times you would like to video call (e.g., Google Meet, Skype, Zoom) your class from the field, or plan to film and edit a video blog.
• Have reasonable IT and social media skills in order to post content and share your experiences via the Bush Blitz TeachLive website.
• Be physically fit and active, and prepared to work up to 8 hours a day in the field.

During-survey commitments

• For this expedition, you might need to allow at least one day before and after the expedition to travel to and from the expedition base camp as it is quite remote. We will be driving to camp together from Cairns.
• Participate and engage in daily field activities, including any community events. Fieldwork times may vary and you will need to be flexible with your time (both daytime and evening fieldwork will occur).
• Write and upload a blog each day to the Bush Blitz TeachLive website, including a ‘teachable moment’ or a fun activity, to ensure your students learn from your experience.
• Set up at least one video call with your class from the field; or if reception doesn’t allow, put together at least one
  video blog including interviews with the scientists.

Post-survey commitments

• Design and write an engaging teaching and learning curriculum resource (3 or 4 lesson plans) based on your experiences on the survey. This resource will be uploaded to the Earthwatch Bush Blitz TeachLive website. S e the resources provided by previous participants here: (https://www.earthwatch.org.au/teacher-resources).
• After collaboration with fellow participants / scientists / Earthwatch staff, aim to implement a biodiversity-themed project at your school.
• Contribute to an article on Bush Blitz TeachLive to Teaching Science (ASTA’s professional journal). The STA member participants may be requested to submit a brief article to their STA journal or newsletter.
• Participate in ongoing evaluation of the Bush Blitz TeachLive program with Earthwatch Australia.

1.  Develop a two-minute (maximum) video submission

This will form the main component of the application. We feel it is a chance to let your real passion shine through! In addition, Bush Blitz TeachLive is centred on the use of technology to communicate to your students from a remote location. Therefore, a video application ensures that you are familiar with use of relevant technologies. We encourage all interested teachers to just have a go! Your video will only be viewed internally. In this video, you must include:

1. why you would like to be involved in this Bush Blitz TeachLive expedition, and
2. how you would use the experience to support your teaching to increase the benefit for your students.

Suggestions for those unfamiliar with video editing: Use smart phones for filming, and edit your video using free video- editing apps. For desktop devices, iMovie and Microsoft Video Editor are software which are often already available on Mac and PC computers.

2.  Upload your video application

• Ensure that it is named “YourName_BushBlitzTeachLive_2022”
• Upload to the platform of your choice (eg. OneDrive, Google Drive, Dropbox or YouTube) using a private link.
• Share the video link with the following email address:  bushblitzphotos@hotmail.com. 
• If you have issues with this process, please contact smccullough@earthwatch.org.au or projectofficer@asta.edu.au.

3.  Submit the written application form through the Survey Monkey form

The application form is in three parts.