BHP Billiton Science Awards : Teacher Awards : Teacher Winners

2008 Teacher Winners

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National Winner
Teacher Finalists

The BHP Billiton Science Awards recognise the outstanding work done by science teachers in Australia.

The BHP Billiton Science Awards are a partnership between BHP Billiton, the world's largest diversified resources company, CSIRO, Australia's premier scientific research organization and ASTA, the Australian Science Teachers Association.

Six teacher finalists were selected from around Australia.

National Winner

Cheryl Capra

Science Coordinator at Albany Hills State School, nominated by the Science Teachers Association of Queensland.

Cheryl established investigative science as a priority for all learners in her school. Students are encouraged to seek scientific explanations for testable phenomena using imaginative enquiry. She makes science accessible to all students by ascertaining their prior knowledge and misconceptions and then working with them to develop investigations, which test those misconceptions, thus deepening understanding.

Cheryl has developed critical thinking games to encourage Students to ask probing, high level questions. She introduced cutting edge concepts in students’ investigations, including biotechnology, multi-media, electronics, robotics, visual astronomy and astrophotography. Her students regularly do research using NASA’s Las Campanas Observatory in Chile, driving the telescope and its computer coupled device in accord with their own planning. She introduced a Scientist in residence program in 2003.

Cheryl won the Prime Minister’s Award for Excellence in Science Teaching in Primary Schools in 2007
She also won the Doherty Award for excellence in Primary and Middle School Science Teaching in Queensland in 2007. She was awarded the Eureka prize in 2004.

As part of her prize, Cheryl will accompany the winning students to the International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) in Atlanta, Georgia, USA.

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