Earth science and the next generation of Earth scientists will shape our future!

What does a day in the life of a science communicator look like?

Every day is always different! In a lot of ways, I do many things similar to when I was a teacher but for a much wider audience then just my own classroom. Often, I am presenting in front of a group of students, either physically or virtually. Each visit covers different geoscience topics, so I might be describing properties of rocks and minerals, and which everyday objects are made from these Earthly materials, or I might be explaining how earthquakes form and how do we monitor for them in Australia.

Having been a teacher before being a science communicator, I understand the impact educators can have in building a lasting understanding and being an inspiration for students. The challenge is that many teachers don’t have a background in geoscience and find it difficult to teach. So, a big part of my role is empowering educators, by building geoscience knowledge through professional development sessions and by creating curriculum-aligned geoscience themed educational resources. These cover a range of geoscience and geography topics that can be accessed and used freely by all educators across Australia.

What is the best part of your job?

The students. Being a part of the students’ passion or curiosity about geoscience and being able to build upon that and share my excitement with them. I love hearing stories from students about their own rock collections back home or sharing times they have visited different places across Australia and saw an interesting rock formation or how they got a cool mineral or gemstone.

The part of my job I love most is the questions I get asked by students. This is what makes each visit and virtual experience unique and with each new question I get to test and build my skills and knowledge. More importantly, it’s where I get to observe those scientific skills of curiosity and questioning being practised in real time and see the potential of those students to be future scientists.

What inspired you to become a science communicator?

I loved learning science as a student at school as I was always curious about how the world works. I wanted to know why pyrite (fool’s gold) forms in cubic shapes, why Himalayan pink salt is pink, why earthquakes occur in some places more often than others? I was a hard-working student and despite my passion for science and maths, they didn’t come easily to me. This drove me to want to help others who were struggling to understand too. So, as I learnt new things in class I would help teach them to my friends and fellow students.

I didn’t know jobs as science communicators existed until I was an adult teaching in my first school. Transitioning from being a teacher to a science communicator allowed me to hold onto the aspects of teaching I enjoyed most while allowing me more time to pursue scientific knowledge.

What did your pathway to this career look like?

I went to Monash University in Victoria and completed a Bachelor of Science with the intention of doing a Master of Education afterwards to become a science teacher. I focused on maths and chemistry and chose Earth science as a fun elective science topic. Little did I know that it would become one of my majors, and that I would go on to complete a geochemistry themed Honours research project.

After completing my university degree, I gained my Master of Teaching in partnership with the Australian Catholic University while simultaneously working fulltime as a secondary teacher in a regional school in Shepparton, Victoria. This meant I could take what I was studying in my degree and put it into practise in my classroom. At completion of the Masters, I moved to teach in a secondary school in southeastern suburbs of Victoria for another year.

I then moved to Canberra as my husband got a job opportunity up there, and I intended to continue being a teacher. I was told by a friend working as a satellite data scientist for Geoscience Australia that an opening had come up in the Education and Outreach team as a science communicator and they encouraged me to apply. The role was the perfect combination of geoscience and education that I had been looking for and I have been happily working here for the past 3.5 years.

What impact does science communication have on our lives?

My job is not just teaching the scientific concepts themselves, it's also highlighting how science is relevant to our lives and the importance it has. This not only makes the concepts stick better for the students but also inspires them to be more curious about where their everyday objects come from and how many of them need Earthly materials to make them. It’s also important that everyone, not just scientists, have a basic understanding of scientific concepts, can understand how to interpret datasets and think critically. These skills and knowledge empower people to make informed decisions like where is the best location to build my home to avoid flood plains or coastal erosion, or what type of soil do I need to encourage the best yields in the vegetable patch.

What is your favourite example of your work in action?

It’s the moments when I can see that I have been a part of inspiring a student to want to know more about geoscience. Like when a student has been super curious and asking lots of questions and demonstrates they already have some passion or knowledge of geoscience by the end of the visit says that they want to come work here one day. Or even the opposite where a student who initially seemed a bit disengaged and sees something in the Education Centre display and asks about it and shows interest despite their lack of interest normally in geoscience. Or being able to help a student with a misconception about something and seeing the light bulb moment of understanding.

For National Science Week 2022, I created a glass themed virtual exhibit resource as the theme was ‘Glass, more than meets the eye’. This project was particularly challenging as it was one of my first major projects since joining the Education and Outreach team, I had little to no knowledge of natural and manmade glass, and I had never used the Google, Arts and Culture platform before to make a virtual exhibit.

Making this resource a virtual exhibit, it meant that anyone could access the knowledge in a clear and simple way and making the natural glass samples available to more people then could ever see them physically in our education centre. This project allowed me to develop my knowledge and skills, while collaborating with a wide range of scientists and experts to ensure that I was creating a resource that was accurate, accessible and interesting to use.

What is your favourite Earth science-themed song?

Coastlines by Hollow Coves. I grew up in Perth and always going to the beach and it's now become my travel song. Whenever I have moved to a new place, I play that song.

Thank you to Tamara for sharing her story with us!