[Catalist] Vale Allan Whittome

[John Clarke]

Vale Allan Whittome
STAWA wishes to acknowledge the passing of Allan Whittome, recipient of 2009 Prime Minister’s Prize for Excellence in Science Teaching in Primary Schools during his time at Badgingarra Primary School.
He was a lovely man, gentle and kind and held in very high regard in primary science circles.

Allan Whittome was a teacher with a passion for active science not only in the classroom but outside at school and home. His students were involved in many projects that linked this tiny wheatbelt town with the rest of the world and even to the space station. Allan believed that primary science should be all about the experience, not about ‘teaching’. One of his favourite quotes is by Nancy Rothwell, “Trying to teach science without practical experience is akin to trying to teach art without any drawing or painting.”
He was a generous person, giving of his time to encourage and support other teachers by demonstrating new ideas and projects with them and helping them find the resources needed for the job. He promoted collegiality through the use the web - using wikis and discussion groups to share ideas and encouraging primary teachers across Western Australia to bring science to life in the classroom. “Modern technologies now mean we don’t have to be isolated because we are rural, we can be connected and support each other” he said.

Allan’s message for other primary school teachers? “Many primary teachers have a perception that science is hard to teach. They remember their own high school science with its textbooks and a focus on learning the facts. But primary science isn’t like that. It’s something that the kids can experience day to day and can question in the classroom. Primary school science is easy and fun to teach. And it can act like mortar holding the other learning together and giving it a purpose.”
This is a message that should be spread far and wide across all levels of schooling and across all learning areas. The results from Allan’s approach to teaching show the positive impacts on students, teachers and the community. May his legacy live on and grow.

To view Allan’s 2009 Prime Minister’s awards interview visit: http://www.scienceinpublic.com.au/media-releases/2009-primary-teaching

Regards,

Glenda Leslie
STAWA President

Louise Neilson

John Clarke
CEO
STAWA
Unit 6/1270-1274 Albany Highway
Cannington WA 6107
PO Box 7310 Karawara WA 6152
P (08) 9244 1987 | F (08) 9244 2601 | web:  http://www.stawa.net<http://www.stawa.net/> | mail: john at stawa.net

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