23 February 2006
Reporoa College science teacher Tim McLay has been granted a Royal Society of New Zealand Fellowship to spend a year working for Ensis, the joint venture between Crown Research Institute Scion and Australia’s CSIRO.
The Fellowship is part of the New Zealand Science, Mathematics and Technology Teacher Fellowship Scheme, which enables science teachers to gain valuable research experience in the field.
Tim left his Reporoa Colllege classroom and officially began his Ensis duties on the 7 of February. He will be working on a variety of field and laboratory projects, including investigating nitrogen leaching from broom (a leguminous weed), and its impact on water quality.
The Ensis project is a response to widespread concern about increasing concentrations of nitrate in surface and ground water, and the need to quantify the sources of the nitrogen.
“I wanted a project that would be meaningful. I wanted to collect information that could be useful to Ensis and the community. The broom study will take place where my students live and will help them understand how science is used to investigate problems,” says Tim.
Where possible, Tim will also invite some of his Reporoa College students to visit Ensis to promote science as an exciting career option and will help to facilitate work placements for interested students.
Ensis Land Application Leader, Guna Magesan, says Tim is a welcome addition to the research team.
“This is an important project for the Taupo and Rotorua regions. Everyone knows this area has a real problem with water quality and we need to know all the different contributors to the problem, of which gorse is one.
“At the same time, the Fellowship and associated research project has given Ensis the opportunity to reach out to schools. Hopefully this will give them an appreciation of environmental science, and its importance for the future,” he says.
Tim sees his time at Ensis as a chance to learn and grow as a teacher, but even after 27 years dedicated to teaching, he will still miss his students while he is gone.
“I will definitely miss the interaction with students. It is a real buzz when students are engaged in learning. Working with teenagers is fun. Everyday is different.”