From laboratory testing to sloshing around in rice paddies and working in a winery, a student camp with a difference is being hosted by the Primary Industries Centre for Science Education (PICSE) from Monday 28 November. The experience aims to give high school students an insight into science career paths. The 15 students from years 11 and 12 from the Wagga Wagga region will attend the week-long camp based at Charles Sturt University (CSU). They’ll see the cutting edge research being carried out at the School of Agricultural and Wine Sciences and School of Animal and Veterinary Sciences at CSU in Wagga Wagga before travelling to the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area to visit a farm, feedlot, winery and food processor. The tour will also take in the NSW Department of Primary Industries’ Narrandera Fisheries Centre. Students will critique their experiences early in 2012 at the PICSE formal reporting back session.

The role science plays in helping agriculture meet the global challenge of feeding almost nine billion people by 2050 will be the key topic of discussion among school teachers at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Wagga Wagga next week. The Primary Industries Centre for Science Education (PICSE) will host 10 teachers from the Riverina, Victoria and South Australia for two days of professional development from Monday 21 November. Centre Education Officer, Ms Emma Wordsworth said the aim is to showcase some of the science careers within food and fibre production. “We also want to give teachers some practical ideas about how to incorporate primary industries into their science lessons,” she said. Teachers will hear from researchers, participate in practical sessions and sample CSU cheese and wine. PICSE encourages school students to study science and go on to careers in primary industries.

The Booranga Writers’ Centre at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Wagga Wagga will launch its annual anthology of poetry and short-stories, fourW in the city on Saturday 19 November.  This is the 22nd edition and makes the anthology one of the longest running journals of its kind. Editor Mr David Gilbey said fourW twenty-two links regional voices to more established and international writers. “New works by recent writers-in-residence at Booranga Writers’ Centre Ms Ali Cobby Eckermann and Mr Jim Haynes are included alongside regional-based writers Mr Derek Motion, Ms Jane Downing and Ms Louise D’Arcy.”  FourW twenty-two will be launched by local newspaper columnist Mr Graham Gorrell in the library, Civic Centre, Baylis Street, Wagga Wagga from 2.30pm  The winner of the annual $250 Booranga Prize for poetry and prose will be announced at the launch.

December hails the arrival of the graduation season at Charles Sturt University (CSU). In response to the needs of students, CSU is holding its graduations in Albury-Wodonga, Bathurst, Canberra, Dubbo, Orange and Wagga Wagga from Saturday 10 December to Saturday 17 December. The change from a graduation season in the first half of the year will allow students at CSU to attend their ceremony and receive their awards much closer to the completion of their course. Graduations will be held at CSU in Albury-Wodonga on Friday 16 December and Saturday 17 December; in Bathurst on Thursday 15, Friday 16 and Saturday 17 December; in Canberra on Saturday 10 December; in Dubbo on Monday 12 December; in Orange on Tuesday 13 December; and in Wagga Wagga on Monday 12, Tuesday 13 and Wednesday 14 December. Read more here.

High school history teachers from across southern NSW will gather in Albury on Friday 11 November to discuss aspects of good history teaching, particularly in the early years of high school. Lecturer with the Murray School of Education at CSU in Albury-Wodonga Mr Paul Grover said events such as this one are vital for the professional development of teachers. “The history syllabus is changing with the introduction of the national Australian Curriculum, new history teaching technologies are being introduced and teachers change. In such a world, professional development days are vital to keep history teachers up to date with new resources and innovative teaching strategies,” he said. In the evening during a dinner for the Border History Teachers’ Network in Albury, historian and CSU Adjunct Associate Professor Bruce Pennay OAM will explore the role of the former Bonegilla Migrant Reception and Training Centre near the NSW-Victorian border in post-war immigration in Australia, and why these experiences might provide important lessons to modern immigration policies.  

Final preparations are underway for the annual Vintage Dinner at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Wagga Wagga on Friday 11 November. Hosted by the Head of Campus at CSU in Wagga Wagga Mr Adrian Lindner, the evening will celebrate the CSU Winery’s 2011 vintage as well as the slow food movement and environmental sustainability. New initiatives introduced into the Vintage Dinner this year include sourcing the majority of the food from within a 100 mile radius; cooking the meal in the slow food tradition; the use of cutlery made from bamboo, a renewable resource, and serviettes made from a bamboo and cotton blend; and the use of oil lanterns to reduce electricity use. More than 270 guests are due to attend the dinner in the Convention Centre, with entertainment by singer Mr Darren Coggan.  Special guest at the 2011 Vintage Dinner is Dr Glenn Withers, Chief Executive Officer of Universities Australia. He will be accompanied by CSU Chancellor Mr Lawrie Willett AO and Vice-Chancellor and President Professor Ian Goulter, who departs CSU at the end of 2011.

A friend’s recovery from prostrate cancer has spurred one of the public faces of Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Wagga Wagga to focus on men’s health in November. The normally clean-shaven Head of Campus, Mr Adrian Lindner will grow a moustache as part of the national Movember campaign. “My moustache will spark conversations and no doubt generate some laughs; all in the name of raising vital awareness and funds for prostate cancer and male depression,” said Mr Lindner. “My best friend from high school had prostate cancer. He is not alone as official figures show one in nine Australian men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetime. So I hope people will give what they can for prostate research to help us old blokes. People can support my participation in the Movember campaign by making a donation online.”

High school students from throughout southern NSW with a talent for logical arguments will gather at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Albury-Wodonga for a debating festival on Wednesday 9 November. Hosted by the NSW Department of Education and Communities and CSU’s Murray School of Education, teams of Year 9 students from public high schools in Albury, Corowa and Wagga Wagga will compete in debating throughout the day, and also take part in workshops to further develop their debating skills. Program co-coordinator and CSU education academic Mr Paul Grover said the event offers talented students an exciting and stimulating day of academic enrichment. “There are currently no NSW-wide debating events held for Year 9 students, and the festival challenges students by encouraging competition and providing valuable debating experience,” he said. The day, which includes a tour of CSU’s award winning, environmentally sensitive campus runs from 9.30am to 2.45pm.

A rural education expert from Canada will deliver a public lecture in the new high-technology Connected Learning Space at Charles Sturt University in Bathurst from 5pm Wednesday 9 November. Professor Linda Farr Darling, from the University of British Columbia, Canada, will deliver the lecture, Rural School Landscapes in British Columbia: Mapping the terrain for teachers and teacher educators. Associate Professor Jane Mitchell, lecturer at the School of Teacher Education at CSU in Bathurst said, “Professor Farr Darling’s talk will describe research findings about strengths and challenges faced by rural schools across British Columbia, whether recommendations from a 2003 report had been implemented, and what affect these have had. Given the geographic and demographic similarities between Canada and Australia, there may well be lessons that can be applied here”. The public lecture will be viewed simultaneously and interactively by an audience at CSU in Albury-Wodonga, Dubbo, Orange and Wagga Wagga. Read more about the new Connected Learning Space at CSU here.