Kawajit Kaur | Specialist, Digital Technologies & STEM Teacher
St Helens District High School

  Kawajit is an outstanding Specialist Digital Technologies and STEM educator who has made significant contributions to the STEM program at St Helens District High School in Tasmania's East Coast. As the Specialist Digital Technologies Teacher, she has developed and implemented innovative and contemporary practices, which have had a positive impact on student learning outcomes across several learning areas.

Kawajit's expertise and commitment to extending students in STEM were recognised when she was invited to share her knowledge at the 2021 Department of Education's inaugural STEM: Driving Future Innovation Conference, as well as in 2022 and 2023. She was also invited to be part of the Snapshot Project, writing resources to assist teachers in integrating Digital Technologies into their classrooms. Kawajit mentors early career Digital Technologies teachers across the state, and has shared her detailed and comprehensive teaching programs with teachers within her school and cluster of schools. She has also been invited to present at national STEM Conferences, including presenting workshops at both the Melbourne and Brisbane Education Summit Conferences in 2022 as well as at the annual science education conference of the Australian Science Teachers Association in 2023 in Adelaide.
In December 2021, Kawajit started STEMforGirls Club for the Break O'Day Community. The Club provides accessible education in STEM, particularly in coding and programming, to all girls in the Break O'Day community aged between 8 and 16 years. With the help of fellow teacher volunteers and industry professionals, Kawajit runs fortnightly 2-hour sessions on Saturdays for around 30 girls. Her outstanding contributions towards STEM education has earned her the 2023 Tasmanian STEM Primary Teacher of the Year and 2022 Digital Technologies Educator of the Year awards.  Kawajit has inspired and encouraged generations of students for the past 18 years in her Tasmanian rural community. Catering to students’ interests, Kawajit uses STEM learning as a way for students to solve real-world problems, thereby exciting and activating their critical thinking.