From Participant to Coordinator: Emma Beukema's Oliphant Story

by Emma Beukema, 2026 Oliphant Science Awards Coordinator at St Mary's College

When did you first become involved in the Oliphant Science Awards as a student?
I was involved once as a student in Year 10 (1997 – I am old)

What projects did you undertake, what were they about, and what did you achieve through them?
I created a board game with a partner. Our board game was a trivial pursuit-style board game and we had a section on the board for each type of science: biology, chemistry, physics and Earth/space. Players had to ask questions about that type of science when they landed on particular squares. We also had objects that players had to interact with on the board game, kind of like the game Mouse trap does. I remember we had a mini circuit where joining the wires made a light come on and I made some objects out of polymer clay. I can’t remember what these were though!

What did you enjoy most about participating in the Oliphant Science Awards as a student?
I have always loved art and craft, so participating in the Oliphant Science Awards let me be creative and make things, but about science, one of my favourite subjects. I hadn’t had many opportunities to be artistic and creative in science, Oliphant let me do that.

When and how did you become involved in the Oliphant Science Awards as a teacher?
I became involved as a teacher in my first year out teaching back in 2010. I gave my Year 8 science class an assignment that would also qualify as an Oliphant entry and submitted the good ones. It was then many years since becoming involved again. Currently, I have students in our STEM club working on their Oliphant entries, and one of our middle school teachers is doing it with her class as an assignment.

What do you hope your students and your school will gain from participating in this year’s Oliphant Science Awards?
An opportunity to engage in Science a different way, be creative, and get some recognition for their great work! It’s nice to get science in the spotlight at school and break up all the sport and music events.