KZ: Hi Judith! How would you explain your work as a teacher at Kalkie State School, and as the manager of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority Reef Guardian Program at the school?

J: I presently teach a year 3 class and manage the Reef Guardian program for our school which involves looking after our natural world- all the plants, animals and the environment. It is really important, so I teach my students about Marine Science, Environmental Science and Biological Sciences and they often teach me too!! I teach these sciences in many subjects not just science. In English we write persuasive letters, so our year 3 students wrote to our Mayor to ban helium balloon releases that look pretty going up but are pollution and danger for animals coming down and impact our local turtles that are endangered. Our year 6 Reef Guardian Leaders presented the letters in the council chambers to the Mayor and it helped to influence change to law which now bans helium balloon releases. We also created ‘Fantastic Not Plastic’ cotton bags before the thin plastic bag bans, to promote using reusable cloth bags instead of plastic.

KZ: What experience did you have before becoming a teacher at Kalkie State School?

J: Before becoming a teacher, I was a student! My first teaching job after training at university was in Maryborough Queensland. There was a television studio just up the road from our school so I invited them to see the great work our students were doing. They sent a cameraman but no one to interview the students, so I did the interviewing! Long story short, I ended up producing and presenting stories from schools all around Queensland for Channel 7’S Teleclub Show, on behalf of the Education Department. My director said I had the best job in the Education Department! After that, I became a Communications Officer and worked on education newsletters and media, then after some years I went back to teaching to help start a new school on the Sunshine Coast. I was awarded the Education Queensland Showcase Teacher of the Year for the North Coast Region, and State Finalist, and was recipient of the Luke Curnow Australian Conservation Award in 2018. I was honoured in 2023 to be recipient of the Prime Minister’s Prize for Excellence in Science teaching in Primary Schools.

KZ: What were you surprised to learn while teaching your students about marine conservation?

J: I was excited and amazed how quickly and how much young students want to learn to help the planet and how they want to make a difference. I love that they know that they can- even by picking up rubbish at the beach so it doesn’t end up in the ocean – turtles think plastic bags look like jellyfish, eat them, become sick and die, or by choosing non plastic options. Children naturally seem interested to want to help others and creatures and it is lovely to see them feeling empowered to be able to do so.

KZ: Did you study any subjects or have any hobbies as a child that gave you skills you use at work?

J: Living in a big family (five siblings) with science all around me certainly helped with communication and knowledge. We didn’t have the internet when I was a child, so National Geographic magazines were our internet! I was a swimmer so maybe that helped me with commitment too. My brother taught me I could do anything- he used to whack the hockey ball at me no differently to anyone else which made me such a better hockey player and challenged me to do things I didn’t think I could. We were always encouraged by our parents, they were great role models.

KZ: What has been the personal highlight of your career so far?

J: Seeing faces light up when students learn new science or when they teach me something is always a personal highlight for me. I love seeing them excited by learning and wanting to tell me facts and wanting to care for our natural world, that is what always inspires me and would be my ongoing career highlight. A recent highlight (inspired by years of students) is a children’s chapter book I wrote called Hatch Saves The Reef. The book is about the adventures of a little turtle hatchling called Hatch and her plight to save her ocean friends from climate change, plastic pollution, coral bleaching and artificial light that disorientates turtles – hatchlings follow the brightest like which is usually the sun’s reflection off the moon on the water but city lights are becoming brighter and they end up on the land instead of the ocean and die. It was exciting having the students play the teacher role and give editing feedback for my writing! I was their student and it was great learning for us all.

Want to read the full Heroes interview with Mrs Judith Stutchbury? Grab the March 2024 'Mission To Build' issue of K-Zone, on sale now!