19 Aug 2020
Ready, Set, STEM! Girls at Canberra High School are racing ahead as they take on STEM projects. One project has already been awarded a scholarship with the other hopeful of a podium place.
Emily in Year 8 certainly has STEM fever. Emily has developed and programmed a robot to read a road track across tiles. While it may sound simple, this project has involved some serious engineering and software skills.
Emily’s interest and dedication to the project makes it easy to see why she recently won an ACT Government STEM scholarship.
While fellow year 9 students Sarah, Emily, Alison and Annika are participating in the F1 Challenge.
F1 is an international STEM competition, in which groups of 3–5 students design and manufacture a miniature car out of the official Formula One Model Block using CAD/CAM design tools. Students then set their models to the test as they take to a miniature track in an all-out competition for ultimate bragging rights.
When asked about how they felt about STEM, these girls say they feel no barriers when taking on STEM projects, in fact they feel supported and it shows with their dedication and impressive application of skills.
The competition mimics the world of a Formula One team, with significant effort being put into their model design, analysis, testing and final creation. All in preparation for the big race day.
Students are provided with access to real-world technology such as 3D CAD/CAM/CAE engineering design software. This experience has allowed students to become proficient in areas such as CAD Design, Computational Fluid Dynamics and Finite Element Analysis. The competition not only incorporates engineering skills but also sees teams stretch their marketing muscles to develop their team brand.
The young women said they were excited to further their understanding of technical components of building and design as well as the highly transferable skills of project and time management.
The competition is set for October. We wish all competitors the best of luck.