Two Stevenage schools win through to national final of STEM competition
Barnwell's Callum-Mac Deards and Marko Borgis wowed the judges with their Lego robot project. Picture: courtesy of CowPR - Credit: Archant
Lego robots and the diffusion of food colouring have led to two Stevenage secondary school teams winning through to the final of a national science and engineering competition.
Nobel's Rania Soued, Charlie-George Brown and Joe Thompson impressed the judges with their Lego robot project. Picture: courtesy of CowPR - Credit: Archant
Year 8 and 9 pupils from Barnwell and The Nobel have wowed the judges of The Big Bang UK Young Scientists and Engineers Competition.
Callum-Mac Deards and Marko Borgis make up the Barnwell team and investigated how gears affect the speed of a Lego robot.
The team from Nobel is made up of Charlie-George Brown, Joe Thompson and Rania Soued and they investigated how different volumes of water affect the diffusion of food colouring in Skittles sweets.
The two teams have both won the eastern regional heats and will now compete in the final in March 2020 at The Big Bang Fair at Birmingham's NEC.
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They will vie for top prizes, including the title of GlaxoSmithKline UK Young Engineer and GlaxoSmithKline UK Young Scientist of the Year.
Barnwell headteacher Matt Roberts said: "At Barnwell, we are extremely proud of our students' achievements and place a strong emphasis on STEM in our curriculum offer.
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"We are delighted when our students and staff are recognised for the hard work they put in to their work and the many projects they undertake.
"Mrs Butterfield, the STEM coordinator, has instilled a sense of pride and passion in our increasing STEM community, which continues to grow and develop."
Doctor Hilary Leevers, chief executive of EngineeringUK, said: "The teams from Stevenage really impressed the judges with their projects and we're excited to see how they do at the UK finals.
"It is a huge achievement to progress to this stage of the competition and they should be incredibly proud to take up their place and compete at The Big Bang Fair in March 2020.
"Going into its twelfth year in 2020, The Big Bang Fair continues to be a great source of STEM inspiration for young people, providing an amazing opportunity for young visitors, their teachers and parents to get hands-on with a wide range of activities, workshops and shows, and engage in meaningful career conversations with professionals, all designed to bring classroom learning to life and inspire the next generation."
