[S]tudents from Penrith’s Queen Elizabeth Grammar School were crowned winners of the technology challenge at Lancaster University’s annual STEM challenge Day.
As part of British Science Week, teams of year 9 and 10 students from 14 secondary schools across Cumbria and Lancashire descended on the university campus to compete in challenges designed to test their ingenuity in Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths.
The technology challenge combined art and design with science and engineering. Students worked in teams to design and prototype a smart musical instrument using state-of-the-art Physical Computing technology. Each team then used those instruments to create a musical performance. The teams were judged by the quality and creativity of the instruments and of their final performance before the QEGS team was declared the winner.
Mrs Cate Bent, science teacher at QEGS, said: “The STEM challenge is a great opportunity for our students to pit their wits against teams from other schools and all our teams thoroughly enjoyed the day, which was great to see. We are particularly proud of the students in our technology team for their winning brainchild.”
The event was thoroughly enjoyed by students and staff alike who all got stuck in and embraced the challenges!
The overall winners on the day were Ulverston Victoria High School, who also came first in both the Engineering/Physics challenge, and the Maths challenge. The Simon Martindale shield, named in memory of a local science teacher from Morecambe High School, was awarded to the school, along with £250 worth of book vouchers.