Schools and students have been successful in the regional awards designed to inspire the interest of East Midlands students in Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) subjects.
The STEM Student Journalist project is funded by East Midlands Development Agency (emda), through the East Midlands STEM Partnership and allows students to use their natural interest in the media to explore themes in STEM subjects.
Liam Mullen (Year 10), from Trinity School in Nottingham won the ‘Best Under 16 Years Reporter’ award for his report on new digital technology in dentistry – the LAVA™ Chair Side Oral Scanner – a revolutionary machine developed to replace the dated method of taking moulds of teeth.
The ‘Best Over 16 Years Reporter’ award went to Kayleigh Lawrence, studying an MA in Science and Environmental Journalism at the University of Lincoln, who wrote her report on the recent STEM Partnership Forum Event at the Nottingham Science Park after interviewing keynote speakers Sir Alan Jones of Toyota and Semta (Sector Skills Council for Science, Engineering and Manufacturing Technologies) and Kate Bellingham, former Tomorrow’s World presenter.
English Martyrs School, Leicester, won the award for the ‘Best Educational Institution’ in recognition of their very active involvement in the project and embracing the broadcasting medium via their school radio - Supersonic FM - to encourage students’ journalistic skills whilst learning about STEM.
The awards, sponsored by 3M Health Care Limited, bioKneX and Ignition* will be presented to Kayleigh Lawrence at the University of Lincoln on Wednesday 9th December at 3.00pm, to Liam Mullen at Trinity School on Thursday 10th December at 2.00pm, and to the English Martyrs School on 11th December at 2.00pm.
Andrew Morgan, emda’s Skills and Communities Director who presented the award last year said: “The development of a love of science and technology among students is vital in ensuring that the East Midlands will have the stock of qualified scientists to maintain its future economic development and become a flourishing region. The STEM Student Journalist project allows students to engage with scientific subjects through an understanding of the media which is so important in this information age.”
Cathy Brown, Regional Director for STEMNET said: “It is tremendous to see students engage with STEM subjects through their written accounts. The overall quality of media reporting from all the students who took part was very high and you could feel their enthusiasm for the subject they were writing about.”
Rosalind Smith, representing Best Educational Institute Award sponsors 3M Health Care Limited said: “As a company founded on innovation and an employer of many research & development scientists at our Loughborough site, 3M has a vested interest in encouraging the scientists and technologists of tomorrow. We are delighted to support the STEM Student Journalist Awards and congratulate the English Martyrs School on the high standard of their entry and well deserved award.”
The students’ reports and more information about the East Midlands STEM Partnership can be found at www.emstempartnership.org.uk .