Pupils from Oldmachar Academy have been awarded CREST Discovery Awards after being shortlisted in a national science competition on infectious diseases.
Run locally by TechFest, the Youth Grand Challenges competition is part of the British Science Association’s CREST Awards scheme.
The contest is a new STEM competition that aims to inspire young people aged between 11 and 19 to explore how science and technology can be deployed to tackle global health issues, while gaining CREST accreditation for STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) project work.
This year’s theme was infectious diseases, one of the leading causes of death worldwide. Students were asked to come up with innovative low-tech solutions that have the potential to change the world and improve the lives of some of the poorest people on the planet.
The ‘Stop the Spread’ competition gave young people the opportunity to engage with cutting-edge research and product design ideas that are key to tackling some of today’s most urgent global issues.
Oldmachar Academy was shortlisted as one of the top five in its category after producing a video to describe the pupils’ project.
They were praised for their “innovative approach” and detailed design of a new hand washing device and inventive educational materials that would help inform different generations about preventing the spread of diseases.
The school was invited to attend the final round of judging in London, hosted by Channel 4's Rick Edwards.
Although they did not win their category, the 27 pupils all qualified for a CREST Discovery Award, which acknowledge and certificate students' achievements for investigative, practical and experimental work as well as a range of other skills such as communication, teamwork and problem-solving.
TechFest was awarded a grant by the British Science Association to run the competition in Aberdeen. Northfield Academy also participated, with 28 pupils also receiving CREST Discovery Awards late last year.
Lesley Weston, STEM Lead & CREST Coordinator at TechFest, said: “It has been incredible to offer Aberdeen students the opportunity to take on this national competition and gain their CREST Discovery Awards at the same time.
“They had such exciting ideas about tackling global goals to end extreme poverty and it’s so inspiring to see young people coming up with practical solutions to changing the future and building a better world.”
TechFest is an Aberdeen-based charity which aims to promote STEM activities to young people and the wider community.
Each year, TechFest runs the highly popular TechFest Science Festival which attracts tens of thousands of children and adults to a series of STEM-based events in and around Aberdeen City and Aberdeenshire, as well as a year-round programme of educational events for schools and young people.
TechFest’s 2018 Activity Weekend will run from, August 25-26 , the Early Years and Primary Programme takes place from, August 27 - 31, with the Public Programme running from, September 8-22 .
For more information, visit www.techfest.org.uk
