Science Week
Coinciding with Australia’s annual celebration of science and technology, National Science Week, St Margaret’s hosts a weeklong science festival each year with a range of engaging events and activities aimed at inspiring and involving students in science.
Then Head of Faculty – Science (now Dean of Studies) and recipient of an Outstanding Teacher of STEM award Chris Dunn said the aim of the festival was to provide opportunities for students to immerse themselves in the fields of science and technology and to enhance their love of learning. ‘Science Week exposes girls to opportunities and experiences that they wouldn’t ordinarily have in the normal classroom. In the past few years, since we started the weeklong ‘festival’, I have been heartened when I hear students’ gratitude for experiences that they never thought they’d do at school. ‘It is these experiences that are often the catalyst that ignite a passion for science within them and if we can facilitate that then we have achieved our goal,’ Chris said. From Einstein’s theory of general relativity to bungee jumping barbies and augmented reality, the 2021 Science Week provided fun and engaging ways for students to immerse themselves in STEM learning. ‘Students come into the workshops during Science Week with eagerness and an inquisitive mindset, and the hands-on experiences teach them skills and scientific knowledge that can be the catalyst for them to delve deeper into these fields and continue to learn,’ Chris said. In the primary school, students participated in the inaugural Science Spectacular facilitated by the Year 5 and 6 students and
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featuring engaging experiments, robotics demonstrations and a showcase of M-Spired and STEM project work. The 2021 Science Week also saw the launch of the Women in Science Lecture Series. The first of its kind in Queensland, the Women in Science Lecture Series is aimed at celebrating the incredible work female scientists are achieving in their careers, in the hope that it inspires a new generation of young women to take up STEM subjects in school and progress into STEM-related careers themselves. Students from several schools tuned in virtually along with St Margaret’s girls to hear from Dr Larisa Labszin and Dr Kirsty Short who both work in areas of research that have been particularly influential during the COVID-19 pandemic. Feedback was positive with a Head of Department from another school attesting: ‘It was truly inspirational to our students. After the webinar had finished, a number of Year 9 and 10 students asked me how they could go about changing their elective choices next year to more science subjects!’ It is hoped the event series might open doors to industry for our students. St Margaret’s has also established a partnership with the UQ Women in Engineering group and QIMR Berghofer to enable the school to regularly provide girls with opportunities to interact with industry groups and learn more about potential STEM career paths.
