Year 9 students from Lincolnshire have competed to design and build a vehicle capable of carrying a seven-litre bucket of water over rough terrain in the Lincolnshire Institute of Technology STEM Challenge.
The STEM Challenge was supported by us, as one of the Lincolnshire Institute of Technology’s employment partners. Alongside our involvement in the Challenge, we also provided a £500,000 bursary to help underrepresented students studying STEM courses.
30 teams of students put their creations to the test at the Lincolnshire Showground, with points awarded for the quantity of water remaining in the bucket at the end of the course, as well as ingenuity, build quality and design aesthetics.
The Lincolnshire Institute of Technology STEM Challenge Winning Teams
Best Large School: University of Lincoln Academy Holbeach
Best Small School: Options Barton School
The challenge gave students hands-on experience in prototyping, collaboration and presenting their ideas to a wider audience.
Students spent months creating their vehicles, with the challenge designed to hone their skills in science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM).
Mick Lochran, Director of the Lincolnshire Institute of Technology, said: “It was fantastic to see all the different approaches the students took with their creations. Some were electronically powered; some were made with swinging baskets for the bucket to sit in – there really were some great ideas.
“The whole point of the STEM Challenge is to get students interested in entering STEM careers, and some of the skills we saw suggest we are in safe hands with a talented skills pipeline in Lincolnshire.”
John Morrison, head judge and former principal of Lincoln UTC, added: “Yet again, I’m hugely inspired by the ingenuity and the resilience of the students who have taken part. That ingenuity from the young people is what makes the event so inspiring, because they are the engineers and designers of the future and their ideas are so important.”
Ash Cane, Social Values Executive at Quickline Communications, commented: “We’ve met loads of students that are really passionate about STEM and future careers, and it’s great to see so many females getting involved. It’s extremely important to get young people involved in STEM with events like this, it’s a great opportunity for them to grow up into a career in STEM and have those different experiences.”
The Lincolnshire Institute of Technology is a partnership between educators and employers across Greater Lincolnshire that aims to promote STEM skills in the area.
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