Nat shares this latest news from Ryde Academy. Ed
There is a big focus, both nationally and at Ryde Academy, to get young people involved in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) and as part of this the BAE systems RAF and Royal Navy Education Programme Roadshow visited students at the Academy on Tuesday 23rd May 2017.
The roadshow is organised by BAE Systems who spent the morning with students from Year 7 and 8.
The show was in three parts. Part one explored the world of drones, the technology behind them and their uses.
Corey Duke, age 12, was even given the chance to take control of one of the drones and fly it round the theatre! He said,
“When they asked for volunteers to operate the drone lots of people put their hands up so I didn’t expect to get chosen! I found it difficult to control the drone at first but it was really good fun.”
The second session was about computing and control systems removing any barriers around the subject and helping to embed learning.
Click on image to see larger version
The most popular aspect of the day was the Nao Robot who delighted students and staff alike with it’s ‘personality’. India Dale, age 12, was given the chance to engage with Nao who went on to give a presentation on itself and perform Tai chi!
India said,
“It was interesting to see what humans can do and how clever we can be. I have always wanted to be an engineer in the army and this has inspired me even more.”
Lots of industries across the country say they are finding it difficult to recruit the future engineers and scientists and the Academy is doing it’s bit to create a bit of excitement in these subjects.
Click on image to see larger version
Their September 2017 curriculum will include more STEM activities. Ongoing initiatives include school trips to Land Rover Ben Ainslie Racing HQ, sailing with UKSA, and after school clubs such as chess, coding, warhammer and ‘Geek Club’. Students are currently designing cities of the future in STEM club and then modelling them in 3D.
Image: Main image Cory Duke. Bottom image L-R Natasha Morgan age 11, Ethan Wolfe age 12, Rhylee Richardson age 12, Liam Forbes age 12, Nathan Watts, age 12
