STEM

Academy of Enterprising Young Girls Workshop Program 

On Thursday, 29 October the Monash Tech School (MTS) and the YCA (Young Change Agents) ran a workshop called ‘Academy of Enterprising Young Girls workshop program’. There were 6 girls, 3 each from years 10 and 9, who attended the workshop at South Oakleigh College, as the event was held online due to COVID restrictions. The students included: 

Esther Walker, Nicole Gordon & Mapla La (all year 10) and Joanna Staikos, Julee Chy & Sally Wu (all Year 9). 

This program was delivered by Young Change Agents taking a blended approach with online pre-recorded videos and live facilitation via video calls and online engagement platforms (e.g. Google Classroom, Microsoft Teams) depending on school preferences. This allowed for live support and engagement with students whilst also minimising the risk of disruption due to internet outages by providing video instructions that students can replay, as needed, to get activity instructions.  

The facilitated program was offered to schools as a full-day program or across multiple sessions aligning with their timetable. The program focussed on design-thinking stages and facilitated students moving through problem-definition, ideation, validation, prototyping, and pitching. The other participating schools along with South Oakleigh College’s 6 students-One team, included: 

Brentwood SC – 3 students (1 team) 

Glen Waverley SC – 20 students (approx. 4 teams) 

Mount Waverley SC – 9 students (approx. 2 teams) 

Wheelers Hill – 3 students (one team) 

Students were given a list of contemporary issues from which they would choose one and work in groups to come up with ideas and actions. The topic they chose was ‘News: Is it accurate?’ 

A summary of ideas and actions based on collaboration is attached. Also attached are photos taken by MTS on the day, although the program was being delivered virtually. 

Adrian Hajra 

Learning Specialist STEM