WTS
Newsletter

Welcome from the Directors

It is with much excitement that the Whittlesea Tech School team prepares to welcome back our partner schools to the Tech School.

We kicked off the year with three virtual camps in January: Girls Designing for Wildlife, Girls STEM Game Jam and The Lab Rural and Regional Game Jam for students with Autism or Asperger's syndrome. The students produced high quality games and prototypes whilst working with mentors and learning how to blockcode, use illustrator, 3D modelling and microcontrollers. Check out our socials to see a showcase of student designs.We still have bookings available during Term 1 – ranging from a 1 Day Industry Tech Taster where students visit Melbourne Polytechnic’s Green Skills Centre and Aquaculture Training and Research Centre and participate in a number of industry linked activities from drone flying to system engineering; to a 2 Day Introduction to Entrepreneurship Program where students work with a local entrepreneur to gain insight into the world of Entrepreneurship and the importance of entrepreneurial skills for future careers.

Visit our website for further details:

https://www.whittleseatechschool.vic.edu.au/

We have much to look forward to this year, with a great range of programs available for on-site or remote delivery to cater for ages and stages.

Sandra McKechnie

Director Whittlesea Tech School

WTS Tech School

Welcomes New Staff!

We are pleased to announce the recent hiring of Elissa Michell and Goli Nemati to the positions of STEM Communication Officer and Administrative Assistant in our Whittlesea Tech School.

Goli has a Master of Business Administration from Griffith University and experience in customer service. Goli will be assisting with program enquiries and bookings, as well as other tech school operations. We are thrilled to welcome Goli to our Tech School team.

Elissa has a Masters in linguistics and cognitive neuroscience and experience in teaching English as a second language in Australia as well as Spain. Having recently also studied Science Communication at the Centre for the Public Awareness of Science at ANU, we look forward to her contributions as a STEM Communication Officer with our Tech Schools.

Tech School Highlights

2021 Programs available for booking

We have a new range of programs for 2021 that connect students with local industry and community to solve real-world problems and prepare them for the future world of work.We also branched out from our 2 and 3-day design challenges and inquiry program formula to offer schools and groups a 1-day hands-on experience showcasing priority industry areas across Melbourne's North including food and fibre, advanced manufacturing, scientific and technical services and health and social assistance. The Whittlesea Tech School is also offering two entrepreneurship programs where students learn to build critical entrepreneurial and intrapreneurial skills along side real-life successful entrepreneurs and industry mentors. For further information, email: WhittleseaTS@melbournepolytechnic.edu.au

AutoCrops Design Challenge

Industry partner: Farmwall

Students will learn about zero waste growing, aquaponic and hydroponic care, using manufacturing techniques to develop prototypes that automate parts of the Ecosystem by Farmwall.

Connecting with Mental Wellbeing Inquiry

Industry partner: Science Gallery and Melbourne Polytechnic

Students will explore the factors that affect our mental wellbeing and design innovative solutions to improve or maintain mental wellbeing using technology such as CAD design, Illustrator, Wearable Technology, Microcontrollers and App Development.

Staying Steady Design Challenge

Industry partner: Melbourne Polytechnic

Students will research and identify the root causes associated with falls in relation to the individual, family and broader community and design a wearable technology solution that safeguards those most precious to us!

Future of Work Inquiry

Industry partner: North East Link and Telstra

Students will explore how AI, automation and globalisation are redefining work, to gain a better understanding of transformations occurring in the workplace. The program highlights the importance of developing 21st century skills that are essential in the future workforce.

Specialist Design Challenge: Fibre

Industry partner: Moto Est., Scott B Harris and Institute for Frontier Materials at Deakin University.

Students will design their own protective garments, calculating abrasion resistance from data provided by IFM. They will undertake data analysis using TAC fatality data, view an artist's perception of what we might look like if built to survive a crash and conduct safety rating assessments of materials through the MotoCAP testing laboratory.

Specialists Design Challenge: Food

Industry partner: Costa and Melbourne Polytechnic

Students will investigate the key elements of a value-added product and will examine the properties of food to explore how different senses contribute to our perception of taste and flavor. They will use their findings to develop a new product and use experimental procedures to iterate their recipe.

Introduction to Entrepreneurship

Industry partner: Melbourne Innovation Centre, In2Science and DET

Students will work though five modules: Identifying a problem or market gap, generating a value proposition statement, building and testing prototypes, developing a brand and audience and pitching to investors to learn the core components necessary for successful entrepreneurship.

Student Start-Up Academy

Industry partner: Melbourne Innovation Centre, Hume and BNLLEN

Students will develop critical entrepreneurial and employability skills including problem solving, customer-centric design, business model development , data analysis/measurement and project execution, cumulating in a live pitch event.

Medical Biotechnology in Focus

Industry partner: CSL Behring

Students are guided through the process of designing their own scientific investigation to determine the antimicrobial properties of a chosen plant-based extract. Through online resources with a step by step process to follow from carrying out background research, to considerations for planning and conducting an experiment, to recording and interpreting results.

Bees with BackpacksIndustry partner: CSIRO, Telstra and DETStudents will explore the relationship between bees and food security by creating a bee friendly environment. They will learn about the science of bees and bee colonies, environmental factors that affect hive health, discover CSIROs smart hive technologies, and use data from the CSIRO Bees with Backpack project.

Industry Tech Taster