Science
The University of Melbourne’s Girl Power in Engineering and IT Program
Are you a student in Year 9 with a strong interest in a maths, science and technology?
The University of Melbourne’s 'Girl Power in Engineering & IT program' is back for 2020 and we’re once again calling for applications from our Year 9 students who may be considering a career in Engineering and IT. Girl Power in STEM gives female students insight into the world of Engineering and IT while inspiring them about the possibilities of a career in the industry. The program runs over four years and includes a free, three-night camp at the University of Melbourne in Year 9 (5 to 9 July 2020), work experience in Year 10 (Monday 22 June to Friday 26 June 2020) and a mentoring program in Year 11 and 12.
Participants have the opportunity to explore several different areas of engineering during campus tours, group projects and presentations facilitated by current University students, faculty members and professional engineers.
Students in Year 9 have been invited to reply to an email in order to considered as one of the two applicants chosen from Kilbreda for 2020. For further details about the selection criteria and application process please see here.
If you are interested, please email Jacinta Devlin on Jacinta.devlin@kilbreda.vic.edu.au
or Adrienne Donoghue on Adrienne.Donoghue@kilbreda.vic.edu.au
by Wednesday 25 March.
Three of our students are currently in the program. These students are Lakmi Dabare and Rachel Hoppe (Year 10) and Skye Zhu-Maguire (Year 11).
Here are Lakmi’s reflections on her program so far.
The Girl Power in STEM program is offered to young girls who take a keen interest in science and mathematical applications and provides the perfect opportunity to guide them to pursue a career in these fields. In partaking in this program, I was able to learn more about how women in these disciplines can achieve their dreams. In my case, I was able to profoundly expand my knowledge of engineering and IT, bringing me closer to achieving my goal of becoming an engineer.
During my time in Year 9, I was given the opportunity to join other like-minded students from across Victoria on a camp where we were able to communicate our passion for STEM subjects whilst building friendships with others. Throughout the course of the camp, I was able to complete many interactive and engaging workshops, including harnessing the new technology of virtual reality; learning more about prosthetics and what mechanisms and factors are required for their creation; analysing robots and bending their movements to our will via programming techniques; bridge making, and even watching students at the University of Melbourne perform experiments and testing using enhanced and complex technology I’d previously never seen. The Girl Power program provided me many opportunities to engage in educational activities in a relaxed and warm environment. The workshop in which I was able to program robots resulted in the game similar to rugby. As we put our work to the test, we battled other students’ robots. The ensuing chaos roused many laughs and added enjoyment to the group! The construction of a bridge was personally my favourite activity. The simplicity yet effectiveness of the task of building a bridge and weighing it down with several kilograms was very intense and exciting! Although my bridge was not quite as strong as the others, the task was still found to be very gratifying. The mentors of the program also provided many social activities to ensure we formed relationships with others such as trivia nights, watching movies and even a game where we got to explore various parts of the campus competitively in teams.
In being given the opportunity to participate in this program, I was granted the privilege of being able to learn more about how science and maths shapes our world.
These photos are of me connecting specific wires on an Arduino Board (programmable circuit board), which enabled me to create a small robot that could move around the room and of Rachel and me making other friends during the program.
Lakmi Dabare
Year 10
Open Evening
We recently held our annual Open Evening at the College where we welcomed many prospective students and their families. The Science Learning Area provided a number of activities for all to participate in and we all had a lot of fun. It was certainly a night of action in the laboratories.
Prospective students made their own 'grass heads'- 'stocking headed' creatures who, with some nurturing should grow a lush green head of hair! They also looked at dry ice, the amazing solid carbon dioxide, which boils (without melting) at 78 degrees Celsius!
They explored how the changes in surface tension produced by detergent affect a mixture of milk and food dye. There was much mixing of psychedelic coloured swirls going on!
In addition, other students had the chance to use iPods to see inside 'Skeleton Steve' wearing a 'Virtualitee', tried to grab the phantom 'pig illusion' from a curved mirror and looked at distorted images of themselves!
Jacinta Devlin
Learning Leader: Science