Science Achievement at HCC

Beyond the classrooms, HCC science students have been involved in innovative programs this year. 

Girls in STEM 

Girls in STEM is a Melbourne program, organised by the Bionics Institute, that pairs Year 10 and 11 students with female mentors who work in STEM-based research fields. We began this program with a visit to the Bionics Institute and a tour of their lab facilities and finished with a reception at Marvel Stadium and a keynote from the Dean of Science at Melbourne Uni. 

In the mentoring sessions, Jacinta and Charlotte learned about clinical trials for a prototype device for electronic stimulation of the vagus nerve to treat rheumatoid arthritis. Hannah and Lisa worked with their mentor Jun to learn about her work in immunotherapy for cancer treatment. 

Only 18 schools in Melbourne participated in this program, which paired our students with leading researchers. 

Think Science

The ANSTO Think Science program encouraged students to work collaboratively to generate a testable question, design an original experiment and analyze their data. Their summary was presented in video format. This was the first year that the competition was open to Secondary students. 

Alice, Hannah and Nathan completed a project to explore the effect of pH on bacteria growth. The link to the video is here. 

They overcame the challenges of designing and conducting the experiment; time management to produce and edit the video summary; and teamwork to delegate and complete the tasks. Their effort earned them first place nationally for Year 7 and 8. Each student received a gift card and certificate. Our school received a grant for new science equipment. 

Alice, Hannah and Nathan prepared this summary of their participation:

We enjoyed participating in the Think Science competition this year. It gave us a chance to choose a science investigation on whatever topic interested us. If we had not done this program, we would never have learnt about acidity's effect on bacteria. Some of the highlights of completing this experiment included being able to talk to teachers about the interesting topic of science and conducting an experiment together. 

While at times the task was difficult and required lots of our attention, we also got to have fun and make lots of jokes. It was such a surprise to have won first place in the age group, but that was just the icing on the cake. Overall, it was a fantastic experience and we would all do it again if we got the chance.

Shireen Vanbuskirk and Lisa Thomson

Science Teachers