[Y]ear 7 students from St Benedict’s School in Whitehaven, enjoyed a special roadshow from BAE Systems last week, which incorporated robotics, drones, coding and all things STEM related.
The BAE Systems Education Programme Roadshow, delivered in partnership with the RAF and the Royal Navy, is in its 11th year of touring across the length and breadth of the United Kingdom. This year alone we will visit more than 420 schools, and reach out to more 100,000 young people.
The Roadshow was devised in response to the Government’s acknowledgement that there is already a shortfall of ‘home grown’ scientists and engineers to meet the needs of the country and by capturing the interest of young people aged 10 – 13, we can hopefully increase the numbers that take STEM subjects and ultimately increase the pool of talent in years to come.
Lee Phillips, was one of the organisers of the event comments: “It’s great that we can revisit St Benedict’s this year and really inspire future generations of young people, opening their eyes to the breath-taking opportunities that are out there in STEM related careers, just waiting for them! We hope to be back again next year to engage with yet more students.”
Karen Kelso, Assistant Headteacher and Subject Leader for Science at St Benedict’s comments: “The BAE Roadshow was a fantastic opportunity for our students who learned about a whole range of STEM careers and new technologies. Our students enjoyed seeing how drones work and finding about coding.”
“Their favourite part was when met an interactive robot that not only could tell you all about itself but could recognize voices and faces and even perform Tai Chi! Shows like this are an engaging way to inspire students to consider pursuing a STEM career.”