Wednesday, 13 Jun 2012
Schoolchildren got to grips with modern technology at an exhibition promoting the benefits of ‘stem subjects’.
The STEMfest event – held at MidKent College’s Medway Campus on Tuesday (12 June) – was held to showcase the type of work undertaken by students on science, technology, engineering and maths courses.
Pupils from a number of secondary schools were in attendance, as were youngsters from Burnt Oak Primary School and local employers.
Engineering lecturer Ruth Kay said: “One of the purposes of STEMfest was to demonstrate how interesting stem subjects can be, and to show children that if they do well at science and maths then they too can undertake the same type of projects here at the College.
“A lot of children miss out on fun experiments at school for health and safety reasons, so events like this provide a better insight into what these subjects are really all about.”
According to a recent study, the number of single-subject stem courses on offer at UK universities has plummeted by 15% over the last six years.
However, MidKent College offers a number of courses in all four specialisms – science, technology, engineering and maths – from A-levels all the way up to Higher National Certificates/Diplomas.
Peter Finch – human resources manager at Delphi Diesel Systems in Gillingham – was among those who attended STEMfest.
He said: “I was impressed by the innovative ideas and attention to detail the students had put into their work.
“The enthusiasm and communication skills shown when explaining their work was also a pleasure to experience.”
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For all media enquiries, please contact Steve Knight, Marketing and Communications Officer, on 01634 383277 or email steve.knight@midkent.ac.uk.