Whiting Bay pupils rise to the challenge
Budding engineers and scientists from Whiting Bay Primary School put their skills to the test at the Young Engineers and Science Club’s (YESC) Ayrshire regional event at Dumfries House estate, near Cumnock.
The pupils from Whiting Bay’s after-school science club joined 90 students from across Ayrshire at the estate’s Morphy Richards Engineering Education Centre where they competed against other schools in front of industry experts.
A series of challenges were set by a range of companies who have partnered with Dumfries House, including BAE Systems, GlaxoSmithKline, William Grant and Sons Distillers, Booth Welsh, Scottish Power, Royal Navy and NXP Semiconductors.
In addition to the messy science tasks which were offered by The Institute of Physics, pupils presented their class work to judges from local companies Barr Environmental and Merck.
Teacher Raye Beggans, who attended the event with pupils, said: ‘The journey to Dumfries House was worth it as all pupils really enjoyed the event. Some pupils were involved in the Construct a Crane competition and, although they didn’t win, they received encouragement and advice from the industry experts there.
‘The other pupils put on a showcase for judges, detailing what they had been learning about hydraulics, soldering and demonstrating how their hydraulic lifting arm works. All pupils enjoyed the three-minute science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) challenges and this has encouraged them to think about possible careers in STEM.’
The educational aspect of Dumfries House estate forms a key element of the vision of Prince Charles, Duke of Rothesay, who used £20million of his charitable foundation’s money in 2007 to secure the future of Dumfries House and help people engage in learning experiences that promote confidence and personal development, as well as offer training in real-life skills to open up future employment opportunities. Karen Alexander, head of STEM education at Dumfries House, said: ‘It was a pleasure to host schools from all over the south-west of Scotland and to welcome our valued industry partners to the YESC event. We are really encouraged by the way school staff and pupils are embracing science, technology, engineering and maths and hope everyone left the event inspired to go further in these subject areas and to return to Dumfries House for similar future activities and school residential trips.’