STEM education in the Mid Coast is undergoing a bit of a facelift after Rotary's Midcoast Science and Engineering Challenge committee pulled out of the University of Newcastle (UON) program.
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Eight Rotary clubs in the region have been involved in the STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) program since 2003. For the past 18 years, the program has been bringing almost every school - both primary and secondary - from across the MidCoast Council region and Dungog, together for events involving creative activities geared around the STEM disciplines.
The idea was to introduce students to the field and get them thinking around further education in STEM programs. Hence the partnership with UON - a nearby university that prides itself on its STEM education.
The decision to essentially resign from the program came after the Midcoast committee felt that UON's new costing model wasn't in the best interest of the schools in the region.
For committee chair John Walton, the idea of what he considered a drastic cost increase was not in line with what the program was all about.
Somewhere along the way the vision changed.
- John Walton
"Somewhere along the way the vision changed," John said.
"The costs associated with running the event escalated to a point where it was no longer affordable for the average country school to send their students to the experience."
But as the program is something the committee and the Rotary clubs find incredibly important for the youth in the region, it was decided to create RYSTEM (Regional Youth science, technology, engineering and maths) Engagement Midcoast Inc. RYSTEM is a project of the Rotary clubs of Dungog, Gloucester, Great Lakes, Lower MidCoast, Taree, Taree on Manning, Taree North and Wingham.
RYSTEM is looking to return to the grassroots of having students use technology to think and strive for success in a friendly yet challenging setting at no cost to students.
It's an effort that, according to John, wouldn't be made possible without its sponsors - Stratford Coal, MidCoast Council, AGL Energy, Manning Valley Race Club, Engineers Australia, and Gordon and Heather Chirgwin.
"The original concept of the Science and Engineering Challenge was to give as many students as possible the hands-on experience of working as a team, problem solving in real time, issues related to engineering and science," John explained.
RYSTEM ran a trial program in Dungog during term two with other schools in the region, including Gloucester, Taree, Forster and Tuncurry, lined up for term three. Unfortunately, COVID has altered the plans at this stage, with all scheduled events put on hold until it's safe to run them.
The six activities introduced at the Dungog event on Friday May 28 were bridge, water tower, bionic hand, stomp rocket, hang glider and robots. Schools that attended were Dungog High, Dungog Primary ,Glen William Clarence Town, Paterson, Vacy and Gresford year six students.
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