The Grangemouth Flood Protection Scheme has announced the winners of its STEM education programme for schools, which aims to inspire the next generation of original thinkers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
Taking the top spot are The Flood Fixers from Carronshore Primary School (pictured above) who were awarded first place.
The group really impressed the judges with their carefully considered flood design, which was presented in a clear and concise way and supported by very detailed diagrams.
Carronshore Primary School teacher, Karen Mardon, said: “We are absolutely delighted with the win. The children worked so hard, and it was a brilliant learning experience for everyone involved. It was also a good project in terms of developing the skills needed for high school.”
The Flood Breakers from Bowhouse Primary and The Tsunamis from Moray Primary, were Highly Commended for their designs which really considered the community around the scheme, one of which even explored flood protection strategies in French.
Teams from Bowhouse and Moray were highly commended
The Dancing Dinosaurs from the Grangemouth Sea Cadets won the Community Group prize after impressing the judges with their breadth of knowledge and ability to answer technical questions on flood protection.
Congratulating the winners, Alistair Dawson, Infrastructure Projects Manager at Falkirk Council, said: “There were some really strong submissions in our very first STEM programme. I would like to say a very well done to all of the children and teachers for putting the hard work in.
“I was really impressed by just how much time the students had taken over their entries and the depth of research that they had cleverly translated into their models. To see their ambition, passion and enthusiasm is truly inspiring - congratulations to all those involved."
STEM programme
Over 450 local school children took part in the STEM programme which was developed by consultants Jacobs in conjunction with Falkirk Council’s Children’s Services.
The children had to find out more about flooding and its devastating effects, then using what they had learned, participating teams were given the challenge of designing and showcasing their own flood protection solutions.
The entries from groups from 12 primary schools were then made into videos and presented to a panel of industry experts.
Jacobs’ Principle Social Value Consultant Rachael Cassidy, who developed the STEM programme with colleagues, said: “The GFPS STEM education programme aims to provide young people with a challenging and supportive environment to help inspire the problem solvers of the future.
“By using the basic building blocks of reading, writing and mathematics, participants were shown how they can apply these skills in real-life situations and unleash the potential that exists within each and every one of them.”
The winning designs will be showcased at a special prize giving at the INNOVATE Science Festival taking place in Zetland Park, Grangemouth on Saturday 7 May 2022. The programme is expected to be rolled out to primary and secondary schools again in 2023.