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Over the last few years we have had different groups of students do the Youth STEMM Awards as their elective. For this award, they have done a lot of work in the different STEMM fields (Science, Technology, Engineering, Maths and Medicine).
There were 4 different strands they worked towards: 'Inspiring the next generation', 'Engaging the public', 'Developing your skills and knowledge' and 'Shaping your future'. All the students have worked really hard on the activities and resources they developed and all the different skills and research that they have done to gain the required knowledge.
On this website you will see a selection of all the things they have done in the last year towards this award.
Our Experience.
I loved this elective. I especially liked having the opportunity to teach younger students about things we have learned at our school. You can put this award on applications and CVs, which I will definitely be doing as this award is very useful. I found it very interesting and helpful yet it wasn't very strict, meaning I could have fun while doing a bunch of science and other neeky things :). Although it sounds boring, I promise it was extremely fun and I would definitely recommend it. - Yosha (and Buddies) 9B.
This year in STEMM
I personally have had an amazing experience doing the youth STEMM award in my elective this year. I really enjoyed being encouraged to do things I know I wanted to do but just didn't have the current motivation for. The amount of freedom within the vague area of science, technology, engineering, maths and medicine was amazing and meant I could do a wide range of activities without getting bored. Just over halfway through the year I decided that I was enjoying it so much that I would ask to "upgrade" to the next level - silver. This meant instead of 45 hours I would do 90 hours this year which despite being tricky and quite a commitment, was really enjoyable and I feel like I have really benefited from. The STEMM award has also given me opportunities I might not have otherwise had, for instance I have been allowed to help out with the KS3 science club which has been very beneficial and enjoyable! Overall, the youth STEMM award has been really enjoyable and the only possible downside I can think of is the level of commitment which may be a bit difficult for some people (as at least some out of school hours are required for bronze). However, the award was perfect for me.
-Daniel Waine
The Youth STEMM Award is a great experience for anyone with a passion in any of the STEMM sectors. It pushed me to do things I may not have done otherwise. I attended two work experience programmes, completed the TeenTech Award, and learnt many fascinating things in the areas of Physics, Engineering, and Computing. Because of how much I loved it, I also decided to upgrade to Silver, doing 90 hours of volunteering, learning, and work experience. I attended many clubs as well, such as Robotics Club and Innovations Club, both of which I feel have benefited in a positive way.
The only downside of the YSA, is that the Gold Award is only available for Sixth Form (I am in Year 9...). However, completing the Silver Award has been a great experience none the less, and I will be eagerly waiting for Year 12!
>>> Akhil
Review of STEMM elective
I loved this elective. It helped build my skills, gave me the opportunity to collaborate with others , connect with a wider community and broadened my general knowledge of the STEMM sectors.
About broadening my skills, you may just think that it is STEMM related skills such as experimentation skills. While that is true, I also had the chance to develop many other skills such as social media, teaching, public speaking and research (though that is heavily related but not directly under STEMM’s domain). I especially wish to talk about developing people skills. I was able to develop them via collaboration with fellow students on projects, visiting a primary school and teaching to the kids and speaking on Youtube.
I also like the fact you could choose your own activities . In class, you may be intrigued by a certain topic but the curriculum may demand that you have to brush past it. In the elective, you were able to go down a wormhole of knowledge to your heart's content and mount projects that a classroom's time constraint may not allow etc etc.
To any student considering STEMM, I’d say go for it. You’d enjoy yourself, build skills both related to the STEMM sectors and otherwise and get the chance for many new opportunities.
-Ishika R
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