The Tribune

JUNIOR and senior high school students who demonstrated their abilities in the Young Scientists Eureka Competition and exhibition received their medals and certificates during an awards ceremony.

Organised by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology in conjunction with corporate sponsors, the competition was designed to provide a forum for students to demonstrate their creativity and scientific skills by identifying and creating a product with relevance to the Bahamas.
Ross Smith, deputy director of Education; Karen St Cyr, project manager; senior education officials, students, parents and teachers attended the event held at Kendal Isaacs Gymnasium.

The judges were: Stephen Bowen, Karen Coleby, Sheena Davis, Charles Major, Dr Thalia Micklewhite and Launa Williams.
Projects entered in the competition were categorised as “investigations” or “innovations” and based on energy, the environment or machines.

Students were encouraged to align the projects with a topic related to the current science curriculum and make them inter-disciplinary/cross-curricular including any one or combination of: agriculture, auto mechanics, building trades, English Language, engineering, geography, home economics, information technology, mathematics and physical education.

According to a release from the High School Science Unit, the competition included a problem for which students had to plan and conduct an investigation to solve; a project (done previously) which was presented by the team and tested; in addition to the team’s use of materials provided on the spot to build a model.

More than 30 students representing schools in New Providence, Spanish Wells and Inagua submitted individual or group entries. Students were judged on the following: question/problem, hypothesis, investigation or procedure (innovation), challenges encountered, data/observations and analysis, conclusion(s), relevance/suitability, research, visual display and oral presentation.
Charles Major, planning officer, said the judges were amazed at the thought processes and research used by the students.

They were also impressed with the creativity and simplicity of the students’ submissions. He commended them for relating and applying what they are taught in the classroom to their entries.