Secondary school pupils takes part in Rotary technology event

Young technology wizards from three Maidenhead secondary schools showed off their skills at a special Rotary event.

Students from Newlands and Altwood schools joined hosts Desborough College at the school’s specialist STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) unit for a technology tournament organised by the Rotary Club of Maidenhead.

A dozen pupils from each school took part in the event on Tuesday last week.

They were split into teams of four and given a technology challenge in the form of a scenario – to design and build a model crane on rails to move hazardous materials following a fire.

Organiser Rotarian Pat Latimer said: “The aim is for the students to all achieve more than they thought they could, enjoy the experience and encourage an interest in design and technology.

“It’s about the chance to put skills into practice and work together.”

Judges from Rotary and STEM ambassadors – who encourage interest in technology in schools – were on hand to provide support and assess the students as they built their creations out of wood and a pulley with hacksaws and glue guns.

“They all managed to meet the challenge but it’s surprising how many different ideas and designs there were,” said Pat.

One of the home teams from Desborough was the winner. It was the second time the event has been run and Rotary hopes to make it an annual event attracting even more schools.

The technology challenge is also supported by the Spoor, Merry and Rixman Foundation, which helped to fund the STEM unit at the college.