In Term 3, 7 students attended the state Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People’s STEM Congress at the Adelaide Convention Centre. Donald Tanner, Isaya McKenzie and Carissa McCarthy (Miss Mac) attended with the students over 2 days.
There were over 1000 Aboriginal students, workers, teachers and presenters from all over South Australia. The congress focuses on Science, Technology, English and Mathematics and the students were chosen given their interest and skills in these areas. Sienna Tonkin (year 6) was the youngest student to attend. The congress gives the students an opportunity to listen to Elders and hear from past students who have studied and gone into the fields of STEM as a career path. For the future, students will be able to apply for scholarships for courses in these areas.
The 2 days were a fantastic experience for the students and they all received a T-shirt, bag and other items related to the congress. The days were quite long with travel into the city and back via bus however, the students thoroughly enjoyed the experience and learnt a lot about our Aboriginal Ancestors scientific methods from the past to the present. We were able to participate in activities and work with other Aboriginal teachers and students.
