Post-primary school students from schools in Sligo, Leitrim, Donegal, Cavan, Roscommon and Mayo attended the SciFest 2011 exhibition at the IT Sligo on May 6th.
Over 300 science projects were displayed at the fourth annual SciFest at the Institute, with students from schools all over the region delving into the deeper realms of scientific exploration with some interesting results. SciFest is a series of one day science fairs funded by Intel Ireland and Discover Science and Engineering as project partners and hosted nationwide by Institutes of Technology.
SciFest 2011at IT Sligo saw a range of students take varying approaches to science in the categories of life sciences, Technology and Physical Sciences. Projects investigated subjects as varied as how to get bubbles into chocolate to the effectiveness of memory games, and from the workings of lie detectors to the battle of the genders.
The overall winners of the event and the recipients of the Intel Award were Callum Bashford, Ryan McGrath and Shane Moran from Colaiste Chomain, in Rossport, Co Mayo with the project on ‘g-craPP science’. Runners up who were awarded with the Abbott Ireland Award were Ciara O’Dowd, Emer McHugh and Megan Mullarkey from the Jesus & Mary Secondary School in Enniscrone with their proposal for two artificial reefs in Enniscrone.
Head of the School of Science Dr Jeremy Bird said; “SciFest 2011 was a massive success and we were delighted with the number of entries from across the region. The standard of the projects is rising every year and it was a very competitive contest. We have the second largest School of Science in the Institute of Technology Sector nationally and we are keen to do everything that we can to promote the sciences in the wider community, particularly amongst young students. There are a lot of very promising careers to be pursued in Science, even in the current economic climate, and I would encourage any student who is due to sit their Leaving Certificate soon to look into the wide range of courses we have on offer at IT Sligo.”
Sheila Porter, SciFest National Coordinator, said, “SciFest is a fun and exciting way to encourage an interest in science at school level, providing not only an occasion to celebrate achievement and a job well done but also an opportunity to encourage active and collaborative learning. The rapid increase in participation in the competition is a clear indication of the interest and enthusiasm among students and teachers in the investigative approach to teaching and learning science. I would like to thank all of our partners including Intel, Discover Science and Engineering, BT, Abbott Ireland, PharmaChemical Ireland and all the Institutes of Technology. Without their support, none of this would be possible”.
Overall Winner: (Pictured above) The overall winner of SciFest 2011 at IT Sligo and the winners of the Intel Award were three students from Colaiste Chomain, in Rossport, Co Mayo/ Pictured from left to right are; Head of School of Science, Dr Jeremy Bird; Stephanie O’Neill, Discover Science and Engineering; students Callum Bashford, Ryan McGrath and Shane Moran, their teacher Collette Nic Liaim; and Bill Crowe, IT Sligo lecturer and SciFest coordinator.
Runner Up: (Picture above) Runner up and winner of the Abbott Ireland Award Ciara O’Dowd from Jesus & Mary Secondary School in Enniscrone pictured with Helena P Warock from Abbott Ireland. Missing from the photo are Ciara’s teammates, Emer McHugh and Megan Mullarkey.
Image Caption: Winners of first prize in the Senior Physical Science Prize, Ursuline College students Ellen Walsh, Hannah Coleman and Aisling Hickey pictured with Head of School of Science, Dr Jeremy Bird.
Image Caption: Winners 1st prize in the Senior Technology Science Prize and the Maths Award went to Leah Hayes, Sophie Murphy and Aisling Davis from Ursline College.
Sligo Grammar School students Deaglan Connolly Bree, Nathan Burke and Ashok Marandhar took home second prize in the Junior Physical Science Award.
