School helped by UKESF Scholar
UKESF Scholar (2016–20) Will has returned to his former secondary school for an additional time to run Electronics-inspired outreach activities with students interested in Physics.
Will, who studies at the University of Southampton and is sponsored by Imagination Technologies, previously visited Roundwood Park School in March 2017, when he used UKESF-produced resources to support talks about Electronics at university.
This year Will returned and, as well as giving a talk to Year 12 Physics students, also led a practical session with the Music Mixer kit for students from a variety of year groups:
“I went to talk to the students about Electronics and hopefully spark some interest. I first spoke to a Year 12 Physics class about my degree and the UKESF, answering their questions on university and Electronics – there were a few potential aspiring engineers there. Afterwards I held a lunch time event for students from a variety of years, all the way from Year 7 upwards, who showed a lot of interest in the Music Mixer experiment and the concepts involved with the kits, helping them gain an impressive understanding of potential division. I’ve since heard that the experiments on kits have been or are planned to be used with classes on Planck’s constant and capacitor discharge, hopefully engaging many more students with Electronics.”
The ‘Music Mixer’ circuit board is a hands-on activity that teaches core Electronics concepts for A-level Physics students, and was developed by the University of Southampton in partnership with the UKESF. Thanks to funding the UKESF has received via The IET’s Engineering Grant Scheme, Will was able to leave Roundwood Park with a full classroom kit (15 circuit boards) and supporting materials, including the UKESF Infographic.
“The UK Electronics industry is booming and is a great career choice with many exciting developments which our students can be part of. As well as telling us about the amazing work he has already been involved in, Will shared his experiences of university life and ran a workshop on music mixing using electronics. The students built their own equipment and used it to mix sound tracks using their phones. Thanks to generous sponsorship from the University of Southampton and the UKESF, Will has donated these kits to the school for us to use in STEM club. We were delighted to have Will back in school, it makes a huge difference to students to hear from students just a couple of years further on in their studies, and I know that Will himself was inspired in his career choice by a similar visit from a former student a few years previously.”
Companies can make a real difference and help promote Electronics at schools by getting involved with the Music Mixer project: click HERE to find out how.
Find out more about the kits and read feedback from teachers who have used them here.
