For the first half of this year five of our Year 9 students; Audrey D (9E), Dinara D (9H), Bhavi K (9E), Asher M (9B) and Honora P (9F) took part in the BrainSTEM Innovation Challenge. During this program students met regularly with Dr Susan Long and worked collaboratively alongside their industry mentor, Associate Professor Scott Rayburg from the School of Engineering, Swinburne University. Our students were required to research a real-world challenge and develop solutions using STEM skills. Thank you to Dr Susan Long who made this experience possible for our students and for giving them a valuable insight into potential STEM pathways. The account below is written by two of our students who participated in this program:
On Monday 27 July, our BrainSTEM Innovation Challenge team presented our project at RMIT University, sharing the outcomes of our research with students, teachers and industry representatives, who were our mentors. The BrainSTEM Innovation Challenge was about understanding the sustainable development goals and finding some which felt most connected to us. Then we had to discuss this and brainstorm ideas and solutions. The issues which we chose were the environmental and social impact which AI would have on our future. The BrainSTEM Innovation Challenge encouraged us to develop an innovative solution using research, collaboration and creative thinking. Our team explored the social, environmental and ethical consequences of artificial intelligence, examining how AI impacts areas such as employment, misinformation, trust and everyday decision-making. To communicate these ideas, we designed 'Ripple City', an interactive role-playing game where players make AI-related decisions and experience the long-term consequences of their choices, promoting ethical and informed use of AI.