Accordingly, 69 contestants were divided into 23 teams with members arranged from different provinces, cities, and countries. Each team drew 01 of 03 topics: STEAM skills and green skills for girls; Renewable energy; Adaptation to climate change, to conduct project research.
Speaking at the Final Round, Prof. Dr. Le Anh Vinh - Director of Institute of Vietnam Institute of Educational Sciences, Head of the competition organization said: “We want to create a playground exclusively for female students in STEAM, a field that previously was almost dominated by male students. Today, the female students brought many ideas with diverse implementation methods in all fields from communications, science, education... There are even many projects in which they developed ideas in very subtle and harmonious aspects, creating great surprises for the judges. Although they only had a few days to get to know the group members and build the projects, they completed their competition well.”
Before that, the contestants had 3 days of studying and experiencing culture, art, technology, engineering... from a visit to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietjet Aviation Academy, Galaxy Innovation Hub and Van Gogh and Monet Multi-sensory Exhibition.
From research, practical experience and guidance from teachers, the contestants started to implement their projects. They applied knowledge of science, technology, engineering, biology, etc. to complete the project. At the same time, with the ability to proficiently use graphic and design tools and software, along with aesthetic talent, from the initial sketch ideas, the female students gradually completed impressive and unique research products containing many interesting and useful scientific contents. In addition, they spent time creating simple products and models to illustrate their ideas and proposals.
The project topics chosen by the contestant groups revolve around the following issues: Building schools, green and smart housing; using solar energy, wind energy in agriculture, hydropower; innovative solutions for electronic waste, etc.
Project “Laugh and learn-Climate Change-Funny Course” won first prize in the topic of Climate Change Adaptation
Dr. Nguyen Thi Thu Trang - Director of the Center for Research and Application of STEM Education, Ho Chi Minh City University of Education, a judge of the contest, shared: "The 23 contestants' projects all have their own creativity, especially many projects related to the local environment and climate such as mountainous areas, plains... From the contest, students can show off their skills and knowledge in science, engineering, technology... fields that are traditionally male strengths, making them more confident in themselves, going beyond their limits".
In the final round of the competition, 23 teams with 23 projects will compete in presentations with the Jury. Based on the criteria: Creativity and innovation; Feasibility and application; Collaboration and teamwork,... The Jury will select the 9 best teams to move on to compete for first and second prizes.
Final results of STEAM FOR GIRLS - GREEN STEAM FOR GIRLS 2024:
3 first prizes go to:
Renewable Energy Topic: Project "Biomass Energy - Turning Challenges into Opportunities" by contestant group Nguyen Phuong Anh (Ha Giang); Truong Dong Nhi (Ninh Thuan); Pham Le Vy (Tra Vinh).
Green STEAM Skills Topic: Project “Green living locally - Building local green living spaces” by contestant group Natnicha Chanapha (Thailand); Nguyen Ha Linh (Hanoi); Adriana Fariesha (Malaysia)
Topic: Climate Change Adaptation: Project “Laugh and learn-Climate Change-Funny Course” by contestant group Charinrat Mahapaisan (Thailand); Nguyen Duong Yen My (Quang Tri); Nurul Alya Syafiah (Malaysia).
Nguyen Phuong Anh - a contestant from Ha Giang who won first prize said: "My group built a biomass energy project" to encourage people, especially in mountainous areas like Ha Giang, to take advantage of natural energy sources to serve their daily life and develop local tourism. I feel very happy and proud that my friends and I have achieved this. The competition has helped me learn many interesting skills and knowledge about STEAM and especially make many new friends in the country and other countries."
6 second prizes went to: Project “Small water energy, Big efficiency”; Project “Our dream school”; Project “Green living every day”; Project “Drying technology to process food waste into animal feed or recycled materials”; Project “Creative solutions to reduce carbon dioxide emissions in daily life”; Project “Analysis of some root causes of climate change”. The Organizing Committee also awarded 14 third prizes to the remaining 14 teams of the final round and outstanding individual prizes.
STEAM education for girls aims to provide necessary knowledge and skills in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics with an integrated arts approach. The STEAM FOR GIRLS competition is a playground for girls to practice skills, critical thinking, develop knowledge and assert themselves with friends domestically and internationally.
With high-quality creative projects, the competition has proven that there are no limits for women, even in the fields of science, technology and engineering. Female students are future inventors and scientists who need to be nurtured and developed.
STEAM FOR GIRLS is a competition organized by the Vietnam Institute of Educational Sciences (an agency under the Ministry of Education and Training) in collaboration with the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the Victoria School Education System, with the goal of promoting STEAM education for female students and contributing to the realization of gender equality in education.
The final round of the competition took place from September 30 to October 4 with the participation of 69 female secondary school students from 18 provinces and cities across the country, along with representatives from Thailand, Laos, and Malaysia, with many rich experiential activities.
