Stem Academy to run summer lessons online for free

Free online lessons are being launched so school pupils can spend their summer learning while adhering to social distancing measures.

The University of Glasgow-led Summer Stem Academy, now in its third year of operation, is making 26 workshops on a wide variety of science and engineering topics available digitally from Monday.

Lessons feature worksheets and videos to guide learners on unique projects which can be done from home.

Volunteers from Glasgow, Edinburgh, Edinburgh Napier, Heriot-Watt and Strathclyde universities have crafted workshop activities on topics including robotics, biodiversity and space colonisation.

Margaret Ritchie, of the University of Glasgow’s School of Chemistry, said: “The Summer Stem Academy programme was built from the ground up to create quality partnerships between universities, schools and businesses and find new ways for them to benefit from working together.

“It gives students the chance to see academia and industry up close, student teachers the chance to learn new methods of teaching, and academics and industry professionals the chance to reach out to younger people and shape their understanding of how science and business intersect.

“The coronavirus turned our plans for the third year of the Summer Stem Academy upside-down, but it’s also given us the opportunity to open up our workshops and reach a much bigger audience by putting them online.

“We also hope that it will keep participants engaged and interested in science while schools remain closed, and ensure they’re motivated to learn when schools reopen.

“Our content comes from volunteers across a broad spectrum of backgrounds, from an undergraduate student through academics to industry veterans.

“They’ve given us a lot of great content for school pupils and student teachers alike, and we’re really excited to make it available for them to explore over the summer.”

The Summer Stem Academy was launched in 2018 and brought high school pupils from 13 local authorities to locations in and around Glasgow, along with registered and probationer primary and secondary teachers.

Over the course of two days, they visited universities to get a preview of student life, participate in classes to see how science is taught at this level.

Participants told how they were significantly more engaged with science, and a reduction in anxiety about both learning and teaching these subjects.

The Summer Stem Academy is available at stemacademyscotland.org