Langeberg High School Science Club, winners of the High School Section.
Smoke, flames, explosions and breathtaking experiments at Science Club Competition in Cape Winelands, Western Cape
On 28 September 2023, Advancing Knowledge Non-Profit Company (AK NPC) hosted its annual science club competition at the Cape Winelands Education District Office. The science competition has been running annually since 2004 (except for the two years during Covid) and has done so in collaboration with the science subject advisory service of the Cape Winelands Education District. The competition brought together the top 20 science clubs of schools in the Cape Winelands and Overberg region that participated in the AK NPC science club project activities during the year, comprising both primary and high schools.
The science club project was initiated in 2004 by Professor Shaheed Hartley, Director of AK NPC, and started as the Science Development Project at rural schools of the then named Breede-River Overberg Education District in the Western Cape. The project was funded by the former Department of Arts, Culture, Science and Technology (now Department of Science and Innovation, DSI) through the South African Agency for Science and Technology Advancement (SAASTA).
Through this project science teaching and learning training programmes were conducted at more than 50 rural schools supporting natural and physical science teachers, and inculcating various science activities for learners, leading up to the establishment of science clubs. In order to test the learners’ skills against other learners that were part of the project, a science club competition was instilled and has been running since.
At the opening of this year’s science competition, Ziyaad Moerat, Science Subject Advisor, welcomed everyone to the Cape Winelands Education District event and encouraged teachers to assist other schools in the region to take part in the activities of the science clubs. According to Moerat: “The more schools we get to participate in the science club competition increases the science environment created at schools and eventually more learners take up science as a subject.”
In the primary school component, the competition between science clubs was fierce as each school tried to outdo their counterparts by conducting awe-inspiring experiments, exhibiting novel science techniques, captivating audiences with science “tricks”, including dramatic performances with their presentations and generally trying to impress the judges to score in their favour. The competition between science clubs could almost at times be misconstrued as a competition between the science teachers of the schools as they prepared, encouraged, inspired, motivated and applauded their learners who were performing on stage.
The high schools section increased the complexity of the presentations by adding a greater range of science experiments, exhibitions and activities that yielded more astounding and mind-boggling outcomes on stage. The audience and the adjudicators at times went very quiet as they took in some of the dazzling and jaw-dropping presentations of sometimes simple experiments conducted on a larger format, with greater drama and impressive skills.
Throughout the day colourful solutions, pressurised containers, tricks and gadgets, beautiful experiments leading to hypothesised outcomes were conducted by keen contestants and an excited audience. There were loud bangs and explosions, single and multi-coloured flames, smoke, smells and burning substances professionally explained and expertly conducted within a safe environment. Successful outcomes were reached as part of the regime of practice throughout the year. In the end, after tough competition and according to prescribed guidelines, there could be only one winner in each of the two categories. Two schools from Robertson were named the winners, namely De Villiers Primary won the primary school section and Langeberg Secondary was winner of the high schools.
De Villiers Primary Science Club, winners of the Primary School Section
According to Hartley: “This year’s science competition was especially contested, with teachers’ experience and expertise in science gaining momentum as they widened the knowledge and skills base of learners. Many of the schools take part in the annual DSI National Science Week and develop their science club portfolio based on the various activities in which they participate and witness.”
Organisations and corporates that want to contribute to this important initiative to support and develop science in rural schools to build a critical mass of future STEM practitioners are encouraged to contact the Director of AK NPC, Professor Shaheed Hartley, at [email protected] or 083 793 0436.