Students Embrace STEM at Greater Lowell Tech
November 27, 2019 | Lowell SunEstimated reading time: 3 minutes
The school participated in the recent Massachusetts STEM Week Challenge 2019 as part a of the statewide effort to boost the interest, awareness and ability for all learners to envision themselves in STEM education and employment opportunities.
The theme for the second annual statewide STEM Week was “See Yourself in STEM.”
“We need more young people to see themselves in STEM careers, and the week’s activities gave students terrific experience in these fields,” Superintendent Joseph Mastrocola said. “It was great to see so much hands-on learning, as well as students taking part in special projects that will benefit the entire school community and residents of Lowell.”
Instructors participating in STEM Week included Lorrie Campbell, the coordinator of STEM outreach and academic success; history teachers Jennifer Parkhurst and Karen Washington; science teachers Kelly Griffin and Nate Howe; and math teachers Judy Moran, Stacey O’Keefe, Devin McInerney, Helen Sullivan and Andrea Collins.
In history class, students considered how integrated electronics have become in peoples’ lives, how dependent people have become on technology and how electronics help us. They defined what an electronic is, and described the typical components of common electronic devices.
Science students participated in a two-day laboratory experiment, setting up a simulation of the copper etching process for creating circuit boards found in many electronic components. They were shown that this manufacturing process creates e-waste that requires proper disposal. The students considered the pros and cons of various disposal methods for the virtual water created in their circuit-board simulation.
In math classes, students defined e-waste and discussed the high volume of the e-waste problem. They identified familiar examples of common products designed with planned obsolescence versus those designed to last. Students evaluated trade-offs associated with the usage of electronics.
Several special projects were also undertaken by students during the week, including Information Technology students in Paul McNeil and Steven King’s classes. Students were chosen to present the projects to school administrators and other staff members who visited classrooms to observe STEM Week activities.
McNeil’s students installed a KVM (keyboard, video and mouse) switch and additional cables to the new Windows computers and a new Apple Mac mini-computer. The switch allows students to use a single workstation to control multiple computers with the touch of a button. Students can use the workstation to learn about building iPhone and Apple apps. The curriculum is used to prepare the students for the AP Computer Science exam and the App Development with Swift Certification Level 1.
The presenter for the project was Information Technology sophomore Abbey Gingras of Dracut.
King’s students worked on a GLTech AR app, which uses Augmented Reality to display a video representing Greater Lowell Tech programs on posters that can be hung anywhere in the school. To use the app, students point their iPhone at one of the technical program posters and the poster turns into a video for the appropriate shop.
Design & Visual Communications students created the posters. The app is currently in the Apple beta testing and review process, and the school hopes to have it available soon for all to download from the App Store.
Presenters for the project included Information Technology senior Andrew Seak of Lowell.
Engineering teacher Susan Youens has also been working with her students, including Engineering senior Shayla Som of Lowell on the design of a multifunction building to support youth sports at Shedd Park in South Lowell.
The building will serve as Shayla’s Term 1 project. She is serving as the main drafter/designer of the plans for the building, which is expected be open for the summer and spring sports seasons.
The project is based on a community service idea to create a new concession stand with bathrooms for the park, which Shayla said she chose as a way to gain real-world experience in architectural and civil engineering.
When STEM Week activities were concluded, students participated in a real-world problem to solve in the form of a cellphone recycling program, allowing them to receive hands-on experience with reducing e-waste. Boxes within the school were set up to collect old cellphones, preventing them from ending up in a landfill.
Suggested Items
Trouble in Your Tank: Supporting IC Substrates and Advanced Packaging, Part 5
03/19/2024 | Michael Carano -- Column: Trouble in Your TankDirect metallization systems based on conductive graphite or carbon dispersion are quickly gaining acceptance worldwide. Indeed, the environmental and productivity gains one can achieve with these processes are outstanding. In today’s highly competitive and litigious environment, direct metallization reduces costs associated with compliance, waste treatment, and legal issues related to chemical exposure. What makes these processes leaders in the direct metallization space?
AT&S Shines with Purest Copper on World Recycling Day
03/18/2024 | AT&SThe Styrian microelectronics specialist AT&S is taking World Recycling Day as an opportunity to review the progress that has been made in recent months at its sites around the world in terms of the efficient use of resources:
Matrix to Exhibit at IPC APEX EXPO 2024 in Anaheim, CA
03/05/2024 | MatrixMatrix will be exhibiting at IPC APEX EXPO 2024, to be held on April 9-12, 2024, at the Anaheim Convention Center, Anaheim, CA.
The Chemical Connection: Getting to Know Your Vendor
02/16/2024 | Don Ball -- Column: The Chemical ConnectionAfter working for a capital equipment supplier for almost 50 years, I’ve found that the most important part of getting to know your vendor is good communication among all parties. While contact between fabricators of a constantly changing product line and the designers of those products may occur daily or weekly, conversations between you and your equipment supplier may be years apart. That lengthy gap often means that previous contacts may have been promoted, retired, or moved on to other opportunities. You may have also migrated to a new supplier with whom you have little or no history. In either case, you will be interacting with someone you are unfamiliar with (as they are with you). Therefore, it is essential for both sides to communicate clearly so expectations will align.
EIPC Winter Conference 2024, Day 2: A Closer Look at Global Trends
02/14/2024 | Pete Starkey, I-Connect007The opening session of the second day’s conference proceedings focused on global PCB trends and was introduced and moderated by Dr. Michele Stampanoni, vice president of strategic sales and business development at Cicor Group in Switzerland. He opened the session with Dr. Hayao Nakahara’s knowledgeable and enlightening video presentation on the IC substrates industry.