Year 8 students at Miles State High School will launch into the world of robots and design thinking today in a brand-new workshop for the school as part of a partnership with Origin to provide STEM programs to schools in the Maranoa and Western Downs regions.

Run by the Queensland Minerals and Energy Academy (QMEA), and supported by Origin, Droids and Drones will test their design and critical thinking as they program robots, find the most efficient way to extract gas through perforated well casings, and engineer a mineral separation device.

“The workshop has students exploring ‘Droids and Design’ where they’ll have their critical-thinking caps firmly in place to come up with the best game,” said Origin’s Spring Gully & Denison Asset Manager Dave Atkin.

“Putting their classroom work into a real-world perspective is also helpful in joining the dots between school and careers,” he said.

Miles State High School Principal Josette Moffatt said the hands-on challenge encouraged students to see where the study of science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) topics can take them.

“These skills are imperative to 21st century learners and will open their minds to pathways in future STEM careers,” she said.