• Click here for Beakers.Bots.Build workshop photos
• Click here for STEM Unearthed workshop photos

It has been a science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) bonanza for Roma students with three days of workshops by the Queensland Minerals and Energy Academy (QMEA), the education arm of the Queensland Resources Council.

Year 9 and 10 students from Roma State College and St John’s Catholic School got involved in a Beakers. Bots. Build. workshop with hands-on experiments and practical information about how technology is used in the energy sector.

Students from both schools were also involved in the QMEA’s STEM Unearthed workshop, investigating the different stages in gas exploration and extraction.

Origin, the upstream operator for Australia Pacific LNG, sponsored the education workshops with team members giving students real life examples and experiences.

Origin’s General Manager Asset West, Aleta Nicoll, said the students found the activities highly engaging and were curious about how this could lead to different roles in our industry.

“There is a continual demand for skilled STEM professionals, and I hope the workshops have helped stimulate their interest in studying STEM subjects at school and beyond,” said Ms Nicoll.

St John’s Catholic School principal, Mark Watson, said the QMEA workshop activities gave a real-world perspective to concepts the students had been studying in the science classroom.

“For instance, one of the experiments demonstrated how perforated well casings maximise fluid extraction, a key process in the gas industry,” said Mr Watson.

“The students also enjoyed programming and operating the Lego robots, giving them an understanding of how technology is being used in the industry.”

QRC Director of Skills, Education and Diversity, Ms Katrina-Lee Jones said the partnership with Origin gave the students some unique insights into gas industry operations and careers.

“Sparking an interest in STEM studies opens the door into professions such as engineering, chemistry, geology and technology,” said Ms Jones.

“The energy sector has an ongoing demand for skilled professionals and needs the ideas and enthusiasm of young people, like these Roma students, as part of their future workforce.”