Year 7-8: International Grammar School, Sydney, NSW, ‘Plant vs Zombies’ (by Maya Braun and Max Meyer)
SAP Australia held the inaugural Young ICT Explorers Competition 2015 national final at the SAP office in North Sydney.
The competition encouraged creativity and innovation through technology projects, with students developing ICT skills fundamental to Australia’s future economic prosperity. It was also designed to shine a spotlight on Australia’s digital future and unlock the potential of the students who will become the innovators of tomorrow.
The final event saw the winners from each of the seven state based-events held around Australia compete for the national title in their year division.
Seventy-six student finalists from 35 schools across Australia demonstrated a total of 41 projects that were showcased on the day.
SAP A/NZ vice president and general manager, global partners operations, Greg Miller, said over the past six years, Young ICT Explorers has harnessed the enthusiasm and creativity of Australia’s youth, in a competition that continues to grow.
“We’ve seen more entries this year than any other year in the history of the competition, which really highlights the hunger and passion of students across the nation for technology, eager to grow their ICT related skills.”
“With a youth unemployment rate in Australia at one of the highest levels since the 90s, and demand for ICT skills growing rapidly in the local market, there is a significant opportunity and responsibility for business and industry in Australia to look at new ways of increasing engagement in science, technology, engineering and mathematics subjects. The projects this year highlight the passion that students in Australia have for ICT, which is particularly important as the growing skills shortage reaches a critical point. We must address these issues now.”
The 1st Place National Winners:
Year 3-4: The Cathedral School of St Anne and St James, Townsville, QLD, ‘My Dog’ (by Drew Carmichael)
A Mindstorms EV3 robot to teach children how to act when they feel a certain way
Year 5-6: Roseville College, Sydney, NSW, ‘Always Close Pi’ (by Sophie Allen and April Draney)
A device used for people living by themselves so that families can check on them regularly for safety
Year 7-8: International Grammar School, Sydney, NSW, ‘Plant vs Zombies’ (by Maya Braun and Max Meyer)
A computer powered plant watering system, programmed with the Ardunio development program
Year 9-10: Whitsunday Anglican School, Townsville, QLD, ‘School Administration System’ (by John Hatfield, Jake Magro and Ryan Olsen)
A portal that enables staff to manage rolls, post notices for students and create classes for file sharing, blogs and surveys for students
Year 11-12: Chatswood High School, Sydney, NSW, ‘School Bytes E-learning Platform’ (by Blake Garrett)
An online platform that allows schools to register and utilise a secure online environment to share resources, upload assessments and take quizzes
