STEM is an acronym for the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics disciplines. At Trinity Anglican School, these disciplines are taught in an integrated, cross-disciplinary way that increases student interest and develops key skills such as creative thinking and problem-solving.
As the world around us changes, our skills need to change and adapt. Future workforces will rely more heavily on collaboration, problem-solving, critical thinking, creativity and awareness of self and others. These skills are particularly valuable in STEM as science and digital technology become more entrenched in our everyday lives.
At TAS, STEM is a holistic experience as students have the opportunity to immerse themselves in curriculum-based opportunities, electives and co-curricular or extension opportunities. This not only allows students to develop a deep love for STEM, but it also enables them to acquire the skills and knowledge to make a positive contribution to the workforce of tomorrow.
A key finding in the STEM School Education Strategy 2016–2026 (Education Council, 2015) is the need to keep girls involved and engaged in STEM subjects.
At TAS, girls are encouraged and supported to thrive in STEM subjects. In fact, we have worked hard to provide a STEM pathway that is independent of gender.
The distribution of A grades among students in STEM subjects (external assessment final results, 2020 graduating cohort) was 48% male and 52% female (enrolment in STEM subjects was 49% male and 51% female). What’s more, a large portion of our graduates goes on to study medicine, science and engineering courses at Australia’s leading universities.
WHITE ROCK CAMPUS
Our state-of-the-art, award-winning STEM Centre is a feature of the White Rock Campus, purpose-built for use as a laboratory and lecture theatre.
The centre is shaped like a double helix (the structure formed by double-stranded molecules of nucleic acids), and students at TAS White Rock Primary and Secondary use these facilities for science experiments, engineering tasks and much more!
KEWARRA BEACH CAMPUS
The Science Laboratory at Kewarra Beach is the only full-service Primary School science laboratory in Cairns.
Students benefit from fully equipped stations, modern and interactive technology and expansive green ovals for outdoor experiments and drones.
Co-curricular opportunities are available outside of the Australian Curriculum and take place during breaks or before and after school.
They aim to extend and develop each child’s academic skills outside of the classroom. In more recent years, some STEM Programs have included coding, robotics, drones, digital technologies, esports and more.