Thousands of students to take part in 10th annual SciFest
Thousands of secondary school students from across the country are expected to take part in SciFest this year.
The event – launched today - aims to encourage a love of science, technology and maths from a young age.
The winners from each region go on to compete at a national level in November – with the winner of that representing Ireland at the International Science & Engineering Fair in the US.
This year's event will mark ten years since SciFest was first launched. Since launching in 2008, over 50,000 students have participated in the competition, which represents an average year on year increase of 23% in participation.
SciFest founder Sheila Porter explains how important events like this are: "To be scientifically literate, to be able to solve problems - it's not just about science even thought the STEM is very important.
"It's about solving problems and learning new skills and critical thinking."
“SciFest is an excellent initiative that really puts into practice Science Foundation Ireland's aim to grow awareness and knowledge of STEM among young people in Ireland," Dr Ruth Freeman, Director of Strategy and Communications at Science Foundation Ireland said.
"We are delighted to support this nationwide education initiative though our SFI Discover programme, which is working to make science accessible to all and highlights the importance of scientific enquiry.
"It is inspiring to see how SciFest has grown over the past ten years and I am sure that 2018 will be another hugely successful year."
