On Saturday 23 June, our Year 9 GATE students presented their mobile applications (app) at the Catholic Education Office as part of the Just Start IT program, this year sponsored by Catholic Education WA. The program requires students to research a problem and provide a solution for it by creating their very own app and covers all of the 21st Century learning skills. The students also have the opportunity to be mentored by professionals in the business field. 140 teams from a variety of schools and sectors were involved on the day.
Our students were outstanding on the day and the judges said "your school has set such a high standard and made our task of judging very difficult". Our five groups presented apps that dealt with:
- Moving out of home (HouseMATE)
- Educating referees at junior sporting competitions (Eduref)
- Building a virtual pantry with food habits and recipes for the whole family (Quik Chef)
- Helping teens find their passions (Passion Your Purpose), and
- Assisting families find the 'off the beaten track' places in Australia when travelling (AusTRAILia).
We are proud to announce that from the Top 50, three of our teams have placed in the Top 10 and have qualified to compete in the State Finals on Wednesday 25 July. These teams are:
- Quik Chef (Kelly Whelahan, Leila Mason, Cleo Noonan and Aimee McCaughey)
- Passion Your Purpose (Alexandra Groves, Anthony Bulich, Monica Olea, Tyler Williams, Sofia Gibson and Jack Bennett)
- AusTRAILia (Matilda Anthony, Jack Bailey, Salina Re and Pascale Weeramanthri)
10 judges from varying sectors of the business industry will then select the winning team, who will receive $5,000 in prize money. Two other teams will also be selected to attend the iAwards in Melbourne late August.
Good luck to all of our teams.
Tanya Atherton
Head of Gifted and Talented