When Jemma Reed found herself running around the Massachusetts Institute of Technology deciphering clues to solve a mystery, she soon realised her school STEAM trip was going to be far from ordinary.
On the first day, she became acquainted with a shortened version of an almost 40-year-old tradition welcoming new students to MIT, where they familiarise themselves with the university’s campus by solving puzzles.
“It was very different to any experience I’ve had,” the Northbridge International School Cambodia student said.
“It was so exciting for me.”
That excitement was equally felt by the 103 other students from Nord Anglia Education’s network of schools around the world, who gathered at the university’s campus in Boston, Massachusetts for STEAM@MIT Week,. The week included five days of workshops, challenges, activities and lectures aimed at enhancing and transforming their understanding of STEAM subjects.
Held annually as part of NAE’s collaboration with the world-renowned university, the event exposes students to a leading-edge, university-inspired method of STEAM learning that encourages creativity and the importance of experimenting in order to find solutions to real-world problems.
Students also are able to interact with university professors and students to witness how their work breaks down silos between traditional academic subjects to bring diverse perspectives to solve a single problem.
“To see students and professors at MIT who are at the forefront of their fields gives the students, for the first time, a clear understanding of what it means to take achievement in STEAM to the highest possible level,” Jack Cooper, Southeast Asia region STEAM lead and Makerspace and Library Coordinator at Northbridge International School Cambodia said.