On Thursday 24th November, ten Year 10 students attended a STEM event hosted by Virgin Money in partnership with Microsoft. The event provided Computing and IT students with an opportunity to meet and work alongside employees and apprentices working within the banking and technology sector. During the day, students took part in a variety of workshops in order to increase their understanding of the wide range of career opportunities available in IT and Computing.
During the day they:
- worked collaboratively to create their own chatbot, developing its human characteristics
- experimented with new technology, trying out the Microsoft HoloLens headset (an augmented reality tool) to change tyres on a virtual Formula 1 car
- learned about the importance of encryption when sending sensitive data and the tools used by the bank to do this
- investigated the importance of testing products before release by creating and testing their own paper planes built to a strict specification.
The students really enjoyed their day and managed to win both competitions: the furthest flying paper plane and the best TikTok video to represent Virgin Money. Winners were presented with Amazon Vouchers for their efforts!