STEMfooty will reach an additional 40 schools across the next two years, thanks to a recent grant from the Federal Government.
The ground-breaking program received $97,100 as part of the Federal Government’s Maker Projects - Community STEM Engagement 2020 grant opportunity.
STEMfooty is a 10-week program for year seven students which aims to translate Australian kids' love of AFL into an appreciation, understanding and passion for the science and mathematics underlying the sport.
The program combines classroom learning with outdoor hands-on activities to deliver 50 per cent of the maths and science curriculum for the year.
Adelaide Crows Foundation Manager Louise McDonald is thankful for the support of this program.
“While there is an increasing demand for STEM related jobs, we are seeing a decline in STEM graduates and many school students don’t understand how science and maths applies outside of the classroom or their textbook,” McDonald said.
“Research tells us that year seven is the time in a child’s schooling when they start to disengage with STEM and their attitude towards selecting these subjects starts to decline, but we are already seeing this program igniting interest in studying these subjects further.
“The feedback from both teachers and students has been overwhelmingly positive and thanks to this grant, we can’t wait to inspire a new group of students to pursue maths and science careers that they previously may never have considered.”
Over 1500 students from 20 schools across the state participated in the STEMFooty program in 2020.
STEMfooty is proudly supported by Optus and the Adelaide Crows Foundation.
