Media Release (21 February 2008)
VCE Instrumental Chemistry Workshops
Students from 17 different schools from the Latrobe Valley and wider Gippsland region took part in workshops held at the School of Applied Sciences and Engineering at the Monash University Gippsland to gain a greater appreciation of some applications of chemistry.
Students from schools including Traralgon Secondary College, Kurnai College, Lowanna College, and Lavalla Catholic College took part in the workshops, which were held from the 12 th until the 20 th of February.
The workshops aimed to help the students enhance their knowledge using advanced scientific instrumentation at the Gippsland campus workshops. These workshops are tailored towards the VCE Chemistry Unit 3: Chemical Pathways, which has recently undergone a change in curriculum.
The focus of the workshop was on interpreting the data from the instruments. The opportunity to use the equipment was a valuable experience for the students and also gave them some insight into the uses of chemical analysis in the real world.
Peter Tennant from Traralgon Secondary College said that “having these workshops means that the students are actually getting first hand experience. There’s only so much you can learn from pictures in a book, so being here is a great way for them to get familiar with the instruments, and hopefully help them with their exams”.
While the experience assisted the students with their studies, the workshops also familiarised them with the equipment that they would be likely to encounter through higher education or future employment, and gave them a taste of some of the fascinating possibilities of a career in chemistry.
Rex McGowan from Kurnai College said that the program run at the campus was “excellent, as it compliments the curriculum perfectly. It’s even better that the facilities here are much more sophisticated than what we have in our classrooms. It’s a great opportunity for the students”.
The School of Applied Sciences and Engineering also runs a workshop in July for VCE Biology students to gain some experience in molecular biology.
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