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CyberFirst Girls Competition 2022 - 23

The 2023 CyberFirst Girls Competition is run by the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), a part of GCHQ. The competition aims to inspire girls aged 12 and 13 (Year 8)  to pursue their interests in technology and pursue a career in cyber security, where women make up just 22% of the workforce.

Last term, we were invited by Mrs Parker to sign up for this competition. We had plenty of fun preparing for the qualifying round by practising challenging problems which developed our interest in this competition. This year’s contest was entered by over 8,700 girls from across the four nations of the UK, including three Year 8 students from St Clement Danes School Ishwari Pandya, Prisha Yadav and Clara Stroh. There were three other teams from our school who were competing with the remaining schools regionally. We successfully managed, for the first time in St Clement Danes history, to reach the regional finals which were held at BT's innovation labs in Adastral Park, Ipswich, Suffolk.

In the competition, there were 5 sections. Logic & Coding, Cyber-Security, Cryptography, Networking and Speciality, all of these were extremely enjoyable. There were several resources and websites that helped us learn different techniques during Thursday lunchtime club.

On the 4th of February, our team represented the school in the East of England Final. On the day Ishwari and Prisha were competing with other schools of 3-4 team members. We managed to reach 5th and 6th position till half time but later came in 10th! Overall, We enjoyed the experience of competing and representing our school in the East of England Finals.

After the competition ended, we were provided with an opportunity to attend a technical showcase by BT. We enjoyed watching several displays like Smart Cameras, Security Drones, 3D Printers, Sensory Touch and Cool Advertisements. My favourite part was the Data Analysis with a 3D Printed version of London where you could scan it and access the information stored in the database. For example, the cars driving in the particular area and the drivers’ licence for the driver.

Although we did not win the regional final our experience at the cyber security competition was an inspiration and opened up the idea of pursuing a career within the industry in the future.

Thank you to Mrs Parker for providing us with such a valuable opportunity and for giving us the opportunity to represent St Clement Danes School.

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30th January

Teachers commended for transforming Design & Technology education

We were delighted to read that our Design and Technology teachers, Miss Yalley and Mr Hadley were featured in the Design and Technology publication.  The article discusses the transformation of the Design & Technology (D&T) department at St. Clement Danes School over the past five years. It discusses how Mr Hadley and Miss Yalley took ownership of the subject, implementing a new subject ethos based on trust, excellence, respect, and safety to foster student responsibility and independence. Key Initiatives & Changes Revamping Projects & Curriculum Introduced more challenging design projects at earlier years (Years 8 & 9). Shifted focus to design skills, problem-solving, and justifying choices over just practical outcomes. Prioritized quality over quantity in student projects. Notable projects: Year 7: Robot concepts Year 8: Articulated lamps Year 9: Branded dispensers & modular speakers Encouraging Inclusion & Diversity Created a girls-only club to boost female participation in GCSE Product Design. Sixth-form girls mentor younger students, building confidence and community. Design Ventura Competition Integrated mock coursework with the Design Ventura competition. Encouraged teamwork and prototyping to improve engagement. Use of AI & Technology Introduced cloud-based tools to make learning more accessible. Leveraged AI for idea development and communication. Professional Development & Industry Links Participating in the Teachers in Residence program to gain industry insights. Adopted industry models like the Double Diamond Design Process and Scrum-based project sprints to enhance student learning. Established workshops with industry professionals to inspire students, especially girls, to pursue design careers. Key Takeaways for Educators Adapt curriculum to student needs and school culture. Pilot new initiatives as clubs first to gauge student interest. Encourage student feedback to refine teaching methods. Be open to change and continuously evolve teaching strategies. The article ultimately encourages educators to embrace creativity, experimentation, and student collaboration in D&T education. We are very proud of our teachers for their continued hard work and dedication for each of their subject areas. Congratulations to Mr Hadley and Miss Yalley for their inspiring article and the incredible work they’ve done to transform Design & Technology at St. Clement Danes! Their dedication to fostering creativity, inclusion, and industry connections is truly commendable, and their impact on students will undoubtedly be long-lasting.