Students from Kingswood High School have participated in an innovative STEM program aimed at showcasing careers in health and fostering a creative learning experience in maths and sustainable design.
The Maths in Health program, developed by the NSW Ministry of Health and NSW Department of Education in collaboration with Health Infrastructure, seeks to highlight the various job opportunities in health while offering engaging activities that promote education in maths and sustainable design.
Year 9 students were asked to name and design a hospital for their local community, calculate the materials and cost, and suggest sustainable alternatives to traditional building materials.
Circular hospitals to provide easy patient access, cherry blossom gardens to support wellbeing and sustainable structural designs were some of the innovative ideas developed by the students.
“The lesson had great value in a whole range of ways, particularly in demonstrating how maths is applied in the real world and why it’s so important,” said Kingswood High School Maths Teacher Vittorio Bavaro.
“Participating in the activity showed them all the work that goes into creating and maintaining a hospital and broadened their knowledge of the industry and career opportunities.”
Vesna Slepcev, Ministry of Health Senior Analyst, said the event showed the benefits of collaborating across agencies.
“It was wonderful to see the students so engaged with creating their unique ‘Hospital of the Future’ and applying maths to real world scenarios,” said Vesna.
Students gave positive feedback, describing the program as a great experience and said they enjoyed the office tour as they felt very welcomed.
“It was good to see all the opportunities you can get here, and it made me more interested in working in health,” said Isaac, Year 9 maths student.