Royal Society Project

Around 100 students are involved in science project that may see them end up lecturing at the Royal Society in London.

Thanks to a grant from the Society, UK school students get involved in research projects aimed at challenging their understanding of science.

This particular project saw Professor Tracy Lawson from the University of Essex visit One (on behalf of the Society) for a series of investigations relating to climate change, drought, food shortages and plants.

Professor Lawson, said, "The whole idea is to look at plant science and find plants that need less water to survive in the future. The bigger picture relates to climate change and the need to feed a rising population."

Head of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) at One, Tanja Hofmann said, "This gets the student engaged with science generally and organisations outside of college. It looks beyond what they do in the classroom, gets them thinking about job opportunities and introduces them to plant science in a fun and engaging way."

As part of the scheme, students have to create a research project relating to their studies. Two learners will also be chosen to share their findings at a future Royal Society event in London.

"It's been great and two people will be chosen to talk at the annual Society research conference which will be amazing," added Hoffman.

Anastacia Sudeene is a student from One who is involved in the project. She said, "I'm interested how things work and how they operate and that is why I like science. This is a great project and if I got a chance to speak at the Royal Society I'd feel nervous but excited as it would be a chance for me to put my thoughts and ideas out there."

Kaselle Lee is also a student at One. He added, "It would be very prestigious to get a chance to do a lecture at the Royal Society. It would be something you could reflect on for a long while."