Students gathered in Room 19 and joined students all over Ireland to participate in the Opening Ceremony of the 58th BT Young Science and Technology Exhibitions. The BT banners and flags were in evidence as where their projects on Mr Dunne's Wall of Fame. Speakers, including The President of Ireland Micheal D Higgins, congratulated students on their wonderful achievements as Young Scientist Finalists 2022.
Earlier on Wednesday morning Room 19 became BTYSTE central, the kettle and microwave moved in, a variety of snacks purchased, the first years' good luck message and names alerted passers-by to what was happening. There was a photo shoot for the Fingal Independent. The Principal delivered a gift voucher towards refreshments. Round 1 Virtual interviews with the Judges took place. It suddenly all became very real.
The afternoon continued with students preparing for Round 2 Interviews, their support for each other evident. They can be proud of the commitment they showed. Their teachers applaud the efforts they made, individually and collectively to make this an experience to remember for all. They noticed the support given by the more experienced individuals, the Tech help, the cakes, the Games console. This unselfish attitude has been a feature of this group who helped each other produce videos , prepare report booklets, gather data. Indeed the students would like to acknowledge the support they received from their peers, their teachers and the local community. Did you complete a survey, take part in a focus group, were you involved in trials gathering data for projects, please accept their thanks it would not have happened without you.
Thursday started early for the students with many of their Round Three interviews starting at 9:20. Once these were over students could relax a little , they had time to spend the refreshment vouchers and let it all sink in.
Friday started well with Stephen Flynn Sixth Year featuring in an Irish Times Article Click here to read the IT Article Fri 14th Jan 2022. Fame.
The Young Scientists gathered in the Hall and then strolled to get refreshments, a celebration of all that had been achieved. They took their seats together to watch the Award Ceremony. They joined classrooms from all over Ireland on the Zoom call, the official Watch party began.
The Award Ceremony began with The Chemical, Physical and Mathematical Section. A loud cheer greeted the announcement of second place in the Intermediate Individual Category and there was Evan Pollard TY on the big screen for all to see. Congratulations Evan . His project investigates the development of a reliable diagnostic application for the early detection of Colour Blindness in children.
Then a Special Award from the Housing Agency for second years William McGann and Jack Howard. Their project Py-Right Monitor designs a device that detects early pyrite or structural damage by monitoring movement in load-bearing walls. Well done Will and Jack
The presenters moved on to the Technology section of the competition we didn't have long to wait Stephen Flynn was announced receiving third place in the Senior Individual Competition, a fantastic achievement for Stephen. His project Sláinte : A.I. Breast Cancer Detection uses image classification and a self sufficient data engine to detect breast cancer in x-rays and mammograms for faster breast cancer screening and detection. The whole room loudly applauded this win, Stephen's second BTYSTE award in as many years.
And then the awards in the Social & Behavioural category the room listened attentively and then a roar Emma McCann TY was announced. She was awarded second place in the Intermediate Individual competition, she joined the other award winners and appeared on the big screen. What a wonderful achievement. Her project Sans Eyes, Sans Ears asks if incorporating a dual-coding element in second language learning improves working memory retention in aural exams. This built on her earlier success, Emma had an award winning project at BTYSTE 2020. A remarkable achievement.
The Watch party concluded and the buzz around the room continued . Up on the screen students and teachers watched as Mr Dunne logged in to the Results Portal. Scrolling down the room read with delight that four projects had been awarded a coveted 'Highly Commended'.
In the Biological and Environmental Science Individual section there were six Highly Commended awards. One of those awards went to Niall Rudden TY for his project an investigation into the acute effects of post-activation performance enhancement in male and female athletes. Niall joins the dual award winners having been awarded a category award at BTYSTE 2020, a remarkable achievement.
Another Highly Commended award went to Stephen Boyle TY, his project used a Virtual Reality head set in a novel experiment which aims to create enticing occupational therapy experiences to improve fine hand motor skills in children/teens with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. Impressive .
Senan Byrne, Aaron Dignam and Ciaran Leddy all TY students were awarded their Highly Commended in the Technology section for GaelTalk which uses a virtual reality immersive Irish language learning experience to promote the practice and understanding of the Irish Language.
William McGann and Jack Howard also received a Highly commended award in the Chemical Physical and Mathematical section, one of six awards in the Group section. A nice addition to their special award.
Finally a shout out to the rest of our BT Young Scientists 2022 finalists exhibiting their projects for the first time. Charley House, Emma Keegan, and Saoirse Taaffe, all from second year. Their project used their coding skills to design Tick is a homework organiser App that aims to help students prioritise and complete their homework in the most efficient manner to reduce stress.
Erin Daly, Rejoice Francis, and Karla McGee all in TY successfully exhibited Periods, an analysis of the lived experience of menstruation for girls aims to discover if there is still a stigma surrounding menstruation and what interventions are possible.
Friday's Award Ceremony concluded with a group shot taken by the Principal Mr Nealon to mark this historic occasion. In his congratulatory speech he applauded the hard work of the students , thanked teachers Mr Dunne, Ms Egan, Ms Mackin, Mr Murray, Mr O'Connell and Ms Teehan for the support and encouragement given to the students, he made mention of a day out .The rosettes and certificates will arrive in due course and then more photos will be taken . It is hoped that this is an experience the participants will remember, that they take great pride in their achievements here. They have all brought honour to the School and we are so proud of what they have achieved.
