Kunard began his talk to our students by relating the practical applications of science, technology, engineering, and math to the world around us. He continued with a hands-on activity, making engineering fun by creating something cool: students built sections of a model suspension bridge, then connected their segments to see its full span. Kunard concluded his talk with examples and explanations of technical drawings.
20111019 FES Jim Kunard K'NEX
20111019 FES Jim Kunard and Seminole SECME KNEX
20111019 FES Jim Kunard vs Coach BatchelorSeminole SECME engineering club hosted speaker Jim Kunard on Wednesday, October 19. Mr. Kunard is a professional engineer with over 30 years experience in the field of civil with experience ranging from power plant structures, high energy pipe stress analysis, and water management to parks, parking garages, fire stations, and libraries. Jim is a past-president of the Palm Beach Chapter of the Florida Engineering Society and state chair of the Society’s education outreach initiatives.
Mr. Kunard began his talk with a PowerPoint presentation that helped high school students to “Discover E”. The goal is to relate practical applications of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) to the world around them. Engineering is remaking the Acreage: from pipes below a widened Seminole Pratt, to the power plants west of the road.
Mr. Kunard continued with a hands-on activity to make engineering fun by creating something cool. Students were separated into six groups to build sections of a suspension bridge with K’Nex. Once they completed their project they pieced the components of their structure together to see its full span. This introduced SECME students to engineering elements they'll need to know for the bridge competition during the district’s engineering Olympiad competition this spring. Jim concluded his talk with examples of technical drawings.
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| 20111019 FES Jim Kunard KNEX |
A recent national survey sponsored by Microsoft Corp and conducted by Harris Interactive, of college students currently pursuing STEM degrees found nearly four in five STEM college students said they decided to study STEM in high school or earlier (78 %). More than half (57 %) of STEM college students said that before going to college, a teacher or class got them interested in STEM (20 %). This is especially true of female students (68 % versus 51 % of males) who chose “a teacher or class” as the top factor that sparked their interest. But male students (51 % ) were more likely to pursue STEM because they have always enjoyed playing with games and toys, and participating in clubs focused on their chosen subject areas (like SECME). Seminole SECME provides many such opportunities for students to participate in hands-on activities that involve engineering problem solving techniques: from model rockets to race cars to robots.
