Dave Roworth, of Skills Jersey, tells Douglas Kruger how young minds will be set ablaze with F1 Challenge
DAVID Roworth, of Skills Jersey, has a knack for spearheading cool youth projects.
Last year, in association with Ports of Jersey, he could be seen waist-deep and splashing about in pools, alongside eager kids and their madcap Terminator-style machines, when Island schoolchildren were challenged to create an underwater sea-perch using robotics.
This year, it’s F1 cars – at least in miniature.
Digital Jersey spotted the idea and brought it to Dave. The two will pioneer the project together.
“It’s a wonderful opportunity to develop STEM skills through real-world application, to grow the designers and the creators,” he noted. “We’re really trying to push that. And it draws on maths skills and engineering skills and even goes beyond that to leadership and teamworking. You have to be able to compromise, be able to communicate, be flexible and adjust. You take on a role within a team, you meet deadlines.”
The idea is to design and build a working F1 car, then test its speed and handling on a track. Schools will compete against each other in a final, with the winner going on to represent the Island in the UK in the autumn term.
The F1 challenge will be extended to 11-to-19-year-olds.
“They will get to race those cars on a miniature track. And the cars are powered by CO2 canisters, so they’re pretty high-tech,” said Dave. “The winning teams head off to the UK, and the winners from the national competition go on to a world competition, which usually takes place at a Grand Prix. The winning team gets to visit the grid, meet the drivers and learn about the tech behind all of this.”
Last year’s contest led up to a final in Singapore, where 68 teams took part over three days, and the “world’s brightest young minds competed for their place on the F1 in Schools podium”, organisers say.
“It’s all about getting the message across to young people that there is an opportunity in Jersey to take part in these kinds of things,” said Dave, “and that they can have access to specialists in the engineering world and the computer-aided design and manufacturing worlds.”
The Formula One in Schools contest forms part of a push to promote STEM skills, and then retain local talent in the Island. Skills Jersey wants to see Islanders competing at the highest levels in STEM-related industries, and believes projects of this nature fire up the imagination from a young age.
“In the longer term, the message goes out to young people that there is a lot happening in the Island of Jersey,” Dave added. “Technology is evolving at speed. Now we need those young people, who will be there in the future, to be designing and creating it.”
The project is comprehensive. Not only will teams have to design their own cars, but also create a brand, engage with local engineers and secure sponsorship, just as the F1 teams do.
“It’s a really broad-brush approach for those kids,” said Dave.
Someone with a background in education, Dave says the uptake on such projects is strong.
“I’ve got a good relationship with the schools, and they’re always happy to engage in the various competitions and pathways that we’re forging,” he said, adding that corporate involvement was positive as well. “I’ve always found industry pretty keen to connect with young people,” he reflected. “They know that these people are the future as well, and having that contest framework where they can do that on a regular basis is pretty powerful.”
Dave believes that the initial spark is the key to it all.
“It’s about that connection, even for three-, four- and fiveyear-olds,” he enthused. “Ambition. We love it. Now it’s about showing them the path forward.”
