Industry function inspiring girls
Five of Canning College’s most inquisitive young students enjoyed an exciting day out as attendees at the Inspiring Girls Careers Forum.
Silvia, who is from Indonesia, Pauline (Philippines), Archana (Singapore), Jeanne (Hong Kong) and Claudia (Singapore) represented the College at the Optus Stadium event, which involved around 200 Year 10, Year 11 and Year 12 students.
Sponsored by the Chamber of Minerals and Energy WA, the event also involved around 80 representatives of 26 resources companies.
Passing the torch to us
The students spoke to company representatives about specific opportunities within the industry.
Pauline, who is also a Student Ambassador, said it was great to be involved in the Inspiring Girls event that was focused on the women in the mining industry.
“It was refreshing to have been involved in an event that was led by women,” Pauline said. “The thing that hooked me was that they made a point of saying the future is about young people. People in the industry know that lowering carbon emissions to net zero can only be done by inspiring the next generation and passing the torch to us. It was inspiring to see so many women talking so passionately about what they do.”
Students were also involved in an authentic problem-solving task to select, build and run a gold mining site in a profitable way. Industry representatives helped guide the students through the process, which involved using tokens to purchase information to help inform their decision making.
Using money wisely
Chemistry teacher Patricia said the students were focused and engaged throughout the day.
“They selected their mine site based on geological maps that showed fault lines, gravitational variation, magnetic variation, core sample results, as well as indigenous sacred sites and ecological concern sites,” Patricia said.
“They used their money wisely to hire local workers, equipment and earn environmental credit points. They also had to convince investors to invest in their project. It was a very challenging activity that the girls really enjoyed.
“It taught them about the complexity of real-world situations and the wide range of factors considered by the mining industry. They also learned about working with limited resources, which helped them develop problem solving skills.”
Trade booth visits
The girls visited trade booths and talked to representatives about what each company did and the programs they offered. They had a great opportunity to network and find out about a wide range of job opportunities in Australia as well as internationally.
“The industry representatives they spoke with were impressed with their analytical skills and convincing arguments when seeking investors and hiring local workers,” Patricia said.
“The girls asked great questions and the representatives were very informative. It gave the girls a lot to think about and helped them connect with industry professionals about job opportunities.”
