Rotary Technology Tournament 2024 Winners!

We were overjoyed that The Beacon won the Foundation category of the Rotary Technology Tournament for the second year running! Four of our DT-enthusiasts in Year 6 teamed up to compete against 12 other schools in the challenging competition hosted at the Chiltern Hills Academy in Chesham.

Each year, the Rotary Club organise Technology Tournaments across the country. The Technology Tournaments inspire the next generation of engineers and scientists, putting their STEM skills to the test.

Our local tournament was a one-day tournament, split into 3 different categories: Advanced (16-18 years), Intermediate (11-16 years) and Foundation (aged 8-11 years). Teams, typically of four pupils, must solve an interactive technology-based task and are required to design, develop and build a solution with the materials supplied. The tournament then culminates in a testing session where each team demonstrates their best solution for other teams to observe. The tournament was judged by Rotary members and guests with backgrounds in engineering, technology and design.

The same task scenario with the same outcome is provided to all teams for a set duration, but with different difficulty levels according to the category. The scenario for this year’s task was that provisions needed to be delivered to a village after heavy floods that destroyed all access roads. The only way out was using a cable that was suspended across a river. Each team needed to design and build a gondola that could be sent across the river (foundation) drop its payload on the other side (intermediate) and return over the river (advanced). Basic materials like wood, pullies, an electrical motor, and batteries were provided. The teams had to research and plan the structures and electronics.

Two of The Beacon teams participating in the tournament was a team of pupils who were selected from our own internal ‘Masters of Innovation (MOI) Competition’. The two winning teams from this in-house competition were invited to compete at the Rotary Technology Tournament 2024 to determine first place!  The MOI House Teams consisted of boys from Years 5, 6, 7 and 8. Congratulations to Portland who won overall!

The third team invited to participate in the Rotary Technology Tournament 2024 was made up of four Year 6 boys who are passionate about DT and constantly show a special interest, regularly helping other boys in and outside of lessons. This team were victorious in winning the foundation category of the tournament, which is a fantastic achievement – well done, boys!

Congratulations to all the boys involved, the task was not easy, particularly under time pressures. The boys worked excelled under pressure and once again showcased the fantastic talent we have here at The Beacon.

Click here to watch the Instagram Reel

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