The Quantum Spin-Off Prize is a science&technology competition for pupils of the four participating countries with national rounds and a European final. Pupils will learn that the world of science and technology is international and that the universal language for science is English. The Quantum Spin-Off Prize stimulates pupils to learn using English in a scientific context.
The try-out begins with the Spin-Up Day, a one-day event where science teachers and their pupils meet the participating researchers for the first time. The Spin-Up Day will be organized in the beginning of the school year in the four participating countries.
Several activities will be organized, with the purpose of letting participating schools and research groups introduce themselves to the other participants and to give teachers and pupils a first introduction to the world of high-tech research and entrepreneurship. The concept and structure of the project will be introduced to the pupils and further appointments will be discussed. In the second part of the event, the different schools work separately with ‘their’ researcher. The teams of pupils get a first opportunity to have direct contact with their researcher, to learn about the paper or patent around which they will work.
After this event the pupils will start working with the inquiry learning package under the guidance of their science teachers during normal school hours and homework time. Two ‘midterm’ meetings between schools and researchers are foreseen. In these meetings the teams of pupils have direct interaction with ‘their’ researcher and work at the possible valorisation of the paper/patent. They will first have to understand the scientific and technological content of the paper/patent, and afterwards they will have to think of possible valorisations that are socially useful and responsible. They should also discuss at a basic level whether the valorisation is financially feasible, in a very basic version of a business plan.
The final output of every participating class will be areport on their project work and the designed valorisation in their own language, that will be delivered to the partner teacher education department and to the researcher that has coached the team of pupils, and a presentation with slides in their own language, for the science and technology contest Quantum Spin-Off Prize.
The try-out ends with the Spin-Off Day, a one-day event including a national science and technology contest, the Quantum Spin-Off Prize, where the teams of pupils present their work to the other teams and a jury of experts. The Spin-Off Day will be organized in the four participating countries near the end of the school year.
Prizesare foreseen in the form of didactical experimental equipment for the school lab. In every participating country the National Quantum Spin-Off winner is selected.
The National winners will compete in the European Quantum Spin-Off Final, which will be organized via the internet. A video presentation of their project work in English, together with a written summary also in English, will be sent by the pupils and judged by a European jury of experts.
A prize is foreseen for the European Quantum Spin-Off winner, also in the form of didactical experimental equipment for the school lab.
During the try-out phase, at least two visits for pupils and their teachers to research labs or companies in their own country are foreseen.
You can read more about the details of the contest in the four articipating countries in the related sections of this website.
