A brand-new format for our annual Schools Geology Challenge

Originally created by members of our South Wales Regional Group, our Schools Geology Challenge  is an annual competition for A-Level students that offers the chance to showcase their geological knowledge, meet professional geoscientists and student peers, and travel to Burlington House to compete for a trophy as well as funding for their school. The Schools Geology Challenge 2022 was our first in person competition for students since 2019. Despite successfully taking the 2021 final completely online and increasing global reach, we were all very excited to be able to hold the event again in person at Burlington House for the 2022 final. To mark the occasion, we trialed a brand-new format, hoping to inspire teams to try something different in a supportive atmosphere.  

In the past, students would take part in regional heats and the winners of those heats would be invited to take part in the final in Burlington House. The students would then need to do a presentation, create a poster and then take part in a quiz. The competition had enjoyed a lot of success thanks to the hard work of our Regional Groups running local heats but in order to widen access to the competition a change in format was needed.  Removing the need to enter a regional heat from the competition has meant that students could take part from all over the UK (and beyond) regardless of their location. And for the first time since its creation, our 2021 competition was won by a team based in Kuala Lumpur! 

New year, new competition

This year we went for a different approach; to make the competition as inclusive and accessible as possible. We wanted to make a particular effort to welcome students with an interest in geography or other science subjects and have therefore removed any requirement to have studied geology in order to take part. We relied heavily on social media to reach out to new and under-represented groups, making it clear that the rules and format had been revamped to ensure those without access to geology A-level had an equal chance of success. Coming from a geography background myself, I knew the value of encouragement and a welcoming environment when it came to exploring a subject for the first time. I was so pleased to be able to focus on inclusion and widening competition’s reach.  

In order to qualify for the finals, teams had to present a geoscience topic of their choice to an online audience. We received a huge range of entries in many forms. We saw TikToks, Youtube videos, slideshow presentations and one school even made an entire website to communicate their concept. It was so fun to see how the Gen Z teams brought their comedy, wit and a modern attitude to our long-standing competition.  

The big day

The top 10 teams were invited to Burlington house for the final for a day of problem-solving. The day started with presentations from our judges Emily Imrie, Wesley Dixon and Professor Christopher Jackson, who told us about their careers and interests. The presentations were a great example of how there are many different paths that people can take to enter a wide range of geoscience careers.  The judges’ presentations inspired the students to know that geoscience can be accessible for all no matter what their background. The presentations also were a brilliant way to get the students thinking about the importance of geosciences in many different settings.

After an introduction from our Education Officer (Rose Want) about the problem-solving activity, the students cracked on. They were tasked with using information provided to decide where a radioactive waste storage facility should be placed in the fictional town of Burlington. The students had to do this while also thinking about the potential environmental impacts as well as socio-economic factors. Radioactive waste management is important because it is imperative that we process, package, store and manage our radioactive waste in a safe, efficient way for the long term to ensure we protect ourselves and our environment from its potential negative effects long into the future. Geoscience information, knowledge and skills are essential in this.  

A friendly, welcoming and fun environment to learn in

A delicious lunch is vital after a morning of hard work, so we enjoyed vegan and vegetarian pizzas before the students began their presentations in the afternoon. Creating a fun and welcoming environment was important for the inclusivity of the competition and what’s more fun than a pizza party!? We elected for vegan and vegetarian catering to reduce the event’s overall impact on the environment.  

After a yummy lunch, the teams had to present their waste storage solutions to the judges who were acting as Burlington’s town council. The students explained their reasons and were judged on teamwork, scientific application and reasoning, innovation and their presentation. The judges asked the participants questions about their choices and students had to defend their decisions. Students spoke about a range of factors that influenced their choices; from the existence of a fault line with the potential to affect geological stability, to using borehole data to check whether the ground in the area was suitable, and the negative socio-economic implications of building in a national park. The presentations were so high quality that our judges chose two runners up as well as a winner! 

Making geoscience accessible starts with removing barriers

The Schools Geology Challenge is a great environment for students to cultivate connections with other students from across the UK as well as pick the brains of industry and academic processionals.

A student stated, “I have met people that I would never have done without taking part in this!”

During lockdown students missed out on so much person-to-person interaction that it was even more important to bring everyone together in person this year.

The event gives students a chance to hone skills that are invaluable to any career; teamwork, creativity and confident presentation skills. They benefit from receiving constructive feedback from our professional judges and they even get the chance to win money to support the geoscience programme in their schools. This event is a key part of our Education programme as it inspires and excites students all over the UK with the opportunity to take part in something where they can creatively showcase their passion for geoscience. Being able to offer the chance to take part in the final for any UK school at no cost to them is important for us, as making geoscience accessible starts with removing barriers. We would like to be able to continue to fund students from all over the UK to come and take part in the final – and would love to hear from more schools about taking part! If you would like to speak to us about next year’s challenge email me at [email protected].  

Congratulations to our winners!  

Congratulations to our brilliant runners up Henrietta Barnet School for Girls and Sutton Grammar School and our winners Wells Cathedral School.

Take part in our 2023 challenge, submit your entry until February!  

Qualifiers for the Schools Geology Challenge 2023 opens in September 2022!