STEM Winners at Castic 19

Loughborough Schools Foundation’s reigning UK Young Engineers of the Year are celebrating further success after taking home a silver medal in a prestigious international science competition.

Grace, Brendan and Aalia won second place in the China Adolescents and Technology Innovation Contest (CASTIC) 2019, held in in Macau, China, for their Music Splash project.

The 14 year-old students have had a hugely successful year following big wins at the Big Bang Competition and being named GSK’s UK Young Engineers of the Year 2019. Representing the UK and competing against more than 50 teams from around the world the pupils showed off their innovative engineering skills on a global stage.

The team showcased its ‘Music Splash’ app which uses machine learning to analyse music performance and provide feedback to help you improve and work towards grading. Grace and Aalia described the project as a “guide to instant perfection and is like a music teacher in an app.” As well as winning silver medals, the Music Splash team also received interest from a Chinese business to help develop their app.

CASTIC is an international contest designed and organised for science loving students aged between 12 and 20 and is considered to be the most prestigious competition for young scientists around the world. Over 220 international students from 51 countries took part in the competition, with more than 400 young Chinese scientists entering 300 projects in 13 specific categories.

Following their prestigious win the team will now compete in the distinguished European competition, the EUCYS (European Union Contest for Young Scientists) in September, held in Sofia, Bulgaria.

Daljit Kaur, STEM Leader at Loughborough Schools Foundation commented on the pupils’ success:

“We’re immensely proud of how far team Music Splash have come in the past year. Their innovation and skill has opened so many doors for them in the science and engineering field, from work experience placements with GSK to having the opportunity to travel and compete all over the world. It’s been an incredible experience for our young engineers and the skills they have learned will remain with them as they advance in their education and adult lives.

“Their success is testament to the commitment of our pupils, with lunchtimes and time after school sacrificed in order to progress with their projects.”

Loughborough Schools Foundation has developed an enviable reputation for excellence in STEM subjects, with teams achieving continual success in national STEM competitions resulting in visits to around the world and Buckingham Palace.