Students' Competition
Study Coordinator
Dr.sc. Iva Bacic
Students' Competition
Team Competition "Chemistry in Action"
Student's Competition at the Institute of Chemistry
The Northwest Research Centre for Students has launched the team competition "Chemistry in Action" in collaboration with the Institute of Chemisty at Carl von Ossietzky University of Oldenburg and the Society for German Chemists, aiming to inspire young talent for the field of chemistry. This year, the capacities of the Chemistry Institute were even expanded, allowing fourteen teams from the region to tackle challenging tasks in the university laboratory on Monday, January 22, 2024.
14 Teams in the Laboratory
The teams consisted of four students from grades nine and ten. They came from schools in the city of Oldenburg and the surrounding region, from Aurich to Leer, Oesede to Meppen, some enduring long journeys to participate. On the day of the competition, the teams presented a self-made poster on the topic of water to a jury consisting of university doctoral candidates and completed a multiple-choice test on chemistry topics. However, the main focus was on laboratory work. There, using magnesium, they had to determine the unknown concentration of an acid. The concentration could be derived from the resulting amount of hydrogen when in contact with the acid.
Placements
The overall victory was secured by Kreisgymnasium St. Ursula (Haselünne), closely followed by the Oldenburg team from Gymnasium Liebfrauenschule Oldenburg. The most successful poster was presented by Integrierte Gesamtschule Delmenhorst. Konrad Sommer (Teletta-Groß-Gymnasium Leer) in grade 9 and Zoeke Ottradovetz in grade 10 (Ulricianum Aurich) received awards for the best subject knowledge.
Enthusiasm at the Forefront
For the organisers and participants, the placements of the teams are not the top priority. The tinkering in the laboratory fosters the enthusiasm of young people and ignites interest in chemistry topics. Additionally, working in cross-grade teams brings interested individuals together and enables them to collectively find solutions to the presented problems. The widespread interest from schools across the entire region indicates the great appeal of this idea. Teams from rural areas especially appreciate the opportunity to participate in this offering and experience the laboratory environment at the university.
