The Cupertino Courier
Education
Students earn bonds for ideas, action that improve the world
By ERIN HUSSEY
During a school-wide assembly on Nov.3, 16 Harker School students, including three from Cupertino, were rewarded for their accomplishments in the 2004-05 eCYBERMISSION competition. Councilmember Linda LeZotte presented each student with a U.S. savings bond; the combined total was $58,000.
"It was a really great feeling knowing that we can actually help out and get awarded and recognized for all of this at the same time," said Guillaume Delepine, eighth-grade student and Cupertino resident. The goal of the free, web-based, U.S. Army-sponsored competition is to encourage students in grades 6-9 to use critical thinking to help solve real problems in their communities.
Guillaume was a member of the four-person "Styros" team. This group of seventh-graders was concerned about the environmental effects of Styrofoam and their school's use of the product.
"We did a lot of research on how Styrofoam is bad and possible alternatives to it," Guillaume said. Their research found that Styrofoam, made from petroleum, is not only non-renewable, but the chemicals can affect the food that's stored in it. After surveying the Harker community of students, teachers and staff, the Styros realized they needed to educate their peers on the product's negative effects. To teach the students, they created a poster contest against Styrofoam and placed the posters throughout school.
"So first we educated, and then we changed it," Guillaume said. The end result: paper cups in the cafeteria and an entire school vowing to stay away from Styrofoam. For their efforts, the team was honored with the 2005-06 regional criteria award for team collaboration and communication. Each Styros member, including Delepine, Appu Bhaskar, Shreya Nathan and Santosh Swaminathan, received a $2,000 savings bond.
A second team of seventh-graders, called the "Unpredictable" team, was also recognized. For its project on teaching the metric system, the team placed second in the nine-state Southwest Pacific region.
"Our project focused on the metrification of the U.S.," eighth-grade student and Cupertino native Amanda Kim said. "We are one of three countries that doesn't use the metric system, and in 2010, a lot of countries won't accept trade products without metric labels on them. It costs more to do duo labeling on products, so we thought it would be easier if we went all metric."
The Unpredictable team created fun yet informative ways to educate their community about the metric system. First the students conducted research, including an interview with Dr. Ralph E. Carlson, vice president of the U.S. Metric Association. The team then used Power Point presentations and Jeopardy games to teach and test their peers.
"When we found out that we got second place, we were really surprised, but we were also thankful to everyone who helped us," Amanda said.
Each Unpredictable team member, including Amanda, Tiffany Chien, Justine Liu and Supraja Swamy, was handed a $3,000 savings bond.
Raji Swaminathan, the team adviser for both teams, introduced eCYBERMISSION to Harker five years ago. She wanted her students to use their classroom skills to help solve real-world problems.
"I actually tell them to enjoy the process and see what you can get out of it, see what you can give back to the community," Swaminathan said. "I tell them to think about the change and happiness you can give to those around you."
This year there are three Harker groups signed up for the 2006-07 eCYBERMISSION. They are working on projects to help raise awareness of the West Nile virus, E.coli and school violence.
