Kids Use Drones to Find Queensland’s Coolest Schools

In a Queensland-first, students from over 200 private and public schools will use drones and satellite data to map how much shade they have on their school grounds in the hope of winning the ‘Coolest School in Queensland’ title.

The project, run by She Maps and funded by The Surveyors’ Trust, supports the development of digital technologies education in Queensland.

Each school that participates gets free online Drone Essentials and Mapping Essentials training for their teachers, which has already been delivered to over 300 teachers online. Over $400 of resources are provided to each teacher for free.

The winner of the ‘Coolest School in Queensland’ title will be announced at the Australian Geography Teachers’ Association on the Gold Coast in October. Over $2,000 worth of prizes will be given to the winning schools.

Dr Karen Joyce, Education Director of She Maps, says that drones are fast becoming a central part of classroom learning.

"Students understand how drones can be used in industry applications and then work out how much shade they have on their school grounds using satellite images and spatial data skills. The program meets the curriculum needs of teachers and the future skill requirements of our students."

Mr Anthony Schmidt, Chairman of the Surveyors’ Trust, who are sponsoring the project, has committed to raising the profile of the surveying industry while giving teachers and students essential skills.

"This project is a great way to promote our industry and transfer practical skills to the next generation through the exciting use of drone technology."

The resources are aligned to the Australian Curriculum and support the Queensland Drone Strategy which specifically emphasises the need to bring drone technology into schools across the state. The project has been developed with an understanding of Education Queensland’s requirements and talking to their STEM team regularly.

Queensland Teachers can register for the online Drone Essentials Teacher Professional Development at any time via www.education.shemaps.com/qld (a Queensland education email address is required).

Who is She Maps?

When many people think of a scientist, they imagine someone (often male) in a lab coat working with a microscope or test tubes. Our vision of science is far broader. And we need a diversity in science disciplines beyond the labcoat, and a diversity in ideas from people of every race, colour, sex, and religion, in order to solve the problems of the future. Our purpose at She Maps is to bring diversity into how we perceive science, and who does it.

We provide online and face to face learning that gives students and teachers confidence in trying new technology and to explore solutions to real life problems. We use drones as a central part to our programs - because they are fun and are going to be a large part of our lives in the future.

Who is The Surveyors’ Trust?

The Surveyors’ Trust is a vibrant community of surveying and spatial professionals. We work together as a collective – pooling the royalties we receive from the sale of the plans that we develop. These pooled funds are invested in capital and education projects to achieve recognition and sustainability for the surveying and spatial industry.

Media Enquiries

She Maps: Paul Mead, Managing Director, 0432 469 500.

The Surveyors’ Trust: Mr Anthony Schmidt, Chairman, 0412 214 724.