14 May 2021
Yesterday, two groups of aspiring computer scientists from the Third Year and Lower Sixth enjoyed a morning being hosted remotely by Cisco Systems UK.
The morning involved being introduced to the huge global role Cisco play in facilitating and securing the internet for large multinationals such as BT and Sky. The pupils were given the opportunity to find out about Graduate Training Schemes, Degree Apprenticeships and other career paths within such a huge and varied environment and they were able to ask questions to the panel of volunteers.
The latter part of the morning involved a Dragon’s Den style challenge where the pupils were tasked with designing an app that would use Artificial Intelligence (AI) and/or Virtual Reality (VR) within the domains of tourism, education, health or retail. The pupils rose to the challenge and in only 20 minutes produced presentations that detailed the name, function, customer base, cost and intended marketing for their apps. Each team presented to three Cisco ‘Dragons’ via a live link using the Cisco Webex platform. They were then asked detailed questions about their designs and ideas.
The pupils amazing app ideas included:
E-GP – an app to connect everyone with live medical advice from home
Reviz – an app to connect teachers and students to improve teaching and learning
VSE – an app that uses VR to simulate educational experiences for visual and didactic learners
Off You Go – an app making a game out of visiting tourist attractions with suggestions and rewards
Experience Visualiser – an app allowing shoppers to try each product in store using VR
Each team was complimented on their excellent presentations.
Congratulations to our overall winners, VSE - Abi Pilkington, Kitty Parkinson, Emma Parkinson, Sarah Chatwin, Alexa Anderson.
