TINKER FEST – AVISHKAR 2019

Our school hosted the first ever ‘Tinker Fest’ as part of ATL programme with fun filled learning a 2-day agenda of workshops and competitions.

The inaugural function was held on the school grounds. It began with a warm greeting by the compare Mrs. Leena, followed by a prayer dance invoking the blessings of the Almighty on the event.

The Principal, Sr. Melissa welcomed and introduced the Chief Guest, Captain Ganesh Karnik, Ex-MLC, Karnataka Legislative Council and Guest of Honor, Mr. Johnson Tellis, Asst. Professor and Head of Initiatives and Strategies, Sahyadri Hub for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Mangalore, and all the participants and accompanying staff of fifteen schools of D.K and Udupi districts.

A ‘ROBO 2.0’ marched forth with the ‘Golden Scroll’ to give a ceremonial inauguration and tech start to the Fest. The dignitaries unfurled the scroll, declaring the opening of the events to follow.

Students Aaron Rego of class VIII A, Shristi of class VI B and Joshua Nathan of class VII A provided an overview of the different events and competitions planned for the day.

Guest of honour, Mr. Johnson Tellis, a dynamic speaker, drove in the message that the main idea of ATL is to “Learn by doing/making” and advised to the teachers not to just teach but “give the students the tools and let them work it out themselves”.

The Chief Guest, Capt. Ganesh Karnik also propagated a similar message when he said that schools should provide a learning environment rather than teach them. To the students, his advice was “Change your attitude, make learning a joyful experience.”

Ms. Neema expressed her gratitude on behalf of the school fully charged with waves of passion ignited with energy at the inaugural function.

The first session of the day was by Mr. Johnson Tellis, Asst. Professor, Sahyadri College of Engineering. The interactive session by his team was on project ideas and product designing with hands on activities.

A Quiz on science and technology was conducted for the 15 teams where in 5 teams were selected for finals. St. Teresa’s Bendore bagged the first place, Carmel school Pandeshwar second place and Mount Carmel third place. The afternoon session was by Mrs. Keerthi, Professor from KPT and her team. The model exhibition by a group of students of KPT was innovative, which showcased practical applications in daily life which the students could easily relate to. The day was filled with fun filled learning experience.

The second and final day of the Tinker Fest witnessed the much awaited competitions such as the Model-making, “Know about ATL”, Making a Project, Jumbled Circuits. Group activities with ATL connections were said to be the most enjoyable activity, according to the participants, which evoked for them great fervor and enthusiasm. The day started with a motivational talk by Prof Karthik Uparna, Professor of Physics, Vikas P U College on innovation and use of right brain.

The Valedictory Ceremony was held at 3.30 pm where Dr. Karunakara N, Professor in Physics and Coordinator, Centre for Advanced Research in Environmental Radioactivity (CARER),  Mangalore University was the chief guest. The Principal Sr. Melissa welcomed the gathering, introducing the Chief Guest Dr. Karunakara N, an ARP awardee in 2012 and recent recipient of the Sir C V Raman Young Scientist Award. Capt. Ganesh Karnik’s presence was inspiring and was recognized with gratitude. 4 students from the participating schools then came up to share their experiences of the 2-day Fest and offered a word of gratitude.

The Chief Guest addressed the gathering. He said that it is predicted that “by 2025, the laptop will work at the speed of the human brain, because artificial intelligence is developing at a rapid rate.” He complimented the school for organizing such an event.

The highlight of the function was the prize distribution ceremony. In the “Know About ATL” competition, the host school, MCCS bagged the first place, followed by Carmel School, Kotekar and Yenepoya School, Jeppinamogaru.

The first place in the Quiz was won by St. Theresa’s School, Bendore, followed by Carmel School, Pandeshwar and MCCS.

In the Model Making competition, St. Mary’s English Medium School, Udupi won the first place, Dr. NSAM, Nitte the second place and St. Philomena’s Aided High School, Puttur the third place.

The compare of the valedictory function was Ashwini Rao of class VII while Carlton Rodrigues of Class VI proposed the vote of thanks. The event was symbolically closed with the handing over of the Tinker Fest logo to the ROBO 2.0 by the Chief Guest.