Students dive into underwater research task

POSTED April 9 2024 , News

Our Year 10 Marine Science students recently ventured to Shoalwater Bay for an exciting and immersive underwater research task.

The girls dived into a detailed marine survey and a series of mini-workshops, including microplastic sampling and getting up close with water chemistry. They even enjoyed a hands-on activity collecting whiting, silver bellies and other small species for research purposes.

The excursion enabled the students to apply their classroom knowledge in real-world situations and broadened their understanding of the diverse career opportunities available in marine science.

Below is an account of the research task by Year 10 students, Asha and Eloise:

On 25 March, we were among a group of Year 10s who travelled from St Mary’s to Rockingham to participate in an underwater research task.

Although the water was freezing, it was an enjoyable educational experience that we will never forget.

We were tasked with sampling biotic and abiotic factors, randomly and systematically. As we had practised this previously, the assessment flew by quickly. However, throughout the experience, we learned that sampling in the ocean is quite difficult compared to working in a pool. This challenge only added to the fun that we had.

After completing our tasks, we split into three different groups and did several activities such as microplastic sampling (where we went through procedures to count the number of plastics in the sand), looking at water chemistry (where we used an app and pieces of equipment to measure the qualities of the water), and the resounding favourite task, a fishing exercise.

During this task, a few group members used a net to collect fish for research and successfully caught several whiting, silver bellies and some other small species.

Overall, the Year 10 cohort had a great time and learnt many new skills relating to job opportunities within the marine science industry.