News Release Archive
EDUCATION/CULTURE--GETT KICKS OFF WITH SCHOOL ESSAY CONTEST
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An essay contest will help launch the Girls Exploring Trades and
Technology (GETT) camp program in Nova Scotia.
The contest, sponsored by Discovery Centre, is open to all
students (male and female) in grades six, seven and eight, with
first, second, third, and fourth place prizes being awarded for
the best essays on "Canadian Women in Trades and Technology."
The essays can be general or specific, focusing either on the
history of Canadian women in trades and technology, or on a
particular woman in this area. Interviews with women working in
these careers are also encouraged.
"Today students are faced with many new and emerging positions
that require applied math and science skills. GETT Nova Scotia
focuses on the importance of these skills in the areas of
technology and trade, and shows how these skills are not gender
specific," said Education and Culture Minister John MacEachern.
"By participating in this program, girls can understand and
appreciate the types of challenges and careers that can be open
to them in the future."
Essays should be no longer than 1,000 words, and will be judged
on the accuracy and depth of the research, the writer's
expression of ideas, and the interest of the subject to readers.
Contest entries must be received no later than April 30. Entries
should be sent to the GETT Program, Box 578, 2021 Brunswick St.,
Halifax, B3J 2S9. Winners will be notified through their schools.
The prizes to be awarded are:
first place, $200 in prizes and cash; second place, $125 in
prizes and cash; third place, $75 in prizes and cash; fourth
place, five fourth-place prizes of Discovery Centre passes, and
other prizes.
The GETT Camp program is a week-long, day-camp program, that
gives girls in grades six, seven and eight an opportunity to
visit work sites featuring technology, and meet women working in
trades and technology where math and sciences are key components.
The GETT Nova Scotia Camp program will begin in July, offering
three camps in the Metro area and one camp in Eskasoni. Each camp
will have 10 spaces available for the students. Participation in
the camps is free of charge; however, as they are day camps,
accommodations are not provided for anyone living outside of the
camp areas. GETT camp applications will be distributed in schools
in April.
The GETT camp program has been successful in seven other
provinces, and for Nova Scotia it has been developed by the
provincial apprenticeship training division of the Department of
Education and Culture, in partnership with the Nova Scotia Women
in Trades and Technology Association. Sponsors for this program
are the Department of Education and Culture, the provincial
Department of Human Resources, and the Ship Repair Machinists and
Mechanics Union (Halifax Dockyard).
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Contact: Nancy Owen 902-424-5195
Leslee Nicholson 902-424-5190
trp Apr. 03, 1996 - 9:19 a.m.
