We are delighted to announce that Team Oxygen, made up of Ellie (Y11), Sara (Y10), Bea (Y9) and Alexandra (Y9), has been declared the Thames Valley regional winner in the 2021 Top of the Bench Competition. Run by the Royal Society of Chemistry, the annual competition allows participating schools to enter one team of four students (two Year 9s, one Year 10 and one Year 11) to put their practical and teamwork skills to the test.
Despite the challenges and constraints of running (what is usually) a hands-on and practical competition virtually, the RSC was determined to forge ahead this year and focused on testing students on their data handling and practical analysis. Four separate modules had to be completed during the allocated time window, with a designated ‘collaboration space’ for discussion and teamwork: a key emphasis of the competition.
OHS has a strong track record in Top of the Bench and we are overjoyed that the winning streak continues. In times past, Team Oxygen would have progressed to the next round to compete against all the other winners; this year, we are happy to delight in our regional success!
We would like to offer our warmest congratulations to the students of Team Oxygen: you have performed incredibly well and demonstrated excellent teamwork! Finally, we owe a huge thank you to Mrs Westwood for organising this year’s competition, which, under the current circumstances, was no minor operational task.