The Marine Engineering Pathway (MEP) is a national Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) initiative, providing workshops to over 15,000 young people a year in schools across the UK. It gives them a more practical understanding of the world of marine engineering and highlights key issues such as climate change, career opportunities and more.
The workshops involve hands-on exercises and experiments which allow children to learn in a different way to the standard classroom environment. They cover issues that marine engineers can help to resolve, including rising sea levels, pollution to oceans and rivers, and pollution from shipping. These issues not only apply national curriculum topics to real-life situations but are linked to specific UN Sustainable Development Goals and the Governments ‘Maritime 2050’ strategy.
MEP has proven successful - over 96% of the teachers surveyed said they would recommend the workshop to other schools, and students have described the sessions as “exciting” and “unique”.
MEP runs on donations and costs £300,000 a year. Sea Cadets’ target for 2022 is to engage a further 15,000 children through MEP sessions, to inspire children to become the next generation of marine engineers.
“I would consider a career in engineering because it would be really fun to help the planet.”
Lucy, Year 7
Learning
The MEP workshops support the PSHE and science curricula for England, Wales and Scotland and are aimed at pupils in KS3.
The workshop focusses on buoyancy, exploring some of the scientific principles behind displacement, density, Newton’s 3rd Law and Archimedes Principle. In teams, pupils are tasked with designing and building a ship which is stable in the water while carrying as much cargo as possible. This practical task concludes in the pupils testing their ships and discovering which team has succeeded in carrying the most cargo whilst staying afloat!
per cent of pupils find MEP sessions 'interesting'
per cent of pupils 'would like to do more marine engineering activities'
per cent of teachers reported that the session leader was interesting and knowledgable
“When we’re teaching to a syllabus, we’re not necessarily relating things to everyday life as much as someone from outside who is coming in with a real practical purpose.”
Rebecca Johnson, teacher at Windermere School
Want to know more?
If you have any questions or would like to find out more, get in touch with the MEP team.
Sea Cadets provides your child with the environment and equipment they need for a life changing experience.
Your child's journey is shaped by the donations we receive.
Your contribution today will help make this all possible.
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