Big Companies Looking for School-Age Solutions from NRW and the USA

MINTco@NRW, a cooperation project with funding from the North Rhine-Westphalia Ministry for Education, promises students insights into how companies work and produce their products. Participants will have the chance to propose solutions for real logistic, ergonomic, technical, and commercial problems.

How can we redesign the production process for rubber treads on snowmobiles, or develop the ergonomic workstations of the future, or ensure systematic maintenance for special tools? Over 150 pupils from NRW and the USA will come together to discuss these major challenges in the coming months: Working in global teams, they will try to solve real problems at big companies — including tire maker Michelin and Viega, a German company that is a world leader in its area. The MINTco@NRW project, directed on the German side by the universities of Siegen and Cologne, is now officially underway.

In the coming months, its focus will shift to authentic logistic, ergonomic, technical, and commercial challenges. What makes this project unique is that the participating companies have a true interest in seeing creative solutions for these real-life problems. Students will have their chance to apply and deepen their knowledge of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (known as the STEM fields) through practical application. Two schools from the Sauerland region are participating: the Hanseschule in Attendorn and the Zeppelinschule in Plettenberg. Teachers at the schools and mentors at the participating universities stand ready to support the transatlantic ‘solver teams’ in their work.

Over the course of the project, companies will have the chance to introduce students to interesting professional fields relevant to the solving process, especially fields for which they accept trainees. Students will get an early preview of potential roles in the production and handling fields. For the employers, this represents an active step in overcoming the growing scarcity of skilled workers. The project is supported by the Ministry for Education of North Rhine-Westphalia (MSB NRW). "In MINTco@NRW, students experience the future of STEM learning in an authentic, problem-oriented and global way - that's exactly what we need for the future!" says Dr. Stefan Werth of the District Administration of Arnsberg.

The current extracurricular pilot phase is scheduled to end after the 2024/25 school year. MSB NRW and the Mathematics Education departments at the universities of Siegen and Cologne then hope to weave the project permanently into school instruction through mandatory electives and project courses. Innovative digitally aided instruction and testing formats will be explored, including digital project development diaries and (international) project presentations. Alongside the development of concrete action steps and materials, the participating universities will also be examining success conditions for innovative, long-term STEM instruction in schools. In particular, doctoral dissertations by Jacqueline Köster (Siegen) and Julia Schäfer (Cologne) will be exploring data from the project. The project is intentionally oriented toward the differing school forms in Germany and the USA.

A Forum of Innovation, at which the solver teams will present their solution proposals to the companies, will be held on May 8.

 

Participating universities and institutions:

 

• University of Siegen (Director: Prof. Ingo Witzke)
• University of Cologne (Director: Dr. Gero Stoffels)
• Clarkson University (Director: Prof. Kathleen Kavanagh)
• North Country Workforce Development (Director: Jordon Le Blanc)

 

 

Schools participating in the pilot cycle:

 

• Hanseschule in Attendorn (secondary school),
• Zeppelinschule in Plettenberg (Hauptschule)
• Erich Kästner Realschule Gladbeck
• Erzbischöfliche St. Joseph-Gymnasium Rheinbach
• Gymnasium Höchstadt a. d. Aisch
• Beekmantown High School
• CV-TEC
• German International School Washington
• Keene Central School
• Malone Middle School

 

 

Companies participating in this cycle:

 

• Alsco
• Michelin
• Nedschroef
• Norsk Titanium
• Viega

 

 

Institutional Partners

 

• SCHULEWIRTSCHAFT NRW
• AmerikaHaus NRW e.V.
• General Consulate of the United States in NRW 

 

 

Contact
Prof. Ingo Witzke
Tel.: +49 271 740-3579
Email: witzke@mathematik.uni-siegen.de