"Jugend forscht"/"Schüler experimentieren": Leonard and Quentin Take 3rd Place in Physics Across Hesse - Steinmühle

“Jugend forscht”/”Schüler experimentieren”: Leonard and Quentin Take 3rd Place in Physics Across Hesse

Contests & Awards, News, STEM, Talent Development

After being canceled in 2020 and held virtually in 2021, the state competition “Jugend forscht / Schüler experimentieren” took place in person again this year. The two-day event was hosted by the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at the University of Kassel. A total of 39 students in 28 teams had qualified with their projects. They presented their results to a competition jury and set up a booth to showcase their projects.
Leonard Berger and Quentin Herwig from class 8a also qualified by winning the regional physics competition in February with their project “Biofilms vs. Plastic Films—Production and Measurement of Physical Properties.” Together with their advisor, Dr. Jutta Töhl-Borsdorf, they were able to travel to Kassel for two days.
They had even further refined the project, in which they investigated the suitability of self-produced biofilms for everyday use. Among other things, they constructed a device for measuring elastic moduli in order to examine the tear strength and elasticity of the films.
With their project, they took 3rd place in the physics category and also won the “REset Plastic” special prize, which, in addition to recognition of their achievement, came with prize money totaling 225€.
Both boys were very happy that the event was held in person. It was two fantastic, eventful days. The unanimous opinion of everyone involved was that, above all, the personal interaction among the young researchers and with the expert juries cannot be adequately replaced by any digital format.
Both young researchers are also certain that the project still has a great deal of potential, and they definitely want to continue their research on it.
We would also like to take this opportunity to thank all our colleagues who had to do without the young researchers in class on several occasions over the past few weeks.

11. April 2022

We missed it: Bands on stage wowed the crowd once again

Art, Music & Theater, News

What had been impossible for years finally came to life once again on the stage of the Steinmühle on Monday, March 28, 2022, to the great joy and delight of everyone involved. About 130 audience members enjoyed a performance by the new ensemble stonemill brass—featuring trombones and euphoniums—as they performed three challenging film classics under the direction of Andreas Jamin, before the sixteen-member Class 5 band made its brilliant debut with “Faded” and “I’m So Sorry.” Despite the absence of their conductor, Jörg Eichberger, due to illness, the saxophone ensemble from the Marburg Music School made a guest appearance on stage in keeping with tradition, performing four challenging jazz arrangements. Talea Funk, who has been one of the creative forces on the Steinmühle stage for years, presented two atmospheric original compositions for voice and ukulele in her final year—powerful and moving once again.

The Steinmühle Jazz Ensemble performed four jazz standards arranged in a variety of styles before the StoneMill House Band, led by Frank Wemme, brought the evening to a brilliant close with its current program. The Sound & Light elective course, led by Matthäus Otte, was once again put to good use, ensuring excellent sound and lighting on stage and providing the musicians with a superb setting. A visibly moved principal, Bernd Holly, thanked everyone involved for this long-missed and now once again possible, touchingly arranged treat—a joy to hear, a delight to see, and a wonderful experience.

11. April 2022

“Bad Boys” Finally at the Steinmühle!

Ecology and Sustainability, News, Sports & Health

They were actually supposed to be distributed right after the 2021 summer break… but then a container ship got stuck in the Suez Canal, and supply chains around the world broke down. The result: The 20 Bad-Boyz balls—produced under Fair Trade conditions and ordered by the Steinmühle Friends Association—were stuck in Qatar for months along with 200,000 “friends.” By mid-March, the time had finally come: The 20 balls donated by the Friends of Steinmühle, chaired by Jasmine Weidenbach, arrived at Steinmühle, and Principal Bernd Holly was able to distribute the first balls to the elementary school as well as to grades 5 and 6 (photo). He explained the background of the Bad Boyz philosophy and the significance of the Fair Trade seal to the classes, after which the balls were, of course, tested immediately. Our teaching assistants Alessio Canevese and Tobias Leisge, who were present on the sports field—and who, as amateur soccer players competing at a higher level, are essentially “ball pros”—were also impressed by the quality of the balls. The remaining balls will be available for older students to borrow… or they may actually be the first balls to find their place in the new gym.

The purchase of Fair Trade balls is another step by Steinmühle toward integrating Fair Trade products into the school’s supplies whenever possible. For example, the hoodies featuring the Steinmühle logo, as well as various products in the kitchen and the Steinmühle bistro, bear the Fair Trade seal. Steinmühle is actively involved as a member of the Marburg-Biedenkopf District’s Fair Trade Steering Group, which spearheaded the district’s designation as a Fair Trade District. The joint Sustainability Day organized by the district and Steinmühle, which took place last fall at Steinmühle, was one of the joint initiatives that will be further expanded once pandemic-related restrictions are lifted.

11. April 2022

For optimized testing: Class 8c participated in a study

News, Surveys & Studies

As one of 50 schools in Hesse, Steinmühle participated in a project funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG). In this project, called COINS, the Leibniz Institute for Research and Information in Education (DIPF) in Frankfurt am Main is investigating how to develop a test that optimally reflects students’ learning progress. For research purposes, learning progress in mathematics was to be measured using the 8th-grade curriculum. To this end, Class 8c, along with their math teacher Nicole Scholtes, took part in the study.

Two test days were required to gather the relevant data for the study. The first assessment took place in early December—deliberately scheduled before the students had actually covered the material in the math test. The second assessment took place on March 23. By that date, the students had already completed the lesson on linear equations and functions.

Each test lasted two school periods and consisted of a math test and a questionnaire. Nicole Scholtes, as a teacher, also had to fill out a questionnaire. It included questions about lesson design and lesson planning. She also had to submit a detailed account of the lesson content, including all the exercises covered.

The name of the COINS study, which is being conducted in both Germany and Switzerland, stands for “Construction of Instructionally Sensitive Test Items.” The study aims to determine what test items in mathematics classes must look like in order to demonstrate the impact of instruction and authentically reflect student learning outcomes. Based on the results, tests can then be developed that all students can take and that can be used to assess the quality of instruction in schools.

Steinmühle School Principals Björn Gemmer and Bernd Holly: “Steinmühle is happy to support such innovative projects, and we are delighted when our colleagues are willing to participate.”

Our photo shows math teacher Nicole Scholtes (right) with the students in Class 8c.

11. April 2022

Spring Awakening at Steinmühle Boarding School

Life at Boarding School, News, Rowing, Social Engagement

Spring is definitely in the air, so the boarding school community took advantage of the weekend to enjoy many outdoor activities together. Finally barbecuing outdoors again, experiencing nature up close on the water while rowing, or hiking across the fields with alpacas—the Steinmühlers’ hearts blossomed this weekend! And best of all: with a little rowing, we were able to raise 650 euros as a donation for the “Starthilfe für Kinder aus der Ukraine” project in Marburg.

Barbecues in the on-site gardens

And so, three residential groups took advantage of the nice weather on Friday evening to kick off the weekend with a barbecue. “Finally, we’re sitting outside together again!” was the exclamation heard from everyone, accompanied by broad grins.

As darkness fell, a bonfire was lit in the Westfalenhaus garden so that everyone could linger a little longer and enjoy each other’s company.

Pet the alpacas or play sports?

On Saturday, the students were treated to a variety of activities. A small group traveled to the Vogelsberg district to roam through fields and meadows with five adorable alpacas.

“They’re so fluffy!” “They hop around so cutely!” “Oh my gosh, how adorable they are when they talk to each other!” The little herd of alpacas had taken the students’ hearts by storm.

And for those who still hadn’t had enough variety over the weekend, there was the chance to burn off some energy in the sun with outdoor boxing training or Ultimate Frisbee on the sports field, while other students took it a bit easier by making crêpes together or tie-dyeing socks and T-shirts.

ErgoCup Raises 650 Euros in Donations

This year, Steinmühle also participated for the first time in the ErgoCup, a competition among various boarding schools. Eight students—both day students and boarding students, most of whom train with Rudern und Sport Steinmühle Marburg e.V.—represented our school. Delegations from the boarding schools competed simultaneously via a live online broadcast: Which group would complete the two kilometers on the ergometer the fastest? The male rowers from Steinmühle even took first place in the 16–17-year-old category with Lennart Holly and Fabian Seidel, as well as in the 18+ category with Maxim Dyck, Jamal Jaber, and Sarah Kremer.

In the competition category “30 Minutes of Rowing—Most Kilometers Count,” boarding school director Anke Muszynski launched a spontaneous fundraising campaign: For every kilometer row, Steinmühle donated 15 €, and school principal Bernd Holly added another 200 €. This motivated students and teachers to give their all on the ergometers. By the end of the day, a total of 650 euros had been “rowed” together, which was then donated to the “Starthilfe für Kinder aus der Ukraine” project in Marburg—a joint initiative of Steinmühle and the Rotary Club of Marburg.

The ErgoCup will take place again next year—and hopefully in person this time.

Experiencing Self-Directed Learning Even in Their Free Time: Students Organize Their Own Clubs

But anyone who actually wanted to give it another try on the water had the opportunity to do so through students Maxim and Sarah in the “Rowing for Beginners” class.

At first, they were very wobbly and out of control, but by Sunday afternoon, two rowboats filled with absolute beginners were gliding across the water almost like pros, thanks to the help of Sarah and Maxim. “That was so exciting!” said Francine, an educator who also took part in the event. “And it was so nice to see students teaching us something. I hope Sarah and Maxim offer this again—I’d definitely be there!”

And so it happens time and again that students organize their own clubs with the support of teachers. That’s exactly what Nico and Ian did this weekend. “We felt like playing soccer. So we’re starting an initiative around that. And if that brings more people from different dorms together again, that’s great!” explains student Nico, describing his idea.

With this motivation, the boarding school community is starting the new week. The next boarding school weekend is scheduled for two weeks from now—we’re excited to see what activities await us then.

6. April 2022