Successfully held second national SonS festival: Outstanding performance by Serbian teachers in STEM

Organised by the Institute for Contemporary Education and Savremena Gimnazija, the second national SonS festival took place at Primary School Savremena, bringing together teachers from all over the country. Twenty participants from various schools and cities across Serbia presented innovations in the STEM field, inspiring everyone present.

The festival also welcomed special guests, teachers Miloš Laković from Montenegro and Michael Gregory from France, who shared their valuable experiences in workshops with the participants, enriching the festival's program.

Participants presented their projects and innovations in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). These projects covered a wide range of topics, from ecology to robotics, showing the creativity and research enthusiasm of the teachers.

Among those awarded at this prestigious competition is teacher Zorana Milićević from Savremena Gimnazija with her project "Scoby Dooby Doo – bioplastika iz čaja". This project takes an interdisciplinary approach to introduce students to bioplastics and SCOBY culture while raising awareness about the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Through experiments with tea, water, and sugar, teacher Milićević fosters an understanding of biological and chemical processes, motivating students to consider the application of SCOBY in art as a sustainable alternative to traditional plastics.

After careful considerations, representatives from Serbia were selected to represent their country at the international SonS festival in Turku, Finland. The chosen representatives are Dragan Golubović ("Fizika kao bajka"), Jelena Babić and Ljiljana Sokolović ("Magična jabuka"), Vesna Hlavati Širka ("Genetika goluba") and Vesela Mačkić ("Baci svetlost na fiziku").

In addition to selecting representatives for the international competition, four special awards were presented during the festival to recognise outstanding contributions and innovations in various STEM fields. This year's awarded teachers are Olga Dukić ("Pametna kuća"), Zorana Milićević ("Scoby Dooby Doo – bioplastika iz čaja"), Aleksandar Dimitrijević ("Izrada ekstrudera za PET-G filament"), and Biljana Kalafatić ("Avantura merenja u čarobnom STEM-gradu").

The SonS festival is not just a competitive event; it also provides an opportunity for professional development and knowledge exchange. Teachers had the chance to learn from experts in various fields, enhancing their practices in STEM education.

We expect this generation of teachers and innovators to continue setting standards of excellence in STEM fields, and Serbia will take pride in their contributions to scientific progress.

Congratulations to all participants, special award winners, and the representatives of Serbia at the international SonS festival in Finland. Let's continue to explore, innovate, and contribute to a better world of education!

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I am extremely pleased and proud to be the parent of a Savremena student. During my first encounter with the school management, when I asked about my child’s potential enrolment, I saw how much love, enthusiasm and professionalism you put in your work. I was impressed by your approach, ideas and methods. I couldn’t believe something like this existed in our country! It doesn’t take long to realise that this is a school you would recommend to everyone. Creativity, modern technology, top-quality education, and most of all, the humaneness that can be seen throughout the school, make it truly different and worthy of its name – Savremena Gimnazija. With such an approach, the success of this school and, consequently, our children’s success, is unavoidable. Congratulations! Jelena Đorđević, Andrija’s mum
Contemporary in any sense of the word, our school offers functional knowledge and quality preparation for tertiary education in Serbia and abroad. Implementing modern and creative teaching in the classroom, where the teachers’ pedagogy and students’ performance are aligned with the highest academic standards for the high-school finals, our school develops linguistic, mathematical, scientific, artistic, cultural, technical and ICT competence, which is a prerequisite for further education and professional development. Teaching is supported by the interactive whiteboards and educational software, whereas practice exercises research and critical thinking.