Two Cavan students have won the ‘ISTA Award’ at this year’s SciFest National
Final.
Caleb Kiely and Binh Hanratty from Coláiste Dún an Rí, Kingscourt received
the award for their innovative analysis of young people's awareness and
attitudes to Covid-19.
Their findings showed teenagers have ‘impressive levels’ of awareness
spanning multiple areas of Covid-19 but attitudes were poorer when it came
to social distancing.
In 2021, a male and female age group divide was discovered indicating that
males were less compliant with social distancing and mask-wearing,
especially in those aged 15-18.
Students were generally educated and optimistic towards Covid-19 vaccines
with some reluctance amongst 12-14 year old males.
Minister for Education Norma Foley congratulated the Kingscourt students on
their achievements.
She also commended the parents, teachers and mentors who helped all the
students throughout the process.
