From 9 to 13 December, a metal engineering practical course for high school students was held at Shimane University. The program was conducted as a part of the human resource development project in the project called “Creation of a Global Base for Advanced Metals-Next Generation TATARA Project-”, and 18 students from local high schools enrolled in the program.
The classes were held from 5:00pm to 6:30pm every evening during the five days, with the three themes: ‘Phase change of metal’, ‘Copper-Zinc alloy making and characterization’ and ‘Internal structure of Japanese swords’. The students separated into 3 groups started with a lecture on the first day, carried out some experiments and group work successively, and made presentations on the final day. They all engaged in the program enthusiastically, experiencing the atmosphere of the university with their eyes shining. One of the students expressed that the stiff and hard image which she had to metals has been changed completely, and others said ‘I want to study other properties of metals more’, or ‘It was a great opportunity to interact with the students of different high schools and with the people at Shimane University, and this experience will be helpful for my future course selection.’
The members at the Next Generation Tatara Co-creation Centre would like to express our sincere appreciation to all those who supported and cooperated in this event.