November is already upon us, which means the deadline for our 2022 CAS Project Challenge is approaching! You have until 12 pm CET on the 20th of December 2022 to submit your video and be entered to win the experience of a lifetime.
New to the CAS Project Challenge or looking for some inspiration to increase your chances of winning? Read on to discover more about this exciting opportunity and see how past winners have made a difference with their projects.
What is the CAS Project Challenge?
The CAS Project Challenge aims to give you the tools to invent or campaign for something that will positively impact your community. As CAS Trip Director, Simon Armstrong, explains, “the CAS Project Challenge is a ready-made model with resources to help alleviate the struggle that goes on every year for students to instigate and organize their own CAS Projects. It’s a big undertaking for students on top of their academic studies so we hope the CAS Project Challenge materials and competition can serve to ease the organizational troubles and motivate students to make real impact.”
By showcasing your project in a short video, you are entered to win an all-expenses paid trip for your whole team to present your CAS Project Challenge at one of our Global Student Conferences in Boston, Edinburgh, or Singapore. Although our Students Challenges are open to all young people who want to enact positive change, the structure we have created explicitly follows the 5 Stages of CAS to serve as a springboard for IBDP students. In addition, our worksheets and methodology have been carefully developed to guide students through the process and serve as an added resource while remaining aligned with the CAS Project guidance and instructions they receive in the classroom.
Submit your own CAS Project to the Challenge
Do you have a great idea for the CAS Project Challenge? Here is what you need to do to be eligible!
STEP 1: Build Your Team
Your team must consist of 3-6 members, all under the age of 25. Please also recruit an adult supervisor to oversee your project. Determine team roles best suited to each team member’s strengths by taking this Changemaker Quiz!
STEP 2: Explore the UN SDGs: Think Global
You will link your CAS Project Challenge to one or more UN Sustainable Development Goals. Research each of the 17 SDGs, their targets, and their progress in detail.
STEP 3: Identify An Issue in Your Community
Investigate what issues are currently affecting your community to help define what your team can focus your project on. Our Brainstorming Worksheet will help you identify issues and select one your team feels passionate about.
STEP 4: Execute the CAS Project Challenge
Organization is the key to success. Structuring a collaborative project is not easy. We have developed an Action Plan Worksheet based on the 5 Stages of CAS, to guide your team through each step.
Remember, you will be submitting a video. Document your progress using photos and video right from the start.
You can find a full breakdown of project evaluation here and refer to this page when you have a project ready for submission. Remember, we need to receive your video by 12 pm CET on the 20th of December 2022.
Last year’s winner
“Among all life lessons that this experience taught me, the one that resonates most is that even ‘kids’ can bring change into the world in their own ways.”
In 2021, we were delighted to receive 61 CAS Project entries featuring 286 students from 32 countries worldwide. We were blown away by the creativity, dedication, and innovation on display, and picking the top spot was no easy task. However, after a thorough analysis from a panel of 29 expert judges, it was determined that CMath was the clear winner.
Team CMath was a group of six students from the International School Of Ouagadougou. Their project originated from an experience that their captain, Antonio, had after participating in a math camp in America in 2020. He was thrilled by the material presented and was inspired by the teachers, but he started to reflect on the fact that he was the only African student in attendance and one of only a few Black participants.
Speaking with friends after the camp had ended, he became aware that, despite being one of the critical elements of a quality STEM education, mathematics simply was not very popular amongst students in Burkina Faso. This troubled both him and his cohort, as they recognized that mathematics plays a critical role in building the kind of strong scientific community needed to bolster a developing country.
In the beginning, they created a student association called CMath, through which they planned to start organizing local math clubs. As time passed and their ambition grew, they set the SMART goal of organizing a mathematics competition in their home city of Ouagadougou. They began partnering with sponsors, were able to meet and exceed their fundraising goal, and soon increased the contest’s size to 10 cities. In the end — more than 1400 students from around the country participated. With the help of their sponsors, finalists were awarded prizes like university scholarships, an insured motorcycle, phones with internet access, and school supplies.
As one of the team members, Zouleika, reflected following their win,
“Among all the life lessons that this experience taught me, the one that resonates most is that even ‘kids’ can bring change into the world in their own ways. Age does not matter; it should never stop someone from trying to give back to their community. The most important thing is the work done and the will that one has to make an impact–no matter how difficult things get. Now, I will always be willing to try something new because I appreciate that nothing is impossible.”
We can’t wait to see what this year’s submissions will bring and wish all student participants the best of luck—your innovative, original, and thoughtfully executed projects never fail to blow us away!
