Wacker Chemie AG: CHEM2DO experiment kit won Germany’s federal 2015 SCHULEWIRTSCHAFT “That has potential!” award

Yesterday, Germany’s federal SCHULEWIRTSCHAFT association presented Wacker Chemie AG with first place for the 2015 SCHULEWIRTSCHAFT “That has potential!” award in the “Beginners – Large Companies” category for its CHEM₂DO experiment kit.

Berlin/Munich, 16-12-2015 — /EuropaWire/ — Every year since 2012, the nationwide SCHULEWIRTSCHAFT network has honored businesses, schools and publishers who engage themselves with vocational guidance and the transition between school and work in an exemplary manner. The competition takes place under the patronage of Germany’s Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy, Sigmar Gabriel. A panel comprised of judges from the realms of industry, science, education and politics chose the award winners from around 80 entries in the fourth round of the competition.

The awards were presented at the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy. During the ceremony, one of the judges, Angela Papenburg, managing director of GP Günter Papenburg AG emphasized CHEM₂DO’s high quality and great practical relevance: “The CHEM₂DO project was developed very professionally and continuously enhanced over the years. The company involved educational partners to develop the teaching material. CHEM₂DO is particularly sustainable because teachers are provided the materials free of charge.” She emphasized: “A close collaboration between schools and companies benefits all those involved: the students see how a company actually works and companies meet future job applicants.” Joachim Zdzieblo, CHEM₂DO project manager at WACKER explained: “The award encourages us to continue down the path we have taken with the CHEM₂DO kit. We want to give teachers a tool to help students see chemistry as an exciting subject and to awaken their pioneering spirit.

The CHEM₂DO experiment kit offers four experiments each of silicones and cyclodextrins, which students can perform themselves. They prepare and carry out the experiments independently in small groups. The students receive worksheets on which to describe the experimental procedure and the results. Teachers have access to worksheets which contain the answers, as well as technical and didactic information. The experiments are in line with Germany’s national educational standards, which form the basis for school curricula in the federal states.

A key advantage of the experiments is their strong focus on chemistry in everyday life. The experiment kit was designed and developed by WACKER and chemistry education experts from Munich’s Ludwig-Maximilian University, the University of Wuppertal and the University of Münster. More than 1,400 teachers in German and Austria are already using the CHEM₂DO kit in their classes, introducing around 13,000 students to the experiments.

About SCHULEWIRTSCHAFT
For around 60 years now, the SCHULEWIRTSCHAFT network has been working to promote and improve vocational guidance for young people, using numerous projects to support collaboration between schools and businesses.

Contact

Wacker Chemie AG
Public Affairs
Joachim Zdzieblo

Tel. +49 89 6279-1165
Email joachim.zdzieblo@wacker.com

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The Munich-based WACKER Group received the award for its CHEM2DO experiment kit: Angela Papenburg from GP Günter Papenburg AG (left) and Iris Gleicke, Parliamentary State Secretary at the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (right), presenting the award to the chemical company. Angelika Bader and Joachim Zdzieblo from Corporate Communications at Wacker Chemie AG accepting the award. (Photo: SCHULEWIRTSCHAFT/www.berlin-event-foto.de). Copyright Peter-Paul Weiler, www.berlin-event-foto.de Tel. +49 1577 4720112 / Veröffentlichung und Verwendung nur mit Autorenangabe / Publication is permitted provided photographer is named