Two researchers become role models for primary school students creating videogames

The researchers Marta Duch and Stella Vallejos have been the role models chosen by the primary students of the schools La Serra and El Gurri, respectively, to develop videogame proposals based on their research. The project, part of the Científiks en joc initiative, culminated this May with a final event that brought together fifteen schools from all over Catalonia.

Científiks en joc is an educational initiative that involves primary school students designing a videogame based on the research of an active female researcher. In the first phase, researchers from different institutions, whose work is related to the topic of that year’s edition (in this eleventh edition, sensors and actuators), present their research through videos. The schools review these videos and choose the researcher who will become the role model for their project. In the case of IMB-CNM, the researcher Marta Duch was chosen by Espacio Abierto La Serra School (Sant Pere de Ribes), while Stella Vallejos was selected by El Gurri School.

During the 2025–2026 academic year, the researchers maintained direct contact with the students through visits to the schools, video calls, and emails. The aim was to share their research with the students and answer any questions and doubts they might have had throughout the videogame creation process.

The unexpected journey of Marta Duch, the videogame inspired by Marta Duch’s research, follows the story of a researcher who has to overcome different challenges to produce an intracellular chip. Among the various tests, the main character prepares to enter the Cleanroom, manages an incident in the fabrication environment, and finally reduces her size to the cellular level to monitor a cell's status. Afterwards, it is revealed that this last adventure was only a dream.

The video game developed from Stella Vallejos’ research, titled Stella and the Sensors, considers the researcher’s passion for travelling to craft its plot. Before she can embark on her dream trip, the main character has to complete different missions related to her research: producing sensors, placing them in a forest to detect wildfires, and later installing them in crops to monitor their condition. This proposal received a special mention for Best Story at the initiative's final event. 

The final event of Científiks en joc, held on 21 May 2026, brought together fifteen participating schools, which presented their projects during the event. Special recognitions were awarded for Best Story, Best Aesthetics, and Best Challenge, as well as the prize for the winning project. The winning proposal will be brought to life: students from ENTI-UB (School of New Interactive Technologies of the University of Barcelona), together with the school students, will develop the videogame. The project Stella and the Sensors, from El Gurri School, received the recognition for Best Story.

Promoted by the Department of Research and Universities, this initiative has established itself as an innovative educational experience that connects real research with schools, bringing science closer to students through hands-on learning and helping to create new female role models in the scientific and technological fields.