School praised for teaching teenage girls how to change tires and check oil coolant levels

A group of teenage girls at a high school in Sydney were recently taught how to change tires and check oil coolant levels.

Per the Daily Mail, the year 11 girls (ages 16-17), at Stella Maris College in Manly, Sydney, learned the best course of action to take in a car accident and the most efficient ways to check tire pressure.

This all came about when Galmatic (a Sydney-based company that teaches women and girls about car maintenance) got in touch with Stella Maris College earlier this year.

According to Galmatic's website, the all-female team of four "specialize in helping Australian women and teenagers feel comfortable behind the wheel through our hands-on car maintenance workshops and online courses."

Per the Daily Mail, Eleni Mitakos, who has run Galmatic for over a decade, clarified that the company's workshops are not only for teenage girls.

"We teach up to 100,000 teenagers a year in schools, across all parts of Sydney," she told Daily Mail Australia.

She added, "The primary aim is for teenagers to feel comfortable behind the wheel. Ultimately they are driving very big vehicles which can be very expensive if not looked after properly."

"We can't stress enough to all our students you should never ignore a problem with your car, you need to address it for your own safety."

Per the publication, Amy Smith, the assistant principal for well-being at Stella Maris College, said the students found the workshop to be very helpful.

"We had three groups of roughly 40 girls in what we call an incursion (event on school grounds)," she said. "The feedback was very positive, the ladies from Galmatic were very patient and thorough in what they were explaining."

"All the teaching staff and our principal Elizabeth Carnegie felt a workshop like this would be beneficial for many reasons, mainly skills the girls need to learn before they leave school," the assistant principal continued.

"It was also important to show the girls that they have the capabilities to handle situations themselves once they are on the road, rather than rely on someone else," she added.

Needless to say, the response to the workshop has been overwhelmingly positive.

In a comment on a post by the school's official Facebook page, one person wrote:

"This is fantastic! Wish I could have joined in & learned this skill! Well done Stella for teaching our girls how to be strong & independent."

Another added: "As a mum of one of those year 11 girls today and ex Stella student myself, a really worthwhile session. Table topic tonight at dinner! Here’s to safe knowledgeable drivers."