New Perspectives in Science Education

Edition 13

Accepted Abstracts

Educational Robotics in Ireland

Sharon Lawton, Cork Institute of Technology (Ireland)

David Hodge, Cork Institute of Technology (Ireland)

Abstract

Cork Institute of Technology are leading, through its Access Service, the VEX Robotics [1] programme in Ireland. This programme was introduced in Cork in 2012 with 12 DEIS [2] (Delivering Equality of Opportunity in Schools) post primary schools participating. This has now grown to over 350 primary and post primary schools nationally, with most counties having at least one team. The programme is heavily supported from the outset by EMC/ Dell [3] and CIT for the cork region and more recently nationally by CIT and Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) [3] under the Discover Programme Fund. Yearly there are over 6000 children involved in this programme. Each school / team receives a robot kit to assemble, they design, engineer, build and program their robot to compete in VEX Robotics competition. Every year there is a different task to be undertaken, therefore the robot you build this year will be unsuitable for next year’s task. Therefore, the robot needs to be disassembled and redesigned for the new game year on year. This programme is very much built around soft skills such as leadership, communication, and teamwork in the classroom with every student involved. There is a role for every student in the class from designing, building, programming, driving, presenting their work, PR and artwork etc. The programme can be integrated into the classroom and used in the teaching of literacy etc. The programme delivery model in Ireland is different to the global model. Globally each school / team buys their own robot kit, register themselves and in a lot of cases, run competitions for numerous schools. This can lead to a situation where affluent schools are the main participants and beneficiaries of the programme. In Ireland a unique approach has been employed to deliver the VEX Robotics programme. In this model the schools are supplied with a robot kit for free. Initially DEIS were identified and an invitation to join the programme was issued. Once all the DEIS schools were invited non DEIS schools were then invited to participate. This programme is now being delivered by an additional six third level institutions who hold regional finals and send their winners on to the national finals. The winners of the national finals can then compete in the VEX Robotics World Championship, usually held in the USA. This paper will discuss the formation of the programme and progression from a local level up to a national level and will examine the obstacles and the successes in achieving this.

Keywords: Robotics, Programming, Primary, Post-Primary, VEX.

References:
[1] https://www.vexrobotics.com/
[2] https://www.education.ie/en/Schools-Colleges/Services/DEIS-Delivering-Equality-of-Opportunity-in-Schools-/
[3] https://www.dellemc.com/en-ie/index.htm
[4] https://www.sfi.ie/

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