On Saturday, October 25, Bridgewater Raynham Regional High School in
Bridgewater, Massachusetts held its first annual Robotics Conference. Robotics
Inside-Out was hosted by TJ², the local FIRST Robotics Team, one of the veteran
teams of the fourteen-year-old organization that pairs engineers with students
in a challenging learning environment.
The conference drew people from all around the country who were interested in
the growing field of robotics, from Indiana to nearby New England States.
Donald Mazzella, board member of the National Robotics Education Foundation,
came to oversee the proceedings and co-host the event with Liz Calef and Anne
Hall from TJ². To introduce teachers to Lego Mindstorm LXT kits, Kevin
Staszowski of The Tufts University Center for Engineering Educational Outreach
guided them through the production of a simple robot to wet their appetites and
to teach them skills they can take back to their schools.
During the catered lunch, a panel assembled for the discussion of
tech-related questions involving robotics in education and the real world.
Thomas Calef, a former member of TJ² and current engineer for Hatch
Technologies, talked of how the FIRST robotics team taught him important life
skills and how it inspired him to become an engineer. From a different
stand-point, Tom Atwood, Editor-in-Chief of Robot Magazine, spoke of the
importance of engineering in the everyday life, and how the new generation of
engineers needs to be broadened to include more people that are able to cope
with new issues that the current generations have yet to solve.
Between lunch and presentations, the members of TJ², decked in their tie-dye
uniforms, guided attendees around the High School and gave them a closer look at
how a robotics team is run. In their two-year-old 'robot room' they gave
lessons on how to create your own tie-dye, for the team makes all of their
uniforms from plain white shirts. Some students were hard at work in one of the
classrooms at their disposal creating robots from Vex kits for this year's
Savage Soccer game, which is a competition held by Worchester Polytechnic
Institute each year.
Representatives from Vex Robotics and Autodesk were present at Robotics
Inside-Out to pique the interest of teachers interested in starting a team and
answer questions for all on the systems. Brad Lauer, Senior Manager of Vex
Robotics Design System said "Vex is excited to be here with Autodesk and to have
the opportunity to show the teachers and students how to transfer their
enthusiasm into real-world skills. I have to thank TJ² for taking this idea and
making it into a reality. We are looking forward to coming back next year." Not
to be out-done, Greg Donald, the Sales Executive from Autodesk, said "Autodesk
is pleased to be here with Vex Robotics…we were delighted to have the
opportunity to attend the first-annual New England Robotics Conference and to
talk to parents and educators about the curriculum we developed to introduce
robotics into the classroom. It is great to see growing support for robotics
education in Massachusetts. We look forward to returning next year."
The Conference was well-received by all and an all-around educational
experience. "It was well-planned, the food was great, and I got to do a lot of
networking with the people in robotics," Steve Bardonner of Visual Edge told us
of the Conference. On a continued positive note, Daniel Ward, a keynote speaker
from Ivy Tech Community College, said "It was a good place to start. We need to
have these all over the country, but this was a good starting point due to all
the local interest. It was an interesting mix of people. It is impressive that
so many teachers were willing to take one of their days off to come here."
Three teachers and a parent won Lego kits and a small completed robot from a
raffle. Wanting to ensure that everyone got a little something to take home,
Anne Hall also compiled goody-bags filled with such things as robotics
magazines, pamphlets, and a copy of Solid Works software for all to further
pursue their interest in bringing robotics to the classroom.
Educators and parents left well-fed and more learned in the area of robotics,
many going back to their respective towns intending to start their own robotics
teams in local schools. As for the host-team, TJ², they went home after a long
day satisfied that they had done their part to spread the true meaning of
robotics.
The United States is currently in dire need of more engineers to solve
current and future problems. The field of engineering continues to develop at a
faster rate due to the strong career path it provides along with the growing
demands of the industrialized world. With more conferences such as Robotics
Inside-Out, the word of engineering will continue to spread and will help to
educate people on the subject of robotics in practical use. As for existing
teams and their members, FIRST and its supporters remain the largest
contributors' to the engineering pool with over 80,000 people currently
involved, and this iconoclast continues to grow with new vigor each year.
Engineers create the future, so it is important that we continue to get younger
generations involved in this interesting and expansive field.
Article by Kasey MacTighe