11/24/2023 0 Comments City shaper links to pdfThe more I looked, the more I saw kids, ‘building other kids’. But, what I observed first hand in Houston went even deeper. We are using robots to build kids," started to make perfect sense to me. Kamen’s famous quote, " We are not using kids to build robots. Teams also produce a Core Values Poster and a Robot Design Executive Summary that is also used to enhance their ‘ Booth and Robot Pit’ as part of the World Festival Judging.Īs I listened to the presentations, read the posters, tried to understand the complicated robot designs & lines of code, watched the robots battle it out in the arena and observed the teams troubleshoot when things went wrong. As part of FLL teams present to three different sets of judges on how the team has developed its Core Values, a Team Project they have completed together (including identifying a problem and suggesting an innovative solution) and their Robot Design (including being able to describe why they have made key design decisions and how they have coded their robot). But, I also got to see a number of teams ‘behind the scenes’ as the competed in other parts of the competition. In Houston I got to witness this first hand as I had the opportunity to see teams from all over the world compete as part of the INTO ORBIT challenge tournament in the FLL robotics arena. Even though many pure constructionists are not fans of competitions there is something about the values behind FIRST and with it the ingredients of Discovery, Innovation, Impact, Inclusion, Teamwork and Fun that turn competition into collaboration to create an environment where everyone improves because they learn from each other. This learning happens initially as part of individual teams but continues to be incubated when teams come together to showcase their work in geographical locations (locally, nationally & internationally) and increasingly when they share their work online (via YouTube, Twitch, blogs, etc.). They become active and playful creators of knowledge who explore, question, and assess what they have learnt.Īt the resent FIRST World Festival and Championships it was fascinating to see participants who take part in FIRST LEGO League learn in constructionist way. They do this through making objects that are tangible and shareable. This theory of learning states that people construct their own understanding of the world. For example, the widely recognised Logo Turtles were designed by Seymour Papert in 1980 and firmly rooted in the theory of constructionism. Of course, using robots for educational purposes is not new. The recently published 2019 Innovating Pedagogy report predicts that Learning with Robots will have a HIGH impact on learning, teaching and assessment in the MEDIUM term (Ferguson, et. FIRST LEGO League Junior (FLLJr) followed in 2004 specifically aimed at children aged 6 to 10. In the words of Kamen, “the aim was to compete for the hearts and minds of kids with the excitement of the Super Bowl.” The LEGO Group joined forces with FIRST in 1998 to create FIRST LEGO League (FLL) and in doing so launched the worlds first junior robotics program at scale. For example, it was heartening to see the FIRST LEGO League Teams supporting and nurturing the FIRST LEGO League Junior participants as well as the FIRST Tech and FIRST Robotics Challenge participants encouraging the FIRST LEGO League Teams.įIRST stands for For Inspiration & Recognition of Science & Technology and it held its inaugural Robotics Competition in a high-school gym back in 1992. I was also delighted to see the cross permeation of rich values-based encouragement across the various FIRST programmes. At my recent visit to the FIRST World Festival and Championships in Houston, Texas I was overwhelmed by the amount of FIRST alumni who were continuing to support and spread the FIRST Values of Discovery, Innovation, Impact, Inclusion, Teamwork and Fun years after they had participated in the competitions themselves. Looking for a past Challenge? Click here.Importantly and perhaps uniquely this permeation doesn’t stop with the yearly participants. Contact your local Program Delivery Partner if you require login credentials or experience technical difficulties. The Event Hub is intended for FIRST coaches, mentors, and volunteers. If your FIRST LEGO League event is utilizing the FIRST Event Hub, please access the website at:.
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